Teams & Riders Official Wout Van Aert thread

[OlavEH]

After he gave away the victory to Laporte in GW, this has been a disappointing and below average season for Van Aert.

I really hope he can get a big victory, like PR or RVV, for next year. He deserves that at the moment!

 

[theyoungest]

But it certainly isn't 100% sure, it's maybe 60/40 at best in Van Aert's favor, although he more often lost that sprints against Van Der Poel than won.

In a two-up sprint, preferably slightly uphill, Van der Poel is simply better than Van Aert. Don't confuse this with a bunch sprint, that's a different ballgame. VDP is smarter, has a better kick, and has the psychological advantage over WVA.

In a race like today, for instance, there's zero doubt in my mind that VDP would have won that sprint. I don't think anyone doubts that...

 

[stonerider]

After he gave away the victory to Laporte in GW, this has been a disappointing and below average season for Van Aert.

I really hope he can get a big victory, like PR or RVV, for next year. He deserves that at the moment!

I bet he wishes he hadn't gifted GW to Laporte now.

 

[Hugh Januss]

In a two-up sprint, preferably slightly uphill, Van der Poel is simply better than Van Aert. Don't confuse this with a bunch sprint, that's a different ballgame. VDP is smarter, has a better kick, and has the psychological advantage over WVA.

In a race like today, for instance, there's zero doubt in my mind that VDP would have won that sprint. I don't think anyone doubts that...

Agree about the better kick, but smarter? Wout is better at bunch sprints because he is better at finding his way through to the finish, or at least to the last 150 M. It's a chess game. Better kick is what does it, Wout goes early and the better kick gets VDP on his wheel, Wout waits he gets outkicked.

 

[jono]

Everyone seems to have such a depth of knowledge of what happens in WVA-MVDP two-up sprints. How many have there actually been on the road?

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Since 2019:
OG: silver
WC: 4x silver (TT + road)
CX WC: 3x silver
EC: silver plus bronze

it's nice that I'm always there, but this year I'm not quite there

Silver Wout!

 

[Barkintheeye]

I really hope he can get a big victory, like PR or RVV, for next year. He deserves that at the moment!

I would like to agree. Wout is a phenomenal cyclist and he has been very close many times the last years so yes in a sense he is deserving a big win but that’s not how the world works. There seems to be no lack of new, young strong riders every year challenging the top roster. Slowly but surely time is running out…

 

[Keldergoat]

Time is running out is a bit exaggerated for a guy who just turned 29. Especially since in the cobbled monuments the more experienced riders are often favoured (DvB, GvA, Gilbert, MvP all winning the race fairly 'late' in their career for the first time). What I would say that he seriously has to rethink his strategy. Everyone knows his strength, but he seems to lack the 'weapons' against an MvdP after a 250k race. You need to be a bit more risk-taking / innovative on how to approach a final of a monument versus the way he rode this year.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Yes.

quite confident for someone who bottles nearly any truly important sprint against VDP.

 

[Penninepeddler]

Nice win today in Coppa Bernocchi...

but his podium stats for the year for Pro road races are pretty silly, that ratio for 1sts to 2nd and 3rd places...

21 podiums

5x 1st
16x 2nd-3rd

23.8% of podiums were wins.

Compared to the last few years:

2022:

25 podiums

9x 1st
16x 2nd-3rd

36% of podiums were wins

2021:

23 podiums

13 x 1st
10 x 2nd-3rd

56.5% of podiums were wins

2020:

12 podiums

6x 1st
6x 2nd-3rd

50% of podiums were wins

2019:

11 podiums

5x 1st
6x 2nd-3rd

45.5% of podiums were wins

 

[CyclistAbi]

This year van Aert had pretty bad Tour campaign. That is mostly there for Jonas. So stats suffered a bit.

And nice win today indeed. Seeing van Aert at the front of CN these days. You don't know if he won or announced he is switching teams. False alarm, for now.

 

[Unterlenkerfahrend]

Is he gonna race Lombardia?

 

[Panda Claws]

Not quite a monument but close.

And he's back on top!

 

[Ripper]

Perhaps this change in coach will result in him no longer being first-loser-van-Aert

 

[Salvarani]

Coach chose going with Roglic... ouch.

 

[xo 1]

Nice win today in Coppa Bernocchi...

but his podium stats for the year for Pro road races are pretty silly, that ratio for 1sts to 2nd and 3rd places...

21 podiums

5x 1st
16x 2nd-3rd

23.8% of podiums were wins.

Compared to the last few years:

2022:

25 podiums

9x 1st
16x 2nd-3rd

36% of podiums were wins

2021:

23 podiums

13 x 1st
10 x 2nd-3rd

56.5% of podiums were wins

2020:

12 podiums

6x 1st
6x 2nd-3rd

50% of podiums were wins

2019:

11 podiums

5x 1st
6x 2nd-3rd

45.5% of podiums were wins

Nice work. Very interesting perspective. 2021 and 2020 set a tremendously high bar.

 

[Lequack]

He wants to do the Giro and Olympics it seems, will that means no Tour? Jumbo's 2 tour victories owe a lot to Wout being there.

Wout van Aert wants the Giro d'Italia and the Olympic Games. What about the Tour? Is Jumbo-Visma willing to give in?

We all know that Wout van Aert is an athlete who loves new challenges, who finds in them a way to motivate himself and grow more as a man and an athlete.His team, Jumbo Visma, will defend the trident...

cyclinguptodate.com

 

[Bolder]

He wants to do the Giro and Olympics it seems, will that means no Tour? Jumbo's 2 tour victories owe a lot to Wout being there.

Wout van Aert wants the Giro d'Italia and the Olympic Games. What about the Tour? Is Jumbo-Visma willing to give in?

We all know that Wout van Aert is an athlete who loves new challenges, who finds in them a way to motivate himself and grow more as a man and an athlete.His team, Jumbo Visma, will defend the trident...

cyclinguptodate.com

I wonder if he would really put his foot down and demand not to do the Tour.

Especially without Roglic and Van Hooydonck, Visma need him at his best in July. Having Wout could be a huge advantage on the the Troyes gravel stage alone.

I don't think Matteo Jorgenson could step in although on paper he might be the Visma rider who's closest to Wout as a mid-mountain domestique. But he lacks Wout's experience. If Tratnik and Van Baarle are at their best perhaps not having Wout could be OK. But not ideal.

 

[Wyndbrook]

I wonder if he would really put his foot down and demand not to do the Tour.

Especially without Roglic and Van Hooydonck, Visma need him at his best in July. Having Wout could be a huge advantage on the the Troyes gravel stage alone.

I don't think Matteo Jorgenson could step in although on paper he might be the Visma rider who's closest to Wout as a mid-mountain domestique. But he lacks Wout's experience. If Tratnik and Van Baarle are at their best perhaps not having Wout could be OK. But not ideal.

State in public what you want, sowing the seed.
Perhaps he feels empowered after the last few weeks.

 

[Pantani_lives]

I hope he stays away from the Tour, where he would only be used as a work horse. If I were him I would do all five monuments, WCRR and Olympics. The Giro for a stage win would be compatible with that.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Very good. Just stay away from the stage races that Jonas rides and you're good. Way too talented to help him.

 

[theyoungest]

I hope he stays away from the Tour, where he would only be used as a work horse. If I were him I would do all five monuments, WCRR and Olympics. The Giro for a stage win would be compatible with that.

It would, but if he wants to be really good at the Olympics it might be smarter to ride the Tour. Just don't go on any pointless attacks. Ride as a pure domestique, a little more conservatively. Just like MVDP did in the Tour this year in preparation for Worlds.

 

[Peyroteo94]

Finally, he won't babysit Vingegaard in the Tour. A rider of his caliber doesn't deserve to be a donkey and I think Vingegaard will not need him even if it is a major blow for Vingegaard. Wout is probably the best domestique in the world.

 

[Peyroteo94]

It would, but if he wants to be really good at the Olympics it might be smarter to ride the Tour. Just don't go on any pointless attacks. Ride as a pure domestique, a little more conservatively. Just like MVDP did in the Tour this year in preparation for Worlds.

He can't ride the Tour the way MVP did because Jumbo needs him to be alert and push a hard tempo to tire Pogi or to avoid UAE riders in the break. And for some reason, Wout doesn't have a champion mind, he needs to be selfish and demands more from the team. In which world, should he gift classics like Gent Wevelgem to teammates?

 

[theyoungest]

He can't ride the Tour the way MVP did because Jumbo needs him to be alert and push a hard tempo to tire Pogi or to avoid UAE riders in the break. And for some reason, Wout doesn't have a champion mind, he needs to be selfish and demands more from the team. In which world, should he gift classics like Gent Wevelgem to teammates?

It has nothing to do with not being selfish enough, but just not good enough on the moments that matter.

The gift of Gent-Wevelgem was smart in the sense that Laporte worked for him in the Ronde... but then Van Aert himself just couldn't follow the strongest riders in the race.