Well one of the key men who know where Ewan is at the moment is his old Orica compadre, Robbie McEwan. He makes some interesting observations in his cyclingnews interview;
"It is always difficult to compare riders from different generations but there are distinct similarities between McEwen, Cavendish and Ewan. They have different temperaments, different teams and face different rivals but share the same sprinting technique, with Ewan clearly using the same low aerodynamic sprinting position that made Cavendish so dominate in the Tour de France sprints between 2008 and 2013.
“One is that we’re the only three riders to come on the scene in the last 20 years and win 10 or more races in our neo-pro season,” McEwen pointed out quickly. “The power to weight ratio is of course our big thing. None of us put out massive power numbers in terms of total watts but we’re right up there at watts per kilo. And that’s what it's all about.
“One of the biggest comparisons between Caleb and Cav are their positions on the bike. They’re almost identical. They both get a really low, with their head over the bars, in a forward position. That’s only really much achievable by those two guys because of their build: they’ve short stocky legs, pretty short arm and a normal torso. It’s not possible for anyone taller to contort themselves into that position and generate their maximum power. For Cav and Caleb, that’s their natural position.”
McEwen quickly does the math to explain the benefits of a low aero sprinting position.
“It means that if Kittel is putting out 1,800 watts, Caleb probably only needs to put out 1,400 watts to be competitive in a sprint,” he points out.
“On a straight, flat sprint I think the big guys still have a slight advantage and can wind up the power up and combine it with the momentum but on finishes when the road rises up to the line, the advantage switches to the little guys. That’s where I always did my best work and results. But even on the flat sprints the low position gives the little guys an aerodynamic advantage because the riders behind him struggle to get much of a slipstream. I can remember being in that position sprinting against Cav in the final part of my career. I can usually get a ride behind anyone but you get more wind when you’re behind Cav. Caleb is even smaller and so I imagine it's even worse when you sit behind him.”
Cavendish has proven his sprinting ability by winning 26 stages at the Tour de France, Milan-San Remo in 2009 and the world road race title in 2011. He is a fighter and has incredible skill to read a sprint and take on the power sprinters like Greipel, Kristoff and Kittel.
McEwen is slightly concerned that Ewan may lack some aggression when the big sprints turn nasty at 70km/h.
“I just wonder as he goes up into the WorldTour sprints, the beloved patriot in Caleb’s armour could be when things get a little rough, I don’t know how he’ll go then,” McEwen questioned.
“Because he’s so small, he’s in great danger of getting a knee in the head from a guy like Greipel or Kittel. I was like that with Cipollini, I couldn’t go shoulder to shoulder with them because I was in danger of riding into their legs and going down. I suppose we’ll find out soon enough.”
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