Rui Costa Discussion Thread

[LaFlorecita]

Everyone but you got I called him so for fun.

Nah I just found it incredibly disrespectful for fun or not.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Given the form he's in maybe he can take the Portuguese TT jersey for real this time.

Hopefully they insist on the white outfit with the bands, because it would look so much less crappy than the normal Movistar bands, hopefully TT jerseys get a bit different treatment.

Something like the temporary one he had at Caisse d'Epargne until the win was taken away from him:

 

[LaFlorecita]

Given the form he's in maybe he can take the Portuguese TT jersey for real this time.

Hopefully they insist on the white outfit with the bands, because it would look so much less crappy than the normal Movistar bands, hopefully TT jerseys get a bit different treatment.

Something like the temporary one he had at Caisse d'Epargne until the win was taken away from him:

I hope he can win that would be awesome. Do you know when the Portuguese nationals take place?

 

[Parrulo]

next week just like all other nationals. in this form he might win the road race as well. even tho a portuguese national kit made by movistar isn't something i am entirely looking forward too

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Championships start on Thursday, finish on Sunday.

The elite ITT is a 34km, pan-flat out-and-back on Friday; the road race is on Sunday and is circuits of an equally pan-flat 12,2km circuit.

Hard to expect any more of a parcours around Pataias, though they are going into Vale de Paredes to provide at least SOME attempt at selectivity. Sérgio Ribeiro will win, probably.

 

[dlwssonic]

argh movistar kits suck!!!!!!
And so does the RSNT ones for machado if he wins.

 

[trevim]

Championships start on Thursday, finish on Sunday.

The elite ITT is a 34km, pan-flat out-and-back on Friday; the road race is on Sunday and is circuits of an equally pan-flat 12,2km circuit.

Hard to expect any more of a parcours around Pataias, though they are going into Vale de Paredes to provide at least SOME attempt at selectivity. Sérgio Ribeiro will win, probably.

Is it the same parcours as last year? I think that last year (or maybe 2 years ago) João Cabreira won on that course, so there is some hope that it won't go for a sprint. I would like Rui to win but he'll be isolated. Radioshack should send the entire team: Oliveira looked decent this week, Paulinho finished Suisse and Machado is always decent. I hope all the foreigners ride it this year.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Is it the same parcours as last year? I think that last year (or maybe 2 years ago) João Cabreira won on that course, so there is some hope that it won't go for a sprint. I would like Rui to win but he'll be isolated. Radioshack should send the entire team: Oliveira looked decent this week, Paulinho finished Suisse and Machado is always decent. I hope all the foreigners ride it this year.

Paulinho is no Radioshack

 

[trevim]

Paulinho is no Radioshack

Ahhh forgot about it since he's been invisible this year Still, I hope both he and Bruno Pires ride the damn thing

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Is it the same parcours as last year? I think that last year (or maybe 2 years ago) João Cabreira won on that course, so there is some hope that it won't go for a sprint. I would like Rui to win but he'll be isolated. Radioshack should send the entire team: Oliveira looked decent this week, Paulinho finished Suisse and Machado is always decent. I hope all the foreigners ride it this year.

It looks to be the same as last year, Cabreira and Mario Costa had a two-up sprint a few seconds ahead of the bunch.

As for the "foreigners" (i.e. Portuguese racing on non-Portuguese teams), there's:

Joni Brandão (Burgos) - I have hopes for him, decent prospect.
Hernâni Broco (Caja Rural)
André Cardoso (Caja Rural)
Manuel Cardoso (Caja Rural)
Fernando Carvalho (Gios-Deyser)
Rui Costa (Movistar)
Tiago Machado (Radioshack)
Nelson Oliveira (Radioshack)
Sérgio Paulinho (Saxo Bank)
Bruno Pires (Saxo Bank)
Bruno Saraiva (Team Differdange)
Fabio Silvestre (Leopard Trek Continental)

I'm also changing my mind a bit and suggesting maybe Filipe Cardoso for the nationals. I'm kind of torn on what I want; I'd love to see the Portuguese jersey in the pro péloton, but at the same time it's a big deal for the national teams, so would be good for them to keep it.

 

[trevim]

I would prefer a foreigner to take it. Otherwise the jersey would only be visible in the Volta. I hope that the local teams don't have a lot of power otherwise this could turn into Sérgio "the new Cândido" Ribeiro vs Samuel Caldeira vs Filipe Cardoso on the sprint.

 

[trevim]

Portugal's President Cavaco Silva congratulates Rui Costa for the win in the Tour of Suisse.

http://desporto.sapo.pt/mais_modalidades/artigo/2012/06/18/cavaco_silva_felicita_rui_costa_.html

Althought I'm pretty sure he doesn't know the what the hell is the WT or what the hell is a bike is nice that Rui's amazing victory is noted even during the insanity period of the football cup. I still wouldn't vote for him but he earned a couple of points in my view

 

[Parrulo]

even the newspaper cover, considering what he was up against, wasn't that bad.

also his site has been down because too many people have tried to go there and crashed it!!!!

 

[gustienordic]

Championships start on Thursday, finish on Sunday.

The elite ITT is a 34km, pan-flat out-and-back on Friday; the road race is on Sunday and is circuits of an equally pan-flat 12,2km circuit.

Hard to expect any more of a parcours around Pataias, though they are going into Vale de Paredes to provide at least SOME attempt at selectivity. Sérgio Ribeiro will win, probably.

Olivera? He has a pretty good TT in him, plus he is young, and the youngsters usually seem to try harder at some Nats

 

[Arnout]

even the newspaper cover, considering what he was up against, wasn't that bad.

also his site has been down because too many people have tried to go there and crashed it!!!!

That's actually extremely good I'd say, especially in a country like Portugal where cycling has taken big hits in recent years. And that in A Bola, nice to see

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Olivera? He has a pretty good TT in him, plus he is young, and the youngsters usually seem to try harder at some Nats

I was meaning for the RR. Oliveira has a very good chance at the TT.

 

[Orvieto]

Saw him win in Montreal last year, based on that I had him pegged as a stage hunter rather than a GC candidate in grand tours. Think he might win more week long tours, but most likely he'll crave a hilly classic.

 

[maxmartin]

Pretty decent ITT by Costa, let's see if this tour can confirm his GT potential

He should have no problem get into top 10

 

[Parrulo]

i was going to wait for his performance on wednesday to bump this thread but since it has already been done . . . . .

he said he was sick after the TdS and wasn't feeling great at the start of the tourn mostly after his crash on stage 1, but now he says he is feeling better and better as the race progresses and since piti has lost too much time he will be riding for himself from now on. he actually waited for piti on saturday so ended up losing a bit more time then he should have, but that climb suited him unlike the high mountains.

still i wonder how far can he go

 

[Froome19]

A top 10 surely is within his grasp, with his TT and Valverde's assistance even more, the time gaps up until now are irrelevant if riders dont climb well in the high mountains proper and that will surely assist Costa's GC ambitions.

 

[gustienordic]

Pretty decent ITT by Costa, let's see if this tour can confirm his GT potential

He should have no problem get into top 10

The De Gendt of the Tour?

 

[maxmartin]

The De Gendt of the Tour?

that my friend is out of the equation in this tour

 

[Parrulo]

so now that the tour is over i would like the bump this thread once again.

Costa still finished 18th on GC despite only caring about stage wins ever since the first "real" mountain stage of the tour to la toussine.

he was on the break on the last 2 mountain stages so he clearly has the recovery, but just like he has always done, he still struggles on the real climbs losing too much time.

imo he should focus on the classics and 1 week races for now and if he really wants to, try to see what he can do on a GT in a couple years when he is more mature and his abilities are closer to their best.

 

[greenedge]

I think he has good recovery but he should go either one way or the other.

1st Option. Go for stage wins at GT's one week races and classics.

2nd Option. Abandon the 1st option and try become a GC rider. That for the moment would however be a bad view in my mind as he can still achieve good results in other races.

If he does try a GT for GC soon i think it should be the Vuelta ( even though Movistar have Valverde and Cobo for that and in the future Madrazo and Quintana ), because with one climb he can conserve energy then give his all/ have a good ITT over some other contenders.

For the rest of the year i can foresee him getting a good result at the WC- best of luck.

 

[Parrulo]

Completely bossed the TdS cept for the first MTF straight after altitude camp.

I wonder if he peaked too soon tho.