Teams & Riders Thibaut Pinot discussion thread

[Pantani_lives]

Thirty-four years after Bernard Hinault...
Thibaut Pinault?

 

[Midnightfright]

Re:

Thirty-four years after Bernard Hinault...
Thibaut Pinault?

34 years ago it was the Badger now its times for the Budgie

 

[fantomas]

Re:

Tibo is in it to win it despite the time loss. Chapeau!

That would be great. I do dread the warm weather coming up in the Alps, though.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Re: Re:

Tibo is in it to win it despite the time loss. Chapeau!

That would be great. I do dread the warm weather coming up in the Alps, though.

The heat shouldn't be a big problem once they go above 2000m, so the fact that the heatwave will only start in the 3rd week is a lot better for him than one in the 2nd week.

 

[fantomas]

Re: Re:

Tibo is in it to win it despite the time loss. Chapeau!

That would be great. I do dread the warm weather coming up in the Alps, though.

The heat shouldn't be a big problem once they go above 2000m, so the fact that the heatwave will only start in the 3rd week is a lot better for him than one in the 2nd week.

The're still some racing to do in the heat, but hopefully it ot won't take too much of a toll on him. I'm at least a bit more optimistic now.

 

[Midnightfright]

I cant remember a serious TDF contender having such a large proportion of fans behind them as Pinot. Admittedly I've only watched since 06

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Re:

I cant remember a serious TDF contender having such a large proportion of fans behind them as Pinot. Admittedly I've only watched since 06

I think the entire world was rooting for Contador when Armstrong made his comeback.

Personally, i'd be just as fine with Landa or Kruijswijk winning.

 

[Midnightfright]

Re: Re:

I cant remember a serious TDF contender having such a large proportion of fans behind them as Pinot. Admittedly I've only watched since 06

I think the entire world was rooting for Contador when Armstrong made his comeback.

Personally, i'd be just as fine with Landa or Kruijswijk winning.

Yeah that's fair shout, I think I forget about him as I was never a huge Contador fan. Even I wanted Alberto to beat Armstrong. I was firmly behind Andy Schleck however.

 

[lartiste]

Tonton received 3 cakes to his birthday from Pinot during past days. I only hope he will have another birthday next week and Tibopino will deliver more cakes.

I will be more than happy to admit, that I was wrong, when I claimed it is all over after that windy stage.

 

[Koronin]

He's have a great race. If only he didn't lose that time in the crosswinds. (I'd add Landa to that list). Although I think the two of them could still be good allies in the Alps.

 

[Ripper]

Oh this is awesome! Pinot is so relatable for so many riders and it's hard not to cheer for him. Really crossing my fingers his form stays on the high and there are no issues (tactical misses, flats, etc). Right now he seems to be the strongest climber, so if keeps that form, he should keep chipping away

So far this is the most entertaining tour in many years!

 

[JosephK]

Re:

Tonton received 3 cakes to his birthday from Pinot during past days. I only hope he will have another birthday next week and Tibopino will deliver more cakes.

I will be more than happy to admit, that I was wrong, when I claimed it is all over after that windy stage.

Me too. Now there is a real fight for GC (I still can't believe it). The man in yellow has shown some vulnerability. Riders #2 through 6 are within 40 seconds of each other. Pinot looks the strongest (has been the strongest), but anything can happen now in week 3. Ineos can still win it. Pinot has a chance. Kruijswijk and Buchmann also with a chance if they are strong in week 3. Finally, Alaphilippe could still hang on.

 

[roundabout]

no et references implied

 

[Bardamu]

Something tells me he'll fade in the penultimate stage. It's not just Alaphilippe who's been very energetic this Tour.

 

[Red Rick]

Time gap with Thomas/Kruijswijk over the climb yesterday.

Apparently there was a headwind in the last 2km.

 

[Tonton]

Re:

Something tells me he'll fade in the penultimate stage. It's not just Alaphilippe who's been very energetic this Tour.

Stop emitting negative vibes bro' !

It's hard to undo reputations: second faster down Civiglio in '17, critics resurrected the "he can't descend" argument. Fastest in '18 against Nibali no less, some still doubt. So I may be naive when I think that Tibopino has a chance to debuke the old theories, some based on facts, that "he's going to have a bad day", or "he can't overcome heat". That one is interesting: NFL playoff game in January, if you win you don't feel the cold. If you are losing, you're miserable. Just to say that in the thick of battle, Thibaut won't feel it. And at 2000 meters, heat is seldom an issue. And how about the "he can't handle the pressure"? "He's mentally weak"? What he did after the stage 10 punch is what makes champions champions: Pinot picked up his mouth piece, got back up, and went slugging.

 

[cantpedal]

Re: Re:

Something tells me he'll fade in the penultimate stage. It's not just Alaphilippe who's been very energetic this Tour.

Stop emitting negative vibes bro' !

It's hard to undo reputations: second faster down Civiglio in '17, critics resurrected the "he can't descend" argument. Fastest in '18 against Nibali no less, some still doubt. So I may be naive when I think that Tibopino has a chance to debuke the old theories, some based on facts, that "he's going to have a bad day", or "he can't overcome heat". That one is interesting: NFL playoff game in January, if you win you don't feel the cold. If you are losing, you're miserable. Just to say that in the thick of battle, Thibaut won't feel it. And at 2000 meters, heat is seldom an issue. And how about the "he can't handle the pressure"? "He's mentally weak"? What he did after the stage 10 punch is what makes champions champions: Pinot picked up his mouth piece, got back up, and went slugging.

I dont disagree with any of that but cant shake the feeling that hes 2 days short of being able to cope with a three week race

 

[Tonton]

...and I understand your hesitations. But to go back to my NFL analogy, he's come so far, he's so close that I don't think that Pinot will falter. And the crowds are crazy chanting his name. That is a huge boost. He can feed of this energy. In today's press conference, El Tibo made an interesting point when asked about spending too much energy: it's very different to spend energy trying to build a gap than it is trying not too lose too much time, particularly mentally, concluding that G spent more energy on stage 15. It makes sense.

 

[IndianCyclist]

He has already a stage win. He knows that his run can be derailed becos of his problems. That is why he does not have any pressure. You could see the same in the press conf as well. He will attack from 3-6 k from finish if he can.

 

[Cookster15]

I'm behind Pinot ! Would be awesome but I am feeling that this might be Kruijswijk's revenge or Bernal's breakthough. Both are good at over 2,000 metres.

I am still interested how Thomas responds with no dominant Ineos train to pull him and if JA recovers or further fades. Whatever happens this is a refreshing change from last year's procession.

 

[Simurgh]

Today the first big test of three - I think he will wait until tomorrow before attacking, because of the long descent finish. But if he attacks today, others (read: Thomas/Bernal) must be dropped if he wants to win the Tour. My only worry is that he might have peaked a bit too soon, because he looked a level above everyone else in the Pyrenees - or that others (INEOS, Kruijswijk) are entering their peak. Either way, we will see in the next couple of hours.

 

[Alexandre B.]

He said he was in an average day.

Stupid echelons.
I will regret them for the rest of my life.

 

[Simurgh]

as I feared, Bernal has kicked it up a notch, while Thibaut has started to show discomfort. No Tour win for sure, but still a decent chance for podium! a bit of a letdown after his great run in the pyrenees :exclaim:

 

[Tonton]

Re:

He said he was in an average day.

Stupid echelons.
I will regret them for the rest of my life.

...the rest of the race would have been different. We should re-make every stage after that. I'm at peace with the 100 seconds.

Today was the "back in the climbing mode" stage, although he no longer is a bad descender, he's no Alaf' either, so I didn't expect anything. In fact I feared that stage. Now, game on.

 

[movingtarget]

Now or never for Pinot, he didn't look great yesterday and he lost his team pretty early.