Teams & Riders The Remco Evenepoel is the next Eddy Merckx thread

[SHAD0W93]

"Until they show me the proof, I don't believe it. I think it's more that Remco is afraid to face the truth" - Director of the Slovenian national team has controversial take on Giro d'Italia abandon of Remco Evenepoel

Martin Hvastija, the director of the Slovenian national team is understandably supporting Primoz Roglic at the Giro d'Italia. However, in an unbelievable rant, Hvastija lays into Remco Evenepoel, goin...

cyclinguptodate.com

The Slovenians are ranting and raving about this, saying Remco is merely ducking Rog...

These WWE storylines are getting more and more immersive between the two since the Vuelta crash. I think we can all look forward to the Fatal 4 way that’s being set up at the 2024 Tour de France between Pog, Vinge, Evenepoel, and Roglic.

 

[Riek s]

As for how much more aero he is: turns out 20watts worth of aero compared to Thomas.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1657789798642270208

View: https://twitter.com/VelonCC/status/1657789798642270208

360W is very low for Remco. He did TT of 30min with >390W avg.

Seems like he was missing 20W in that TT. (or 0.3W//kg)

 

[Red Rick]

Benji Naesen should know better, i.e. fishing around for something to fuel the outrage & stir up some controversy is just too easy on a day like today.

Why should he know better, he literally made his job out of farming for content

 

[Rackham]

Why should he know better, he literally made his job out of farming for content

He did meet some more respectable types along the way though, like Richard Plugge (who even gave him a job last year).

I don't know, it seem like low hanging fruit today to fuel some dramas with random B.S. which is always invariably taking out of context & packaged in a way which delivers ultimate fanboy rage clicks.

 

[KOM]

Why should he know better, he literally made his job out of farming for content

Ive been wondering for a while, but what is this general animosity towards that guy, the other guy and their podcast in general? (this latest tweet aside please) Ive got my own theory, but curious if theres another explanation.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

OMG, I am. God forbid anybody had a different opinion than you with anything regarding Remco, of course.

Yes, because clearly that's the main issue here.

Their prize rider has covid, and as evident from his results and him looking like a corpse after the TT, telling his parents he feels sick, it is a matter of the past few days and no telling if it will get worse, or how long it will last. Ineos pulled Ganna out of the Giro days before the 2nd TT. Are they ruining cycling as well? I'm sure they don't want to take any risks with a young superstar, because it's simply not worth it.

 

[theyoungest]

He did meet some more respectable types along the way though, like Richard Plugge (who even gave him a job last year).

Respectable... Richard Plugge used to be the same, stirring up controversy for clicks, working for the prime news website of the Netherlands and writing terrible, poorly informed columns. Maybe that's why he's so good at dealing with that sort of stuff now, because he knows what goes on in the minds of these people.

 

[Bonimenier]

He did meet some more respectable types along the way though, like Richard Plugge (who even gave him a job last year).

Is this the respectable Richard Plugge who spew nonsense non stop as a journalist before he became director of a cycling team?

 

[Red Rick]

Pulling him from the race as if it was just some ordinary one-week February warm-up race, and not his and their primary goal of the season.

I think it's ridiculous to pull him after he has been good enough to win a stage and in front of a rest day and three relatively easy stages after that. I just don't get it at all.

Unless he sets his sights on the Tour.

Just because top athletes can perform at a high level while sick, doesn't mean they can't do huge damage to themselves.

When you have COVID, it's not gonna get better by riding around in the rain at sub 10 degrees, and you're not gonna perform at the peak of your abilities by Friday.

The Giro is already lost, and staying in the race is nothing other than succumbing to sunk cost fallacy

 

[tobydawq]

Yes, because clearly that's the main issue here.

Their prize rider has covid, and as evident from his results and him looking like a corpse after the TT, telling his parents he feels sick, it is a matter of the past few days and no telling if it will get worse, or how long it will last. Ineos pulled Ganna out of the Giro days before the 2nd TT. Are they ruining cycling as well? I'm sure they don't want to take any risks with a young superstar, because it's simply not worth the risk.

Ganna was annoying too, but they have five or something riders going for GC, and he isn't one of those, so it makes sense for them not to want him to infect them.

But this? And why not wait until Tuesday morning? What if he feels fine by then? I just - as I said - don't understand it. And I don't think anybody will be able to make me understand it, and it's probably better for me not to say much more on the matter, because I realise that my dare-devil attitude is not for everyone.

And what's the idea of having a prize rider if he is not allowed to ride?

 

[Bonimenier]

And what's the idea of having a prize rider if he is not allowed to ride?

What's the idea of having a prize rider if he's out for months with health issues?

 

[tobydawq]

Just because top athletes can perform at a high level while sick, doesn't mean they can't do huge damage to themselves.

When you have COVID, it's not gonna get better by riding around in the rain at sub 10 degrees, and you're not gonna perform at the peak of your abilities by Friday.

The Giro is already lost, and staying in the race is nothing other than succumbing to sunk cost fallacy

I certainly don't know that the Giro was lost.

And I don't know that the virus will persist if he continues.

And I still don't get why they couldn't wait till Tuesday.

 

[Rackham]

Ive been wondering for a while, but what is this general animosity towards that guy, the other guy and their podcast in general? (this latest tweet aside please) Ive got my own theory, but curious if theres another explanation.

I have zero animosity. I enjoy the podcast & I do watch a lot of their episodes when I have the time.

But when Belgian fans are unhappy on a day like today & Naesen suddenly delivers a "shocking" Slovenian opinion, it's pure clickbait garbage made to fuel a controversy with 'antecedents', i.e. which is the Belgium versus Slovenia stuff dating back to Imola 2020.

There's a spectrum between being a somewhat innocent & enjoyable entertainment outlet which does feed cycling dramas for clicks (why not, it's part of the show) & actually being an annoying tabloid. This is an example of the latter.

 

[wheresmybrakes]

Ganna was annoying too, but they have five or something riders going for GC, and he isn't one of those, so it makes sense for them not to want him to infect them.

But this? And why not wait until Tuesday morning? What if he feels fine by then? I just - as I said - don't understand it. And I don't think anybody will be able to make me understand it, and it's probably better for me not to say much more on the matter, because I realise that my dare-devil attitude is not for everyone.

And what's the idea of having a prize rider if he is not allowed to ride?

Only allowed to ride races he thinks he can win.

 

[kingjr]

Ganna was annoying too, but they have five or something riders going for GC, and he isn't one of those, so it makes sense for them not to want him to infect them.

But this? And why not wait until Tuesday morning? What if he feels fine by then? I just - as I said - don't understand it. And I don't think anybody will be able to make me understand it, and it's probably better for me not to say much more on the matter, because I realise that my dare-devil attitude is not for everyone.

Because you don't want to, and that's really all there is to it.

 

[Carrick-On-Seine]

He did meet some more respectable types along the way though, like Richard Plugge (who even gave him a job last year).

I don't know, it seem like low hanging fruit today to fuel some dramas with random B.S. which is always invariably taking out of context & packaged in a way which delivers ultimate fanboy rage clicks.

Lol, is that the same Plugge who wrote that bs about Fred Wright?

 

[red_flanders]

These conspiracy theories are so profoundly idiotic it boggles the mind, but that's apparently the world we live in now. Where stupidity is amplified at alarming rates while rational people with analytical and reasoning skills are labeled as sheep or worse. I couldn't have imagined it even 10 years ago. The idiocracy is here.

One would have to believe the guy who's leading the race by 45 seconds, who's in pink, the World Champion, who is known for his straight talk to the point of being labeled undiplomatic, arrogant, immature, and all the other things attributed to his brash and confident style, is sooo afraid of...Roglič, Thomas, and Hart (or whomever else) that he leaves the Giro while wearing pink with his tail tucked between his legs for fear of being embarrassed in a bike race..then lying about it.

Or...

The guy who very surprisingly sheds time on a stage which totally suits his talents, and who then, after leading the second TT by a significant margin at the first interval, rather shockingly falls off the pace, and who is visibly shattered and out of it in his post race interview...that guy...is actually sick.

What a clown show.

 

[Salvarani]

I certainly don't know that the Giro was lost.

And I don't know that the virus will persist if he continues.

And I still don't get why they couldn't wait till Tuesday.

The last sentence is what I find the most baffling too. We dont know but feels like it is more than just a positive covid test.

Whether it is the crash or some self-doubt about not being further ahead by this point... believing he will lose a lot of time next week and further down the race is all speculation, of course, but maybe there is some truth to that as well.

When the press team also say he is asymptomatic... it all just becomes a bit strange that they pulled him last night. What was the rush? Unless, he seriously thought it is no way he can continue... then so be it I guess. Get well soon.

Frustrating both for him, everyone involved around him and us as viewers being robbed of another potentially great battle.

 

[VayaVayaVaya]

some random thoughts:

• Remco is still as good as unbeatable in 1-week stage races (this first week of the Giro proves it)
• I would also love to see Remco in the Tour, stage hunting / having a free role / helping out a bit in sprint stages,... The problem with Remco is that even in a non-GC / serving role, he is not the kind of rider that will let go in the first week and could end up taking the yellow jersey, especially given the first few stages in the Basque country. This will inevitably lead to some pressure to keep riding for GC. Probably best would be that he aims for the yellow jersey in week 1, next lose an awful lot of time and go stage hunting in the second half of the Tour.
• Ofcourse, all depends on how well he recovers. I hope this will be quick, but you never know he is ill for e.g. a week or longer, and if so, his preparation for the Tour won't be ideal anymore.

I know this is a joke but you realize he actually has lost a lot of 1-week stage races, including his last one?

 

[Rackham]

Lol, is that the same Plugge who wrote that bs about Fred Wright?

I don't exist in a parallel universe where the popular consensus is the general manager of Jumbo Visma is a gutter press bullsh*tter.

People are free to have their own personal conclusions & opinions of course but in the real world Plugge's name does carry some weight. Therefor in relation to Benji Naesen (because we now seem stuck on this issue), I do expect better considering his connections in cycling, especially when it comes to singling out a Slovenian voice & directing a fanboy rage mob towards that topic.

That is all.

 

[how yes no?]

I also sometimes get the feeling, that anything but a win* in any race he competes is a disaster for his fans and also for him. Sure, call it winner mentality or whatever, but I think it would do some good to both the fans and him, to regard his results as good, sometimes even amazing, even if he doesn't win everything**.

With regards to the argument, that even if he was mildly ill, there was no point to wait for a possible partial recovery and still try to compete for the best possible placement, even if it is very likely not to be a win.... There should be no shame in finishing top 5 or top 10 in the Giro, it's not like he has that many GT results to act like they are not worthy of his attention.
If on the other hand, he really fell (not only mildly) badly ill from the time of first checkpoint till the evening (which was not the message), when the decision was announced, then sure, he probably shouldn't ride the very hard second part of the GT.
I mean, in all ways the decision is his and of the team, but I think that they always disregard anything but a win in their calculations, which can have many consequences, few of which seem intuitively good.

*or close enough to a win, that one can argue, that he was "the strongest" anyway (catalunya, etc...)
**or isn't regarded as the best of all, no debate about it

 

[topcat]

WTF?

 

[kingjr]

WTF?

help you with anything?

 

[nightowl]

Some people on here are so weird. Clearly they pulled him because they felt he was too sick to responsibly carry on riding the Giro. How this is in any way controversial is beyond me

 

[Riek s]

I also sometimes get the feeling, that anything but a win* in any race he competes is a disaster for his fans and also for him. Sure, call it winner mentality or whatever, but I think it would do some good to both the fans and him, to regard his results as good, sometimes even amazing, even if he doesn't win everything**.

With regards to the argument, that even if he was mildly ill, there was no point to wait for a possible partial recovery and still try to compete for the best possible placement, even if it is very likely not to be a win.... There should be no shame in finishing top 5 or top 10 in the Giro, it's not like he has that many GT results to act like they are not worthy of his attention.
If on the other hand, he really fell (not only mildly) badly ill from the time of first checkpoint till the evening (which was not the message), when the decision was announced, then sure, he probably shouldn't ride the very hard second part of the GT.
I mean, in all ways the decision is his and of the team, but I think that they always disregard anything but a win in their calculations, which can have many consequences, few of which seem intuitively good.

*or close enough to a win, that one can argue, that he was "the strongest" anyway (catalunya, etc...)
**or isn't regarded as the best of all, no debate about it

Its not only his fans that want him to do well, his anti-fans are doing the oposite thing everytime his performance isn't the best.

- he can't climb (saterday-
- he can't handle steep hills (saterday!)
- he can't win a GT ever, everyone who knows cycling knows that
- he can't handle 9 days
- he only won because the field wasn't there
- he can't ride a timetrial 1km longer than 30km

etc etc (and unlike some other riders, those anti-fans are on his channel)

i'm pretty sure if he does the Tour and is not climbing with the best, we get a whole bunch of people on this forum coming here to tell us he can't climb, they were always sure of it, this is proof he can't beat xxx and yyy.

QS has very bad experience with Covid and keep on racing. (heart issues). You don't gamble over something like that.