10) He’s facing his last, best chance to win the TDF. Andy is young, and will have many more chances In fact, Agree
9) Andy will win the 2010 TDF in a few weeks, when the CAS decision is handed down. Not only that, but
8) Andy will be the favorite in 2012, for the same reason. Does anyone really want the 2013 season to begin with Andy owning more TDF titles than Bert?
Agree, but no matter who the records say owns the 2010 title, everyone reading this forum knows who really won the race. That will never be changed from my mind.
7) While both riders have finished second twice, both of Cadel’s wins were heart-breakingly close, coming down to final ITTs when he couldn’t get the time he was thought to be able to get. Evans also lost a Vuelta because of a flat tire.
Undoubtedly heart-breakingly close. I feel like in 07 he just lost to the better man. But in 08 he could have put himself in a better position prior the final time trial than he did. That year, he came in as the favorite and raced every day like it was his tour to lose. Rather than try to strike a blow at his rivals he rode them down as if he was already leading the race, gambling on his advantage in the time trial over the competition and the percieved time gaps he could attain there.
Evans will never be an explosive attacker and I understand the risk of blowing up before you could create a gap on the opposition. I just feel Evans lost that tour in the weeks before that penultimate day and as such deserved to lose it.
6) Evans has scratched and clawed his way to this point. He picked up 3” on stage 1, 8” on stage 4, and more than a minute on stage 16, including 3 extra seconds beyond his breakaway companions. The last time a GT contender tried to pick up a few seconds on opening non-mountain stages was maybe Cunego in the Giro in 2005. We all know how that turned out. An Evans victory would signal that it doesn’t have to be all about sitting in the peloton and waiting for MTFs. Even more than that, it would be a victory for a guy who uses the strengths that he has, and doesn't worry about all the complaints that he doesn't ride the way a GT winner is supposed to ride.
Cadel's efforts in this race to scrape time here and there have made for some excellent finishes in what might have been boring GC stages. I don't, however, enjoy watching the way Cadel will have won the tour near as much as I liked how Andy did it. Say what you want about the man's personality or his passivity in virtually all of the other races he is in. But he rolled the dice in a way we don't get enough in the Tour de France that makes for much better viewing. A win for Evans will reinforce the chase everything down strategy as the best way to win the tour if you're not Alberto Contador.
5) Andy sprinted at the end of the Beille stage to take two seconds off of Cadel. How would you feel if those two seconds were the margin of victory?
Same as I feel about the way Cadel took time from Andy on the Alpe. It was the smart play.
4) Andy has had every possible advantage in this Tour. Only 1 ITT, a TTT that favored his team, Contador weakened by the Giro and crashes. If he were a deserving winner, he should have blown open the race by now.
A few problems here. BMC took time from Saxo in the TTT and everyone got an advantage from Contador being tired and beat up. The lack of TT miles is completely out of Andy's hands.
How can anyone say that Andy wasn't a deserving winner after stage 18? He called everyone's hand tactically and came up the winner on the day he had the strength to do so. I wish more had played there cards in this and previous tours like Andy did on 18 or Contador the next day.
3) Evans has suffered from poor team support his entire career. This TDF is no exception. While Andy has teammates galore working for him, including his own brother Frank, who can be used to start attacks, Evans has often been alone. Though everyone recognizes he is a better TTer than Andy, the TTT was a wash between their teams.
Both of these guys have been free to choose the teams for which they signed. I can't hold it against Andy that his team is better or that, heaven forbid, his brother likes working to help him win.
2) Anyone with a cleft chin and a nickname like Cuddles needs every break in life he can get.
Absolutely. I hope he puts in the time trial of his life
And the no. 1 reason for wanting Cadel Evans to win is:
Australia has never produced a TDF winner. Evans would be the first. Not only that, but both his first and last names are of Welsh origin. How many TDF winners do you suppose Wales has produced? How many TDF riders do you think Wales has produced? Yep, you’re probably right.
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