So who were the best performing neo-pro's of 2011?

[craig1985]

Obvious Kittel and Guardini is obvious so they don't really count as they were the two most successful, but I'm actually trying to create some discussion here, and it isn't a top 5 or top 10 thing just who you thought who were the best performing. The next most obvious inclusion is Degenkolb.

I'm actually want to put forward Ramūnas Navardauskas here and I'll get laughed off here, but after turning pro for Garmin-Cervélo, he was a left field selection by JV for the final spot for the Tour, he did a lot of work on the front during the first week and which led to Farrar getting a stage win and helped his team get the TTT win and actually finished the race as well. When the decision not to field van Summeren for the Tour was made, Navarauskas was selected it is fair to say JV saw something in him that would make him useful in the first week, considered there is no lack of options for Garmin for the 9th man. I'm well aware where he finished each stage, but I did see a lot of the opening stages and he worked hard for the team.

Who else?

 

[Ruudz0r]

Talansky
Sergent
Betancurt

 

[Gloin22]

Obvious Kittel and Guardini is obvious so they don't really count as they were the two most successful, but I'm actually trying to create some discussion here, and it isn't a top 5 or top 10 thing just who you thought who were the best performing. The next most obvious inclusion is Degenkolb.

I'm actually want to put forward Ramūnas Navardauskas here and I'll get laughed off here, but after turning pro for Garmin-Cervélo, he was a left field selection by JV for the final spot for the Tour, he did a lot of work on the front during the first week and which led to Farrar getting a stage win and helped his team get the TTT win and actually finished the race as well. When the decision not to field van Summeren for the Tour was made, Navarauskas was selected it is fair to say JV saw something in him that would make him useful in the first week, considered there is no lack of options for Garmin for the 9th man. I'm well aware where he finished each stage, but I did see a lot of the opening stages and he worked hard for the team.

Who else?

Dowsett did quite well, and much more than people expected him too at the start. 5th in Tour of Denmark, winning Brit Nats TT and winning final ToB TT stage, with others nice results from 2.1 races. He defintiely surprsied few people.

Also Appollonio at the Giro was good. 4 Top 6 and 2nd behind Cavendish on stage 12 was quite impressive with not the best support. Also got his first victory in Tour de Luxembourg and other nice results. Massive potential here I think.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Degenkolb
Matthews
Landa

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Results-wise besides those mentioned:

Michael Matthews:

Stage win in Tour Down Under and Vuelta a la Region de Murcia as well as 4th overall in TDU. Winner of Rund um Köln, 3rd in Rund um den Finanzplatz Eschborn-Frankfurt as well as various other good results.

Jesse Sergent:

5 victories including the overall in Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen and Tour du Poitou Charentes et de la Vienne. Has beaten some very good time trialists.

Pim Ligthart:

Dutch champion, winner of Hel van het Mergelland, 3rd in Classica de Almeria and 5th overall in Ronde van België.

Giacomo Nizzolo:

Very good all around results in many sprints including a stage win in Bayern-Rundfahrt and a podiums in Rund um Köln and ProRace Berlin.

 

[theyoungest]

Phinney, however disappointing he may have been for some, still won the prologue in a WT race and got 4th in the overall. As well as finishing 5th in the Vuelta TT.

Guillaume Van Keirsbulck, very strong in some of the Flemish races, not really in terms of results but I saw flashes of the next Boonen (he even looks like him on the bike).

I was impressed by Tom Jelte Slagter in Castilla y Leon, and after his horrible crash in the Giro he returned to ride a very good Vuelta in support of Mollema, whose only attack in the race was instigated by Slagter, nearly dropping Bauke in the process.

Ligthart deserves a mention as well: champion of his country in his first pro year, won the Hel van het Mergelland, and he rode a strong Tour of Belgium.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

betancourt, degenkolb, landa (for his showing in burgos alone)

matthews rode well in early season when all australians are in topshape but after that I didn't see him anymore basically. that doesn't mean he didn't have a good season though I expect a lotfrom him this year

 

[profff]

guardini anf kittel, obviously
then degenkolb and betancurt , win giro emilia, 4th in finestre stage in giro, 9th in lombardia

talansky. very good tt, decent uphill.
matthews , very strong beginning of the season

battaglin , winning a race as stagiaire and nizzolo, doing well in difficult role for a young sprinter

 

[Christian]

Giacomo Nizzolo:

Very good all around results in many sprints including a stage win in Bayern-Rundfahrt and a podiums in Rund um Köln and ProRace Berlin.

He also came very close in Catalunya once. OK it was a weak sprinter field but still. Looking forward to seeing how he will develop next year

 

[Anonymous]

Phinney had a decent end of season, even if the beginning was pretty dire. Appollonio had some decent results, Kennaugh had some decent GC performances and picked up wt points for team GB, and Dowsett had a few wins. Michael Matthews had a strong start to the year, and then obviously Kittel etc.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

I 2nd the Guillaume Van Keirsbulck call, I thought he became a pro 1 year too soon, but he really impressed me by attacking a couple of times and really hitting it on the front. Also Matteo Trentin to name someone that hasn't been called out yet, always attacking at the end of a race.

 

[roundabout]

Dowsett did quite well, and much more than people expected him too at the start. 5th in Tour of Denmark, winning Brit Nats TT and winning final ToB TT stage, with others nice results from 2.1 races. He defintiely surprsied few people.

Also Appollonio at the Giro was good. 4 Top 6 and 2nd behind Cavendish on stage 12 was quite impressive with not the best support. Also got his first victory in Tour de Luxembourg and other nice results. Massive potential here I think.

Appollonio is a second year pro so if we should count those then Sagan wins hands down which I doubt is the point of this thread.

 

[Anonymous]

Appollonio is a second year pro so if we should count those then Sagan wins hands down which I doubt is the point of this thread.

Peter Sagan was a neo pro this year..

With appo, he hadnt really been given much in the way of chances at cervelo. This was his first proper year, im not sure if he was technically neo pro as its meant to be their first contract, but his two year contract with cervelo was cut short so i beleive he was.

 

[taiwan]

Peter Sagan was a neo pro this year..

??? If he rode a full season for a pro team in 2010, how could he have been a neo-pro in 2011?

 

[The Hitch]

Kwiatkowski did well. Showed hes ok at tts at 1 or 2 events.

??? If he rode a full season for a pro team in 2010, how could he have been a neo-pro in 2011?

some say neopro is 2 years. Some 1. I don't know which one is correct.

 

[Anonymous]

??? If he rode a full season for a pro team in 2010, how could he have been a neo-pro in 2011?

you are a neo pro for two years. generally that contract is with one team, but because of cervelo folding its my understanding that he did the second year of his neo pro contract with sky.

its not really worth arguing about though.

some say neopro is 2 years. Some 1. I don't know which one is correct.

officially 2 if the contract starts below a certain age. There is also a difference between neo-professional, and new-proffessional which confuses some people.

The first time a rider signs with a Professional Continental Team (PCT) or a ProTour team, he will ride with "neo pro" status, but only if he is below 23 years at the day where his contract will start. The age of the rider is determined by the difference between the year of his hiring, and the year of his birth. The status as neo pro will always end 2 seasons after he signed (for riders signing in Jan-June it will be Dec. the subsequent year, and for riders signing in Juli-Nov. it will be in Dec. two years later). The minimum wage for a neopro in his first 2 years is €23000/yr for PCTs and €26700/yr for ProTour teams

http://www.uci.ch/Modules/BUILTIN/getObject.asp?MenuId=MTkzNg

the neo pro contract lasts for two years, which is why appo's case is confusing, his contract being transferred to sky. There are plenty of forum members who say that is wrong despite it being laid down in the uci regulations. Not helped bythe uci also referring to new-pros which are a completely different thing

 

[Michielveedeebee]

the uci regulations.

screw the UCI Wasn't that a rule they only imposed this year btw?

 

[taiwan]

Basically I just assumed neo-pro = first year pro.

[edit] nvm, answered.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

Also Ulissi seems to be a real talent!

 

[craig1985]

betancourt, degenkolb, landa (for his showing in burgos alone)

matthews rode well in early season when all australians are in topshape but after that I didn't see him anymore basically. that doesn't mean he didn't have a good season though I expect a lotfrom him this year

Landa did well after coming back from a nasty crash earlier in the season. Matthews won a stage at Murica, the Rund um Köln, and 3rd at the Rund um den Finanzplatz Eschborn-Frankfurt.