I just got finished watching Phil and Paul being interviewed on NBCSports' show "Sports Talk" which immediately followed the coverage of the USProCycling Challenge. it's a show kind of like Pardon the Interruption on ESPN, but with only one guy instead of multiple hosts. The host (I forget his name) isn't a cycling fan, and as he was interviewing Phil and Paul, he kept telling them "Look, I'm not the brightest guy. I just want to know what this means for cycling."
Phil, still wearing a yellow bracelet, was clear that he believes this is going to still come down to a fight between USADA and UCI. He was otherwise very non-committal about it. When asked what he thought the reaction was from those in the peloton, he said it was about 50-50 and that lots of people have many reservations about USADA, its timing and methods, but others think the result is going to be good for the sport in the long run as it will close this chapter and allow everyone to move on.
Paul basically said the same thing, but he was asked specifically to give the perspective of someone who has ridden the TdF. He said essentially what Phil said, and added several times that he thought most of the current riders don't think this will be good for cycling, except that it will bring some closure, even if the evidence won't come out any time soon.
Both of them said that they think the whole situation still leaves many questions unanswered, and they both assumed that the only thing USADA would do is transmit a basic "rationale" statement to the UCI, and that UCI might yet decide to appeal it on the basis that only UCI has authority to sanction riders for violations that allegedly occur during international events.
Given that most people think Phil and Paul are truly homers for Lance, they didn't come across that way, at least not as much has they have in the past.
The show host also interviewed Bob Roll, who gave his perspective, saying in essence that he thought Lance had reached the end of his rope, and also saying he thinks the UCI still is going to have to approve the sanctions and that "this is only really the beginning" of what could be a very interesting fight.
The show also conducted interviews of several former teammates, including Chris Horner, who gave a glowing review of Lance, said he thought it was a shame and that Lance had just been hounded and had wasted too much money already fighting these allegations. He then said Lance has done amazing things in cycling and in raising money for cancer victims. I was actually surprised when Horner said, "I was there for one of the wins, and in my mind, he will always be the winner."
Others, including Jim Ochowizc were also expressing support for Armstrong, and Och also repeated the same thing about Lance will always be the winner.
I can't recall the others that spoke, but there were several others, some former teammates or colleagues and others who weren't. But the support was kind of surprising, and if I were the average fan who had tuned into the show to watch the upcoming NFL and MLB coverage that dominated the rest of the show, I would have likely come away with the view that Lance just decided he'd had enough because it was an unlevel playing field, and that this thing is still far from over or settled in terms of what the sanctions ultimately will or won't be.