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Teams & Riders Vincenzo Nibali discussion thread

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hfer07

hfer07

Mar 17, 2009
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Not a mystery to me: ASTANA is the proper team for Vincenzo-there is the clear need for a worthy GC rider & the help is there for his entire disposal.
BMC is still figuring out who's going to ride for who, when & where.

Nibali to ASTANA:)
 
gustienordic

gustienordic

Feb 15, 2011
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hfer07 said:
Not a mystery to me: ASTANA is the proper team for Vincenzo-there is the clear need for a worthy GC rider & the help is there for his entire disposal.
BMC is still figuring out who's going to ride for who, when & where.

Nibali to ASTANA:)
Click to expand...

Kreuzinger?!? :( After he podiums at the Giro this year, you will ahve to reevaluate that claim...
 
M

Motion

Aug 1, 2009
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Nibali to Astana - strongest Ardennes next year

Imaging

Iglinsky
Kiserlovski
Gasparotto
Nibali
Kreuziger
Muravyev

Vino - director sportif - attack attack attack
 
gustienordic

gustienordic

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Eyeballs Out said:
I wonder who Liquigas will replace Nibali with ? (assuming they've got the money to spend that they were offering him).

Betancur ? Pozzovivo ? Taaramae ?
Click to expand...

The possibilities make me happy. Pozzovivo the most likely out of these three I think. Anyone know about if he has a contract with Colnago for next year?
 
K

karlboss

Mar 13, 2009
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I like the fit at Astana. There are already a few italians there, the support team is strong and their shouldn't be any leadership clashes.
BMC leadership clash with Evans at the tour (if Nibali wants the Tour) and Gilbert in the ardennes. About the same number of italians.
Others thrown into the ring Greenedge, OMG please no. Certainly not yet. How is Nibali's english? Who would be his key mountain dom? and for Greenedge, trying to establish an australian cycling identity your biggest star is Italian.
OPQS seem a solid fit, if you can convince Leipheimer to be number 2. Sky clash with Wiggins, Froome. Katusha...maybe. Radioshack? they have the check book and backup team, there's just the tour sticking point, but he'd be great going to the Giro or Vuelta. Saxobank...can't support Contador at 2 GTs let alone NIbala and Contador at 3.
I like the idea of Nibali and Contador on a team together. It'd be rare you wouldn't podium a stage race all year long. I'm pretty sure Riis doesn't have the money. Thats would be 5 million plus in 2 guys, before you sign anyone to help them.
 
Caruut

Caruut

Oct 30, 2011
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BMC are a mess of a team organisationally. Too many chiefs, not enough Indians. Pozzato said he'd rather ride for Farnese Vini that BMC because everyone knew their role there, and you can see why. Astana are the opposite of BMC - lots of guys who can chance it, but no real strong leaders for the GTs, I think it's a perfect fit. He might have to scale back his ambitions for the Ardennes in terms of support, but his ride in LBL would actually have worked with the Astana boys.
 
Afrank

Afrank

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Parrulo said:
why would evans remain the team leader for the tour even after he starts his decline as a rider? that doesn't make any sense

i hope he doesn't go to BMC tho.
Click to expand...

Evans has already won the tour and I don't think he will be leaving the sport for at least 3 or 4 more years. BMC I think will give the tour leadership to him because he has won the tour, and you never know Evans could become like Horner and not decline. But Evans is just one leader Nibali would have to contend with if he went to BMC, with Astana he would be given full leadership in any of the grand tours.
 
K

karlboss

Mar 13, 2009
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Caruut said:
BMC are a mess of a team organisationally. Too many chiefs, not enough Indians. Pozzato said he'd rather ride for Farnese Vini that BMC because everyone knew their role there, and you can see why. Astana are the opposite of BMC - lots of guys who can chance it, but no real strong leaders for the GTs, I think it's a perfect fit. He might have to scale back his ambitions for the Ardennes in terms of support, but his ride in LBL would actually have worked with the Astana boys.
Click to expand...

This comes up quite a bit with BMC but is it actually true?

For stage races their is one captain, For the Ardennes there is one captain, for the Cobbles there is well quite a mess of guys who want to be captain, but I think it was obvious in the end the Indians knew their place and rode for Ballan.

As noted I agree that there aren't enough high mountain indians, but anyone good enough, might also be considered a captain.
 
Caruut

Caruut

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karlboss said:
This comes up quite a bit with BMC but is it actually true?

For stage races their is one captain, For the Ardennes there is one captain, for the Cobbles there is well quite a mess of guys who want to be captain, but I think it was obvious in the end the Indians knew their place and rode for Ballan.

As noted I agree that there aren't enough high mountain indians, but anyone good enough, might also be considered a captain.
Click to expand...

There is one captain for stage race GCs. However, Hushovd and Gilbert are going to want to get some airtime at the Tour again. Are they going to spend the day all alone and just do their best in the finale? Probably not, they'll each want one or two guys for the stages they're targeting. Over 3 weeks, that's going to start showing, I think.

The cobbles especially is what I mean. They have 3 riders capable of leading the team - Ballan, Hushovd and GVA. Personally, I think Hushovd's "superstar" reputation has been put ahead of his ability to win the race. In the Ardennes, Cadel also wants to contest them, and have riders like Van Garderen, who's on so much money that he really ought to be leading something.
 
K

karlboss

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Caruut said:
There is one captain for stage race GCs. However, Hushovd and Gilbert are going to want to get some airtime at the Tour again. Are they going to spend the day all alone and just do their best in the finale? Probably not, they'll each want one or two guys for the stages they're targeting. Over 3 weeks, that's going to start showing, I think.

The cobbles especially is what I mean. They have 3 riders capable of leading the team - Ballan, Hushovd and GVA. Personally, I think Hushovd's "superstar" reputation has been put ahead of his ability to win the race. In the Ardennes, Cadel also wants to contest them, and have riders like Van Garderen, who's on so much money that he really ought to be leading something.
Click to expand...

Gilbert's airtime will come courtesy of a 3km effort at the end of 1 or 2 days, and those days there is an excellent chance it will be Cadel leading him out. The amount of work BMC did last year keeping Cadel at the front won't change just because Gilbert might win a stage. I think they'll be ok.

Hushovd's may go in a break for 1 or 2 days and noone from the team will go with him, i think BMC can afford that.

Cobbles, there is no real captain. PR Ballan, for a break/attack/race of attrition, Hushovd for a Sprint, Flanders well GVA played the team card really well, to finish 4th. While the rest of the team suported, suppose it went a different way, it would have been Ballan supporting GVA for a sprint.

In the Ardennes, time will tell, but I think you'll find Cadel marks attacks counter attacks, while Gilbert waits for the sprint, they should work well together, that's if Cadel can be bothered, i think he'll work less and less in them. Looking at 2011 as an example, of what an inform Evans does in the Ardennes.

The money TJVG is on doesn't make him a captain. I think he had leadership in Romandie, until a tree assaulted him.
 
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