Team Ineos (Formerly the Sky thread)

[maxmartin]

Wiggins just had no motivation from the very start of the year. The 2013 Wiggins was always just a lot of big talk with little substance behind the talk.

No motivation or too much on his conscience? He always seems mental to me, he could tell it all.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Wiggins' CQ value profile is going to look like one of those out-of-scale Tour of Turkey profiles that make 2km at 6% look like Monte Zoncolan.

 

[The Hitch]

this is pretty great, wasn't he saying he wanted to try to go for the Giro-Tour double like two months ago?

No that never happened. Wiggins always said he wanted to win 1 tour and then out of the pure goodness of his heart let froome win the other ones. He was fully commited to giving it all in the service of froome this year in the tour but tragically the knee injury emerged. Wiggins has been 100% consistent on this like with everything else in his life. How can anyone not love this guy?

 

[the sceptic]

Wiggins' CQ value profile is going to look like one of those out-of-scale Tour of Turkey profiles that make 2km at 6% look like Monte Zoncolan.

or something like this

guess were in the "capitualtion" phase now

 

[armchairclimber]

All those stars that lined up last year: "suits you Sir" parcours, absent Schleck and Contador, Froome dawg on a tight leash and a team devoted to his service. On top of that, a full off season and early season of intense training and the ultimate motivation of a home Olympic year. Annus mirabilis.

This year, Wiggins has none of that. Annus miserabilis.

Having said that, I suspect he might get his **** into gear for the Worlds.

 

[thehog]

Exactly my thoughts. I think many underestimate the stress attached to charging up sufficiently to win the tour, and doing so without getting popped.

Especially Wiggins, who stands to look like a complete t1t with all his bluster about how much he hates dopers. Not to mention his knighthood and sterling work for brand UK in winning the tour and winning it clean in the fine and honourable British tradition of clean sport.

Where LA is perhaps arrogant enough to survive in the post-confession media blitz, Wiggins' man-of-the-people, 'rather-stack-shelves-in-Tesco' persona is a probably a tad more vulnerable.

Agreed.

There's a mental toll to doping.

Plus when you lose Leinders I'm not sure he wants to take those risks anymore.

Smart move on Wiggins behalf. He can be the new Indurain.

 

[The Hitch]

All those stars that lined up last year: "suits you Sir" parcours, absent Schleck and Contador, Froome dawg on a tight leash and a team devoted to his service. On top of that, a full off season and early season of intense training and the ultimate motivation of a home Olympic year. Annus mirabilis.

This year, Wiggins has none of that. Annus miserabilis.

Having said that, I suspect he might get his **** into gear for the Worlds.

You said Nibali is a far better rider than Contador and Schleck. So wtf kind of argument is it that Contador and Schleck werent there, if Nibali, who you regard as the only rider capable of challenging Froome and Wiggins, was very much there

 

[armchairclimber]

You said Nibali is a far better rider than Contador and Schleck. So wtf kind of argument is it that Contador and Schleck werent there, if Nibali, who you regard as the only rider capable of challenging Froome and Wiggins, was very much there

There you go again, making things up. I said nothing of the sort. You, however, said that Nibali was a second rate climber. Are you new to cycling? For a while on here you had me convinced that you actually had a clue.

 

[roundabout]

No that never happened. Wiggins always said he wanted to win 1 tour and then out of the pure goodness of his heart let froome win the other ones. He was fully commited to giving it all in the service of froome this year in the tour but tragically the knee injury emerged. Wiggins has been 100% consistent on this like with everything else in his life. How can anyone not love this guy?

Thanks to him now people know that there is a race called Tour de Pologne.

 

[SundayRider]

Probably looking at the Dawg and thinking; that guy is glowing like a stick of uranium. He's going to get busted. Best me out of there to preserve what I've got.

One of Sky gets busted, it will all come out. Like USPS.

 

[ebandit]

dull

One of Sky gets busted, it will all come out. Like USPS.

imagine the headlines in the lads weeklies...............team sky riders are

the dullest guys ever.............cycling.....cycling and early to bed

Mark L

 

[The Hitch]

There you go again, making things up. I said nothing of the sort.

Nice try at lying but we have you on record mate

Hello. Wake up. Hes heads and shoulders the best rider in the world at the moment.

Well now we are getting near to the truth....though I'd say Wiggins and his Nibs would have something to say about that. Maybe Quintana too. And, in a horses for courses styleee...Cancellara.

There you go, now drop the lie.s

You say Nibali and Wiggins are the riders who come closest to Froome for best rider in the world. You dont mention Contador. You dont mention Schleck.

You make it clear that for you Nibali is the rider who can challenge the sky duo and not Contador and Schleck. So why now all of a sudden the emphasis on Schleck and Contador not being there? Nibali according to you is better than both of them, he was there and got his *** handed to him.

Explain that.

 

[webbie146]

Agreed.

There's a mental toll to doping.

Plus when you lose Leinders I'm not sure he wants to take those risks anymore.

Smart move on Wiggins behalf. He can be the new Indurain.

Wiggins will probably have a lot more respect now towards Lance. Wiggins could do it 1 year, Lance did it 7 years straight.

 

[roundabout]

Huh, I thought he was riding on the UCI's favored team being powered along by space age stuff. And losing Leinders sure didn't slow Froome or Porte down.

And now he has a sudden fear of being caught?

 

[armchairclimber]

Nice try at lying but we have you on record mate


There you go, now drop the lie.s

You say Nibali and Wiggins are the riders who come closest to Froome for best rider in the world. You dont mention Contador. You dont mention Schleck.

You make it clear that for you Nibali is the rider who can challenge the sky duo and not Contador and Schleck. So why now all of a sudden the emphasis on Schleck and Contador not being there? Nibali according to you is better than both of them, he was there and got his *** handed to him.

Explain that.

No, the point I was making was that Froome is not necessarily head and shoulders the best rider in the world. I put forward Wiggins and Nibali as riders who might dispute that he is "head and shoulders" better than. Given that both of those riders have beaten Froome within the last 12 months and won Grand Tours and Froome has, thus far, won none it's a fair enough point to make. He has yet to win the TDF. I also make the point that someone like Cancellara might dispute it, given that he would trounce Froome in the Spring classics....in a "horses for courses"manner. At no stage do I mention, or make comparison with either Contador or Schleck as I don't think either of those riders has beaten Froome this year in a stage race.

A couple of days ago you also said that I'd pronounced Froome as clean. I certainly haven't.

If you wish to take me on, do so with a straight bat and with your brain engaged.

 

[thehog]

Wiggins will probably have a lot more respect now towards Lance. Wiggins could do it 1 year, Lance did it 7 years straight.

Oh yeah. It's tough. Can you imagine?

Lance had balls at least. If it hurts just up the notch on the cort.

 

[thehog]

Huh, I thought he was riding on the UCI's favored team being powered along by space age stuff. And losing Leinders sure didn't slow Froome or Porte down.

And now he has a sudden fear of being caught?

Got a text from Cookson.

Lay low my friend. Pat my start messing about with the bio software.

 

[wansteadimp]

No Leinders anymore.

The guy who put british cycling on the map, hopefully it'll only last 10 years.

Cavendish surely, voted British Sports Personality of the year pre Sky, I'd say he put British Cycling on the map.

 

[webbie146]

Oh yeah. It's tough. Can you imagine?

Lance had balls at least. If it hurts just up the notch on the cort.

Yes I can see how a person is under tremendous pressure all year when your on a dope program, all the expectations from media/sponsors etc. You can only do that multiple years if your mentally really strong.

Also Lance like Wiggo had some competition in USPS too for example Hamilton, and Roberto Heras. He just dealt with it like a boss. Took away Hamilton's dope during the tdf 01 so he wouldn't be a threat, and made sure Heras always did what he said. Team mates respected him.

Wiggo can have all the dope in the world, mentally he just doesn't seem to be not strong enough.

 

[DirtyWorks]

this is pretty great, wasn't he saying he wanted to try to go for the Giro-Tour double like two months ago?

Oh yes he did! And he started the Giro well. The team had other TdF plans and made it clear Wiggo wasn't a part of them soon after. But now he apparently is quitting the grand tours?

He used the family excuse and already aiming for the in-country victory lap at the Tour of Britain. All very strange.

 

[DirtyWorks]

Also Lance like Wiggo had some competition in USPS too...

False.

Ride for Lance and don't even think about stage wins. I believe Hamilton publicly stated he would try for stage wins while supporting Wonderboy and that ended very badly. And then years later there was another sad display when he ended up in a 3-up break with a team mate. He didn't help his teammate a bit. So, The Shack ends up 2nd and third in a three-up breakaway. Really....

If you are Dave Zabriskie, you get paid as much as a barista for the privilege of serving Wonderboy.

 

[Heckler]

Oh yes he did! And he started the Giro well. The team had other TdF plans and made it clear Wiggo wasn't a part of them soon after. But now he apparently is quitting the grand tours?

He used the family excuse and already aiming for the in-country victory lap at the Tour of Britain. All very strange.

It does seem as if something's up and it's not about the bicycles.

 

[Heckler]

Got a text from Cookson.

Lay low my friend. Pat my start messing about with the bio software.

Are Cookson's hands clean? If not, can he publicize anything without implicating himself?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

False.

Ride for Lance and don't even think about stage wins. I believe Hamilton publicly stated he would try for stage wins while supporting Wonderboy and that ended very badly. And then years later there was another sad display when he ended up in a 3-up break with a team mate. He didn't help his teammate a bit. So, The Shack ends up 2nd and third in a three-up breakaway. Really....

If you are Dave Zabriskie, you get paid as much as a barista for the privilege of serving Wonderboy.

You've reminded me of some classic tactical blunders of recent years there. Cofidis managing 3 in a group of 5 breaking a Tour of Turkey stage apart, then staying together until the end when Visconti was clearly going to outsprint them was funny enough, but the Giro dell'Apennino 2011 was an all time classic, with Androni having 4 riders out of a group of 7, and finishing 2nd, 4th, 6th and 7th.

 

[burning]

You've reminded me of some classic tactical blunders of recent years there. Cofidis managing 3 in a group of 5 breaking a Tour of Turkey stage apart, then staying together until the end when Visconti was clearly going to outsprint them was funny enough, but the Giro dell'Apennino 2011 was an all time classic, with Androni having 4 riders out of a group of 7, and finishing 2nd, 4th, 6th and 7th.

IIRC, they finished 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th, I might be wrong though
Edit: I forgot the disqualification of Muto, my bad
I think, Astana fail at this Dauphine deserves a mention as well.