- Apr 13, 2025
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With these first preseason races, who gives the best feeling for the Tour de France podium?
The question is for third place. Last year Vingegaard's gap over third place was very wide, and barring
Vingegaard's enormous decline, I think it's an insurmountable gap for now.
I'm not including Almeida because he's not going, but for me he´d be a better candidate for the podium than the rest except Lipowitz and if Remco manages to emulate what he did in 2024.
The first three in the Algarve were quite evenly matched, except for the time trial where Almeida performed poorly.
Looking ahead to the Tour, I think Almeida would be superior in GT mountains; this course didn't suit him as well, and he performed similarly to Ayuso and Seixas.
Seixas seems to handle tough stages. Last year at the European Championships, a race even harder than today's stage, his performance was superior to Ayuso's. He appears to be a rider unaffected by the conditions, unlike Ayuso and Del Toro.
Del Toro seems something better than Ayuso for theses one-week races. I'd like to see him in Paris-Nice to compare his level with Ayuso because I think he'll win Tirreno-Adriatico easily.
But in the Tour de France mountains, I'm betting on Lipowitz.
I think Lipowitz is like Vingegaard in his early Tours. He doesn't stand out in these early-season races, but he'll be at his best in the Tour. Last year his best races were Dauphiné and Tour, and this year he'll be at his best shape during those months. Without Almeida and with Remco's climb level uncertain, I bet he'll repeat third position.
The question is for third place. Last year Vingegaard's gap over third place was very wide, and barring
Vingegaard's enormous decline, I think it's an insurmountable gap for now.
I'm not including Almeida because he's not going, but for me he´d be a better candidate for the podium than the rest except Lipowitz and if Remco manages to emulate what he did in 2024.
The first three in the Algarve were quite evenly matched, except for the time trial where Almeida performed poorly.
Looking ahead to the Tour, I think Almeida would be superior in GT mountains; this course didn't suit him as well, and he performed similarly to Ayuso and Seixas.
Seixas seems to handle tough stages. Last year at the European Championships, a race even harder than today's stage, his performance was superior to Ayuso's. He appears to be a rider unaffected by the conditions, unlike Ayuso and Del Toro.
Del Toro seems something better than Ayuso for theses one-week races. I'd like to see him in Paris-Nice to compare his level with Ayuso because I think he'll win Tirreno-Adriatico easily.
But in the Tour de France mountains, I'm betting on Lipowitz.
I think Lipowitz is like Vingegaard in his early Tours. He doesn't stand out in these early-season races, but he'll be at his best in the Tour. Last year his best races were Dauphiné and Tour, and this year he'll be at his best shape during those months. Without Almeida and with Remco's climb level uncertain, I bet he'll repeat third position.
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