I think the best chance of this is incidentally if one of the podium contenders gets dropped early
So if Lopez gets distanced on the Madeline, Trek and EF will consider it worth sacrificing doms to really drop him
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So if Lopez gets distanced on the Madeline, Trek and EF will consider it worth sacrificing doms to really drop him
Lopez was uncharacteristically ninja, no yoyo, no punching random dude, only one crash, only one sprint. He's cooking something with Vino.
If Dumoulin were closer on gc, they could send him up the road to force Pogacar to chase. As it is, 5 minutes and 7 GC places is a nice cushion for Tadej, so he can let others watch Tom, while he watches Primoz.
So they’ll have to come up with something more clever than that to put time into Pogacar, and I do think they want/need to put more time into him before the TT.
So they’ll have to come up with something more clever than that to put time into Pogacar, and I do think they want/need to put more time into him before the TT.
My pipe dream is an early Valverde +Guillaume Martin attack and Tom going with them, while the 1-7 riders are looking at each other until the last 5km.
Valverde attack is impossible. He and Mas is never more than 5 meters away from each other except in the final km. Insert Koronin explaining how Mas says he is learning so much from Valverde during the tour
How so?
If someone needs time that's surely Pogacar. The TT is not only La Planche...It has 30km of flat before where Roglic will put probably 1 minute between him and Pogacar. He will lose max 30 s on the climb but at the end of the day he will still gain time in time trial...
Pogacar needs to attack hard today and I'm sure that he will but he also needs attacks from riders like Porte or Landa to tire the Jumbo train.
Dont care why the attack comes from but this race needs a romantic no hope attack
January 1995 I was on skiing vacation in Val Thorens, using the passes to transfer to the three valleys, here among Col de la Loze plenty times to get the backside to Courchevel area.
I would never have thought that the pass 25 years later would be used as a MTF in Le Tour! What a great imagination and courage by the organizors!
But I'm afraid it'll be just another snoozefest for the last 400meters
Unless someone have the courage to split the TJV monster apart. In the first week of mountains we saw weekness in the TJV panzer and the front group decimated to a couple of handfull of riders solely with '1' as the last number at their back. Please let that happen again today.
BTW: Just a couple of k's from today's MTF Michael Schumacher had his skiing accident in '13, in fact the riders will pass only few hundred meters from the location of the accident during the last climb, I don't know if that anyhow would be memorized (I guess not since I think The Three Valleys will not intend negative focus for their guests, since the area is already affected hard enough by missing guests due to Covid-19).
So let's hope for some fireworks doing the difference!
I would never have thought that the pass 25 years later would be used as a MTF in Le Tour! What a great imagination and courage by the organizors!
But I'm afraid it'll be just another snoozefest for the last 400meters
Unless someone have the courage to split the TJV monster apart. In the first week of mountains we saw weekness in the TJV panzer and the front group decimated to a couple of handfull of riders solely with '1' as the last number at their back. Please let that happen again today.
BTW: Just a couple of k's from today's MTF Michael Schumacher had his skiing accident in '13, in fact the riders will pass only few hundred meters from the location of the accident during the last climb, I don't know if that anyhow would be memorized (I guess not since I think The Three Valleys will not intend negative focus for their guests, since the area is already affected hard enough by missing guests due to Covid-19).
So let's hope for some fireworks doing the difference!
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You know Pogacar beat Roglic in the national TT championship this year, right?
I do think Roglic is a clear favorite if they go to the TT with the current time gaps. But not a 100% favourite, and it’s one mechanical or slip on a corner away from being not near enough. If I was in Jumbo’s shoes, I would want a bigger cushion going into the TT.
Rest and back treatment?
I think Roglič plan will be to follow Pogačar a when Pogačar attacks go after him and try to crack him. If Pogačar doesn't crack Roglič first. If others don't attack first and both need to cover the attacks. If, if, if...
I don't think is wise sending a healthy 23 yo rider to contest two GTs in a season. Doing that with an injured one would be out of question.
Absolutely.
The problem is that they're likely reluctant to start anything early because they're afraid Pogacar would have the upper hand in a mano a mano fight.
Yeah. In any normal season, he’d be finished by this time of year. Just let him go home and recover 100% for next year.
They have to set it so it’s not Mano a mano, then. If that means sending Kuss or G Bennett in the break, and bridge across, or launch Dumoulin on a long ranger on Thursday, so be it.
It’s time to get creative and take a shot at something. They’re in a pretty safe position even if it goes slightly wrong.
Jumbo will do as Sky/Ineos did in the past: no creative strategies. Giro 18 doesn't count as the situation was totally different.
In the unlikely event they're creative there are many teams that wil start riding before Pogacar sees his position threatened.
You seem to have forgotten Astana saving Roglic's azz last year in the echelons stage of the Vuelta when Quintana was ahead and Movistar got rid of Jumbo riders accelerating in a short climb.
Saturday's TT is way different. Slovenian nats had about 8 semi-flat km after the top of the climb only. Pogacar may take time on Roglic on PdBF, but in the first 30 km Roglic should be able to easily take a decent buffer on Pogacar. Still, all it takes is a mechanical and most of that buffer could be gone.
I think 30-40 s in Roglic's favour is possible in first 30 km of the TT with Pogacar partially reducing Roglic's edge on the final climb. If Pog is in yellow then his performance can somewhat improve due to a mental factor.
With only 5 stages to go we still have 13 teams without a stage win. Ok, Mitchelton Scott had the yellow jersey for a couple of days & Movistar are going to be happy with the teams classification (maybe even having two riders in the top ten!). B&B and Cofidis are hoping they can take the KOM. That leaves us with some ten teams who are getting desperate.
Tibopino for the break then perhaps? Assuming he's recovered from whatever ailed him last week?
Tejada, Fraile and Lutsenko ended very far back yesterday.
Astana will try something.
I don't think Uran, Porte and Landa are going to attack - they'll hope other podium contenders will crack. So most of my hope is on Lopez. Yates may have a dig, but he will likely not get far.
Astana will try something.
I don't think Uran, Porte and Landa are going to attack - they'll hope other podium contenders will crack. So most of my hope is on Lopez. Yates may have a dig, but he will likely not get far.
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