Teams & Riders Vincenzo Nibali discussion thread

[SafeBet]

Nibali is now on TV for some kind of cycling award and confirms that no decision has been made on his schedule for 2015.
He also says there's another great rider at Astana (Aru) who deserves the chance to ride a GT as captain.
Asked if he could come to the Giro merely as a helper, he says he could never do it. The Giro means too much to him.
If he had to choose between another Tour and a monument he'd choose the Tour

On a side note, apparently Astana is working on a new Tricolore jersey for next year

 

[jens_attacks]

wise decision by vincenzo. or whoever took it. i hope he goes also for liege

 

[SafeBet]

Don't know if it's only PR bullcrap (likely) but during the show Nibbles asked Francesco Moser advices on how to ride Roubaix, hinting that he could ride it in the future.

 

[Gloin22]

Don't know if it's only PR bullcrap (likely) but during the show Nibbles asked Francesco Moser advices on how to ride Roubaix, hinting that he could ride it in the future.

Roubaix? Ronde is way better goal..

Still would be cool.

 

[maxmartin]

Nibali is now on TV for some kind of cycling award and confirms that no decision has been made on his schedule for 2015.
He also says there's another great rider at Astana (Aru) who deserves the chance to ride a GT as captain.
Asked if he could come to the Giro merely as a helper, he says he could never do it. The Giro means too much to him.
If he had to choose between another Tour and a monument he'd choose the Tour

On a side note, apparently Astana is working on a new Tricolore jersey for next year

Tour trumps ever other race in the modern cycling for a GT rider. The best will go for the Tour as the only objective of the season, period.

 

[Netserk]

Tour trumps ever other race in the modern cycling for a GT rider. The best will go for the Tour as the only objective of the season, period.

What does that say about Nibali in 2013?

 

[Jspear]

It's pointless to compare Nibali before he joined Astana with Contador from those times. It was no contest, but Nibs improved a lot, I mean a lot since riding for Vino and that is what people here tend to forget when they compare the two riders. He almost won all 3 GTs where he competed. I'm pretty sure that if they would have met in Giro last year, given the shape Contador was all year and Nibali's new found dominance he would have beaten Alberto. This year Tour could have been a close contest if not for the crash. Come to tink off, Contador was pretty awesome while at Astana too.

nice play on words.

 

[Arnout]

Tour trumps ever other race in the modern cycling for a GT rider. The best will go for the Tour as the only objective of the season, period.

Except if you're Italian.

Also, the giant gap between Tour and Giro is more related to marketability than to ability and this is recognized in the peloton too (even though every team will keep sending their riders to the Tour because the sponsors demand it).

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Roubaix? Ronde is way better goal..

Still would be cool.

Nibali should target both.
It would be a fantastic display having such a rider in these races.

 

[Afrank]

Maybe she's a cycling fan first and foremost and wants to see the top guys go up against each other when they're all at their best? Imo, every cycling fan, whether a fan of Nibs, AC, Nairo, Froome, or none of the above, should want them all to go head-to-head in as many GTs as possible. How awesome would it be to see all 4 of those guys fresh and motivated to win at the Giro next year?

Most definitely, personally I want to see them all do Giro-Tour-Vuelta.

Maybe Purito or Valverde might actually win a vuelta, instead of just podiuming, that way? Nah, that's crazy talk.

 

[Afrank]

Don't know if it's only PR bullcrap (likely) but during the show Nibbles asked Francesco Moser advices on how to ride Roubaix, hinting that he could ride it in the future.

Hmm...a little quote I found months back that I stuck on my laptops notepad and left there...

In 2006 Nibali said, “Roubaix is the race of my dreams. It fascinates me, maybe because I like mountain biking. I’d like to win it one day”

...Hmm...

 

[trevim]

Not saying Nibali will ever win or contend in Roubaix but I believe that his performance in the Tour stage and Wiggins ride this year prove that Roubaix isn't only suited to the narrow definition of specialists like Boonen, Cancellara or Vanmarcke. It proves that a wider kind of riders can be good there if they are willing to risk a cras.

 

[Piz Buin]

Maybe she's a cycling fan first and foremost and wants to see the top guys go up against each other when they're all at their best? Imo, every cycling fan, whether a fan of Nibs, AC, Nairo, Froome, or none of the above, should want them all to go head-to-head in as many GTs as possible. How awesome would it be to see all 4 of those guys fresh and motivated to win at the Giro next year?

That would be awesome but we all know its not gonna happen. Atleast not at the giro. Thats why i wanted both to focus on the tour.

 

[cineteq]

Nibali is now on TV for some kind of cycling award and confirms that no decision has been made on his schedule for 2015.
He also says there's another great rider at Astana (Aru) who deserves the chance to ride a GT as captain.
Asked if he could come to the Giro merely as a helper, he says he could never do it. The Giro means too much to him.

Aru is not even close to being ready to dispute a GT as a leader. But it's too late now Astana/Sponsors have planted the seed on him. Nibali, get out of the way, and concentrate on the Tour.

 

[Netserk]

Aru is not even close to being ready to dispute a GT as a leader. But it's too late now Astana/Sponsors have planted the seed on him. Nibali, get out of the way, and concentrate on the Tour.

We saw that this year...

 

[maxmartin]

“I would really like that a lot and to ride it as a protagonist,” Nibali said of the prospect of riding next year’s Giro. “I would come to win it, and then afterwards I’d think about the Tour. It would be a choice made with the heart. But as you know, there’s Fabio Aru in the team too. He wants space and the team believes a lot in him.

“I could do the Giro, and I’ve already hinted that to Vinokourov. You can discuss things well with him face to face, in Italian, even if sometimes he can change idea. His answer was that Aru is there, and our sponsors like him a lot. At the end of November we’ll discuss the situation.”

Nibali insisted that he would have no qualms about riding at the Giro on the same team as Aru, who finished an impressive third this year. Team leadership, he said, would be decided on the road.

“We’d need to see what our condition was, and be good and not argue. It’s a matter that would be decided between us, the team car would stay out of it. Work for him? Why not, if the race plays out in a certain way.”

 

[maxmartin]

Hope Vinokourov sticks to his gun to make sensible decision. LOL

 

[Angliru]

Aru is not even close to being ready to dispute a GT as a leader. But it's too late now Astana/Sponsors have planted the seed on him. Nibali, get out of the way, and concentrate on the Tour.

He made the Giro podium. Even Nibali believes in him. I think I'll trust Vincenzo's expert opinion over yours and say that Aru is ready to lead a team at a grand tour.

 

[maxmartin]

Aru is not even close to being ready to dispute a GT as a leader. But it's too late now Astana/Sponsors have planted the seed on him. Nibali, get out of the way, and concentrate on the Tour.

Absolutely agree!

 

[cineteq]

He made the Giro podium. Even Nibali believes in him. I think I'll trust Vincenzo's expert opinion over yours and say that Aru is ready to lead a team at a grand tour.

A. Schleck made the Tour podium too.

It has nothing to do with Nibali's opinion. Don't you trust what you see? I do. I see potential but not a serious contender on Aru. I think Uran, Talansky and even Bardet have more chance than him.

 

[SafeBet]

A. Schleck made the Tour podium too.

It has nothing to do with Nibali's opinion. Don't you trust what you see? I do. I see potential but not a serious contender on Aru. I think Uran, Talansky and even Bardet have more chance than him.

So what did you see in Nibbles when he was Aru's age?

 

[LaFlorecita]

So what did you see in Nibbles when he was Aru's age?

Aru has better results than Nibali at the same age

I think Aru will win a GT very soon, probably il Giro in 2016

 

[cineteq]

So what did you see in Nibbles when he was Aru's age?

I saw a good rider. What are you tring to imply?

 

[Jspear]

A. Schleck made the Tour podium too.

It has nothing to do with Nibali's opinion. Don't you trust what you see? I do. I see potential but not a serious contender on Aru. I think Uran, Talansky and even Bardet have more chance than him.

Aru just placed 3rd and 5th in two GT's in one year. Has Uran ever done well in the Vuelta after doing the Giro? Talansky placed 10th in his last gt and Bardet placed 6th in his last one. You might (maybe) be able to argue that Uran has more potential than Aru (I would even argue that though) - but if you look at what you can see, than Talansky and Bardet have less potential than Aru and Uran can't handle as many gt's in one season as Aru can.

 

[cineteq]

Aru just placed 3rd and 5th in two GT's in one year. Has Uran ever done well in the Vuelta after doing the Giro? Talansky placed 10th in his last gt and Bardet placed 6th in his last one. You might (maybe) be able to argue that Uran has more potential than Aru (I would even argue that though) - but if you look at what you can see, than Talansky and Bardet have less potential than Aru and Uran can't handle as many gt's in one season as Aru can.

We're not talking just physical ability and who's to say he's going to repeat a similar performance as this year? Sorry not enough data to compute.