If exceptions disproved that label, no one would call Rogla a mountain sprinter.If Col d'Eze was mountain sprinting then so was Marie-Blanque. Get a grip.
I think it will be close, but I favour Pogi.Who do you think will win this kind of ITT normally? is it comparable to the ITT where Pog beat Rog? will they change bikes?
I'll probably spend 3 hours on the rest day overanalysing all of their previous ITTs along with their teams ITTs this year compared to last year then make a wrong prediction about what will actually happen.I think it will be close, but I favour Pogi.
I would make a distinction between exceptions to a rule and straying from that rule so frequently that there is no notable pattern.If exceptions disproved that label, no one would call Rogla a mountain sprinter.
If exceptions disproved that label, no one would call Rogla a mountain sprinter.
Most interesting sentence in that article is the prediction of Matxin that Jumbo will continue their pace tomorrow.![]()
Tadej Pogačar and UAE-Team Emirates angry with motorbike but remain optimistic of taking Tour de France yellow
It's proving almost impossible to separate the two at the top, and a close motorbike on stage 14 didn't help Pogačar's intentionswww.cyclingweekly.com
That game plan is already written in Slovenian.The game plan for him should be all in on the ITT and stage 20 and Purito style 1km to go attacks on all the other mountain stages.
PuritoWhen WE Look in modern age , is Pog the Guy with fastest kick ever when He attacks?
This why he Always gets a Gap to Vinge.
Who could have hold that weel?
Maybe Rog who ist known for His Kick too?
Prime Froome,Contador,Valverde,Armstrong maybe?
Always impressive
I think the key takeaway for Pogacar has to be that if he is in yellow after the TT then Vingegaard probably won't be able to retake it. Hence that TT is what the entire focus has to be on.
I would argue that tactically, Pogi made some avoidable mistakes:Tactically Pogi rode an excellent race.
He tried an attack 4-5km out of summit to really get a good gap if Vinge wasn't in a good day. But then when he saw it wasn't the case, he wasn't going to blow his legs up just to get 10 secs on the summit, and Vinge getting to him in the descent... this would have been stupid.
I would argue that tactically, Pogi made some avoidable mistakes:
1. he went too early (from the top). A small mistake, as this probably took out the sharpness of a (probably more succesful) move closer to the top. It was worth the gamble though.
2. he somehow forgot to sprint for bonus seconds on the top, or he felt he didn't have the legs / confidence anymore due to motogate? Another small mistake.
3. he didn't keep going after the top (on the plateau), enabling Rodriguez to come back earlier in the descent.
4. When Rodriguez came back, he didn't latch onto his wheel immediately. Letting Rodriguez go clear cost him most probably the stage / extra bonus seconds.
All of the above would only have resulted in marginal differences, but still. It wasn't 'excellent'. Notwithstanding motogate, he wasn't given too much leeway, but the options he had (timing of attack, sprinting on the top, controlling the descent, sprinting for the stage): he did all of those not in the best way.
I would argue that tactically, Pogi made some avoidable mistakes:
1. he went too early (from the top). A small mistake, as this probably took out the sharpness of a (probably more succesful) move closer to the top. It was worth the gamble though.
2. he somehow forgot to sprint for bonus seconds on the top, or he felt he didn't have the legs / confidence anymore due to motogate? Another small mistake.
3. he didn't keep going after the top (on the plateau), enabling Rodriguez to come back earlier in the descent.
4. When Rodriguez came back, he didn't latch onto his wheel immediately. Letting Rodriguez go clear cost him most probably the stage / extra bonus seconds.
All of the above would only have resulted in marginal differences, but still. It wasn't 'excellent'. Notwithstanding motogate, he wasn't given too much leeway, but the options he had (timing of attack, sprinting on the top, controlling the descent, sprinting for the stage): he did all of those not in the best way.
One of them will crack and loze it all outside the Slovenian 1 km mark.The game plan for him should be all in on the ITT and stage 20 and Purito style 1km to go attacks on all the other mountain stages.
In his prime, Contador on steep inclines was faster, but he couldn’t sprint worth a lick.When WE Look in modern age , is Pog the Guy with fastest kick ever when He attacks?
This why he Always gets a Gap to Vinge.
Who could have hold that weel?
Maybe Rog who ist known for His Kick too?
Prime Froome,Contador,Valverde,Armstrong maybe?
Always impressive
TJV thought that a really hard stage would be to Vingegaard's advantage. Pog proved them wrong. Still a bit curious why Pog didn't wait do to his attack a little bit later, with 1.5.-2k to go, like he did on stage 6 and on Puy de Dome. Now he gave Vingegaard a chance to set his own pace and more time to reel him in.
Vinge tried on a couple times to pass Pog but Pog was cutting him off and the lines he took made it hard to pass.I agree that Pogačar might have went too early but regarding the sprint at the top of the climb he said that he didn't have the legs due to motogate.
Regarding the descent, I think he did the best that he could, he started the descent in second position but Rodriguez was just better than him there. I actually think Vingegård was the one that made a mistake there because if he had started the descent behind Rodriguez I think he could have dropped Pogačar there by a few seconds and probably get the stage win at the end as he has been stronger in technical descents lately, maybe Pogačar's wrist is still bothering him in the circumstance.