Team Ineos (Formerly the Sky thread)

[Ilmaestro99]

I expected some crazy Giro winning performance by tgh in week 3 but I didn't expect him to turn into Cancellara

 

[Black Betsy]

Fookin hell, giro was boring thus far and I was watching the thrilling motoGp in Leman when suddenly I saw TGH passing Markez

 

[SafeBet]

Ineos is BACK!

 

[Mayomaniac]

2020 Tao has risen!
Also hillarious how Thomas can be really bad in all the prep races just to peak like an angel for his main target.

 

[fmk_RoI]

Also hillarious how Thomas can be really bad in all the prep races just to peak like an angel for his main target.

 

[Netserk]

I'll give them a pass, they are still the underdogs in this new era.

 

[repre]

Hart is new Froome!!!

 

[Libertine Seguros]

2020 Tao has risen!
Also hillarious how Thomas can be really bad in all the prep races just to peak like an angel for his main target.

I have about as much respect for Thomas' stage racing palmarès as I do Alarcón's. He is the hardest thing for me to unsee right now, and that's saying something.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Don't forget, Tom Pidcock cleaning house in mountain bike world cup racing all at the same time this week. Amazing how good USPS, I mean Sky, I mean Ineos is. And USA cyclists, I mean UK cyclists, have risen to the top like they have.

 

[Red Rick]

Don't forget, Tom Pidcock cleaning house in mountain bike world cup racing all at the same time this week. Amazing how good USPS, I mean Sky, I mean Ineos is. And USA cyclists, I mean UK cyclists, have risen to the top like they have.

Pidcock TdF is happening guys

 

[Mayomaniac]

I have about as much respect for Thomas' stage racing palmarès as I do Alarcón's. He is the hardest thing for me to unsee right now, and that's saying something.

Shows that being a good guy (according to many non teammates/non english speaking riders) goes a long way.
The Alarcon comparison is spot on.

 

[Pistolas]

I know the Giro has been boring, but no one is giving the proper attention to the 2 superbulls (de Plus and Arensman) on Ineos...Ridiculous performance carring the race day after day, mountain after mountain and still making top 10. They would ashame many in the Skytrain golden days and only with 5 elements. I expect great surprises at the Tour.

 

[Pistolas]

The most hilarious moment of the giro was today when Dennis comes to the front in a torero style and the bulls went nuts gapping their leader.

 

[zlev11]

I know the Giro has been boring, but no one is giving the proper attention to the 2 superbulls (de Plus and Arensman) on Ineos...Ridiculous performance carring the race day after day, mountain after mountain and still making top 10. They would ashame many in the Skytrain golden days and only with 5 elements. I expect great surprises at the Tour.

how about climbing domestique Ben Swift? hilarious.

 

[Aimar16]

How bad has Arensman looked all spring? Suddenly out of nowhere he's on the same level as the tier-2 GC guys while doing domestique duty.

 

[Wyndbrook]

I have about as much respect for Thomas' stage racing palmarès as I do Alarcón's. He is the hardest thing for me to unsee right now, and that's saying something.

Perhaps your consistent anti British bias may have more to do with it than anything else.

 

[Red Rick]

Perhaps your consistent anti British bias may have more to do with it than anything else.

How can it be bias when it's literally only been British riders who turn from donkeys into racehorses in Grand Tours for the last 15 years?

 

[Samu Cuenca]

I know the Giro has been boring, but no one is giving the proper attention to the 2 superbulls (de Plus and Arensman) on Ineos...Ridiculous performance carring the race day after day, mountain after mountain and still making top 10. They would ashame many in the Skytrain golden days and only with 5 elements. I expect great surprises at the Tour.

Arensman has actually disappointed me a bit in this race, and the level of the remaining riders was simply too low for him and De Plus to drop out of the top 10.

 

[macbindle]

How can it be bias when it's literally only been British riders who turn from donkeys into racehorses in Grand Tours for the last 15 years?

Still coming out with this crap, Red Rick?

 

[PhiLiz]

Still coming out with this crap, Red Rick?

You crying about it hasn't turn it into something less true.

 

[Salvarani]

How can it be bias when it's literally only been British riders who turn from donkeys into racehorses in Grand Tours for the last 15 years?

Because they developed and invested a lot of money into a program with the goal of producing some great riders that could win medals in the 2012 Olympics? Mainly the track team.

It grew the interest of the sport in Britain and spawned a younger generation to pick up cycling. They are reaping all the benefits now with many new young riders coming through each season in the past few years. All types of different riders.

While some of the old guard is still here performing in the biggest races, which is quite remarkable.

 

[Red Rick]

Because they developed and invested a lot of money into a program with the goal of producing some great riders that could win medals in the 2012 Olympics? Mainly the track team.

It grew the interest of the sport in Britain and spawned a younger generation to pick up cycling. They are reaping all the benefits now with many new young riders coming through each season in the past few years. All types of different riders.

While some of the old guard is still here performing in the biggest races, which is quite remarkable.

That might explain finding bigger talents more often. It wouldn't explain riders going from track type riders to GT mountain goats in the middle of their career. If anything track should select mostly for track, so finding TTers and sprinters.

 

[Salvarani]

That might explain finding bigger talents more often. It wouldn't explain riders going from track type riders to GT mountain goats in the middle of their career. If anything track should select mostly for track, so finding TTers and sprinters.

It depends on how much difference a rider can make from being a rider who mostly focuses on track and does some roads outside of that, to then go and focus most of their time and effort on road. That is something that is difficult to answer. We dont know, but what we have seen it seems to be possible. Of course you also have to take into account that there are probably a number of different things to consider that could be in play.

One of them could just be working very hard at something for a very long time, spending many hours becoming good at something. 10 000 hours and all of that.

Again, just too many things to consider.

To me it is not as black or white. I dont find it impossible that someone can change direction and becoming very good at it. Sometimes we dont realize we have talent for something until we try it + some other stuff.

 

[Mayomaniac]

The one British track guy who always looked like a potential gc rider was Kennaugh, who was a really good u23 road cyclist while riding track at the same time.

A guy like him or even Berzin (yeah, bad comparison if you wanna look at believable guys) should be the kind of track riders who do well as stage races on the road. Smaller, lighter guys who are super aereo while having a great engine for their size.

With Thomas I have to say that he always was a good TTer, but his climbing wasn't exactly great for years. Unlike Froome or Wiggins he also never got super skinny and lost a ton of weight, but his climbing performances still went way up (how those 2 even became better TTers while getting super skinny is a whole different can of worms, but I really don't wanna start that discussion again).

 

[FroomeWagon]

No doubt Sky/Ineos had the best "program" from 2012 to 2019 ... winning the TDF 7 of the 8 years (and most likely would have won it 8 of 8 if Froome hadn't crashed out in 2014.)

What is even more impressive isn't the win total over those 8 years ... it is the fact that they won it with 4 different riders. Who does that? One guy goes down or retires? Just plug another in and win the TDF again. Exceptional!