Tour de France 2019

[GuyIncognito]

Re: Re:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tou...ts-atop-mountain-passes-to-encourage-attacks/

"Last year, we had eight bonus points, but they were on flat stages. This time around, we'll put them on the top of the hills and cols, and on stages where there will be a fight for the general classification," said Tour de France technical director Thierry Gouvenou.

Will this really do anything?

Only if Prudhomme gets his wish and can allot more time than the 3, 2 and 1 seconds that the UCI currently allow.

What is this, the 1973 Vuelta?

I forget which rider it was who joked there were bonus seconds "even in hotel doorways".

They made a Vuelta with a single mountain - and even that one was a long way from the finish - and bonus seconds everywhere, to guarantee a Merckx win, so that he would agree to ride.

 

[Climbing]

Endurance has left the sport.
An absolute joke of a course, utter crap, giving it a number would give it value that it doesn't deserve.

 

[Tonton]

Re:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/pinot-to-target-tour-de-france-in-2019-and-likes-the-route/

Pinot to target Tour de France in 2019 and likes the route

Tonton can look forward to July next year.

Indeed . And it looks like Marc Madiot has a plan, considering the signing of Kung and Scotson. Add to that Preidler (who can climb some), Molard and Reichenbach, and all of the sudden, there's hope for a very strong TTT.

Now my birthday is on July 19, the day of stage 13 and the ITT: I know what kind of a present I want, but I don't know what I'll get. I hope I'll eat some cake in a good way .

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Re: Re:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tou...ts-atop-mountain-passes-to-encourage-attacks/

"Last year, we had eight bonus points, but they were on flat stages. This time around, we'll put them on the top of the hills and cols, and on stages where there will be a fight for the general classification," said Tour de France technical director Thierry Gouvenou.

Will this really do anything?

Only if Prudhomme gets his wish and can allot more time than the 3, 2 and 1 seconds that the UCI currently allow.

What is this, the 1973 Vuelta?

I forget which rider it was who joked there were bonus seconds "even in hotel doorways".

Ocaña iirc. Remember that El Español de Mont-de-Marsan never won his home race, too, he had another chance a year later but there was a very public spat after he gained time on a fallen Fuente on Monte Naranco and was treated very badly by the Asturian tifosi as a result, to the point where Fuente publicly told them to calm down and be respectful, but Ocaña fell apart on the Mirador del Fito stage when his teammate Joaquim Agostinho became Fuente's main rival for the win.

In fairness in that Vuelta, one of the Spanish newspapers kept tabs on the classification if there had been no bonuses, so on pure on-the-road time, and Merckx still won, but he probably wouldn't have been there if they hadn't set the race up for him to come and win, and certainly it was a kick in the teeth to most Spanish fans who had grown fed up of the race pandering to foreign stars who would often abuse their position as the star attractions in the race by bullying race directors (even to the point in 1971 of race staff pretending to have written down the wrong dossard number to absolve Ferdinand Bracke of a time penalty for an illegal feed after his team director threatened to withdraw the whole team, even though he was pretty damned obvious wearing the race leader's jersey) and were especially enthused by Ocaña and Fuente's achievements in the mountains overseas and the successful introduction of real mountaintop finishes in the 1972 race, so really were not impressed by the race, which had been growing and becoming less provincial, unleashing perhaps its most tailor-made-for-foreign-big-names route yet.

 

[ice&fire]

Re: Re:

Ocaña iirc. Remember that El Español de Mont-de-Marsan never won his home race, too, he had another chance a year later but there was a very public spat after he gained time on a fallen Fuente on Monte Naranco and was treated very badly by the Asturian tifosi as a result, to the point where Fuente publicly told them to calm down and be respectful, but Ocaña fell apart on the Mirador del Fito stage when his teammate Joaquim Agostinho became Fuente's main rival for the win.

Are you taking about Luis Ocaña? He won the 1970 Vuelta

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Re: Re:

Ocaña iirc. Remember that El Español de Mont-de-Marsan never won his home race, too, he had another chance a year later but there was a very public spat after he gained time on a fallen Fuente on Monte Naranco and was treated very badly by the Asturian tifosi as a result, to the point where Fuente publicly told them to calm down and be respectful, but Ocaña fell apart on the Mirador del Fito stage when his teammate Joaquim Agostinho became Fuente's main rival for the win.

Are you taking about Luis Ocaña? He won the 1970 Vuelta

Doh! Right you are... for some reason I was remembering his desperation rides in 1974 and 1976 to be fuelled by the need to win his home race. Might be confusing some of the details of his and Fuente's rivalry with that between Loroño and Bahamontes, since the latter genuinely never won the Vuelta.

 

[Tonton]

???

 

[Singer01]

Re: Re:

Ocaña iirc. Remember that El Español de Mont-de-Marsan never won his home race, too, he had another chance a year later but there was a very public spat after he gained time on a fallen Fuente on Monte Naranco and was treated very badly by the Asturian tifosi as a result, to the point where Fuente publicly told them to calm down and be respectful, but Ocaña fell apart on the Mirador del Fito stage when his teammate Joaquim Agostinho became Fuente's main rival for the win.

Are you taking about Luis Ocaña? He won the 1970 Vuelta

Doh! Right you are... for some reason I was remembering his desperation rides in 1974 and 1976 to be fuelled by the need to win his home race. Might be confusing some of the details of his and Fuente's rivalry with that between Loroño and Bahamontes, since the latter genuinely never won the Vuelta.

Did LS just get something wrong? Its like being told Santa doesn't exist.

 

[Robert5091]

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/...ts-says-tv-broadcaster-psychotherapist-400429

So next year we can shout "boo!" and "narcissist!" - can n't wait

 

[Robert5091]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/geraint-thomas-and-chris-froome-to-target-tour-de-france/

Team Sky have confirmed the major targets of their three key Grand Tour riders with Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas set to focus on the Tour de France in 2019, while Egan Bernal will lead his first Grand Tour at the Giro d’Italia.
...
"The main goal for me will be to go back to the Tour de France for the best result I can,” explained Thomas. “Maybe if I hadn’t won the Tour in 2018 I might have looked at a Giro/Vuelta programme but, having won the Tour, I’ll have the number one on my back and it would be sad not to go back and not to go back at 100 per cent as well.

"The year will be geared around that, but I’m also looking forward to a slightly different programme as well, and obviously after the Tour, the Worlds in Yorkshire will be massive.”

The Sky A-team for last Sky TdF - not surprising. If Sky have not found a new sponsor by July, it could be interesting.

 

[Tim Booth]

wildcards to Cofidis & Wanty.
other 2 will be awarded later, according to L'Equipe this will be after Paris-Nice (10-17 March)

 

[Alexandre B.]

I guess Vital Concept will fail to make the cut.

 

[Nirvana]

There are long running rumors on Italian press about Direct Energie wanting to go to the Giro, maybe they are waiting to know if they'll receive a WC from RCS considering that two GTs are very hard for a professional.

 

[Eyeballs Out]

I'd be amazed if Wanty got in at the expense of Vital Concept

 

[MADRAZO]

Re:

I'd be amazed if Wanty got in at the expense of Vital Concept

Agree, I can't understand the TDFs love for Wanty. They offer absolutely nothing besides G. Martin, and he has been almost completely anonymous in his first 2 chances. It makes no sence at all to pick them ahead of a whole french team with Coquard, Rolland and Vichot.

Hopefully it will be Direct Energie that misses out now and not Vital Concept, and that could then well ofcourse explain their flirt with the Giro.

 

[tobydawq]

Is there a rule forbidding 23 teams?

It wouldn't exceed the previous maximum of 200 riders.

 

[sir fly]

Grand Départ in Brussels makes Wanty an obvious choice besides the reasons in previous years.

 

[Robert5091]

Bouhanni to "liven up" the sprints again!

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Re:

Is there a rule forbidding 23 teams?

It wouldn't exceed the previous maximum of 200 riders.

Yes, there is.
2.2.002 prohibits more than 176 riders (except World/Olympic/Continental/Regional/National championships)

 

[Squire]

I feel Direct Energie offers the least among the candidates. Terpstra is a big name, but not for the kind of race that the Tour is. Other than that, there's just Calmejane really. Coquard/Rolland/Vichot and Barguil/Greipel must surely have more appeal?

 

[yaco]

Re: Re:

I'd be amazed if Wanty got in at the expense of Vital Concept

Agree, I can't understand the TDFs love for Wanty. They offer absolutely nothing besides G. Martin, and he has been almost completely anonymous in his first 2 chances. It makes no sence at all to pick them ahead of a whole french team with Coquard, Rolland and Vichot.

Hopefully it will be Direct Energie that misses out now and not Vital Concept, and that could then well ofcourse explain their flirt with the Giro.

From 2020, the first two ranked PTC teams get automatic spots for GT's - TDF is getting in a year early.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Re:

I feel Direct Energie offers the least among the candidates. Terpstra is a big name, but not for the kind of race that the Tour is. Other than that, there's just Calmejane really. Coquard/Rolland/Vichot and Barguil/Greipel must surely have more appeal?

At the meantime, we get Wanty again while one of these teams wont make the cut. Thats pretty bad. I think Fortuneto wont make it again

 

[Midnightfright]

Re: Re:

I'd be amazed if Wanty got in at the expense of Vital Concept

Agree, I can't understand the TDFs love for Wanty. They offer absolutely nothing besides G. Martin, and he has been almost completely anonymous in his first 2 chances. It makes no sence at all to pick them ahead of a whole french team with Coquard, Rolland and Vichot.

Hopefully it will be Direct Energie that misses out now and not Vital Concept, and that could then well ofcourse explain their flirt with the Giro.

From 2020, the first two ranked PTC teams get automatic spots for GT's - TDF is getting in a year early.

What point do they take the rankings?

 

[Breh]

Wanty Groupe Gobert won the Europe Tour for the 3rd year in a row.
The Tour starts in Belgium and passes through Binche, hometown of Wanty..
2nd highest procontinental team in the 2018 CQ ranking behind Cofidis.

I really wonder why they're in.

 

[tobydawq]

When I was at the Tour last year, one team was visible literally everywhere around the race; Direct Energie. They were even the only team sponsor represented in the commercial caravan.

I wouldn't be too certain they are the ones to be snubbed.