Teams & Riders Thibaut Pinot discussion thread

[Red Rick]

Too late...since '10 I have been following him, though the good, the bad, and the ugly. I thought that last year's Giro was as sad as it would ever get...

Tibopino is better than he's ever been, he has always bounced back, I want to believe that destiny has something special in store for him. Maybe the Gods of sport treat him like they treated Ivanisevic and the big win will be that much more compelling.

So far the closest parallel in tennis is Grigor Dimitrov for me

 

[RedheadDane]

I am a big Pinot fan. I wanted him to win the TDF like no other this year. His high/triumphant moments are momentous. But his lows . . . omg. Be careful in investing the emotions here. I am just speaking from a fan's perspective--still licking the wounds from stage 19. There will be so much pressure on him in 2020, I'm not sure it's realistic to hope for too much.

His lows are very low indeed, but that just makes his highs so much sweeter.

 

[Tonton]

So we got the route...not designed by Marc Madiot as some suggest : outlines are set a couple of years ahead. But there's some wiggle room, and as it is, the '20 TdF route offers Tibopino a great chance to be in the mix: chapeau ASO. Thibaut showed in '19 that he's legit, there was drama, heartbreak, and now a chance for redemption. Great story, marketing, ASO wins.

But who will win this bike race? Can big teams go to work every day, with little sprinters' teams help, due to the demanding route and GC action opportunities? Who will make the most of those opportunities when they present themselves? A healthy Froome has to be the favorite. For Pinot, slaying the dragon would add to the dimension of a win. Roglic? Dumoulin? They may be offered a great Giro route, otherwise they are dangerous. The Yates: one of them may recapture the magic (Simon). Bernal, to me, is the real danger, so Pinot-Bernal bout #2: I want it.

No big day after a day off helps. Grand Colombier via Culoz? Thibaut has won this MTF finish twice, in '11 and last year. From a design standpoint, having the only ITT on Stage 20, uphill in the end, well, that's debatable. But IF Thibaut Pinot gets there with a chance to win, that is the gift from ASO: Tibopino will have done this one fifty times. The whole region will be there, legions of fans roadside, family, neighbors, what a day it can be. France will be on fire (kidding, enough of that). After the tears, more tears, tears of joy. And I'll be crying, and the next day, my birthday for the finish in Paris.

I believe.

 

[tobydawq]

Debut in Paris-Nice and Ardennes classics next year.

 

[Tonton]

Funny articles, Valentin Midey dominated the local youth cycling scene, out-sprinting all, even winning 22 out of 24 races at age 15, he was Tibopino's nightmare at the time.

Cyclisme. Valentin Midey, la bête noire de Thibaut Pinot

Jusque dans les années ''juniors'', le meilleur des Francs-Comtois nés en 1990 est sans conteste Valentin Midey. À l’AC Bisontine, il profite de sa ...

www.estrepublicain.fr

He quit racing ten years ago, moved to Thailand to work for his father in law's law firm, got back on the bike on short notice when he saw ads about the race. And he won the ASO's Asia Etape du Tour race, qualifying (with free airfare and perks) for next year's Etape du Tour.

Cyclisme | L’Étape Thaïlande. En Thaïlande, Valentin Midey gagne… à domicile

Dimanche en Thaïlande, le Doubien Valentin Midey a remporté l’une des plus grandes cyclosportives asiatiques. Celui qui a multiplié les victoires dans ...

www.estrepublicain.fr

Kinda cool...thought I would share.

 

[Tonton]

Debut in Paris-Nice and Ardennes classics next year.

The latest...unfortunately no Ardennes...goddamit...

Interview in l'Est Republicain quoted on France 365: Tour La Provence (defending Champion), Tour du Haut-Var (defending Champion), Paris-Nice, Pais Vasco, Alps training and scouting in May, Tour, hopefully OG and RRWC, Italian fall classics, Tour du Jura.

 

[Koronin]

The way things are lining up and the Tour route, I'm hoping it might just be his year for the Tour.

 

[SHAD0W93]

The way things are lining up and the Tour route, I'm hoping it might just be his year for the Tour.

Someone would need to check on Tonton.

If he does win the Tour that could interfere with the Olympics from everything that winning the first time brings.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

It's been years since I've had confidence in him as a GT rider, but when he hits one of his good days, he's one of the best in the world, so I think he should focus a lot more on one-day races. It's a shame he isn't doing the Ardennes after all.

 

[RedheadDane]

If he does win the Tour that could interfere with the Olympics from everything that winning the first time brings.

Otoh, if he wins the Tour, having the Olympics on his schedule immediately afterwards would be a pretty good excuse to not having to do all the usual post-victory stuff. From how I understand it, he doesn't actually like all the media attention very much.

 

[Tony09]

Funny articles, Valentin Midey dominated the local youth cycling scene, out-sprinting all, even winning 22 out of 24 races at age 15, he was Tibopino's nightmare at the time.

Cyclisme. Valentin Midey, la bête noire de Thibaut Pinot

Jusque dans les années ''juniors'', le meilleur des Francs-Comtois nés en 1990 est sans conteste Valentin Midey. À l’AC Bisontine, il profite de sa ...

www.estrepublicain.fr

Nice little article, indeed ThiboPinot admitted than when he was young, he didn't win so many races cause of his sprinting abilities (not so bad now, for a climber at least...).
I remember quite well the first time I heard about Pinot, from someone who finished a stage races behind him, Pinot was 17 back at the time (his 1st year as a U-18 then), had apparently won this race quite easily, was untouchable when the road got steeper and was described as "super classy" already.
Then, everytime I discussed with someone who raced with him before he turned pro, they were all super impresse by this guy, someone gifted like no other.

 

[Simurgh]

Unimpressive start to the season. Wonder whether it was the wrong decision to end his 2019 early, because has himself admitted, that he isn't where he should be form-wise. I am getting a bit concerned seeing him destroyed by a reborn Nairo twice. His podium ambitions at Paris-Nice seem distant to say the least.

 

[HelloDolly]

Unimpressive start to the season. Wonder whether it was the wrong decision to end his 2019 early, because has himself admitted, that he isn't where he should be form-wise. I am getting a bit concerned seeing him destroyed by a reborn Nairo twice. His podium ambitions at Paris-Nice seem distant to say the least.

Gosh give him a chance ...he is not used to racingand Nairo has already won a few races

Takes time for him to get going
in fairness forget PN and look only to the Tour
He was the best last year imo and should have won and that was after a long winter lay off ...

 

[Simurgh]

Gosh give him a chance ...he is not used to racingand Nairo has already won a few races

Takes time for him to get going
in fairness forget PN and look only to the Tour
He was the best last year imo and should have won and that was after a long winter lay off ...

I hear you regarding the first bit, but last year he followed up on his stellar 2018 autumn form. Last race he rode (and won), Lombardia was in October. This year he hasn't ridden since July, and I am starting to think that it was a mistake, because now it does take some time for him to get going. And I am not too certain about whether he can do a July-superpeak like 2014 Nibali.

 

[HelloDolly]

Well time will tell but maybe FDJ want to make sure Pinot finishes the Tour strong this year ....not just start it well

Also he is a class rider so I'd say he hopes to add Olympics to his targets

 

[RedheadDane]

Hopefully we'll see him back to his best soon.
And... I don't think there was anything wrong with his form towards the end of the Tour last year, it was the leg muscle that was the problem, and you can't plan for stuff like that.

 

[HelloDolly]

Hopefully we'll see him back to his best soon.
And... I don't think there was anything wrong with his form towards the end of the Tour last year, it was the leg muscle that was the problem, and you can't plan for stuff like that.

Yes it was his leg but the year before he started very well and exploded in the Giro

 

[RedheadDane]

True... and then he came back to win Lombardia (and before that a couple of stages in the Vuelta).
Does this guy have a... medium setting? I suppose he's at it now…

 

[JosephK]

I think Thibault looks OK right now, this early in the season (still February). Last year, maybe he peaked just a bit early. Like others, I recall how wobbly Nibali looked in the spring of 2014, and then he showed up in super form in July for the TDF that year.

 

[tobydawq]

I think Thibault looks OK right now, this early in the season (still February). Last year, maybe he peaked just a bit early. Like others, I recall how wobbly Nibali looked in the spring of 2014, and then he showed up in super form in July for the TDF that year.

And you don't think Pinot turned up in super form last July?

Boy, oh boy, they are going to have a hard time against him this year, if that were true...

 

[JosephK]

And you don't think Pinot turned up in super form last July?

Boy, oh boy, they are going to have a hard time against him this year, if that were true...

I think that's a great point. But others might contend that his form began to leave him in the 3rd week. We may never know, of course, because of the injury that led to his DNF on stage 19.

 

[tobydawq]

I think that's a great point. But others might contend that his form began to leave him in the 3rd week. We may never know, of course, because of the injury that led to his DNF on stage 19.

As I understand it, he already got the injury on stage 17, which explained his lacklustre performance on stage 18 and then complete meltdown on stage 19.

 

[Simurgh]

Decent performance today - better than I had anticipated. I think he could have been with Nibali and Schachmann, if he hadn't blown himself up trying to follow Küng moments before. However the race might play out, he gets quality racing miles in his legs

 

[RedheadDane]

Well... for a brief moment it looked like he'd learned to teleport.

 

[Tonton]

Well, well, well...it's not too often that Tibopino has a better ITT than Il Squalo. Not a great ITT by any means, but still a little better than red-hot Nairito, and quite close to Jungels or Alaf',

Not a bad day at the office; maybe the legs are coming together.

It's not the usual cannonball start of a season that we are accustomed to, but if Tour and OG are the most important objectives of the season, peaking later than usual is the way to go.