Tirreno - Adriatico 2021, March 10 - March 16

[Escarabajo]

i dont think mvdp had a hunger knock btw. Then he would have lost.

I simply think he was dead from soloing 50km on such a course. I said already that's insane to try. He just barely held on

But I didn't see him eating or refueling that much compared to the other riders in the last 50 Km. For some reason I thought something like this was going to happen.

 

[Eclipse]

Fantastic stage. Quite similar to the one Fuglsang won two years ago. These type of stages should be prioritized higher, both in GTs, but especially in one week tours like PN, TA and also BinckBank Tour.

Problem in GT's is that too often these days just get neutralised. You get stages like in the Giro last year where NTT decide to absolutely shred things for half the day in horrid conditions but everyone decides 'actually nah I don't really fancy this' and it's truced out because in a 3 week race one guy going solo is just suicide as others will just defend position. Needs the right blend of opportunity and difficulty to work there.

A great fit in a one week race though where you can force a set of time gaps with a MTF, and then pose these days as an opportunity

 

[OlavEH]

Realistically you only need the one true murito. Montee de la Bastille would be awesome

And the one they're using in Criterium Dauphine this year, Cote de Montrebut. 1,3 km, 12 %. It doesn't need to be that steep either. 1,5-2 km with 9-10 % combined directly with an other climb like today done 4-5 times would potentially destroy the peloton.

 

[YavorD]

What a trio. MVP with an amazing solo, Pogacar taking 3 minutes off him in the last 20 k and then you have WVA doing exceptional as well. I mean..heas was only 39 seconds behind Pogacar at the end.

And last but not least Nibali doing Zubeldia. top 10 with 16th as best stage placing. Is the bag prepared?

 

[Wvv]

When you see today's efforts, it's kind of a shame MVDP didn't try to hang on longer yesterday. Curious how long he would've been able to.

Brutal race, kudos to anyone involved.

Are you kidding? The only reason why MvdP was able to win today, was because he chose to loose 20+minutes yesterday. Alright? Otherwise he would have been hanging on for his life today. Do you realise what some efforts or lack lack there of cost? His motor has that limit, Ferrari on the short run, not deisel on the long run. Pogacar, by contrast, is simply a freak.

Having a bad day, are we?

What I meant was: when someone is able to perform as strong as he did today, I'm just curious how much time less he would've lost if he was motivated yesterday.

Jezus, why are people so easily offended for no reason at all.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

VDP said he was absolutely dead at the end and can't remember if he was ever this tired after a bike race. Absolutely emptied himself

 

[Valv.Piti]

Will the old guard ever win a race again, I wonder.. The likes of Landa, Quintana, Sagan, Froome, Valverde, Nibali etc. quickly stand no chance anymore.

This is why we love cycling, damn I love those new phenomenons.

 

[Extinction]

Having a bad day, are we?

What I meant was: when someone is able to perform as strong as he did today, I'm just curious how much time less he would've lost if he was motivated yesterday.

Jezus, why are people so easily offended for no reason at all.

No offense taken, but don't be curious, as surely MvdP would have been hanging on today had he tried to race for GC yesterday. That does not take away from his brilliant act today, but it does put it into perspective relative to the engines of those trying to win this stage race. By contrast , in a one day race, he does not get such a margin from his main competitors. He can still win, but that is a different story, different motors, different outcomes.

 

[Escarabajo]

Will the old guard ever win a race again, I wonder.. The likes of Landa, Quintana, Sagan, Froome, Valverde, Nibali etc. quickly stand no chance anymore.

This is why we love cycling, damn I love those new phenomenons.

Pogacar is making Bernal look like old guard as well. Lol.
You forgot Thomas in that list.

 

[OlavEH]

A great fit in a one week race though where you can force a set of time gaps with a MTF, and then pose these days as an opportunity

Agree on this. Although I'm not a big fan of the 12-15 km MTFs they have been using in TA and PN the later years. Would rather like a HTF/short MTF like Mont Faron or Croix Neuve combined with a stage like today and a short(ish) ITT of 15 km or something like that.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Pogacar is making Bernal look like old guard as well. Lol.
You forgot Thomas in that list.

I probably also forgot loads of other riders. Hence the etc, lol

 

[Red Rick]

Will the old guard ever win a race again, I wonder.. The likes of Landa, Quintana, Sagan, Froome, Valverde, Nibali etc. quickly stand no chance anymore.

This is why we love cycling, damn I love those new phenomenons.

Big race?

They should probably just take up tennis tbh

 

[Mayomaniac]

Realistically you only need the one true murito. Montee de la Bastille would be awesome

You also have this one right next to the Ventoux:

 

[Escarabajo]

Higuita 21 minutes down after being at the front in the first split. That was weird!

 

[Sciatic]

If all these guys from today & Roglic would do LBL that race will be much more dynamic than it’s been for years.

 

[Winnen]

No offense taken, but don't be curious, as surely MvdP would have been hanging on today had he tried to race for GC yesterday. That does not take away from his brilliant act today, but it does put it into perspective relative to the engines of those trying to win this stage race. By contrast , in a one day race, he does not get such a margin from his main competitors. He can still win, but that is a different story, different motors, different outcomes.

I always read these kind of replies when van der Poel wins. To name a few:

1. He won today because he did not try to hang on yesterday.
2. He won the sprint two days ago because Wout closed the gap.
3. He won Strade because Ala had cramps and because Wout just finished his trainingsperiod.
4. He became WC in cyclocross because Wout had a flat tire.
5. He won de Ronde because Wout started the sprint too late.
6. He won de Amstel because Ala and Fuglsang made a tactical error.

He deserves a little more credit IMHO. He creates his own luck by being in this position all the time. Some you win, some you lose (Yorkshire....). In the end it is great to see guys attacking and not looking at their powermeter every time.

 

[jmdirt]

WOW! I don't know what else to type.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Are you kidding? The only reason why MvdP was able to win today, was because he chose to loose 20+minutes yesterday. Alright? Otherwise he would have been hanging on for his life today. Do you realise what some efforts or lack lack there of cost? His motor has that limit, Ferrari on the short run, not deisel on the long run. Pogacar, by contrast, is simply a freak.

They would never have let him go (or extend his lead) in the first place. Wellens who is closer in GC, was countered every time, other riders could go.

I always read these kind of replies when van der Poel wins. To name a few:

1. He won today because he did not try to hang on yesterday.
2. He won the sprint two days ago because Wout closed the gap.
3. He won Strade because Ala had cramps and because Wout just finished his trainingsperiod.
4. He became WC in cyclocross because Wout had a flat tire.
5. He won de Ronde because Wout started the sprint too late.
6. He won de Amstel because Ala and Fuglsang made a tactical error.

He deserves a little more credit IMHO. He creates his own luck by being in this position all the time. Some you win, some you lose (Yorkshire....). In the end it is great to see guys attacking and not looking at their powermeter every time.

Hey look. Evenepoel only won Poland, San Sebastian, Algarve because they let him win.

 

[OlavEH]

If all these guys from today & Roglic would do LBL that race will be much more dynamic than it’s been for years.

Yep, LBL and perhaps AGR are probably the races that would gather the most of these guys. Van der Poel and Van Aert will probably dominate races like Strade Bianche and RVV and Pogacar and Evenepoel GTs, while in a race like LBL all of these plus Ala and Hirschi would be contenders.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Van Aert rode the final 5k fastest of the 3 of them. Was 1m45s down, and only 45s at the finish. Pogacar had already passed the 5k mark when they showed him 1m10s chasing. The Dutch/Belgian Eurosport guys were timing it.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

“I was riding completely on empty in the last few kilometres. I was told that Pogačar was coming close but I wasn't even able to listen. I just wanted to reach the finish as fast as I could," Van der Poel said. "I'm happy with the win. I attacked from far away because I was cold and I felt good until 20km to go.”

There you go. He attacked because he was cold. And the last 20km he was basically dead.

 

[Extinction]

I always read these kind of replies when van der Poel wins. To name a few:

1. He won today because he did not try to hang on yesterday.
2. He won the sprint two days ago because Wout closed the gap.
3. He won Strade because Ala had cramps and because Wout just finished his trainingsperiod.
4. He became WC in cyclocross because Wout had a flat tire.
5. He won de Ronde because Wout started the sprint too late.
6. He won de Amstel because Ala and Fuglsang made a tactical error.

He deserves a little more credit IMHO. He creates his own luck by being in this position all the time. Some you win, some you lose (Yorkshire....). In the end it is great to see guys attacking and not looking at their powermeter every time.

But you're comparing apples to oranges, MvdP the apple, Pogacar the orange. We must consider a stage race on both the merit of what it takes to win individual stages (and basing your strategy on that) and that of winning the overal race given the economy of the competition. To not race one day, as MvdP clearly did at Prati di Tivo, is a huge advantage for tomorrow.

Undoubtdly MvdP put on a show today, but this must be contextualixed not only with today's circumstance, but those of the overall economy of the stage race. Perhaps only MvdP resting yesterday could have pulled off what he did today, even if a certain Pogacar with a much bigger motor almost spoiled the party.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Van Aert rode the final 5k fastest of the 3 of them. Was 1m45s down, and only 45s at the finish. Pogacar had already passed the 5k mark when they showed him 1m10s chasing. The Dutch/Belgian Eurosport guys were timing it.

Pogacar didn't gain anything on WvA anymore in the last 10km i noticed. Most of the time came from the initial attack

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

“I was riding completely on empty in the last few kilometres. I was told that Pogačar was coming close but I wasn't even able to listen. I just wanted to reach the finish as fast as I could," Van der Poel said. "I'm happy with the win. I attacked from far away because I was cold and I felt good until 20km to go.”

There you go. He attacked because he was cold. And the last 20km he was basically dead.

Damn... lol. He could also have taken a jacket.

 

[Red Rick]

Pogacar didn't gain anything on WvA anymore in the last 10km i noticed. Most of the time came from the initial attack

It was slowly increasing all the way until the final 1km, in which he lost 10s.