Tour Down Under 2025 - Men's (Jan. 21-26)

[perico]

That was the impression I got. Were strong enough to be there but not enough to do anything so it feels like a legs issue rather than ridiculous tactics.

Lopez had already burned his matches, while Mollema did a lot of work early.

 

[Squire]

Revolutionary Unzue tactics.

 

[Potomac]

What is the background chatter on on Peacock? I can hear the race radio louder than Phil! Question when they say 321 break do they mean a commercial break or the breakaway?

It seems to be two things, race radio and the broadcast producer

 

[Squire]

Torres accidentally dropping the entire peloton.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Coquard does it. Narvaez looked by far the fastest but was boxed in.

 

[Squire]

Always good to see a Coquard win. Likeable guy.

 

[tobydawq]

Coquard does it. Narvaez looked by far the fastest but was boxed in.

Too bad Tobias Lund had zero help in this finale. And Brennan was nowhere too.

 

[wirral]

Pithie seems to be often involved in shoulder-barging and swerving around.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Apparently Pithie was relegated. He does tend to ride very aggressively. His speed wasn't very good today, though.

 

[stefank]

Stage 4 finish:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84XKLBVN7UA

 

[Berniece]

I get why Narvaez was pissed, he went from the left side to the right side and boxed him in. I thought they had to sprint straight?

 

[search]

I get why Narvaez was pissed, he went from the left side to the right side and boxed him in. I thought they had to sprint straight?

depends on how you read the rule:

"Riders shall be strictly forbidden to deviate from the lane they selected when launching into the sprint and, in so doing, endangering others."

Going by the usual way this is handled, I'd think there's reason to believe the "and" means a sprinter needs to do both to violate the rules, deviate and endanger. Coquard only deviated.

 

[KZD]

With Narvaez sprinting like this I can totally see him winning a cobbled classic this season and he has put himself into a great position to win the TDU overall too.

 

[yaNzKEWL]

With Narvaez sprinting like this I can totally see him winning a cobbled classic this season and he has put himself into a great position to win the TDU overall too.

He needs to be more clever generally however. He lost "a lot" of race where he was the favorite during it.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

What is Pithier even doing, riding like an amateur.

 

[Divergence]

I am reminded, yet again, just how idiotic sprinting is. People take enormous risks with a couple of km to go (Ineos guy didn't and he go swamped and did not even smell the front afterwards), people are barging around, shoulder banging and in the end swerving like crazy. It is a wonder nobody went down... And to what end? Some sprint stage win. Frankly ridiculous. Road cycling should be about cycling power on the bike and not all about risk taking and positioning. Just make the parkour harder and all of this nonsense disappears. It is good that the heaviest of heavy guys were dropped today but the parkour needs to be a bit harder so that we get, what I believe to be, proper cycling and not this circus.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

I am reminded, yet again, just how idiotic sprinting is. People take enormous risks with a couple of km to go (Ineos guy didn't and he go swamped and did not even smell the front afterwards), people are barging around, shoulder banging and in the end swerving like crazy. It is a wonder nobody went down... And to what end? Some sprint stage win. Frankly ridiculous. Road cycling should be about cycling power on the bike and not all about risk taking and positioning. Just make the parkour harder and all of this nonsense disappears. It is good that the heaviest of heavy guys were dropped today but the parkour needs to be a bit harder so that we get, what I believe to be, proper cycling and not this circus.

Or maybe the proper sprinters being absent was part of the problem today (although I acknowledge that DvP was the issue a couple of days ago. Pithie was the main cause of problems, and in a full bunch would have been nowhere near the front (he was out of the way in 47th on Tuesday)

 

[danielovichdk2]

Albert bags this.

 

[pastronef]

first WT win for Campagnolo since July 2023 (Gall, TDF stage)

 

[Tricycle Rider]

What is Pithier even doing, riding like an amateur.

Seems like Pithie touches shoulders with anyone who gets near him, me not likey.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

depends on how you read the rule:

"Riders shall be strictly forbidden to deviate from the lane they selected when launching into the sprint and, in so doing, endangering others."

Going by the usual way this is handled, I'd think there's reason to believe the "and" means a sprinter needs to do both to violate the rules, deviate and endanger. Coquard only deviated.

I too thought sprinters were supposed to stay in their lane once they launched, don't like the fuzzy, subject to interpretation wording of the rule.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

Average 36km/h.....zzzzz...I'm staying up until midnight for this?

It should have happened much earlier, but I inexplicably dozed off at only about 20km to go. Fortunately I woke up at 2km to go, so I got to see the final sprint.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

At last the stage that many have been waiting for, place your bets, it's stage 5! (I'll just stick with Chaves [from about ten years ago] even though Narvaez or Romo would be much more prudent choices.)

For fans of maps here's one of stage 5 - they'll also be climbing Wickham Hill, but the long-awaited Willunga Hill they'll have to do twice.

 

[Pantani_lives]

Geraint Thomas seems to think that because it's the Tour Down Under, the winner is the one who finishes at the bottom of the GC.

 

[pastronef]

Geraint Thomas seems to think that because it's the Tour Down Under, the winner is the one who finishes at the bottom of the GC.

he never talked of having GC hopes this time