The official Great Bauke Mollema thread

[Parrulo]

I was expecting much more from him this TdS.

I guess he won't be able to improve on his result from last year

 

[Arredondo]

About as good in Suisse this year as last year.

Means no improvement, means no more progression to be made. This is it. Not much more than a lower end top 10 TDF rider.
Well, depending on how many favorites will fall out that is. If everyone somehow stays upright he's more likely to finish 11/12th

Roubaix stage could be to his advantage tho.. Mollema has little/no fear for those stages

This makes no sense at all to me. He was good this Suisse, so why only a 11th place at the Tour? Last year, people complained that he was already too good in Suisse, which meant he was too bad in the third week.

His perfomance last weak doesn't say anything about the fact he could finish higher then last year, but also nothing about the opposite way. He will be good at the Tour, and then he will fight for a place in the top-10. Could be 10th, could be 5th. Who knows.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

I was expecting much more from him this TdS.

I guess he won't be able to improve on his result from last year

If Belkin still excist and Mollema and Kelderman both stay.. I wonder what will happen

 

[Jspear]

This makes no sense at all to me. He was good this Suisse, so why only a 11th place at the Tour? Last year, people complained that he was already too good in Suisse, which meant he was too bad in the third week.

His perfomance last weak doesn't say anything about the fact he could finish higher then last year, but also nothing about the opposite way. He will be good at the Tour, and then he will fight for a place in the top-10. Could be 10th, could be 5th. Who knows.

I agree with you. There is nothing from his performance in the TdS to indicate that he will be better or worse in the Tour this year over last year. The reason I think he will have a hard time placing higher than he did last year is because I think the competition will be tougher this year than last year. I think we could see him performing at a very similar level to last year. I just don't think that will be enough for him to do much more than 6th place.

 

[Arredondo]

I agree with you. There is nothing from his performance in the TdS to indicate that he will be better or worse in the Tour this year over last year. The reason I think he will have a hard time placing higher than he did last year is because I think the competition will be tougher this year than last year. I think we could see him performing at a very similar level to last year. I just don't think that will be enough for him to do much more than 6th place.

Could be, but i'm curious why you think the competion is much stronger this year. We've got Nibali back this year, but no Quintana and Rodriguez (in terms of riding a GC).

 

[hiero2]

This makes no sense at all to me. He was good this Suisse, so why only a 11th place at the Tour? Last year, people complained that he was already too good in Suisse, which meant he was too bad in the third week.

His perfomance last weak doesn't say anything about the fact he could finish higher then last year, but also nothing about the opposite way. He will be good at the Tour, and then he will fight for a place in the top-10. Could be 10th, could be 5th. Who knows.

Why only 11th? Can't speak for others, but I tend to agree with this assessment. The GC competition at TdS was hardly deep or significant. Watching Mollema struggle to better Martin, who is not known for being a climber, was telling to me. My prediction for Bauke in TdF is top 20, maybe top 10 with a little luck.

I'll polish my crystal ball and see if it changes.

 

[hiero2]

Could be, but i'm curious why you think the competion is much stronger this year. We've got Nibali back this year, but no Quintana and Rodriguez (in terms of riding a GC).

Did you watch the Dauphine? Some of the competition is stronger. It could be a very interesting tour. And it could all be over after the 1st week and the cobbles.

 

[Arredondo]

Why only 11th? Can't speak for others, but I tend to agree with this assessment. The GC competition at TdS was hardly deep or significant. Watching Mollema struggle to better Martin, who is not known for being a climber, was telling to me. My prediction for Bauke in TdF is top 20, maybe top 10 with a little luck.

I'll polish my crystal ball and see if it changes.

Costa, who is a candidate for the top-5 according to many people, struggled to even hold the wheel of Martin on Verbier. Suisse is just a weird race, not comparable at all with the Tour. In the Dauphiné, you see the best names for the Tour also fight there for victory.

I don't think you can judge the perfomances of some of these riders (Mollema, Costa, Kreuziger) in terms of their perfomance in the next Tour. And don't forget it looks like Martin has got his climbing-form of 2009 back. He lost weight in order to climb better this year. So that's also a factor which you have to taken into account.

 

[Jspear]

Could be, but i'm curious why you think the competion is much stronger this year. We've got Nibali back this year, but no Quintana and Rodriguez (in terms of riding a GC).

Froome will probably be around were he was last year.
Contador is stronger
Talansky is stronger
JVB was showing pretty good form
Nibali will probably still be stronger than Mollema
Valverde

That's just a quick list off the top of my head. Of course this list only stands if no crashes or anything like that.

 

[Opalius]

@Mollema Go pull for Contador at Saxo please.

Either that, or focus on something worth winning, rather than something worth placing a subpar third place for.

@Mollema Oh, and after VDB2's fourth in the Tour… bring him along to Saxo too.

Either that, or challenge him for top place in next year's Tour de Turkey.

 

[Vino attacks everyone]

That people still doesn't understand the Suise and Dauphine are preperation races amazes me
A strong showing is allways good, but it doesn't mean you will perform any better in the tour. And a bad showing here doesn't really give us to much to go on for the tour either (of course, if you are 7kg overweight and last with under 1 month until the tour moutains one might worry a bit)

 

[ILovecycling]

he should be a domestique for Kelderman.Wilco has talent and balls!

 

[Jagartrott]

Mollema rode the Saas Fee climb slower than Tony Martin, even though he was towed for 16 of the 20 km, and Martin did most of the work himself. This was indeed a preparation race, but the guys in the Dauphiné showed much better climbing form I think.

 

[mr. tibbs]

That people still doesn't understand the Suise and Dauphine are preperation races amazes me
A strong showing is allways good, but it doesn't mean you will perform any better in the tour. And a bad showing here doesn't really give us to much to go on for the tour either (of course, if you are 7kg overweight and last with under 1 month until the tour moutains one might worry a bit)

Never hampered Ulle's preparations. Car windows, though.

I miss the constant spring-time bickering in the press about whether or not he was too fat, not fit enough, under-raced, etc, etc, etc.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Mollema rode the Saas Fee climb slower than Tony Martin, even though he was towed for 16 of the 20 km, and Martin did most of the work himself. This was indeed a preparation race, but the guys in the Dauphiné showed much better climbing form I think.

This is a bad form of scoreboard journalism. Most of the climb it was Martin (/attackers in the second group) vs Wyss. Not Mollema.
Hell, before the final 3km, the gap dropped to like 1.35/1.40
The moment they attacked in the last 3km they gained 30 extra seconds on Martin. So about 10s every km.
Not to mention the initial attack from Frank/Mollema/costa on the previous climb where they gained another 30s in about a km. Before Vanmarcke towed them up to the group up front.

So you're using wrong calculations. Mollema and co defiantely climbed faster than Martin

 

[Jagartrott]

So sitting in the wheel for 15+ kms on the ascent doesn't count?
No, we should only consider those last 3 kms, makes sense. But not really. Gap was already back up to 1:50 by the start of the last part of the climb, by the way. Mollema (dragged up the climb previously and racing for the stage win) ended 2 min 4 seconds ahead of Martin (pulling the group for 10 km and disheartened because he knew by then he had lost).

If you're trying to accuse me of scoreboard journalism, make sure you do it right.

 

[l.Harm]

This is a bad form of scoreboard journalism. Most of the climb it was Martin (/attackers in the second group) vs Wyss. Not Mollema.
Hell, before the final 3km, the gap dropped to like 1.35/1.40
The moment they attacked in the last 3km they gained 30 extra seconds on Martin. So about 10s every km.
Not to mention the initial attack from Frank/Mollema/costa on the previous climb where they gained another 30s in about a km. Before Vanmarcke towed them up to the group up front.

So you're using wrong calculations. Mollema and co defiantely climbed faster than Martin

Besides, Martin couldn't follow when Frank, Mollema and Costa attacked.

 

[Bushman]

The moment they attacked in the last 3km they gained 30 extra seconds on Martin. So about 10s every km.

Well, this doesnt really tell the full story either, as Mollema, Costa and Frank had been riding on the wheel of Wyss Whereas Martin was doing most of the work himself.

 

[Kokoso]

Mollema is decent rider but what else is great about him except for his ears?

 

[theyoungest]

Mollema is decent rider but what else is great about him except for his ears?

You think he has great ears? Hm, I think they're rather ugly.

 

[Akuryo]

You think he has great ears? Hm, I think they're rather ugly.

I think he ment "great" in a big kind of way and not in a "beautiful" sense.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Seems like Mollema hit his limit as GC rider last year. 9th/10th this year as maximum..

next year for sure Kelderman as GC leader I think

 

[Parrulo]

Like i said after the TdS, with the level him and Costa showed there they would be nowhere close to the favourites at the Tour.

Also both seem to be going much slower than they were last year.

Both were dropped by Dani Navarro today when last year they would have ridden circles around him

 

[roundabout]

It's not like people ahead of them on GC were amazing in June

 

[MBotero]

If Belkin will still be around next year,maybe it's time to back up Kelderman looks like a better bet as a GC rider.