Whenever Gianetti was involved in a team they had some laughable outlier performances.
I was only referring to the 2008 Tour de France. I was right that nobody took Ricco seriously then. Cadel Evans certainly didn't. And Ricco was the best rider on that Saunier Duval team. Piepoli was not.
Piepoli at age 34 suddenly becoming one of the best climbers in the world - I raise you Jean-Christophe Peraud who came 2nd at the 2014 Tour aged 37 riding for AG2R.
Then going back there was Chris Horner - came to pro cycling at 35 to ride for Lotto. Nice guy but he couldn't hold Evans wheel in the mountains then left Lotto and rode with Bruyneel and adopted the nickname 2nd best climber in the world?
He made his name way before as a super-doped rider requiring emergency hospitalization (google it).
gianetti + cycling = doping.
all he has ever known is doping, and to extremes others didn't dare -- as a rider and then as a manager.
what made him suddenly stop?
there's nothing.
no way around that.
it's like in Armstrong's time. everyone in cycling knew that you only go to Ferrari for doping. all cyclists (and their wives!) knew what armstrong was doing (and why he desperately tried to hide it and then made up the excuse that he was only consulting him for a tilt at the world hour record - which of course was never the plan, and he never did).
if uae chose gianetti as DS, it was because he specifically had that track record -- why else would you hire a man with such a resume? if every success he had is due to doping, what insight could he possibly bring as DS to a supposedly "clean" team. zero. nothing.
it's why I simply laugh at anyone who listens to Bruyneel. what does he know about race tactics? all he knows is riding when you know you are more doped than all the other riders. how the hell does that help you with knowing tactics?
Some good points (I never even thought about Bruyneel btw). But why did you cherry pick my last paragraph and ignore all the specific preceding points I made on 2024 PdB and Pog's age progression?
Maybe Gianetti has worked out how to identify super responders at a young age? Maybe Marc Hirshi wasn't responding so they let him go? But I still don't see why UAE wanted to throw millions of Euros manipulating the 2nd string sport of cycling. They could spend the same money without risking reputational damage to get the same outcomes in global brand awareness.
Bottom line is this is the sport of cycling. You are not going to find any top pro who is squeaky clean. None. So sadly most of what gets discussed in the Clinic boils down to my doper is being beaten and I'm not happy.