• The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

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

Page 107 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
S

Soranos

Jul 7, 2021
26
46
1,630
Visit site
RedheadDane said:
Lopez extends:

Miguel Ángel López signs new two-year contract with Movistar Team | Movistar Team
Click to expand...


Probably a good decision. Since Latin America is a crucial market for Movistar ( the company) there will always be pressure for the team to have a marquee rider from the region under contract. MAL has disappointed so far but that was in large part probably due to crashes, getting used to the new team, etc.. Bow he has certainty and can concentrate on la vuelta.

I actually wondered that they (apparently) did not try all that hard for Higuita, who would have been a great addition. With Sosa they could sign another Colombian who still has good potential to challenge for GC positions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sandisfan
perico

perico

Mar 11, 2009
3,721
2,543
19,180
Visit site
Soranos said:
Probably a good decision. Since Latin America is a crucial market for Movistar ( the company) there will always be pressure for the team to have a marquee rider from the region under contract. MAL has disappointed so far but that was in large part probably due to crashes, getting used to the new team, etc.. Bow he has certainty and can concentrate on la vuelta.

I actually wondered that they (apparently) did not try all that hard for Higuita, who would have been a great addition. With Sosa they could sign another Colombian who still has good potential to challenge for GC positions.
Click to expand...

Don’t forget he also missed 1/3 of the season with COVID.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Koronin and Sandisfan
Libertine Seguros

Libertine Seguros

Feb 20, 2010
31,205
10,978
28,180
Visit site
I actually think Supermán has been fine and his underperformance has largely been out of his control. He missed the start of the season with Covid, and then his Tour was negatively impacted by crashes early in the race that had a detrimental impact on his form and then subsequently his confidence - however with Soler having left the race early, they needed to keep him in the race for Mas when he'd normally have likely withdrawn a lot sooner. He was fine when he was healthy, and was suitably competitive - winning the Mont Ventoux Dénivelée Challenge comically easily, and laying the smack down on everybody in Andalucía, plus finishing 6th in the Dauphiné. This is definitely no Betancur job and, with Valverde finally looking like Father Time is impacting his finishing kick and the ever-visible and combative Soler moving on, the fact López is a proven winner is a major boost for the team since Mas is the kind of rider who gets better as races go on and doesn't tend to pick up much in the way of stage wins etc..
 
  • Like
Reactions: Koronin, Lui98, Sandisfan and 4 others
J

Jumbot

Jul 2, 2021
128
196
2,030
Visit site
Libertine Seguros said:
Is that really the product of his selfishness, though, or is that, like with Kuss, the product of Addy Engels' galaxy brain tactics that take a cohesive unit all riding together and somehow make them less use for their leader than a domestique corps comprised of seven clones of John Gadret?
Click to expand...

Addy Engels is a DS for Giro not Tour. He doesn't call any shots for TDF, not 2021, not 2020, not even 2019. He's not even in the second team car. So I'm not really sure how is he the mastermind behind the "Kuss tactics" that almost destroyed the cycling, or am I missing something?

Roku said:
I guess you mean Almeida right?

Because there's no way Bennett can reach a Sastre-like level (not even the 2010 Giro level). Bennett is only good for stage hunting in Giro/Vuelta. Not even for domestique duties, since he is usually too selfish to work hard for other riders.
Click to expand...

I've never rated Bennett but I'm not sure he's that selfish to do work for a teammate (Stevie K gives me those vibes), imo he just doesn't have the skillset to be a great domestique. He can't set a high pace for longer turns because he doesn't have an engine for it, he can't take much wind, he's also not gonna win you stages because he'll lose too much strength on flat parts and a lesser climber on paper will beat him on the final climb, he can't sprint and he can't go solo from afar because what I've mentioned already and on top of that he's very fragile and inconsistent, one little crash and his form goes to s.... He's a follower and can get you top 10 places when he's on form.
I'm glad he's not staying with Jumbo as I don't see enough effectiveness from him, same with Tolhoek. They're better fitted for teams without big stars where they can get greater freedom from the peloton when they attack like van der Hoorn did. Anyway it will be interesting to see if they're gonna perform better in their new teams or they'll end up like Grondahl Jansen...
 
  • Like
  • Wow
Reactions: Monte Serra and Sandisfan
ciranda

ciranda

Jun 25, 2012
1,116
674
12,680
Visit site
Jumbot said:
He can't set a high pace for longer turns because he doesn't have an engine for it, he can't take much wind, he's also not gonna win you stages because he'll lose too much strength on flat parts and a lesser climber on paper will beat him on the final climb, he can't sprint and he can't go solo from afar because what I've mentioned already and on top of that he's very fragile and inconsistent, one little crash and his form goes to ***
Click to expand...
Stop trying to be nice and just write what you really think.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: Sandisfan and BlueRoads
J

Jumbot

Jul 2, 2021
128
196
2,030
Visit site
I'm not writing the guy off, I just wanted to share a view on him from a TJV supporter perspective who is focused on team in every race I watch. For me it was painful watching races with him as a leader (flashbacks of Bau/Lau days fighting for 10th in the Tour) as he's very limited rider and I was never really impressed by his pulling for Rogla etc. either... And I see some people rate him as one of the best mountain doms there are. But hey, on the other side I highly rate Gesink as a domestique (I'm not Dutch ;) ). For me GB is a relic from the struggling times for the team and now they need a different profile of a rider. I'll miss his interviews though
 
  • Like
Reactions: Roku
EliseeReclus

EliseeReclus

Oct 15, 2020
118
195
3,030
Visit site
I feel a bit like Bennett may not have been absolutely happy at Jumbo Visma, after the 2018 Giro it seemed like he wanted to (and seemed to have been granted) have a shot at the Grand Tour GC to get a decent result with some team support and in both 2019 and 2020 he got flexed into being a domestique after situations changed. Especially in 2020 he seemed in great form from the Italian one day races, Burgos and L'Ain but Jumbo changed plans immediately when Kruijswijk was injured, for me it is pretty poor man management and team planning to have to do this when a rider is in good form, has obviously trained specifically and targeted a goal through lockdown and seems to have been promised an opportunity.

I think in the right situation he can be very effective as a rider, however it doesn't seem like this could work at JV as they didn't manage things well enough when Roglic emerged as a GC winner in 2019. Hope he can show something and be useful in whatever way at UAE.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sandisfan
Pirazziattacks

Pirazziattacks

May 14, 2017
1,281
1,049
8,680
Visit site
EliseeReclus said:
I feel a bit like Bennett may not have been absolutely happy at Jumbo Visma, after the 2018 Giro it seemed like he wanted to (and seemed to have been granted) have a shot at the Grand Tour GC to get a decent result with some team support and in both 2019 and 2020 he got flexed into being a domestique after situations changed. Especially in 2020 he seemed in great form from the Italian one day races, Burgos and L'Ain but Jumbo changed plans immediately when Kruijswijk was injured, for me it is pretty poor man management and team planning to have to do this when a rider is in good form, has obviously trained specifically and targeted a goal through lockdown and seems to have been promised an opportunity.

I think in the right situation he can be very effective as a rider, however it doesn't seem like this could work at JV as they didn't manage things well enough when Roglic emerged as a GC winner in 2019. Hope he can show something and be useful in whatever way at UAE.
Click to expand...
I feel like Bennett's GC ambitions have generated a lot more attention than has really been justified. By now it seems quite obvious that he's a 9th-13th guy at the Giro or Vuelta at best and isn't exactly a prolific winner either. That's fine, it's just not something most teams are going to be all that enthused about.

On the whole Bennett's a rider who I think doesn't really live up to his reputation, especially as a domestique. He's not bad by any means, he's just another above average pure climber and not a lot more.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SafeBet, Kaptain Kool and Red Rick
R

Roku

Aug 1, 2016
757
991
12,180
Visit site
Soranos said:
Probably a good decision. Since Latin America is a crucial market for Movistar ( the company) there will always be pressure for the team to have a marquee rider from the region under contract. MAL has disappointed so far but that was in large part probably due to crashes, getting used to the new team, etc.. Bow he has certainty and can concentrate on la vuelta.

I actually wondered that they (apparently) did not try all that hard for Higuita, who would have been a great addition. With Sosa they could sign another Colombian who still has good potential to challenge for GC positions.
Click to expand...

If I'm not mistaken Telefónica (Movistar) is divesting its assets in LatAm, reducing its exposure there while amplyfing its presence in UK and Germany. I think Brazil will be the only relevant country for Movistar in LatAm in a couple of years.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Soranos
S

Soranos

Jul 7, 2021
26
46
1,630
Visit site
Roku said:
If I'm not mistaken Telefónica (Movistar) is divesting its assets in LatAm, reducing its exposure there while amplyfing its presence in UK and Germany. I think Brazil will be the only relevant country for Movistar in LatAm in a couple of years.
Click to expand...

Oh, I was not aware of that. I was referring to the years I spend in LA in the mid-2010s when they held big market shares and their advertising was almost omnipresent.

That would change the outlook quiet a bit even though south American are a natural fit on Spanish speaking teams regardless.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Roku
Samu Cuenca

Samu Cuenca

Sep 26, 2020
18,420
17,933
22,180
Visit site
Mayomaniac said:
Pellaud to Trek has been confirmed. That makes little sense to me, he's the kind of rider (always in the breakaway) who seems like a much better investment for a pct team.
Click to expand...

He will bring the team exposure by being in breaks. Of course they already have Bernard, who can do sort of the same thing, but is a also a better climber and domestique. Gallopin and Skujiņš are similar types as well. But I guess Trek is moving away from a GC focus now that Nibali is leaving, unless Ciccone proves once and for all that he can be a solid GT leader.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sandisfan
roundabout

roundabout

Jun 7, 2010
19,149
3,037
28,180
Visit site
Samu Cuenca said:
He will bring the team exposure by being in breaks. Of course they already have Bernard, who can do sort of the same thing, but is a also a better climber and domestique. Gallopin and Skujiņš are similar types as well. But I guess Trek is moving away from a GC focus now that Nibali is leaving, unless Ciccone proves once and for all that he can be a solid GT leader.
Click to expand...

Ouch. I mean Gallopin kind of fell off a cliff the last couple of years, but still ouch.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom