Does Blanco-Belkin have a sprinter in their squad? Or will it be just about getting Bauke Mollema safe in the goal area, and as far in the front as possible?
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karlboss said:Who will win the battle of the lead out trains? Will one team yield to another?
I think if Lotto yield to quickstep it's all over, however I don't think it's so true if it goes the other way.
MellowJohnny said:I believe it will be Cavendish who does the crushing of Sagan, OPQS are a well drilled team and it will be like the highroad days.
Kristoff to nick a sprint of Cav though, with Degenkolb to nick one from Sagan in an uphill finish
Karl Max said:snipped..
Kristoff is strong but he does not have any helpers around him, so I think it will be hard for him to beat Cav even though I hope I am wrong. Katusja is built around Rodriguez and will not give much help to Kristoff in the sprints. He pretty much need to do it all by himself to get results.
It will happen for sure, Cav doesn't stand a chance.Karl Max said:I hope and belives Sagan will crush Cavendish in the competition for the green jersey. Sagan is a great rider and is much more versatile than Cav. This year Boasson Hagen could be a contender if Sky gives him some freedom, but honestly I dont think he cares much for this jersey.
bedders50 said:I haven't researched it much, but with Cav out of the picture at Sky last year how hard did Sagan get pushed for the Green Jersey? Has he been really tested / had to battle? I was impressed that Cav stuck the course at the Giro, let alone won so many sprint stages.
Jericho said:Sagan basically cruised to the jersey. Greipel, Cavendish, and even Goss scored decent, but the margin of victory was substantial. Sagan also held the jersey the entire Tour except after the prologue (when Cancellara held the green points lead, although Wiggins actually wore the jersey).
I do think this year will be different for two major reasons:
(1) Cavendish will be better. His 2012 Tour was his worst in a while. Whether that was due to the Sky team, the Olympics, or just poor form you be the judge. But he seems dedicated to the green jersey this year (not sure it was a goal in 2012), he has the team, and he has the form. He'll likely even fight for the intermidiate sprint points.
kingjr said:It's cute how quite a number of Cav-Fans seem to think that if you don't share their assessment of his skill-level you must hold some sort of grudge against him as a person.
bedders50 said:As a Brit I'll be backing Cav for the Green Jersey.
winkybiker said:The coincidence of the same "country of origin" is one of the weakest reasons for "backing" a particular rider that I can think of.
Gloin22 said:But is still by farrrrrrrrr ( and that's a massive far) the main reason peoople cheer for sportsmen in sports
wirral said:Since the green jersey at the Tour de France gives out different points based on the type of stage, namely, flat, medium mountains and high mountains (and time trials), can anyone provide a link to somewhere on the official site or elsewhere where it states which stage falls into which category. Obviously it is possible to guess but some stages are on the cusp. Taa.
OK, got it after some digging around en francais.Waterloo Sunrise said:It's in the rule book on the official site.