Predict the Top 5 GC in Tour de France

[WheelofGear]

Re: Re:

Movistar and Saxo will definitely top 5 that ttt, not so sure about Sky, their ttt's are nothing special recently.

I'm not sure about Movistar for the top-5, they'll have to carry Quintana and it's not in Spain. I'm absolutely sure the four teams I listed will beat them and I'm not sure Movistar will beat every other team for the 5th spot.

What about FDJ and Katusha?

Machado is quite good if they bring him. But not good enough against a full-powered Sky team.

 

[ILovecycling]

Re:

You can't say too much about the TTT already, there will be some 7 men teams already by then, the ASO tried really hard to make sure of that

how those stages finishes looks like for the 1st week? city madness again, route furniture?

 

[Tonton]

Re: Re:

Movistar and Saxo will definitely top 5 that ttt, not so sure about Sky, their ttt's are nothing special recently.

I'm not sure about Movistar for the top-5, they'll have to carry Quintana and it's not in Spain. I'm absolutely sure the four teams I listed will beat them and I'm not sure Movistar will beat every other team for the 5th spot.

+1
And compound losing a minute to the top team with a contender with 40 seconds lost at the Stage 1 ITT, I feel Quintana may be 2 minutes behind Dawg, Bertie, or Nibbles before the mountains start. Same for Pinot, Bardet. It's better than the 4 minute hole Virenque or Pantani used to be in, but still...

 

[WheelofGear]

A Movistar team with Malori and Downsett should do well in the TT. Top 5, at least.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Re: Re:

Movistar and Saxo will definitely top 5 that ttt, not so sure about Sky, their ttt's are nothing special recently.

I'm not sure about Movistar for the top-5, they'll have to carry Quintana and it's not in Spain. I'm absolutely sure the four teams I listed will beat them and I'm not sure Movistar will beat every other team for the 5th spot.

Since Quintana started his pro career, he has won three time trials (counting both individual and team), all of them in Grand Tours. In that same time, the entire proposed Tinkoff team have won one (Sagan in a very short and flat race in California).

Quintana can more than handle himself in the time trial; especially on the hills he will more than contribute and pull his weight.

Yeah, I agree with this. Quintana really sucks in flat ITT's but he's very good in hilly ITT's, so I think he should do fine here.

 

[Jancouver]

Since Kreuziger is cleared to ride and allowed to go full ***, he will podium TDF!

1. Niballi or someone else from Astana
2. Valverde
3. Kreuziger
4. Quintana
5. Froome

 

[gregrowlerson]

Re:

Since Kreuziger is cleared to ride and allowed to go full ***, he will podium TDF!

1. Niballi or someone else from Astana
2. Valverde
3. Kreuziger
4. Quintana
5. Froome

Surprisingly not the worst prediction ever! He soft pedalled many stages in the Giro's final week, so could be a little bit fresher than Contador.

This really is the most unpredictable Tour that I can remember.

 

[ILovecycling]

Re: Re:

Since Kreuziger is cleared to ride and allowed to go full ***, he will podium TDF!

1. Niballi or someone else from Astana
2. Valverde
3. Kreuziger
4. Quintana
5. Froome

Surprisingly not the worst prediction ever! He soft pedalled many stages in the Giro's final week, so could be a little bit fresher than Contador.

This really is the most unpredictable Tour that I can remember.

Ilness is not a good training for any race


Also how he would beat Quintana and Froome is beyond me (altough I would like to see it )

 

[buchanan]

1. Froome / Quintana
2. Quintana / Froome
3. Nibali
4. Rodriguez
5. Contador

I think barring illness or crashes it could be quite a tight fight between Quintana and Froome for the win. I think Contador will suffer after his Giro efforts and may be pipped for 4th place by Rodriguez, Pinot or somebody else.

 

[DBotero]

Re: Re:

Since Kreuziger is cleared to ride and allowed to go full ***, he will podium TDF!

1. Niballi or someone else from Astana
2. Valverde
3. Kreuziger
4. Quintana
5. Froome

Surprisingly not the worst prediction ever! He soft pedalled many stages in the Giro's final week, so could be a little bit fresher than Contador.

This really is the most unpredictable Tour that I can remember.

Ilness is not a good training for any race


Also how he would beat Quintana and Froome is beyond me (altough I would like to see it )

Superior bike handling

 

[Gigs_98]

Re: Re:

Since Kreuziger is cleared to ride and allowed to go full ***, he will podium TDF!

1. Niballi or someone else from Astana
2. Valverde
3. Kreuziger
4. Quintana
5. Froome

Surprisingly not the worst prediction ever! He soft pedalled many stages in the Giro's final week, so could be a little bit fresher than Contador.

This really is the most unpredictable Tour that I can remember.

Yes he might be fresher than contador but I doubt that he is stronger than quintana, froome, ...

 

[WheelofGear]

If Kreuziger will be in the line-up, he will be used before Kiserlovski who I except to step up and be their 3rd last man.

 

[Jancouver]

Re:

If Kreuziger will be in the line-up, he will be used before Kiserlovski who I except to step up and be their 3rd last man.

I dont want to turn this into clinic but you have to realize that RK is allowed due to his "medical condition" to go full *** and no one will be able to even look nor question his blood values.

I would be really surprised if he didnt take advantage of that benefit especially having the option to seek damages from the UCI.

1+1=3 ... therefore, Kreuziger for the podium!

 

[Waterloo Sunrise]

So I searched this thread and only one visionary called a Yates top 5.

You're all on crack.

 

[SeriousSam]

You're still thinking the Yates are going to turn into the Schlecks huh.

 

[Waterloo Sunrise]

Re:

You're still thinking the Yates are going to turn into the Schlecks huh.

That's just insulting.

 

[42x16ss]

Re: Re:

Tonton, do you think Movistar is sending 9 pure climbers to the Tour?

Have you seen their TT resume for the riders that are going to the Tour?

Amongst the GC team, don't see Movistar as good as Sky, Saxo-Tinkov, or even Astana. Obviously, some here disagree. Resume? Irrelevant IMO: no team will be at 100% after a grueling week. I think the three other teams I mentioned have more depth. I could be wrong. We shall see.

Even without any big name time triallists, Movistar nearly always put in a very good TT; they are a fantastically well oiled machine. If Malori, Castroviejo, Dowsett and Valverde are all there and in reasonable shape, they will be challenging for the win in my opinion.

Movistar are being underrated in this thread!

Malori
Dowsett
Castroviejo
Valverde
Sutherland
Quintana
Izaguirre
Gadret
Rojas

As their likely Tour Team, that probably won't win the TTT but Quintana certainly won't drop much time. Movistar will look after him like OGE did with Chavez and that sure held OGE back...

 

[Pentacycle]

Sutherland? Gadret? They have done nothing this year, and they're not suitable as guides for Quintana/Valaverde on the flat stages. If it was up to me, Capecchi and Ventoso would go.

 

[bassano]

Re: Re:

I don't think of the 2013 Evans as an elite gc contender at that point in his career nor is Uran. Contador, Froome, and Quintana are the current elite.

When I saw the uphill TT Mori-Polsa when he put one minute into second placed Samu I understood that he's at a whole new level with Astana. Unfortunately Sir Brad, the reigning TdF winner did not finish that Giro so that everybody see where Nibs was at that point in his career. The remaining contenders, sure were not at a very high level, something Contador experienced in this year Giro. The difference was that Nibs won that Giro breathing only through his nose.

You mean just like Berto dropped Nibali on stage 8 of last year's Tour?

classic lame post by contador fan, being dropped you mean 3s in last 50 meters which Nibali really did not cared about

 

[TheYouyou7]

Re: Re:

I don't think of the 2013 Evans as an elite gc contender at that point in his career nor is Uran. Contador, Froome, and Quintana are the current elite.

When I saw the uphill TT Mori-Polsa when he put one minute into second placed Samu I understood that he's at a whole new level with Astana. Unfortunately Sir Brad, the reigning TdF winner did not finish that Giro so that everybody see where Nibs was at that point in his career. The remaining contenders, sure were not at a very high level, something Contador experienced in this year Giro. The difference was that Nibs won that Giro breathing only through his nose.

You mean just like Berto dropped Nibali on stage 8 of last year's Tour?

classic lame post by contador fan, being dropped you mean 3s in last 50 meters which Nibali really did not cared about

Nibali was going flat out while AC looked so easy.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re: Re:

Nibali was going flat out while AC looked so easy.

Indeed , it was so funny, damn Alberto was in monster shape, I hope he can get close to that form this year

 

[ILovecycling]

Re: Re:

If Kreuziger will be in the line-up, he will be used before Kiserlovski who I except to step up and be their 3rd last man.

I dont want to turn this into clinic but you have to realize that RK is allowed due to his "medical condition" to go full *** and no one will be able to even look nor question his blood values.

I would be really surprised if he didnt take advantage of that benefit especially having the option to seek damages from the UCI.

1+1=3 ... therefore, Kreuziger for the podium!

This post is such a bs, completely clueless how tests works
...
and take it to the clinic

 

[bassano]

Re: Re:

Nibali was going flat out while AC looked so easy.

Indeed , it was so funny, damn Alberto was in monster shape, I hope he can get close to that form this year

ofc your eyes see what you want to see
in that day Alberto put very small gap not only on Nibali but even on other riders, 2 days later Nibali gave much more time to them, ofc on longer ascent but less steeper
fact is Nibali was best rider in that TDF no matter your personal feelings which does not count at all
I am just curious what non sense excuses you will say after this tour, If Nibali will be weak and he will loose lot of time I will tell, you were right, sorry for that I believed in him so much, can you do the same? honestly

 

[Miburo]

Did nibali ever defeat contador in a GT? No he didn't.

Contador has always been superior to nibali, and contador looked amazing in the tour 2014. You're in denial if you don't think contador was in amazing shape. Go look back at that stage, where he gained 3 'sec'.

 

[bassano]

Re:

Did nibali ever defeat contador in a GT? No he didn't.

Contador has always been superior to nibali, and contador looked amazing in the tour 2014. You're in denial if you don't think contador was in amazing shape. Go look back at that stage, where he gained 3 'sec'.

No before, you are right but Nibali got into such great shape from 2012 later
And I am not denying he was in good shape, or he did not looked great but that year simply was not enough for Nibali, no matter mistake he did when he crashed, he left tour with 2:30 behind Nibali, time which on 90% he had no chance to take back, you can only wish it