Richie Porte Discussion Thread.

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

BMC willeb in yellow...or at least trying to be after the TTT...Its their speciality

Any chance Dennis is riding the Tour....he is strong and coul shelter Richie if anything happens to GVA

I think Dennis is riding the Tour which means BMC will push Sky in the TTT but after a hard Giro it might be too much for him. He will be there mainly for the first week. His climbing isn't good enough to matter much for Porte.

Not worth brining Dennis for one week ?? Also de Marchi will be tired
So that just leaves Caruso & Van Garderen for MTNs...I do think you need a team mate in case of a mechanical etc

Are they bringing Tuens ?
Roche is not riding the Tour ...not top in MNTs but good allrounder and strong....but had blowout in Giro so maybe there is that

Roche might be getting close to retirement but he has always been a hard rider to read. Mostly when I expected him to do well he didn't. Really not sure what Gerrans can offer either if he starts. I expect it won't be much but I hope I'm wrong. Plenty of experience. Hope he has decent legs, like GVA his climbing can be good as a support rider. if Dennis goes it's obviously for the TTT mainly and the first nine stages which is where Porte can struggle. He's worth the selection just for that. Schar, GVA, Caruso and others will be more important to Porte over the duration of the race. BMC just don't have the talent that other teams have over all terrain.

If they can figure out how to get TVG's head on straight he will be a huge help in the mountains, but the question is can they keep him mentally there. He'll also be a huge help for the TTT.

He will be important in the TTT but his climbing especially on the hard climbs hasn't been good for a long time. I think Porte will rely more on Caruso but hope that TJVG can hang on longer than he has been doing in recent years.

 

[jaylew]

Re:

C'mon guys! Swiss is just another Willunga Hill one week race. We all know that he can sprint up one hill for a few minutes

... but we all also know that the little midget will crack sooner than later and will be out of contention by the 3rd week. Which may be a good thing as he may be targeting stages instead.

Nah, he hasn't cracked in a GT in awhile. He'll be fine if he can avoid bad luck. Definitely a podium contender.

 

[greenedge]

I'd like for Teuns to be in the squad, as another climber will help (though he needs to be at P-N form to be of use). It's also a real pity that De Marchi rode the Giro and would be too tired for the TDF.

@Jancouver, of course you can associate Richie's name with the podium, in 2016 he was 1 min and 12 seconds off 2nd place. I'm not saying he will podium (Aussie bias aside) but he does have a good chance and is ticking off the right boxes with this win.

 

[Nirvana]

In 2016 he lost 1'45" due to a puncture in the second stage, he would have finished second without that.

 

[RedheadDane]

Re: Re:

BMC willeb in yellow...or at least trying to be after the TTT...Its their speciality

Any chance Dennis is riding the Tour....he is strong and coul shelter Richie if anything happens to GVA

I think Dennis is riding the Tour which means BMC will push Sky in the TTT but after a hard Giro it might be too much for him. He will be there mainly for the first week. His climbing isn't good enough to matter much for Porte.

Not worth brining Dennis for one week ?? Also de Marchi will be tired
So that just leaves Caruso & Van Garderen for MTNs...I do think you need a team mate in case of a mechanical etc

Are they bringing Tuens ?
Roche is not riding the Tour ...not top in MNTs but good allrounder and strong....but had blowout in Giro so maybe there is that

I'm not sure that's legal...

 

[SHAD0W93]

What happens on the team bus stays on the team bus.

What would stink for him is if he is riding well and TVG is as well and tries to go for his own result.

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

BMC willeb in yellow...or at least trying to be after the TTT...Its their speciality

Any chance Dennis is riding the Tour....he is strong and coul shelter Richie if anything happens to GVA

I think Dennis is riding the Tour which means BMC will push Sky in the TTT but after a hard Giro it might be too much for him. He will be there mainly for the first week. His climbing isn't good enough to matter much for Porte.

Not worth brining Dennis for one week ?? Also de Marchi will be tired
So that just leaves Caruso & Van Garderen for MTNs...I do think you need a team mate in case of a mechanical etc

Are they bringing Tuens ?
Roche is not riding the Tour ...not top in MNTs but good allrounder and strong....but had blowout in Giro so maybe there is that

I'm not sure that's legal...

In the 80s it seemed to be bleaching ........many riders seemed to be bleaching their hair back then but brining I think is going a little too far. Screaming at the rider is less messy and protracted. Dennis should get another chance before being sent to the tank.

 

[Oude Geuze]

I think a lot of professionals are doing cold water baths with different salt "electrolyte" solutions these days. Not so sure about garlic and pepper though, but it wouldn't be illigal I don't think.

 

[Cookster15]

Re:

What happens on the team bus stays on the team bus.

What would stink for him is if he is riding well and TVG is as well and tries to go for his own result.

Surely the penny has dropped for TJ and his fans that he was an early bloomer and that won't happen. But if Porte is strong TVG won't have any choice he would look a complete fool. I am quietly confident Porte will be super strong next month he is certainly no risk of being over cooked which is what everyone was saying this time last season. Whether this is good enough to podium we will see it would probably come down to how good his TT is he can be a bit hot and cold and vulnerable on flat courses or windy courses. I would really love to see Porte at his best in the 3rd week mountains and drop his former captain. That would be beautiful.

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

What happens on the team bus stays on the team bus.

What would stink for him is if he is riding well and TVG is as well and tries to go for his own result.

Surely the penny has dropped for TJ and his fans that he was an early bloomer and that won't happen. But if Porte is strong TVG won't have any choice he would look a complete fool. I am quietly confident Porte will be super strong next month he is certainly no risk of being over cooked which is what everyone was saying this time last season. Whether this is good enough to podium we will see it would probably come down to how good his TT is he can be a bit hot and cold and vulnerable on flat courses or windy courses. I would really love to see Porte at his best in the 3rd week mountains and drop his former captain. That would be beautiful.

BMC seemed to make the decision pretty early on this season that there would only be one leader. TJVG always gets dropped early on the hard mountain stages so it's really not going to change Porte's race much as Caruso is usually his final helper on the climbs. But they will be hoping that TJVG can be very good in the TTT and on the early slopes of the climbs. Unless there is a real form reversal I think that's all they are hoping for. Porte was giving Tejay some praise during the TDS which was a good sign for the team and VG's ride in the ITT was also good. So his form looks pretty good at the moment for the role he is going to play.

 

[jmdirt]

Heavy rumor that RP is heading to Treck-Segafredo. My question though is, what if BMC comes through with funding for a few more years, will RP stay? Is he happy at BMC?

 

[Cance > TheRest]

I think he would fit very well into Trek. The biggest issue is that Trek has not been doing well in team time trials, so obviously, if LRP decides to keep on his GT pursuit after the Tour (depending on the outcome, I suppose), he's going to turn what is now his biggest advantage into a disadvantage in GT's that consist of TTT's.

What are Mollema's prospects? I see his contract with Trek is running out after this year. Will he be satisfied to play 2nd man after LRP? Not that I think Mollema has done much to deserve being the team's sole GT focus.

 

[yaco]

Trek lacks quality in their squad so the signing of Porte is a no-brainer - Will win them races and could do well in GT's.

 

[LaFlorecita]

He's a good replacement for Contador - results guaranteed in one-week stage races, possibility of a big result in GTs. Mollema isn't cutting it.
But - he's already 33...

 

[May0maniac]

Re:

It's a good replacement for Contador - results guaranteed in one-week stage races, possibility of a big result in GTs. Mollema isn't cutting it.
But - he's already 33...

He could be a good transitional team leader until the young guys (Ruben Guerreiro , Eg and Conci) are fully developed, he'll get a lot of great results in shorter stage races. That would also allow them to send Mollema to a different gt and if Felline and Brambilla are both healthy the team will be a lot stronger.

 

[silvergrenade]

I'd like Richie to not go to Trek.
Very average team. Going from BMC to Trek is like going from PGA tour to the Asian Tour. Just no.
He should wait until after the tour to get a better team. Astana? Bora?

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Re:

I'd like Richie to not go to Trek.
Very average team. Going from BMC to Trek is like going from PGA tour to the Asian Tour. Just no.
He should wait until after the tour to get a better team. Astana? Bora?

It’s hard to see him at Bora. They support GC riders more than Quickstep do, but they are primarily about sprints and classics. Their GC guys are either second tier contenders or prospects they have developed themselves. I’m not sure that they have either the spare money or the desire to bring in someone who would demand Tour contender support. Would Porte be willing to go to a team where he knows Sagan will be their highest priority? I think he knows he has one more contract at the top and he will want absolute commitment to his own cause.

 

[GuyIncognito]

Re: Re:

It's a good replacement for Contador - results guaranteed in one-week stage races, possibility of a big result in GTs. Mollema isn't cutting it.
But - he's already 33...

He could be a good transitional team leader until the young guys (Ruben Guerreiro , Eg and Conci) are fully developed

I don't see those developing into leaders

Maybe Eg, but I doubt it. Conci's previous results don't seem that level and Guerreiro is basically 24 already

 

[movingtarget]

Re:

He's a good replacement for Contador - results guaranteed in one-week stage races, possibility of a big result in GTs. Mollema isn't cutting it.
But - he's already 33...

No brainer for Porte. BMC keep stringing people along while riders are watching others get snapped up at other teams. Porte only has two more years at the top maybe. Usually mid thirties sees a deterioration with most GC riders but it was interesting that Sky was one of the team that made enquiries......they just can't get enough quality domestiques for Froomie it seems !

 

[movingtarget]

Re:

Heavy rumor that RP is heading to Treck-Segafredo. My question though is, what if BMC comes through with funding for a few more years, will RP stay? Is he happy at BMC?

BMC have simply left it too late. Tejay has also been linked to other teams and GVA has been looking of course. I actually thought that Porte might have gone to one of the Middle Eastern teams. Cashed up teams that need more talent but maybe Porte wanted to stay with an American based team. Astana might have also been a possibility but they already have Lopez and Fuglsang.

 

[dastott]

Good move for Porte and Trek, and the Tour doesn't have a TTT every year. Would be interesting to see him back at Sky too but with Thomas, Poels and Bernal vying for GT leaderships there would seem no space there.

 

[Blanco]

Re:

Trek lacks quality in their squad so the signing of Porte is a no-brainer - Will win them races and could do well in GT's.

But somehow never did

 

[jaylew]

Re: Re:

Trek lacks quality in their squad so the signing of Porte is a no-brainer - Will win them races and could do well in GT's.

But somehow never did

I'd say he did. Would have been 2nd at the Tour without a badly timed flat and still was 5th.

 

[Blanco]

Re: Re:

Trek lacks quality in their squad so the signing of Porte is a no-brainer - Will win them races and could do well in GT's.

But somehow never did

I'd say he did. Would have been 2nd at the Tour without a badly timed flat and still was 5th.

Highly questionable, and the bottom line is that he was still 5th, and that's his highest placing in entire career! I'm still waiting for him to prove that he's genuine GT contender.

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

Trek lacks quality in their squad so the signing of Porte is a no-brainer - Will win them races and could do well in GT's.

But somehow never did

I'd say he did. Would have been 2nd at the Tour without a badly timed flat and still was 5th.

Highly questionable, and the bottom line is that he was still 5th, and that's his highest placing in entire career! I'm still waiting for him to prove that he's genuine GT contender.

Well he punctured at the worst possible time but that's Porte for you. Second looked pretty likely that year and he only semi cracked on one mountain stage and didn't lose much time. He was also looking strong on the Ventoux before the idiotic crash caused by the motorbike but the time gap wouldn't have been very big to the next group with the shortening of the stage etc.....Porte has two more chances probably. The last two were huge opportunities missed and in sport you don't get many unless you are a superstar which he isn't but he knows that better than anyone.