My motivation this year was a little hampered by the situation and all the circumstances around bike-races getting canceled/replaced. But anyway here we go - until the wheels fall off I guess!
Julian Alaphlippe - Alaphilippe is a sublime athlete. Now at his zenith. A champion that will honor the rainbow jersey in every race he enters. He race – and get results – from February to October. Anyway, together with Hirschi, a fully fit Evenepoel, and maybe and Van Aert? the only riders I see successfully being protagonists at both the Olympics and the World Championships this year!
Aleksandr Vlasov - Obviously I knew Vlasov was a very talented climber, yet the magnitude of his breakthrough genuine caught me by surprise. Vlasov has insane watts uphill which makes him competitive on every type of mountain top-finish and I think it's reasonable to rank him or label him among the best climbers in the World already now. He is a very, very live outsider for the Giro d'Italia and I think he can race the Olympics competing as a neutral athlete? Anyway, he is here instead of Evenepoel whom I chickened out on because of the latest news dating a week back or so.
Marc Hirschi - Hirschi is a compact, power-packed explosive climber/puncher, capable of winning all the biggest races on the calendar. There is little doubt in my mind that Hirschi one day could become a Grand Tour contender as well. After all, he is the “The Kylian Mbappé of cycling.” as Cancellara puts it
! Obviously, there won't be any GC plans in 2021, however, Hirschi will fly in the Ardennes and be Stratostopic at the Olympics and maybe even the Worlds this year.
Mads Pedersen - In all honesty, Van Aret and VdP are a level up on everyone else in the Classics currently. In the bracket below I have Pedersen, Bettiol, and Senechal as the strongest, at least based on how they rode on the Muurs in 2020. Pedersen is perhaps even better tailored for a race like Roubaix etc, besides I was sold on his “race every day like it's the last race of the calendar “ philosophy for 2021. Combine this with the fact that Pedersen is heavily underrated “or at least was“ heavily underrated as a fast-man and now will lead Trek sprinting-wise in 2021 a category where I also feel he is on the come-up albeit not a pure bunch-galloper nor does he desire to be. I sensed value in him CQ wise and I am convinced he will win big at least once or twice in 2021.
Egan Bernal - 2020 was obviously a very complicated year for Egan, with his back-problems and all. However before everything went south he had some stellar performances as well, his victory on Col de Beyrède, for example, was genuinely world-class and I have little doubt that a recovered Egan is a 1000 point CQ cyclist, year in year out! If not injury-plagued Egan, will be there with the best of the best again in 2021.
Sepp Kuss - Kuss is the best lieutenant/climbing domestique in the world hands down. When the news of Tom Dumoulin taking a break from cycling broke, and the chances of Kuss riding for himself more often quadrupled, I struck at once. Kuss has so much untapped potential and now being higher in the pecking order at Jumbo, perhaps only have to slave at the TdF in service of Roglic. Watch him light up the Vuelta a España in 2021.
Alberto Bettiol - There is always a bit of risk involved in choosing a rider like Bettiol - You can't be completely sure what you gonna get! Life is like a box of chocolates, I guess. Greg Van Avermaet stated back in 2019 that Bettiol is crazy talented but in 2018 for example rode around well above his ideal race-wight. Now with age + 2 successful seasons under his belt, I feel Bettiol is entering the prime years of his career and therefore is less of a Rubik's Cube. In 2021 I roll the dice with Bettiol.
Lucas Hamilton - I know he won that stage in Tirreno Adriatico in 2020 but other than that I actually wasn't too impressed with his performances overall! Matt White trusts him though and I guess there is some truth in that Hamilton, more or less is in the same class as Hindley and Sivakov, etc dating all the way back to their U23 encounters. Hopefully, Hamilton can add a little to his arsenal because there is little doubt he was/is a world-class talent!
Quinn Simmons - Controversial and all, kinda get that Moscon vibe with Simmons, anyway, you can't deny he has a throwback mentality to cycling and puts in a HUGE training-load when he is not at the gun-range in Tucson. Obviously, work in progress but Simmons is a hell of a talent whom I expect good results from already in 2021.
Miguel Florez - He did an FTP test with Hernan Dario Casas back in 2016 and achieved results pretty similar to those of Nairo. H.D Casas mentions Florez as a potential finisher between top-5/8 in a Grand-Tour in the future, and that Florez also packs a pretty mean punch towards the line (Uphill). His big Achilles heel beside an abysmal TT, is his lack of self-belief and confidence in own abilities. In that regard, his victory on the queen-stage of Vuelta San Juan was crucial,l and I predict we gonna see a very live Florez in 2021. He will be an important climbing domestic to a fading Nairo (GT wise at least) - and could capitalize and get some results for himself as well.
Emanuel Buchmann - Buchmann is a proven competitor -so no need to write page up and down about a guy like him. He looked like a million bucks in the Dauphine before a crash suddenly tore it all to pieces and ruined his season pretty much. His climbing looks very, very solid and I think he will have a great Giro d'Italia in 2021, where he has to be one of the big pre-favorite podium contenders going into the race.
Stefan Bissegger - More versatile than a Swiss Army Knife. He’s a superb racer. He can sprint a little. He can climb a little. He’s very promising on the cobbles. And he’s an excellent time trialist. Check the Binck-Bank tour this year! On the second to last passage of Muur-Kapelmuur he was flying. I think he will do the Olympics (Track commitments?) yet I didn't want to miss out. I don't know about 2021, but one day Bissegger will be a very, very good competitor.
Christophe Laporte - With the question-mark surrounding Viviani and his heart-troubles, Laporte becomes an even more vital part of Cofidis' quest for success in 2021. I predict Laporte will win a few times this year, as always it won't be victories from the top-shelf but still of noteworthy caliber. With his CQ price-tag, he was pretty easy to include into my rooster this year.
Kaden Groves - I didn't go with Dainese this year, even though his top-speed in my book still is a small notch above Kaden Groves´s. So why Groves? Simply because he is much more versatile, a sort of Michael Matthews Version 2.0. I haven't checked the Parcours for the Australian Nationals, but I assume they are held in Buninyong as always where Groves actually could survive the circuit and sprint for gold and get off to a flying start.
Alessandro Covi - I saw an article with Damiano Cunego, where he mentioned Covi, as a name to follow for the future. I had him pegged as a promising climber based on his junior and U23 days -He can defiantly go uphill don't get me wrong, but there is more to his game, he is also strong at the repeated efforts at intensity as he showed in Brabantse Pijl and I believe he could become a good 1-day rider (as well). The hierarchy at UAE seems defined and the competition crazy strong, however in 2021, I think Covi, will turn a page and establish himself as a rider well worth banking on for the years to come..
Alessandro Fedeli - One of the most improved riders on the Pro-Conti scene in 2020. Biniam Girmay Hailu is without a doubt the golden-boy at DELKO, he is just so insanely talented, however, Fedeli is far from a slouch. Fedeli was flying in several semi-classic in 2020 and only a saddle sore acquired in Tour of Luxemburg stopped him from being selected by Cassani, too join the Italian national squad for the Worlds at Imola. 1-day racing seems to be his niche, but he can pass a hill or two quite good as well - after all, he won Pian Della Mussa (U23) in 2016 beating Vlasov and Masanda to second and third, so there is defiantly potential in Fedeli. I look forward to seeing him explode his talent to the best of his abilities this season.
Louis Vervake - Several years ago I predicted him to be one of the most promising climbers to come out of Belgium in recent years. He had severe problems with motivation a few years back, but at Alpecin he seems to have really found his joy for bike riding again. His results in 2020 were not spectacular, but very decent nonetheless, there is defiantly something to build upon in the years to come - still only 27 years of age. Together with Xandro Meurisse, he will lead Alpecin in stages-racer and although they won't set the world on fire, I feel Vervaeke is the one with the most untapped potential and room for improvement. In 2021 he is also riding for a contract and the young-guns are tripping behind to take the rails, led by a very, very young and promising Ben Tullett.
Clement Champoussin - The next in line to feel the heavy pressure from the French press, in their desperate quest to find the next Hinault or Fignon. Champoussin is a good little grimpeur no doubt - he would have won the Col de la Loze stage in Avenir if he hadn't gassed in the last kilometers and was overtaken by Alexander Evans and Michel Reis. His first Vuelta was a good indicator of his talent, he has the courage to attack and in Tour de Luxembourg he showed he is not just a one-dimensional climber who gets blown out the back on the flattish terrain. He will have his chances in 2021 - I admit I am not sold on Bob Jungles anymore and especially not in stage-races however, time will tell if I am too fast to count Jungels out or not.
Jonas Vingegaard - Outstanding at the Vuelta Espana - I think there were like 10 guys left when he let go on Angliru, he basically out-worked George Benett that day if I remember correctly. Jumbo knows he is a serious prospect, I saw Sepp Kuss in an interview on youtube (El Sello Ciclista) where he said Vingegaard is the truth and a name to really follow in the years to come. Dumoulin is taking an indefinite break, I honestly feel he will never come back, anyway, Vingegaard moves up a little within the stacked Jumbo-Visma hierarchy, and if nothing else will act as a super-domestique to Sepp Kuss at the Vuelta, just wait and see.
Sep Vanmarcke - He still has his brute force on the cobbles I guess, however, I don't think he will ever get really close to battle for a cobble monument ever again. His price-tag this year is really low and that's why I included him, he will ride a full spring program, and if all goes well I hope he at least doubles his CQ points for 2022. In other words, my expectations for Vanmarcke are very modest this year.
Gianni Moscon - It's almost tragic that a dude with the extraordinary talent that Moscon, undoubtedly possesses, is in this situation where nobody counts on him anymore other than to make a fool of himself. I add him anyway because 2021 is contract year for Moscon, and I saw him training and looking pretty lean on Gran Canaria together with Filippo Ganna. I hear Dario Cioni? is in charge of him again this year at Ineos and I just hope that they get his motivation back, so he can actually start to look like an athlete again.
Harold Tejada - Oscar Sevilla mentioned Tejada as the best domestique in Colombia already last year (2019). Honestly, Tejada surprised me in 2020, he has always been a good talent, without ever standing out as a mega-talent or someone with insane super-star potential. In an episode of Ciclismo en Grande on youtube, Luis Fernando Saladariga mentions Tejada as one of the most serious and dedicated Colombian riders which goes hand in hand with the famous phrase that talent doesn't beat hard work. Vlasov is on the come-up and Tejada will ride the Giro d'Italia together with the young Russian. The way Tejada looked on Mont Ventoux (Sensational) I actually expect he will get his own chances at times within Astana and CQ-wise that could mean a rather sensible return pointwise.
Thymen Arensman - This kid is lit. The way he picked his break-away attempts (3) at the Vuelta was truly impressive. Two of them made it to the line and he was Tim Wellens's lucky charm as Wellens won both of those stages. Arensman is built like a Brinks truck and can both climb and TT really well. DSM is known for their relatively flat hierarchy and I think Arensman will manifest himself in smaller stage-races (if there are any left on the calendar ha.ha) already next year.
Mark Donovan - Like with Thymen Arensman above, Donovan is a budding stage-racer in the making. At the Vuelta, he also hit a few breaks on Mountian stages and was in the mix until the final kilometers. This year DSM signed a super-talent in Andreas Leknessund and there is also a very young Ilan Van Wilder who could progress further, however, I sustain that with a GT in their legs both Arensman and Donovan are poised to take a step further in their development.
Steven Kruijswijk - I think Kruijswik is a slightly fading cyclists. Nothing stage in that as he is pushing 34 years of age already,. However, he has in the previous 5 years always scored over 500 CQ points so it would be utter nonsense not to add him to my roster based solely on that. That and the fact I was getting low on CQ cash he.he. I still expect at least around 300 points from him in 2021.
Tom Pidcock - Mega talent. One of the first riders on my list for this year's game. This kid can do everything on a bike, extremely versatile, combine that with his insane potential and you have a superstar in the making. He will have a truly special career.
Kevin Rivera - Fragile little climber, who on his day is capable of deliver truly brilliant preformances only then to DnF the very next. Its super frustrating to witness to be honest. Anyway, If you see his training videos going uphill at home in Costa Rica, you can see he is a special talent, yet he hasn't been able to put it together for a full season in Europe yet. I hope and pray 2021 is the year we get to see Rivera fly uphill.
Orluis Aular - I saw an Interview with Xabier Muriel where he predicts Aular will be one of the riders from Caja Rural who will take a step forward in 2021. He was injured in December and January last year which really hampered his entrance to racing in Europe. Then the pandemic came and everything went to hell so to speak. He needs to pick his days. On undulating terrain, he can really have his say, and with his fast surge towards the line, he is a very dangerous competitor. He has winner inscribed in his DNA.
Pierre Latour - 2021 will be a year full of leadership opportunities for the seasoned Frenchmen. Can it get any worse than last year's disaster? I don't have any answers, he is a sensible and cheap pick who at least gets the chance to ride for himself whenever he wants. However, if he can redeem himself? That remains to be seen and I am really in the dark as to what to expect from Latour myself.
Amund Grøndahl Jansen - I never really followed him, to be honest. I mean I know he can have his say on classics style of terrain, and that moving away from Jumbo only increases his chances to ride for himself, which is positive in the aspect of this game but other than that? No idea. His calendar looks sensible, so I guess there is a good chance of him scoring significantly more than in 2020.
Chris Froome - I hope he is not the Cavendish of last years game, or the Froome of last years game ha.ha. He clearly must have undergone some sorts of testing which shows his watts are still intact, or else why would Israel bother signing him? Anyway, I roll the roulette with Froome one more time in 2021, and hope for jackpot, albite nervous that this year will turn out to be another fiasco for the former 4x TdF winner!
Daniel Mendez - Mendez is still so young, that it would be unrealistic to expect a huge turnover from him already this year However a truly
splendid climber who as a junior showed spectacular performances week in, week out. Honestly I dont remember a junior as dominate as him climbing wise, since when Ivan Sosa raced with Canapro! There doesn't exists a lineal progression curve in pro-cycling (thank god), some mature a bit later than others and with Mendez its hard to say where he exactly falls in that category, However i am sure JJ. Oroz and the whole Kern-Pharma set-up know they have a real jewel at their disposal.
Camilo Ardila - He indeed is/was a monster talent with super-star potential. However, as I said above the progression curve doesn't automatic tilt upwards, just because your are blessed with increadble skills from a young-age. Some stall or even regress in their development and with Ardila everything is still up in the air in that aspect. Ok so after he won the Baby-Giro he basically dindt touch his bike for 6 months and was hampered by those pesky knee-troubles. HOWEVER, he looked at least decent in Tour Colombia 2020, and was doing intesitiy intervals on Letras, so he must have been on some kind of form, but I guess his injury problems could have returned because of the work-load. Anyway, it wont be easy for Ardila to manifest himself within this UAE squad, but he is one a 3- year deal and the recent comments from Yeyo Corral makes ground for optimism, so maybe Ardila could become a super climbng-domestique in 2021?