Teams & Riders The Great Big Cycling Transfers, Extensions, and Rumours Thread

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Aug 28, 2021
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David de la Cruz actually is still quite good. At Astana he also had/has the freedom to ride for own results.

I mostly worry more about Joe Dombrowski… I am a big fan of his, and he too has all freedom at Astana, but nowadays mostly climbs with riders who are mediocre or, at best, better mid field climbers. I however don’t want to criticize him, since I don’t know the reasons why his performances deteriorated.
 
Jul 27, 2009
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David de la Cruz actually is still quite good. At Astana he also had/has the freedom to ride for own results.

I mostly worry more about Joe Dombrowski… I am a big fan of his, and he too has all freedom at Astana, but nowadays mostly climbs with riders who are mediocre or, at best, better mid field climbers. I however don’t want to criticize him, since I don’t know the reasons why his performances deteriorated.
Apart from the 2021 Giro d'Italia and the 2015 Tour of Utah Dombrowski never had fruitful performances.
 
May 10, 2013
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Apart from the 2021 Giro d'Italia and the 2015 Tour of Utah Dombrowski never had fruitful performances.
Fruitful is one thing but sheer form is another. His Giro 2016 or Giro 2019 level for example was much higher than anything he's shown this year.

But looking at Astana as a team in the last few years, it's not surprising that riders are not flourishing there.
 
Jul 27, 2009
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Fruitful is one thing but sheer form is another. His Giro 2016 or Giro 2019 level for example was much higher than anything he's shown this year.

But looking at Astana as a team in the last few years, it's not surprising that riders are not flourishing there.
Yeah true. But apart from these 2 occasions he hardly showed any kind of shape ever since his Baby Giro win and 2012 Tour of California breakthrough.

I remember he was in the breakaway towards the Lakes of Covadonga at the 2016 Vuelta a Espana but already distanced by Gesink when Quintana caught the Dutchman.

That's hardly convincing for a guy that was supposed to have Dombrowski's talent and I already was surprised about his 2021 Giro d'Italia stage win and that Astana subsequently offered him a contract after UAE had no intention to sign him by.
 
Oct 3, 2021
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Does anyone know exactly what happened to his hip?

He fractured it, plus the femur, it was described as a complex fracture and has required plating and screws to hold together, which presumably won't be removed as it requires more surgery, more rehabilitation etc

It's been 4 months and I think they're only looking at getting back on a racing bike within the next month. So slightly ahead of Froomes recovery, probably behind other riders who had simpler hip fractures, which maybe frames the level of injury.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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Yeah true. But apart from these 2 occasions he hardly showed any kind of shape ever since his Baby Giro win and 2012 Tour of California breakthrough.

I remember he was in the breakaway towards the Lakes of Covadonga at the 2016 Vuelta a Espana but already distanced by Gesink when Quintana caught the Dutchman.

That's hardly convincing for a guy that was supposed to have Dombrowski's talent and I already was surprised about his 2021 Giro d'Italia stage win and that Astana subsequently offered him a contract after UAE had no intention to sign him by.
Like a while Generation of American talents he got ruined by Axel Merckx, who squeezed everything Out of them before they even turned pro.

Dombrowski was supposed to be what Kuss became...
 
Apr 10, 2019
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Dombrowski had a leg length discrepancy and subsequent iliac artery issues. The same problems that ended Robert Power's career and nearly Bernal's.
So you're telling me I could produce World Tour wattages if I finally did something about my left leg being longer? ;)
 
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May 5, 2010
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I'm not sure it would be something to brag about though. He definitely wouldn't be able to ride faster from day one.

Didn't know Italian legs were generally quicker than Danish legs. In fact, the various UCI rankings says otherwise.

But, yeah... "Leg Transfers" definitely isn't the normal sort of transfer talk.
 
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Apr 10, 2019
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I have a longer right leg, so maybe we could swap?
I feel like "one of my legs is Italian" could be a decent conversation starter for me.
I was thinking about getting a special insole for my right foot from a specialist, leg swapping seems a bit drastic to me.
Fun fact: My highschool PE teacher watched me play basketball for like 2min and then took me aside and said "you know that one of your legs is shorter, right?"
That said, the guy was also a legit track and field coach who got namedropped on national TV during big events.
 
Sep 26, 2020
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I was thinking about getting a special insole for my right foot from a specialist, leg swapping seems a bit drastic to me.
Fun fact: My highschool PE teacher watched me play basketball for like 2min and then took me aside and said "you know that one of your legs is shorter, right?"
That said, the guy was also a legit track and field coach who got namedropped on national TV during big events.

That was nice of him. I don't anyone would want to watch me play basketball for more than 2 minutes either.