Rigoberto Uran discussion thread.

[Velolover2]

Re: Re:

He shouldn't even think about the Tour. Best case scenario would be; He manages to get into top form and he has full team support - even in this situation he wouldn't be more than 5th though. Truth is he won't have any real support and this sickness could even hamper his preparation for the Tour. He should quit the Giro and aim for a top place at the Vuelta.

agreed. Forget about the tour. The team will ride for cav anyway and he will get couple climber to help (they they are all crashed out again like in the Giro). Better recover, get healthy and go to Vuelta. At least, he might have all the support there than the Tour. Then after that, look for other team who will help his GC aspiration.

But what team? Is he good enough - would you build a team around Uran? I doubt.

Lampre? Costa is simply not a GT rider IMO.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

they need to make a big antioquia wt team with betancur, henao and uran. all from antioquia and without contracts and a ****load of points

 

[Escarabajo]

Re: Re:

[quote="Taxus4a"Uran is much better than Kiatlowski for the mountains stages of the Tour. He has a Giro where everything went bad, bud luck, but who knows if in the Tour everything is well? In that case, he will have Tony Martin and Kiatkowski to work.

At best, Uran will be fighting for a top 5 GC and that's a lot to ask already. Has he even ever top 20'ed the Tour? I don't think so. Kwiatkowski can challenge for the win on a lot of stages. EQS (and Uran) will be much better off focusing on other goals like the fall classics.

I thought he said he would be stage hunting just like Kwiat. Neither one has a chance for a high GC but for stages. And neither one requires a big support from other team members. Only Primadona Cavendish. So on hilly stages it would be wise to play out for the strongest that day.

And please stop saying that Kwiat is going to get support because he is less proven than Porte at this moment IMHO.

I don't think anyone has said that Kwiatkowski is a better GC rider than Uran.

I haven't either. I just pointing to the team support for Kwiat. Still don't understand why if he is going for stages.

 

[The Hitch]

Re: Re:

At best, Uran will be fighting for a top 5 GC and that's a lot to ask already. Has he even ever top 20'ed the Tour? I don't think so. Kwiatkowski can challenge for the win on a lot of stages. EQS (and Uran) will be much better off focusing on other goals like the fall classics.

7th (White jersey), 2nd, 2nd at the Giro.
Retired while wearing the white jersey at the tour.
I say he can definitely top 5 at the tour.

His problem though is that he's lacking in the health department. He's retired because of lung related sickness at the tour and vuelta and also probably this giro as well. I say he should retire and focus on the tour considering he's never regained his health in the middle of a GT.

His problem isn't his health. His problem is that he has close to 0% chance of beating Froome, Nibali, Contador or Quintana. So yeah, he'll be fighting for the last spot in the top 5.

Well Nibali is only one wrung above Uran there. He can at best hope for 4th and has a close to 0% chance of beating Contador Quintana or Froome. Yet despite that he actually won the TDF last year. *** happens.

 

[movingtarget]

If he rides the Tour he should just try and win a stage otherwise he will be killing himself for a top 10 or 15. After this Giro and his illness it's hard to see him doing well in the Tour. The Vuelta would give him more time to recover but the course does not suit him at all. Podium would be unlikely I think. He needs to change teams but that is always difficult now especially for GC riders. Porte will have the same problem if he decides to leave Sky probably even more so as Uran has at least podiumed GTs. Uran should have stayed at Sky as he would have had Porte riding for him in the Giro but hindsight is a wonderful thing and of course Froome's presence means he would never be a team leader at the Tour. Garmin and Katusha might have worked but Garmin look pretty weak these days and Katusha have Zakarin for the future and Rodriguez for now. BMC are still believing in TJVG so that probably would not have worked. GE probably not and they would prefer Porte and have a few young riders for the future who could possibly improve enough. So even if he wanted to leave it won't be an easy fit elsewhere unless a new team possibly comes along and the Alonso project seems to be stalled. There would be no point him going to a smaller team with even less support and of course money is always an issue.

 

[DBotero]

Today he lost 10:31,i don't see why he's carry on,his condition is not improving.He won't win a stage in this form,he should retire and recover.Then he'll get another chance in Le Tour or Vuelta.

 

[carton]

Today he lost 10:31,i don't see why he's carry on,his condition is not improving.He won't win a stage in this form,he should retire and recover.Then he'll get another chance in Le Tour or Vuelta.

It doesn't seem to be his style. Also, unless someone has been really keeping their powder bone-dry, Uran seems to be Etixx-Quickstep's best stage win bet -however anorexically slim those odds may be. So an Uran top-10 would probably be as good a result as EQS can hope for in this Giro. I'm hoping Boonen can turn back the clock and win it tomorrow to complete his grand tour palmares. That would be a coup for Etixx and might buy Rigo an early flight out.

 

[PeterB]

Today he lost 10:31,i don't see why he's carry on,his condition is not improving.He won't win a stage in this form,he should retire and recover.Then he'll get another chance in Le Tour or Vuelta.

It doesn't seem to be his style. Also, unless someone has been really keeping their powder bone-dry, Uran seems to be Etixx-Quickstep's best stage win bet -however anorexically slim those odds may be. So an Uran top-10 would probably be as good a result as EQS can hope for in this Giro. I'm hoping Boonen can turn back the clock and win it tomorrow to complete his grand tour palmares. That would be a coup for Etixx and might buy Rigo an early flight out.

Boonen DNS'd the TT so probably not.
Etixx were mysteriously missing from any breakaway attempt until today. So perhaps they are going to go after stages, after all.
Also a bit strange today's tweets on Uran:

@UranRigoberto about to cross the line as the clock hits the +10’30” mark. #Giro
Uran shown in a group still on the road. Atapuma crosses about 8’11” down. #Giro

Informative, though not overly positive, but they don't seem to mind?

 

[MotorRouleur]

It's a poor seasonal strategy for Rigoberto to stay in, especially with what's going to hit him back-to-back on Fri & Sat. His post-Giro recovery will take that much longer. And, there's risk of a crash on descents. What's the goal? For Columbians to finish between 15th and 20th, all around 25 minutes down?

I don't even know if he has enough strength to stay away with the breakaway on Thursday on the descent to Verbania, which is the last big chance for non-GC to salvage their Giro with a stage win. No shame in stepping aside now, and reload for the rest of the season.

 

[carton]

Boonen DNS'd the TT so probably not.
Etixx were mysteriously missing from any breakaway attempt until today. So perhaps they are going to go after stages, after all.

Missed the fact that Boonen was already out. This has been a terrible Giro for EQS -Vakoc, Sabatini and particularly Keisse have barely hung on to the gruppeto; Meersman, Sierry and now Boonen are out. Only De la Cruz and Bouet were workable breakway options. Maybe Sabatini for tomorrow? I still doubt Uran will pull out, particularly since it would be his second GT running.

Also a bit strange today's tweets on Uran:

@UranRigoberto about to cross the line as the clock hits the +10’30” mark. #Giro
Uran shown in a group still on the road. Atapuma crosses about 8’11” down. #Giro

Informative, though not overly positive, but they don't seem to mind?

Not a lot of positives to note without being overtly disingenuous. Also, the Official Twitter guy or girl had a bit of a spat yesterday with Colombian fans asking for more info. Kind of ironic given that the communication team is the best thing EQS has going for it right now -they have a Spanish website and the brakethrough photos are excellent. So a little that all I know guys to his tone. On that note, however, better telemetry in 2015 doesn't really seem to be an unreasonable request. Hope Velon fixes this.

 

[The fridge in the blue trees]

He carries on because he's a cyclist, not a robot trying to calculate how much energy it will cost him to finish the Giro that he might miss later.

Plus he has to bring his cactus to Milano.
He'll win the Giro next year. Giro and Olympics double!

 

[Escarabajo]

Re:

He carries on because he's a cyclist, not a robot trying to calculate how much energy it will cost him to finish the Giro that he might miss later.

Plus he has to bring his cactus to Milano.
He'll win the Giro next year. Giro and Olympics double!

I hope he doesn't come back. I think that if they put a TT in the Tour next year, the climbs of the tour fit him better than the ones from the Giro. Maybe he won't win but I am sure that the Tour will fit him better.

 

[ILovecycling]

Vamos Rigo, por la etapa!

 

[IndianCyclist]

There is some problem with him otherwise he would be on the podium. The best bet is to drop out correct the problem and retrain for the next part of the season

 

[movingtarget]

Re:

There is some problem with him otherwise he would be on the podium. The best bet is to drop out correct the problem and retrain for the next part of the season

Why would he leave now ? The race is almost over. He should have left over a week ago when the time off would have really helped him with recovery.

 

[SafeBet]

Riders take pride in finishing races, especially Grand Tours.
This will not ruin the second half of his season anyway.

 

[movingtarget]

Re:

Riders take pride in finishing races, especially Grand Tours.
This will not ruin the second half of his season anyway.

I was referring to the Tour.

 

[Escarabajo]

He is alive!!!!!!

Good show for the coming Tour.

 

[DBotero]

Nice performance today.I hope they let him do Le Tour.

 

[movingtarget]

I was surprised by his ride yesterday. He is recovering when the race has almost finished.

 

[cellardoor]

Re:

I was surprised by his ride yesterday. He is recovering when the race has almost finished.

Yeah, despite his apparent lack of form, crashes and sickness, he's gritted his teeth and hung in there. Looks like it's too little too late for a stage win, but at least he didn't just give up.

 

[Taxus4a]

it is not his Giro, he is not at his best, but yesterday he was close, as Aru and Hesjedal were better than Rigo in some mountain stages last Giro.

For me is good to have him here till the end, so it is the only rider with Contador that it giving all in Giro and Tour, so we can compare how much a handicap is to rode the Giro for Le Tour, or it is not a problem.

He will try today but today is a stage win for Landa or Aru, with some options for Contador, and more difficult for krispis and Hesjedal and even him .. I cant see more...

 

[Jalgratas95]

Re: Re:

I was surprised by his ride yesterday. He is recovering when the race has almost finished.

Yeah, despite his apparent lack of form, crashes and sickness, he's gritted his teeth and hung in there. Looks like it's too little too late for a stage win, but at least he didn't just give up.

At least he can end Giro with a positive feeling. Must give confidence going into new races.

 

[SafeBet]

He's great. Would love to see him win today's stage,

 

[DBotero]

Well he surpassed all my expectations,he recovered so well.Another good stage for him,too bad the Giro is over.Interesting choice to stay in the Giro despite all the problems but looks like it payed off,he's back in decent shape.Now Le Tour seems to be the normal choice,but do Etixx want him there? I'm not so sure the answer is yes.