The 2020 CQ Ranking Manager Thread

[bminchow]

Ahhhh...there's my first misses.... Vichot and Drucker.

Vichot. Damn. I must have missed him on my first pass.

 

[fuiers]

VAN DER POEL Mathieu
GROENEWEGEN Dylan
HÄNNINEN Jaakko
ROWE Luke
HAGA Chad
CONTRERAS PINZON Rodrigo
QUIROZ AYALA Oscar Adalberto
DU PLOOY Rohan
FENG Chun Kai
CARRETERO MILLAN Hector
WOUTERS Enzo
IMHOF Claudio
OLIVEIRA Rui Filipe Alves
VILELA Ricardo Augusto Afonso
SENNI Manuel
HINDLEY Jai
MOLENAAR Alex
ITURRIA SEGUROLA Mikel
BOL Jetse
BENNETT George
HIRT Jan
DUMOULIN Tom
MUNOZ GIRALDO Daniel Felipe
DE KLEIJN Arvid
BENNETT Sam

This is purely a rookie season for me. First time mistakes of course. Im gonna be happy if im not last.
PS. No way I was gonna pick Landa. Picking your favorite is just bad luck

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

I don't have any formula (or record of success to commend one if I had it), but I do make a spreadsheet to look at who had underperformed in the price setting year. I then tend to select too few up and coming riders, and end up with too many old men.

	2019​	2018​
PINOT Thibaut	861​	1696​
YATES Simon	668​	2261​
KWIATKOWSKI Michal	645​	1549​
DEGENKOLB John	520​	906​
URAN URAN Rigoberto	458​	984​
MOSCON Gianni	424​	1039​
LATOUR Pierre	352​	810​
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc	350​	767​
DUMOULIN Tom	341​	1774​
MEURISSE Xandro	297​	507​
BOUHANNI Nacer	276​	441​
ANDERSEN Søren Kragh	268​	589​
CORT NIELSEN Magnus	227​	581​
ARU Fabio	194​	400​
GENIETS Kévin	185​	0​
OOMEN Sam	179​	648​
CHAMPOUSSIN Clément	170​	55​
MOSCHETTI Matteo	160​	144​
CONCI Nicola	138​	98​
HAAS Nathan	118​	553​
BATTAGLIN Enrico	112​	324​
DILLIER Silvan	101​	498​
KONYCHEV Alexander	99​	3​
FROOME Chris	77​	1415​
GENIEZ Alexandre	68​	509​
POWER Robert	56​	363​
MÄDER Gino	50​	255​
JOHANSEN Julius	38​	117​
VICHOT Arthur	28​	447​
CAVENDISH Mark	25​	125​
KANTER Max	8​	200​
DE BIE Sean	5​	451​
ARENSMAN Thymen	0​	46​
Totals	7498​	20555​

If they all equal their 2018 scores, and my few ypungsters get a decent score, I might not do appallingly badly. History leads me to expect otherwise.

I'm glad at least that someone else has gone for Degenkolb.

 

[ThePirate81]

NIBALI Vincenzo 1012
PINOT Thibaut 861
GAVIRIA RENDON Fernando 731
YATES Simon 668
KWIATKOWSKI Michal 645
MOSCON Gianni 424
LATOUR Pierre 352
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc 350
DUMOULIN Tom 341
BOUHANNI Nacer 276
ANDERSEN Søren Kragh 268
BALLERINI Davide 252
FELLINE Fabio 199
ARU Fabio 194
OOMEN Sam 179
RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan 167
HAAS Nathan 118
FROOME Chris 77
GENIEZ Alexandre 68
MODOLO Sacha 67
POWER Robert 56
MÄDER Gino 50
HÄNNINEN Jaakko 41
VICHOT Arthur 28
CAVENDISH Mark 25
ENGER Sondre Holst 18
VAN KESSEL Corné 10
VAN DER HAAR Lars 10
KANTER Max 8
DE BIE Sean 5
DIBBEN Jonathan 0
GARRISON Michael 0
CHARMIG Anthon 0

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Great to see everyone's teams. I'm eager to see them all - and the statistics as well of course.

Below is my team. I will refrain from commenting on the, in my eyes, most obvious ones and instead focus on the more dubious ones as well as my most notable omissions.

PINOT Thibaut
BARDET Romain
YATES Simon
KWIATKOWSKI Michal
MOSCON Gianni
LATOUR Pierre
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc
DUMOULIN Tom
OOMEN Sam
HAAS Nathan
DILLIER Silvan
FROOME Chris
GENIEZ Alexandre
ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo
KANTER Max
SIMMONS Quinn

ROOSEN Timo: 272
Roosen impressed me a lot in 2018 - especially in the Canadian races. He had most of his 2018 ruined by injuries but in his fall comeback he showed that he's definitely one to watch in 2020.

ANDERSEN Søren Kragh: 268
I picked him last year (I believe) at more than double his score this year, so why not give him another chance? He has been plagued by health issues, but I think that he's the Dane with the most potential - perhaps only second to Asgreen.

BALLERINI Davide: 252
A whiff last year in terms of big results, but he did show his huge potential in some races, not least in Paris-Roubaix. I think he could be one of the big revelations this year - even though he's on the star-studded QuickStep team.

KUSS Sepp: 233
He was a boss in 2018 and after having not shown much in the first half on 2019, he was very strong in the fall - not least in the Vuelta - and I expect him to be even stronger in 2020. However, the downside is that he's riding on such a packed team that he might not get too many chances on his own.

KAMP Alexander: 233
Definitely one of my big gambles and likely one of my riders picked by least other teams. He has always been a big talent but it was not until last year that he showed it in some big races. I just hope he gets the freedom he needs to haul in a lot of points.

STEIMLE Jannik: 228
Steimle was actually the very first rider on my shortlist and I was never in doubt whether to pick him or not. I was very impressed with his debut at QuickStep - both at his victory in Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen but at least as much by his amazing showing in Tour de l'Eurométropole was it? One of the riders I expect a hell of a lot from this year. I just hope that his heart issue isn't too severe.

TOUZE Damien: 221
Probably the pick I'm the least satisfied with, but he's still very young and has the potential to tear up a lot of the French races. Also he got his first Grand Tour under his belt last Vuelta, so hopefully that will improve his endurance and stamina.

MOSCHETTI Matteo: 160
He showed glimpses of his potential last year without ever really shining. One of the most promising young sprinters out there and his second place on Hatta Dam shows that he's not just a pure sprinter. I don't think he'll have a Jakobsen like season, but 500 points doesn't seem too unrealistic.

KÄMNA Lennard: 155
I had lost all faith until he, out of nowhere, all of a sudden was riding like a motorcycle in the Tour. I hope that he continues his progress and finally starts to fullfill his potential - if that's the case, he could turn out to be a very good pick.

FOSS Tobias Svendsen: 127
Obviously a big talent, but honestly I'm not sure that we should expect too much of him in 2020 already. Especially on a team as packed with climbing talent as Jumbo is. It might be a mistake to pick him already this year.

ALMEIDA Joao Pedro Gonçalves: 112
Honestly, I don't know much about him but his performance in Tour of Utah combined with the fact that he's one of the few climbers on QuickStep made me pick him. I don't know what to expect, but hopefully he'll be a nice surprise.

DRUCKER Jempy: 103
One of the latest additions to my team. I hadn't really considered him at all, until I found out that he had much of his 2019 season ruined by a crash. With Bennett gone and Sagan's schedule, he could and should get some more chances on his own.

GARRISON Ian: 89
Another young QuickStep rider that I don't know what to expect from. He almost certainly won't light the world on fire already next year, but Brian Holm seems very fond of him so I decided to give him a shot.

POWER Robert: 56
Quite an enigma already. Or at least very unstaple in his performances. He was once a great talent and when he hits his days, he's really strong. Let's hope he finds a few more of those good days in 2020.

BUITRAGO SANCHEZ Santiago: 11
I have no idea who this guy is. Surprise me.

DONOVAN Mark: 5
Had most of his 2019 ruined by injuries but of course is still a big talent. He probably won't get a lot of chances in 2020, but at 5 points I couldn't resist.

ARENSMAN Thymen: 0
I have heard a lot of promising stuff about this guy, but I have no idea why he didn't do anything in 2019. He could score 0 points again or he could turn out to be very good.

Notable omissions:

BOUHANNI Nacer: 276
Honestly, I didn't even consider him. I totally overlooked him, and that might be a big mistake with his change of teams. I omitted him last year as well and that turned out to be a good decision, but I don't think it will this year.

VICHOT Arthur: 28
He was in my initial team I sent in, but then I started reading about his injury and that worried me and in the end made me exclude him from my team. A lot here seem to have faith in him though, so I might end up regretting that decision.

MÜHLBERGER Gregor: 250
I really wanted him in my team but just couldn't make room for him. He's a really strong climber when at his best, and I think he could be in for a very good season.

HERMANS Quinten: 162
I've never heard of him before (so much for not watchin cyclocross) so obviously he was never in my considerations. But by the looks of it, my lack of knowledge of him might cost me some dear points.

STRAKHOV Dmitry: 58
Another guy who was in my initial team, but for some reason I started having second thoughts. I guess I just don't have enough faith in the Russians stability.

SAGAN Peter: 1582
Including Sagan would mean revamping most of my team. He was very subpar last season and we could have seen the best of Sagan. However, he is indeed Sagan and could well bounce back with a 2500+ points season.

DE BIE Sean: 5
De Bie was one of the first guys on my shortlist but in the end I just couldn't take the risk (although the risk is very small) considering his injuries. I don't think he'll be all that important for the game.

MÄDER Gino: 50
The potential is certainly there but he was so bad last year, and I don't trust NTT for a second to be able to turn that around.

RUBIO REYES Einer Augusto: 52
I considered him but decided against him as I don't know anything about him.

MODOLO Sacha: 67
Another oversight on my part. I would definitely have included him, had I spotted him, even though I think his best days are behind him.

ARU Fabio: 194
Another rider I left out last year and he has shown nothing to suggest that he should be able to return to his former self.

PADUN Mark: 209
I had him last year and he left me a bit disappointed. I like him and I think he's very promising, but I think his price was just a tad too high.

FELLINE Fabio: 199
Felline has been one of my favorite riders since 2011, but unfortuntaly I don't think we'll see him at his best again. I left him out last year as well and he hasn't exactly done much to turn me over.

 

[jsem94]

Max Kanter apparently flew over my head too. I hate this game already.

 

[Mayomaniac]

I wasn't confident enough to pick STRAKHOV because he got his best results on a CT team and failed when he stepped up. He could be one of those guys who's a lot better at CT level when he doesn't have to worry about certain things...
Cherkasov is a younger Russian rider who was on my list, apparently he's supposed to step up, now that Vlasov is gone. Zakarin was on my list, but I picked Moscon instead.
Sam Bennett coukd have a 2018 Viviani season, but I went for Pinot, Oomen and Felline instead, their combined points gain should (?) be higher.

 

[Salvarani]

I hope we have more than one different rider

We had more than one different rider after all
22 to be exact.

You:
HIGUITA GARCIA Sergio Andres
PINOT Thibaut
KWIATKOWSKI Michal
HIRSCHI Marc
URAN URAN Rigoberto
BALLERINI Davide
STEIMLE Jannik
PADUN Mark
FELLINE Fabio
MOSCHETTI Matteo
EDMONDSON Alexander
FROOME Chris
CULLAIGH Gabriel
ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo
BAUGNIES Jérôme
VICHOT Arthur
JORGENSON Matteo
CAVENDISH Mark
KANTER Max
DE BIE Sean
GAZE Samuel
WILLIAMS Stephen

Me:
MAS NICOLAU Enric
BARDET Romain
PEDERSEN Mads
VALGREN ANDERSEN Michael
BOUHANNI Nacer
KUSS Sepp
CORT NIELSEN Magnus
TOUZE Damien
VAKOC Petr
FOSS Tobias Svendsen
VAN DER HOORN Taco
STANNARD Robert
DILLIER Silvan
NARVAEZ PRADO Jhonatan Manuel
SAMITIER SAMITIER Sergio
FERNANDEZ ANDUJAR Ruben
BAGIOLI Andrea
GARCIA SOSA Jhojan Orlando
RUBIO REYES Einer Augusto
MÄDER Gino
HÄNNINEN Jaakko
CEPEDA ORTIZ Jefferson Alexander

 

[manafana]

Ahhhh...there's my first misses.... Vichot and Drucker.

i left both out in end, druckers upside isn't huge, and vichot i think might be in long term decline this is compared to other riders at those price points

 

[vladimir]

I found it difficult to get away from the Worlds and Olympics RR being on hilly courses - maybe overrating that pointswise.

BARDET Romain
YATES Simon
KWIATKOWSKI Michal
MADOUAS Valentin
DEGENKOLB John - my last pick (not a good sign), got me bang on 7500. Maybe young enough to still be a top 1-dayer
BEVIN Patrick
MOSCON Gianni
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc
DUMOULIN Tom
VAN POPPEL Danny
BOUHANNI Nacer
ROOSEN Timo
STEIMLE Jannik
PADUN Mark
FELLINE Fabio
RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan - He looks made for all those small italian races but shape has to be taken on trust
KÄMNA Lennard
CAICEDO CEPEDA Jonathan Klever - Giving him another chance, last year was meh but some promise
WÜRTZ SCHMIDT Mads - expecting him to be a rare pick, he's often looked really strong and not had results
CRAS Steff
WARLOP Jordi - I'm on the bandwagon ! I've always had a rider from this team (Allegeart last year)
DRUCKER Jempy
EEKHOFF Nils
STRAKHOV Dmitry
RUBIO REYES Einer Augusto
MÄDER Gino
ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo
SENNI Manuel - Giving him another chance, possibly a mistake. Never got going after early season crash
CEPEDA ORTIZ Jefferson Alexander
CAVENDISH Mark - he should be retired but the fact that he isn't makes me think there must be some confidence
KANTER Max
DE BIE Sean
SIMMONS Quinn

I have 14 riders in common with Eyeballs Out. Maybe more with others, but we both have the rare picks of John Degenkolb and Mads Würtz Schmidt. Riders I have that are missing in Eyeballs Outs team include very popoluar riders like Chris Froome, Pierre Latour, Wilco Kelderman, Sacha Modolo etc. so no need to dig into those. Riders I haven't seen in many (or any) team so far from my team are:

Bob Jungels - 658 pts - I expected him to be quite popular, but he might have some issues that I am not aware of? After all he only scored 31 points after 1st of July last year so there should be plenty of room for improvement. Negative is that he is yet to have a 1000+ season.

Yevgeniy Gidich - 158 pts - I had him as a unique pick last year, but still have faith. Showed some promising signs towards the end of the season so I decided to give him another chance

Edward Ravasi - 15 pts - Also a returning unique pick Several injuries in 2019. Hope for better luck in 2020

Karel Vacek - 1 pts - Didn't do much in 2019, but was probably second best junior in the world in 2018. Riding for Colpack could be a perfect fit.

I am happy to see that there isn't many popular picks I haven't considered, but Sean De Bie has gone completely under my radar.

Will as always be very interresting to see the complete teams when the first Excel is posted.

 

[bminchow]

Thank you for a nice hour break from the real world. I love this day, although I feel stupid after reading some of these posts. I do not have the knowledge that many do. But I'll post anyway.

ALMEIDA Joao Pedro Gonçalves	I don't know much about Portuguese cycling but I know this guy has a good early history and Deceuninck likes him so I'll give the youngster a shot.
ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo	Colombian on UAE. On the cheap. I'll take it.
ARU Fabio	We'll see if this artery thing is the real deal (see Oomen).
BJERG Mikkel	High price but seems motivated to show his TT skills to the world.
BOUHANNI Nacer	I think we'll see an improvement, and possibly a big one. I needed a sprinter too.
CAVENDISH Mark	Tried to drop him but I couldn’t find a replacement. Please just go away.
CHAVES RUBIO Jhoan Esteban	I love this guy. Almost left him off but good guys are my jam. I see possibilities but I don't know his schedule.
CICCONE Giulio	Added him at the last minute. Probably won't double his points but wanted a rare skilled climber. Make me look good Giulio!
CORT NIELSEN Magnus	I see improvement. Just not sure how much.
DE BIE Sean	Great value and injury plagued 2019 (as stated before)
DE LA CRUZ MELGAREJO David	Based on his latest interview. I hope he lives up to it.
DILLIER Silvan	Just couldn't resist the value. Not sure where he gets the points but must be able to double.
DONOVAN Mark	Looking for a cheap sprinter. I have too much love for the Brits I guess.
DRUCKER Jempy	I think he should easily double. Another injury play.
DUMOULIN Tom	Can't risk it.
EEKHOFF Nils	His price fit and maybe he'll hit on a few 1 day races.
FROOME Chris	On, off, On. Just had to keep him at that price.
GROVES Kaden	Always looking for a sprinter since I'm too cheap to pay for them. I see potential (as do many others).
HÄNNINEN Jaakko	A last minute add when I reconfigured to get Ciccone. I like what I'm reading from others though.
HODEG CHAGUI Alvaro Jose	okay. One semi expensive sprinter. I don't like Bennett arriving but I still see talent. And I'm too cheap for gaviria (who I love this year).
KANTER Max	Thank god I noticed him at the last second.
KELDERMAN Wilco	Yep. The leader of the pack. Might as well have 5 Sunweb riders in hopes of hitting on one.
KWIATKOWSKI Michal	This guy is awesome. Who knows how he'll be used and abused this year at Ineos but so much talent. Let him race for himself!
LATOUR Pierre	With TDF and injury from last year, had to do it.
MCLAY Daniel	Another last second add. His spring schedule has a lot of races without Naicer, so I'm hoping for a good show.
OOMEN Sam	I wish there was some news but I love this guy and need him on my team.
RAVASI Edward	A cheap fill in who I liked 2 years ago. Hoping for a recovery.
RUBIO REYES Einer Augusto	Movistar needs a new star! Probably two years away but needed a cheap neo.
SIMMONS Quinn	Yep. American and zero points. Got to have him.
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc	I've liked him for years. I'm hoping Valverde gives him his shots.
TANFIELD Harry	A last minute Brit I don't know but seems to be a name to pick.
VAN AERT Wout	My biggest risk (like all high priced guys). I like MVDP more but this guy showed his stuff and will have more road races. I like picking the best of the best, but Bernal, Remco, Pogacar and Van Der poel are just above my budget. Let's give him some Grand Tour chances to light it up.
YATES Simon	Was always on my roster. I just think he can do more. So far nobody has chosen adam?

 

[Jakob747]

I would appreciate if someone like Jakob could enlighten us more about Ardila though.

Honestly, I haven't seen any news concerning his knee since November! It's the left knee which has been the problem. He didn't have any fractures and has been undergoing therapy since august. He sounded positive though all in a podcast on W-Radio.

Anyway, Ardila raced this Sunday at the Feria de Manizales! where he had to abandon - not because of knee problems but because of a puncture which made it impossible to regroup in this circuit event.

Before he headed to the Baby-Giro - Adila climbed El Escobero in 34min 38sec.
He was only 4 seconds from beating the record time up the climb which reads 34min 34sec held by diminutive Domestic climber Arley Montoya (from 1986) who was one of Fabio Duarte's main rivals in his U23 days back in 2005 and 2006.

 

[Mayomaniac]

I'm surprised that Petilli isn't more popular, he should get more chances to ride form himself at Wanty.

 

[postmanhat]

I wasn't confident enough to pick STRAKHOV because he got his best results on a CT team and failed when he stepped up. He could be one of those guys who's a lot better at CT level when he doesn't have to worry about certain things...
Cherkasov is a younger Russian rider who was on my list, apparently he's supposed to step up, now that Vlasov is gone. Zakarin was on my list, but I picked Moscon instead.
Sam Bennett coukd have a 2018 Viviani season, but I went for Pinot, Oomen and Felline instead, their combined points gain should (?) be higher.

I think Strakhov should end up riding a similar schedule to the one he had with Lokosphinx, and the one he was so successful with. Katusha had him traipsing round a lot of WT races, where he unlikely to make the immediate step up. Plus of course, it's Katusha

 

[Blues in the bottle]

At this point we are all filled with hope. Enjoy the feeling because good and bad will come; but, we will not all be tied for long. Good luck to all.
Here is my team:

PINOT Thibaut	861
MAS NICOLAU Enric	811
JAKOBSEN Fabio	781
YATES Simon	668
MOHORIC Matej	512
HODEG CHAGUI Alvaro Jose	488
LATOUR Pierre	352
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc	350
DUMOULIN Tom	341
CHAVES RUBIO Jhoan Esteban	322
MCNULTY Brandon	267
BJERG Mikkel	243
KUSS Sepp	233
ARU Fabio	194
OOMEN Sam	179
ALMEIDA Joao Pedro Gonçalves	112
MEINTJES Louis	107
NARVAEZ PRADO Jhonatan Manuel	98
VIVIANI Attilio	90
GARRISON Ian	89
BAGIOLI Andrea	83
FROOME Chris	77
RIES Michel	58
CULLAIGH Gabriel	50
VAN LERBERGHE Bert	42
CEPEDA ORTIZ Jefferson Alexander	36
CAVENDISH Mark	25
ALBA BOLIVAR Juan Diego	20
DE BIE Sean	5
RODRIGUEZ CANO Carlos	0
DIBBEN Jonathan	0
WILLIAMS Stephen	0
SIMMONS Quinn	0
	7494

Three cheers to Skidmark for putting this together.

 

[postmanhat]

EVENEPOEL Remco 952

He may be the god of cycling so I just could not resist picking him. Could be a mistake considering his high price and his very young age but nobody expected him to be this good last season. What if he blows away all expectations again? It will be very fun to watch him at the Olympics and in his first Grand Tour so I am very happy I will have multiple reasons to cheer for him.

VAN AERT Wout 898

Another risky expensive pick but if Van Aert is back at his pre injury form I think this is a no-brainer. He looked decent in the Cyclo-Cross return and in interviews he say he should be close to 100% this spring.

PINOT Thibaut 861

Easy pick imo. Last year in Le Tour before his crash and should get his usual 1500 points without too many problems this year. Worlds and Olympics also looks good for him so maybe he could even get close to 2000.

BARDET Romain 734

Finally he will ride Il Giro and this should help him points wise. Olympics and Worlds fits him well too. He starts his season in Australia where he could get some easy points. I predict this will be his best season ever points wise and for me he was a very easy pick.

YATES Simon 668

Another easy pick for me! Yates will also start in Australia and will also go to Giro, with the Olympics and Worlds as objectives too. Another 2000+ season is not impossible!

HODEG CHAGUI Alvaro Jose 488

I hope he will be a sneaky rare pick. There are many things that will probably scare some people from picking him with Sam Bennett joining the team and with his nasty crash in the last race of 209 but I still see him as one of the fastest sprinters in the world .

LATOUR Pierre 352

Another easy pick. He is very strong and he looked great in his return from injury last year. Expect him to double his points.

DUMOULIN Tom 341

Obvious pick.

ROSA Diego 297

This was probably my hardest pick but I love Rosa from his time at Astana and Androni. At Sky he did not had many chances to ride as leader and this should change at his new team. He had an impressive end of the season and he may be sneaky candidate for a good result at the Olympics for Italy if he finds his old form.

BOUHANNI Nacer 276

He was not initially in my plans but in the end I decided I just could not risk it. He was also a good fit in the team budget and I am actually glad I ended up selecting him.

MCNULTY Brandon 267

Amazing climbing talent that also have decent TT skills. He should be good in 1 week races and he may surprise people in 1 day races too. I am a huge believer in his talent so he was a lock for me.

RIABUSHENKO Aliaksandr 257

This guy is 24 years old and I believe this is the year he will explode! He is a huge talent that can climb a little but also have great speed.

PADUN Mark 209

Talented climber that missed the start of the last season because of injury but impressed in the second part.

OOMEN Sam 179

Obvious pick.

DILLIER Silvan 101

He may have another 400-600 season so I just could not risk not picking him.

FROOME Chris 77

Obvious pick.

MODOLO Sacha 67

Experienced sprinter that moved to Pro Conti level. He had many health problems last season but he is healthy now from what I read. Should score a lot of points if his form is decent.

WEEMAES Sasha 66

Very talented but also very young sprinter for Sport Vlaanderen. If he can show that he is indeed one of the fastest guy on this team and get a leader role he could get a ton of points in the smaller Belgium 1 day races.

POWER Robert 56

I had him last year but he was pretty bad. He was one of the biggest U23 talents years ago and I still hope he can turn his career around.

MINALI Riccardo 52

He should be able to score some points at his new team. My concern is that there are a lot of sprinters at Nippo but he is starting in Amissa Bongo where he should get some easy points.


MÄDER Gino 50

Amazing talent had a mediocre first season as a pro.

ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo 44

The new big colombian sensation? After his amaing performance in Baby Giro my answer would be yes!

HÄNNINEN Jaakko 41

He only started his season in may but was impressive in some races. He is clearly talented and should have a nice season.

CEPEDA ORTIZ Jefferson Alexander 36

Androni young South America climbers almost always get a good amount of points with their racing schedule. Cepeda was impressive in Avenir and I expect him to get at least 200 points this season.
RODENBERG MADSEN Frederik 34

One of my late adds to the team. He is a very strong sprinter despite being very young. Last year he managed to win Frankfurt u23 , beating Groves .

VICHOT Arthur 28

Obvious pick.

CAVENDISH Mark 25

Obvious pick.

ENGER Sondre Holst 18

Hope he will be a rare pick and will come back to his old form with his new smaller team.

EVANS Alexander 13

Very interesting talent. With Martin leaving Wanty I hope he will be their new climber project and he will have a similar developement.

KANTER Max 8

Obvious pick.

DE BIE Sean 5

Should be better at lower level.

ARENSMAN Thymen

Went with him insted of Quinn. Hope I won't regret it in the end.

Your expensive picks are sort of the team I wish I'd had the courage to go for. Where you have Van Aert, Bardet and Evenepoel, I have Moscon, Kwiatkowski, Valgren and Gallopin. More conservative choices and arguably more likely to double their points, but yours could pay off more spectacularly. Plus after the gamble on Porte last year, I'm very nervous of choosing anyone over 800 points and already had Pinot.

 

[shalgo]

Time to see some teams indeed. I can start out with my team with a few thoughts on the riders:

33 riders at 7498 points


PINOT Thibaut 861 – Huge potential to improve if he avoids bad luck in the TDF and also with Olympics, Worlds and fall classics. Should double his points

BARDET Romain 734 – The new Giro-Olympics-Worlds -Vuelta schedule should be really good for him to get back to his best and double his points

YATES Simon 668 – The Yates are always difficult to predict, but could well be back to his best and have a new season like 2018.

KWIATKOWSKI Michal 645 – The most uncertain of my expensive picks and I was very tempted to go with riders like Mas, Sosa, D. Martinez or G. Bennett instead, but sounds confident to get back to his best and still huge potential to score points in so many races that I was too afraid not to pick him, and him starting TDU and likely getting many easy points there made the choise easier.

MOSCON Gianni 424 – Horrible season last year but seemed back towards his best in the end so I expect he will be back close to the normal level again the whole next year

KELDERMAN Wilco 402 – Can almost only improve if he avoids bad luck. Giro leadership should also pay of well.

LATOUR Pierre 352 – Like Kelderman, certain pick missing so much of last season

SOLER GIMENEZ Marc 350 – Getting more leadershiproles next year and seemed to step up a level in the Vuelta, made him a certain pick.

DUMOULIN Tom 341 – obvious

VAN POPPEL Danny 334 – Just the kind of rider that are suited to get many points on his new team.

BOUHANNI Nacer 276 – Could not resists at the price. Wont be back to his old level but should improve a lot on a team not treating him horribly all the time and where he is clearly number one and also getting some dedicated leadoutassistance.

ANDERSEN Søren Kragh 268 – Most of the season spoiled by illness and backinjury. Huge potential to improve a lot next year. Certain pick.

DE LA CRUZ MELGAREJO David 252 – One of the last to make my team after his ambitious thought on 2020. Should clearly improve even if he dissapoints.

FELLINE Fabio 199 – Also one of the most uncertain picks, and maybe a bit with the heart also as one of my old favourites. But also sounding ambitious and recovered fully and huge potential if back, even more with Astana not having many fast riders meaning he might sprint more again.

ARU Fabio 194 – Obvious

OOMEN Sam 179 – Obvious

HERMANS Quinten 162 – Will focus more on the road next year so even if he is no Van Aert and Van Der Poel he could be a bit of a revelation

HAAS Nathan 118 – Very unstabile guy, but potential for many points in many races next year

GROVES Kaden 106 – Big versatile sprintertalent that should get many opportunities with Mitchelton. Ought to be a good pick.

DRUCKER Jempy 103 – Missed most of the season last year so should clearly improve and may even some more sprintchances also with Sam Bennett gone and him perhaps the nr 3 sprinter now on the team (even if it ought to be Baska) .

FROOME Chris 77 – Obvious even with risk of no points

GENIEZ Alexandre 68 – The most unstabile rider in the peloton, might get zero points but could easily get 500 and be a great pick.

MODOLO Sacha 67 – Should be over his troubles and should have plenty of chances to score points on his new team.

POWER Robert 56 – A bit of a filler on the team, and awful 2019, but with him supposed "to get more leadership next year" and with his past as supertalent he seemed pretty obvious to pick.

RUBIO REYES Einer Augusto 52 – A bit of a joker, but seemes like a very solid talent and has done quite well in many races. I suppose a rider like Minali at the same price might well score more next year, but he is the kind of rider that could surprice and has a lot higher ceiling so had to go with him. Still one of my last pick and very close to miss out with the final pick being between him and De La Cruz or Timo Roosen (that I really wanted to pick) and boring but solid pick Jonas Rickaert .

MÄDER Gino 50 – Huge talent with a lot of bad luck in 2019, huge potential to improve a lot.

CULLAIGH Gabriel 50 – Seems like a mediocre talent, but him not becomming the nr. 1 sprinter on Movistar, and also being quite solid, ought to make him score well enough to be a good pick.

ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo 44 – A bit of a joker again but seems like a huge talent that I was afraid not to pick.

VICHOT Arthur 28 – Missing most of 2019 but should be back to take revenche now, making him a obvious pick.

CAVENDISH Mark 25 – I guess he cant be written off completely yet so he gets a final chance

KANTER Max 8 – Obvious after missing most of 2019

DE BIE Sean 5 – Another rider missing most of 2019, with huge potential to improve a lot. A very safe pick.

SIMMONS Quinn 0 – I expect many to pick him after Evenepoels last season, so better safe than sorry and picking him, though I dont expect too much.

Wow, my team shares 23 riders with yours! The most expensive pick on your team that is not on mine is Van Poppel (and he was a late deletion from my team).

When I first saw your team posted, I was worried that everyone would go with the same basic approach for expensive riders, but fortunately (for the interest of the game), other teams have adopted a variety of strategies.

 

[SafeBet]

EVENEPOEL Remco 952 – I’ve been following cycling for three decades and never I’ve witnessed such raw talent in a young rider. Pictures tell me baby fat is mostly gone, which means he’ll probably climb better and be competitive in week long stage races. One only (major) concern: his bike handling is still very shaky, crashes could ruin his season.

BARDET Romain 734 – Thibaut Pinot was in my team until late december, but then I took some time to compare the 2 schedules and the latter looks much more CQ friendly. Giro means less competition and less media pressure + solid recovery before the Olympics, WC (both on favorable route) and italian fall classics. I could have picked both but I chose the upside of Remco instead.

YATES Simon 668 – I’m with Squire on Yates, he’s a slam dunk to me.

KWIATKOWSKI Michal 645 – how things change. I considered him my most aggressive pick in 2017, when I first played this game. I think of him as my most conservative pick this year. He’s had bad seasons before, he’ll bounce back.

HIRSCHI Marc 540 – I jumped on the bandwagon after Harelbeke and never got off. He’s got everything you’re looking for in a hilly classic rider and will likely improve his recovery for short stage races (he was very close to score points in Algarve and Itzulia last year, but then cracked in the last stages). Again, both the ORR and WCRR look excellent for his skillset.

MOSCON Gianni 424 – bit of an enigma to me, but I couldn’t pass at that price.

LATOUR Pierre 352 – missed most of last season, came back strong in late summer/fall when he looked like his usual self: a fighter who’ll leave nothing on the table. I’m a bit worried about his schedule but a 1000 point season is possible if he stays on his bike (which isn’t a given considering the descending skills he displayed in Lombardia).

SOLER GIMENEZ Marc 350 – will not lack opportunities with Landa and Quintana gone.

DUMOULIN Tom 341

BOUHANNI Nacer 276 – needed a change of scenery. Will hopefully focus on bike racing and smash the Coupe de France.

ANDERSEN Søren Kragh 268 – this is an interesting rider. He’s pretty quick, can climb, can TT, decent on cobbles but never really had a breakthrough. Last year he had a ton of health issues and raced less than 60 days. It’s hard to figure where he could score points but every time I watch him ride a bike I feel like he’s got a ton of potential.

BALLERINI Davide 252 – best italian talent for cobbles in years. Will finally have the opportunity to prove it in a friendly schedule. I’m bullish on him.

DAINESE Alberto 201 – everybody can see he’s fast but there’s more: he’s a very ambitious kid, who left home as a teenager to ride in an international environment. Sunweb has been hit or miss with its youngsters in the past few years, but I believe he’s special.

LEKNESSUND Andreas 186 – Uno-X is turning PCT which means a lot more chances to score points for this exceptional talent. His consistency at u23 level impressed me and he’ll have plenty of opportunities to ride for himself (unlike other neo-pros). Hopefully not too many u23 races on his schedule.

OOMEN Sam 179 – too much upside despite the obvious health concerns.

RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan 167 – work ethic was always the problem with him, but Savio normally finds a way to make this kind of riders perform.

MCLAY Daniel 134 – had his best seasons to date at French PCT level.

PIDCOCK Thomas 116 – hard to predict how much he’ll race on the road and that’s why I didn’t have him in my shortlist. Then I read some articles mentioning he might join Ineos soon and told myself: f*ck he’s too good to pass.

DEWULF Stan 112 – one thing I’m looking for in young cobble riders is the % of races they finish. He rarely DNFed last year and started showing himself later in the season. No Benoot means more opportunities to ride for himself, considering Phil Gil will probably focus on a short amount of big races.

RAJOVIC Dusan 99 – I’m a bit surprised he wasn’t picked more. Rajovic is a promising sprinter with above average TT skills and some uphill punch. This is his first crack at PCT level and French .1 races should be perfect for him.

BAGIOLI Andrea 83 – you’d be hard pressed to find a better team than Deuceninck for one of the best italian climbing prospect in recent history. He’ll have time to develop without much pressure and then shine in the second half of the season. I’d be surprised if he doesn’t score 300 points.

FROOME Chris 77

MODOLO Sacha 67 – not the sexiest pick but stepping down to PCT is the sensible choice and he’s an underrated cobble rider.

STRAKHOV Dmitry 58 – solid rider for lesser stage races, which are the core of Gazprom schedule. (I had Chernetski in my shortlist of 40 for the same reason but opted for riders with more upside in that price range).

OSORIO CARVAJAL Alejandro 51 – big talent whose first season as a pro was ruined by various ailments.

ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo 44 – don’t really care if he’s a one trick pony, he was pushing some serious watts in that Baby Giro. Hopefully the knee issues are behind him.

CEPEDA ORTIZ Jefferson Alexander 36 – 3 things in life are certain: death, taxes and you better pick riders who signed a 4 year deal with Savio.

VICHOT Arthur 28 – hard to find info about his lacklustre 2019 season, but the ceiling is really too high to pass if he’s healthy.

RICKAERT Jonas 23 – couldn’t recovery from a couple of crashes last year. I’m confident he will improve in 2020.

ENGER Sondre Holst 18 – where will the Enger rollercoaster take you this season? Could be anywhere from 0 to 500 CQ points.

KANTER Max 8
DE BIE Sean 5
SIMMONS Quinn 0

Riders I really wanted but didn't make the final cut: Champoussin, Chernetski, Van der Hoorn, Haas, Rob Stannard, Groves, Geniez, Rubio.
As always, I'll drop a few thoughts on popular riders I didn't pick in the next few days.

 

[tobydawq]

I have never ever had a unique pick in a CQ game and based on the publications so far, my only remaining opportunity for a such is Jérôme Baugnies. That's not very surprising.

I'm quite surprised that so few seem to have picked Ballerini, though.

 

[EvansIsTheBest]

EVENEPOEL Remco

PINOT Thibaut

BARDET Romain

GAVIRIA RENDON Fernando

LATOUR Pierre

SOLER GIMENEZ Marc

DUMOULIN Tom

BOUHANNI Nacer

ANDERSEN Søren Kragh

MCNULTY Brandon

BJERG Mikkel

STEIMLE Jannik

DAINESE Alberto

ARU Fabio

OOMEN Sam

RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan

KÄMNA Lennard

VAKOC Petr

LOPEZ PEREZ Juan Pedro

HAAS Nathan

ALMEIDA Joao Pedro Gonçalves

GROVES Kaden

KONYCHEV Alexander

MODOLO Sacha

GARCIA SOSA Jhojan Orlando

MINALI Riccardo

BRUNEL Alexys

VICHOT Arthur

CAVENDISH Mark

KANTER Max

DE BIE Sean

LEVASSEUR Jordan

SIMMONS Quinn

I'll try to post a little analysis of my rarer picks later tonight (and some expensive picks I stayed away from).

 

[escartin]

my team:

SAGAN Peter 1582
VAN AERT Wout 898
PINOT Thibaut 861
URAN URAN Rigoberto 458
LATOUR Pierre 352
SOLER GIMENEZ Marc 350
DUMOULIN Tom 341
VAN POPPEL Danny 334
MCNULTY Brandon 267
STEIMLE Jannik 228
PADUN Mark 209
DAINESE Alberto 201
ARU Fabio 194
OOMEN Sam 179
HAAS Nathan 118
STANNARD Robert 114
VAN WILDER Ilan 98
NARVAEZ PRADO Jhonatan Manuel 98
FERNANDEZ ANDUJAR Ruben 83
THWAITES Scott 79
FROOME Chris 77
MODOLO Sacha 67
STRAKHOV Dmitry 58
MINALI Riccardo 52
MÄDER Gino 50
ARDILA ORDOÑEZ Andres Camilo 44
PEAK Barnabas 32
CAVENDISH Mark 25
RICKAERT Jonas 23
ENGER Sondre Holst 18
DONOVAN Mark 5
DE BIE Sean 5
SIMMONS Quinn 0

I guess my season depends on how Sagan and van Aert do. And also how Pinot does compared to Bardet. Having read the reasoning behind picking Bardet I am already wondering if I made the right decision.
Does not look like I have any unique picks but maybe Peak (I had Valter on my shortlist last year but did not pick him so I did not want to miss out on another promising Hungarian).

Some riders I had on my shortlist that I might regret not picking;
Kaden Groves, Cepeda*2, Joao Almeida, Kanter (already regretting this), all the Danes, Eekhoff, Knox, Chernetskiy, Vuillmeroz, Moscon, Mohoric, Hanninen, all those Movistar youngsters, Ravasi, Power, Gavaria(?), Goncalves, Kwiatkowski (not too sure about this decision), S Yates (I was also of the opinion that 2018 was a bit of an outlier, I could be very wrong...)

Some riders I picked last year but decided against this year (last year Cosnefroy, Gaudu, Planckaert were all part of this category... )
Sajnok, Meintjes, Rui Oliveira, Atapuma, Bouhanni (tbh, I totally forgot about him and he was never even on my shortlist...)

Some riders I never saw / thought about that I have seen others pick
Vichot, Evenepoel, van der Poel, Kelderman, Bouhanni (as above and even less excuse for missing him)

 

[tobydawq]

A thing to keep in mind in the Bardet vs. Pinot conundrum is the quite important fact that Bardet has been riding like a sack of potatoes the last year while Pinot has been riding like a dream since the autumn of 2018.

 

[Geraint Too Fast]

I have never ever had a unique pick in a CQ game and based on the publications so far, my only remaining opportunity for a such is Jérôme Baugnies. That's not very surprising.

Sorry.

BENNETT Sam

PINOT Thibaut

BARDET Romain

YATES Simon

URAN URAN Rigoberto

MOSCON Gianni

KELDERMAN Wilco

LATOUR Pierre

SOLER GIMENEZ Marc

DUMOULIN Tom

BOUHANNI Nacer

TVETCOV Serghei

OOMEN Sam

RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan

KÄMNA Lennard

CHERNETSKIY Sergey

PACIONI Luca

GENIEZ Alexandre

HUCKER Robbie

FUNG Ka Hoo

CULLAIGH Gabriel

WHITE Nicholas

DIAZ GALLEGO Jose Manuel

BAUGNIES Jérôme

MERTENS Julian

ENGER Sondre Holst

WANG Meiyin

ALAPHILIPPE Bryan

DE BIE Sean

BANASZEK Alan

ZIJLAARD Maikel

FERRARI BARCELO Fabricio

VACEK Karel

Now that my top 30 streak is over, I feel free to go a lot more maverick this year.

 

[tobydawq]

Sorry.

BENNETT Sam

PINOT Thibaut

BARDET Romain

YATES Simon

URAN URAN Rigoberto

MOSCON Gianni

KELDERMAN Wilco

LATOUR Pierre

SOLER GIMENEZ Marc

DUMOULIN Tom

BOUHANNI Nacer

TVETCOV Serghei

OOMEN Sam

RESTREPO VALENCIA Jhonatan

KÄMNA Lennard

CHERNETSKIY Sergey

PACIONI Luca

GENIEZ Alexandre

HUCKER Robbie

FUNG Ka Hoo

CULLAIGH Gabriel

WHITE Nicholas

DIAZ GALLEGO Jose Manuel

BAUGNIES Jérôme

MERTENS Julian

ENGER Sondre Holst

WANG Meiyin

ALAPHILIPPE Bryan

DE BIE Sean

BANASZEK Alan

ZIJLAARD Maikel

FERRARI BARCELO Fabricio

VACEK Karel

Now that my top 30 streak is over, I feel free to go a lot more maverick this year.

Haha, I'm so mainstream.

 

[ThePirate81]

Took Nibali over Bardet.
Giro route is great for Vincenzo,Olympics and Worlds too. Also having Ciccone at his side in Trek and in Nazionale will be good for him.
It's a big gamble but I hope past bad luck (Firenze 2013,Rio 2016,Tour 2018) will turn into luck and a really big season for the best Italian rider of the last decade.