Teams & Riders Vincenzo Nibali discussion thread

[maxmartin]

Brajkovic a better GC option for the Tour? Its another card to play, but if the team ends up having both tag along the Sky train stage after stage it will end in failure. Vino should know better.

someone said Brajkovic been sick in the past ten days

 

[maxmartin]

A lot of Giro rider abandoned ROmandie due to the horrible weather on that mountain stage.

Ryder's quit has nothing to do with weather, it was planned, he did the exact same thing last year, guess you don't alter what worked

 

[RocketScientist]

and where is Janez Brajkovič?? I though he could be a big help for Nibali in high mountain and he is more than decent at TT.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/giro-ditalia-2013-astana-send-climbers-to-support-nibali


Maybe Astana realize Jakob Fuglsang is a GC joke, they need someone to ride the Tour. Anyone has inside information???

Brajkovic has been sick for the last 10+ days. I doubt he could be any help to Nibali if he is not in good enough shape.

 

[cineteq]

Brajkovic has been sick for the last 10+ days. I doubt he could be any help to Nibali if he is not in good enough shape.

Bring on Fuglsang, who cares about his TdF ambitions.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Bring on Fuglsang, who cares about his TdF ambitions.

Don't recall Fuglsang being effective for his captain at the bizz end of a GT (stage). Fugsang can do some lifting on flats and hilly parts and perhaps early on a climb, but as a pacesetter for an attack? I don't see it. Might as well bring somebody who doesn't mind working full time for the captain.

Brajkovic could be a solid helper, but he has poor health (too skinny?) and crashes often.

 

[Cimber]

Bring on Fuglsang, who cares about his TdF ambitions.

Fuglsang would just do the same as Brajkovic: pretend to be sick

 

[cineteq]

Fuglsang would just do the same as Brajkovic: pretend to be sick

Fugsang can do some lifting on flats and hilly parts and perhaps early on a climb, but as a pacesetter for an attack? I don't see it. Might as well bring somebody who doesn't mind working full time for the captain.

So who's left guys? The team without Brajkovic is still pretty strong.

 

[Cimber]

So who's left guys? The team without Brajkovic is still pretty strong.

This seems to be the team:
Vincenzo Nibali, Andrey Zeits, Paolo Tiralongo, Valerio Agnoli, Dmitri Gruzdev, Fredrik Kessiakof, Fabio Aru, Tanel Kangert y Alessandro Vanotti.

 

[whittashau]

Wow, that Astana lineup really doesn't look nearly as impressive without Brajkovic though. Not only for the mountains, but he would have been a big help with the TTT. Kessiakoff, Jani, Gruzdev, Kangert and Nibbles vs Team Sky would probably have ended with Nibbles getting a small headstart, whereas now I could see Sky getting a small jump on him.

 

[Vino attacks everyone]

Brajko you bas- tard!
Now Zeits, show us the potensial we all know that you got... deeeeep inside you!

 

[whittashau]

Brajko you bas- tard!
Now Zeits, show us the potensial we all know that you got... deeeeep inside you!

What potential would that be exactly....that potential he showed when he came 2nd in the Tour of Turkey two years ago when he got beaten by some random russian?

Seriously though, has he been hiding some secret talent from everyone?

 

[Cimber]

Seriously though, has he been hiding some secret talent from everyone?

Maybe he has, just like Froome did

 

[Vino attacks everyone]

What potential would that be exactly....that potential he showed when he came 2nd in the Tour of Turkey two years ago when he got beaten by some random russian?

Seriously though, has he been hiding some secret talent from everyone?

He is a mediocre climber with a mediocre tt abilities and a mediocre engine. Simply put, not bad, but not very good rider either.

 

[Jelantik]

From wiggin's interview:
--------
Nibali might have the edge in the mountains, but Wiggins insisted the climbs, especially the steep ascents that characterize the Giro, hold no fear, where once they did. “Even last year that was the thing that concerned me: how I was going to hold out on the climbs,” he said.

“But because of the things we’ve been doing this year, I’ve got more confidence, more belief in my climbing ability. I still don’t know at this stage whether I will stay with Nibali on some of those tough finishes, the real steep ones, but I know I will certainly not lose more than a handful of time — [it will be] seconds here and there, maybe 20 seconds if I’m on a bad day.

“But I’m pretty confident I can stay with him whatever he throws at me. That’s all I have to do, really, because I’m confident in time trials. From what I’ve seen, I can beat him. Looking back, I beat him by 6 minutes, 19 seconds at the Tour last year. Which is quite a lot. I only have to win the Giro by one second.”

-------------

When contador (before ban) was the best stage racer in the world, he never made a comment like this. This is quite something from wiggin who just won TDF covered by TT. Either being arrogant or just too confident. He said not looking too far ahead, boy he's already rated Nibali before the Giro even starts. I hope Nibali will surprise him. It's nice to see him eat his own word

 

[SafeBet]

Contador and Wiggo have different personalities. You can't demand people to behave the same way, in pro sports as in everyday life. I don't find his comments arrogant. He's very confident and likes to bug his opponents a bit, which I always find funny. I like strong personalities and I think we need more of that in pro cycling. Taunting has never killed anybody.

 

[wwabbit]

Yep. It's not like Nibali hasn't 'taunted' Wiggins previously....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ot...iggins-of-hiding-during-the-Tour-of-Oman.html

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Contador and Wiggo have different personalities. You can't demand people to behave the same way, in pro sports as in everyday life. I don't find his comments arrogant. He's very confident and likes to bug his opponents a bit, which I always find funny. I like strong personalities and I think we need more of that in pro cycling. Taunting has never killed anybody.

Contador is pretty exciting to watch on a bike, but dull when off the carbonhorse imo. Broken record stuff.

Both Wiggo and Nibali can play a good game when it comes to "trash talking". Hopefully that will not stop during the Giro,

 

[SafeBet]

Both Wiggo and Nibali can play a good game when it comes to "trash talking". Hopefully that will not stop during the Giro,

Yep. Vino has already started the mind games

 

[roundabout]

He is a mediocre climber with a mediocre tt abilities and a mediocre engine. Simply put, not bad, but not very good rider either.

He wasn't completely horrible in 2009 as about number 5 in the Astana superteam hierarchy in the Giro.

Didn't progress since then though.

 

[Zam_Olyas]

Contador is pretty exciting to watch on a bike, but dull when off the carbonhorse imo. Broken record stuff.

Both Wiggo and Nibali can play a good game when it comes to "trash talking". Hopefully that will not stop during the Giro,

That's why i always say velasco contador is boring and the fangirls don't like it.

 

[Gregory]

When contador (before ban) was the best stage racer in the world, he never made a comment like this. This is quite something from wiggin who just won TDF covered by TT. Either being arrogant or just too confident. He said not looking too far ahead, boy he's already rated Nibali before the Giro even starts. I hope Nibali will surprise him. It's nice to see him eat his own word

I don't particularly like Wiggins and his personality, but I can hardly find anything wrong with his statement. It seems to me a quite realistic assesment of chances, based on hard facts. I don't see where he belittles Nibali in here. He seems to accept that he may lose some time on the steepest finishes, and that he may put a lot of time into Nibali in the TT. He doesn't say that he will crush Nibali, on the contrary he sees the possibility of a very close finish. So, what is he supposed to say? That he sees himself as inferior to Nibali and that doesn't believe that he will beat him? That would be fake as hell.

 

[webvan]

Exactly, too many posts here tainted by the Sky hatred, it's become ridiculous.

 

[Gregory]

Exactly, too many posts here tainted by the Sky hatred, it's become ridiculous.

If there is anyone who is belittled by other riders, its Hesjedal who gers curiously ignored by everyone.

 

[movingtarget]

If there is anyone who is belittled by other riders, its Hesjedal who gers curiously ignored by everyone.

I agree for a guy that won the last Giro. Many have just written him off altogether. Many don't think he will make the podium. At the moment, I think he looks as good as Nibali or Wiggins.

 

[Gregory]

I agree for a guy that won the last Giro. Many have just written him off altogether. Many don't think he will make the podium. At the moment, I think he looks as good as Nibali or Wiggins.

The media have also a part in this, because frankly Hesjedal is not as marketable as Nibali-Wiggins battle. Reminds me strongly of 2009 Tour, when previous year "unexpected winner" Sastre (just like Hasjedal) got completely ignored, because of Armstrong/Contador tension. However in that case, the media seemd to have been right, as Sastre failed completely. I hope this will not be the case with Hesjedal.