What I am saying is his competition was harder to beat...
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But you also have to consider total energy expenditure throughout the race. None of the sprinters go for wins in the mountains, the TTs, look to launch attacks on tough terrain and win. No they just conserve energy as much as possible to win field sprints. I bet with Van Aert's turn of speed, focusing only on the field sprints, he could have won against peak Cav and Kittel at least a couple of times.
Although it probably wasn't too difficult for him, it still wasn't like peak Sagan just stayed in the peloton and conserved energy on tougher days. Going into breaks and winning points to make sure the other sprinters never really felt like they could win the green jersey was his modus operandi. If he had been targeting breakaway wins and taken it easier on more stages, then I think he could have won a couple of stages that way, but then he wouldn't necessarily have had seven green jerseys to his name.
Wout Van Aert is now just like Sagan was till Richmond 2015. He's definitely among the very best riders in the world, but he's lacking biggest wins to back that up.
Not really. Sagan had won Gent-Wevelgem and E3 of bigger one-day races.
Van Aert has won MSR, Strade, Amstel, GW, E3, Omloop, Bretagne Classic and multiple medals at Worlds and Olympics.
Sagan was 25 in 2015.
It is better to compare them at what Sagan had achieved by the end of 2018 to Van Aert today.
By the end of 2018 Sagan has 3 WCs, Flanders, PR, added another two victories in G-W, two wins in Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec, added another two wins in the PC in the Tour...
33 victories in total 2016-2018, if I didnt make a mistake when I counted.
It is better to compare them at what Sagan had achieved by the end of 2018 to Van Aert today.
By the end of 2018 Sagan has 3 WCs, Flanders, PR, added another two victories in G-W, two wins in Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec, added another two wins in the PC in the Tour...
33 victories in total 2016-2018, if I didnt make a mistake when I counted.
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Wout did more. Sagan could never have won the double Ventoux and the Champs Ellisse and worry about your GC guy.
Don't understand how people think Belgian Pozzato can compare to Sagan?
WVA has nowhere near the racing intelligence as Sagan has. Actually if we look at watts only, WVA in his absolute peak is probably stronger than any version of Sagan, but cycling is not only watts is it? Otherwise we just do a zwift test and not bother with racing.
World championships is hardest race to won multiple times on different courses. There is no radio, a rider has to think for himself. Sagan 3x in a row is an absolute legendary achievement that should already put him ahead of Van aert who doesn't know what to do tactically a lot of the time. Let alone Flanders and Roubaix which Sagan won and van aert didn't.
WVA has nowhere near the racing intelligence as Sagan has. Actually if we look at watts only, WVA in his absolute peak is probably stronger than any version of Sagan, but cycling is not only watts is it? Otherwise we just do a zwift test and not bother with racing.
World championships is hardest race to won multiple times on different courses. There is no radio, a rider has to think for himself. Sagan 3x in a row is an absolute legendary achievement that should already put him ahead of Van aert who doesn't know what to do tactically a lot of the time. Let alone Flanders and Roubaix which Sagan won and van aert didn't.
I'm not claiming that. I'm just pointing out that Sagan definitely wasn't your ordinary sprinter either.
Wout is tad younger, but he needs to do a truckload of results still to reach, what Sagan has achieved.
PCS h2h comparisons and all time points ranking for active riders tells the story, Pogi and Wout need to double up, MvdP need to triple up. It's busy.
I never said Sagan was an ordinary sprinter, just that overall Wout is more complete and stronger, because he can climb and TT better than Sagan. As far as energy expenditure goes, this says something:
https://cyclinguptodate.com/cycling...ng-to-former-uae-staff-member-aart-vierhouten
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Don't get why people get so much into comparing riders not directly racing against eachother. Too many variables make such a discussion redundant.
Sagan WAS one of the best riders several years in a row, but isn't anymore, Van Aert currently IS one of the best.
Sagan WAS one of the best riders several years in a row, but isn't anymore, Van Aert currently IS one of the best.
Wasn't about careers, as Van Aert still should have years ahead of him, but strengths vs weaknesses, which are a constant. And I like Sagan, but winning on Ventoux, the Champs Ellisse, being so good at TTing, dropping Pog in the Pyrennes and, though he hasn't taken Flanders or Roubaix or Worlds yet, in theory, it's only a matter of time. As good as Sagan was, I just can't see him having been that strong in all those things. Indeed, he wasn't.
I agree, WVA is way more versatile, but both are/were peak time sight for sore eyes.
Surpass in what?
In total wins he won't.
In big wins hardly.
Green Jerseys no way.
In TT's - hell yeah.
Hardly? He's already got Mount Ventoux (which, by the way, Peter could never have gotten), CE, MSR, Amstel Gold ,and you don't think Flanders, PR, Worlds at least once are on the way?Surpass in what?
In total wins he won't.
In big wins hardly.
Green Jerseys no way.
In TT's - hell yeah.
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The thing about TTs: if you have real speed and power and decide to train TTs you can get very good. Why would a sprinter want to do that to his body? He's proven he can do long climbs to take GT stage wins. He had to train to make that happen at some expense to actual sprint speed. Arguing theoretical attributes and outcomes is an interesting Winter pastime but not real. Real wins are real wins.Surpass in what?
In total wins he won't.
In big wins hardly.
Green Jerseys no way.
In TT's - hell yeah.
Of course, Van Aert patently disproves this, who without sacrificing anything, is a beast at TTing, actually won on a "long climb" and took the sprint on the Champs Ellisse. But we are dealing with Superman.
Aimar16
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I think there were years where he was the best cyclist, not just one of the best.
It was just to avoid further discussion. He might have been, but always hard to judge between different types of riders.
Aimar16
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All right, I understand that. Although his 2016 season was almost flawless
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