Vincenzo Nibali discussion thread

[Rollthedice]

Re: Re:

When i saw him in the first positions of the group after the second Oude Kwaremont i really though "he'll drop everyone in the next passage after 250 kms" but in the end he cracked, probably is the first time that he slow down instead of becoming stronger after the 200 kms mark. Anyway yesterday didn't seem too fatigued, maybe he eased up a bit after the attack or he's better suited to flat cobbles considering that the Oude Kwaremont is the one with the lower gradients.

I think it's the fact the intensity for this race is so different. Nibali doesn't really have the power for numerous mini-sprints before every hill or cobbled section. He was good on everything but the paterberg (on the second kwaremont he was only dropped slightly, he was with kristoff), which is impressive. But the lack of race prep and raw power hurt him by the end. A race like last year's would have suited him more, as long as he's got into the front group.

I think the fact that we even talk about how he can/could win a race like Ronde is nothing short of amazing. He didn't blew up when Terpstra accelerated, he just couldn't follow the sustained intensity of a classics rider who was at his absolute peak and dropped back. Kwiatkowski blew up, Nibali was distanced with a small group after the last Pater onslaught by the very best riders in the world in these races. He came to Flanders with no knowledge, no proper physique for this, no specific prep and not at his peak, nevermind the cobbles. He had enough stamina to put in an attack after 240 km which eventually decided the race. I think he did a mighty fine job.

 

[SafeBet]

Re:

He's said and done plenty of things off the bike for anybody to dislike him. I still like him personally, but there's no denying this.

This is spot on.

I think he's a very good teammate but he might come accross as a bit of a jerk from the outside.

 

[huge]

During one of the many post race interviews he said that a good knowledge of the course is vital for positioning, or you'll always find yourself losing positions that you'll need to recover, every time. And that takes a lot of energy away, which in a race as hard as this, full on from the start, makes the difference between winning and losing.

He said that it was harder approaching each climbs, than the climbs themselves, with everybody basically sprinting for position.

According to Slongo he had an avg power of 250W for Flanders, compared to just 187W for MSR.
His attack was at 650W for about 15secs...
His attack on the Poggio was at about 700W, so higher. Which shows that he was already quite tired last Sun when he attacked.

 

[Oliver]

Great to see him in Flanders, love to see him back there.
He said he was impressed by Ronde Van Vlaanderen.
He should have waited when Terpstra was going, to early for him, but I'm really glad with his performance.
Don't forget Terpstra is @ peak mode.

 

[SafeBet]

DNS stage 5.
It wasn't a good idea to ride Itzulia in the first place.

 

[Tim Booth]

Re:

DNS stage 5.
It wasn't a good idea to ride Itzulia in the first place.

Doctor Emilio Magni explains – he suffers from a painful skin lesion located in the rider’s seat area. For preventive purposes and to facilitate a complete recovery in view of the next commitments, it was decided to withdraw from the race

 

[Gigs_98]

We learn, riding the ronde as a preparation race is not a good idea.

 

[Red Rick]

He'll be fine. Needs a bit of rest anyway

 

[rghysens]

A skin lesion is not that bad. It can easily be treated with some cortisone.

 

[Rollthedice]

On another note, race number no. 31 is turning to be very important for Vincenzo Nibali. It is a number connected with Rosario Costa, the teen who was killed in an accident while riding his bike around Messina and who rode for ASD Nibali youth cyling team, you might remember the tragedy. Vincenzo has a few great wins with this number, his first Giro, his first Lombardia and now his first "La Classicissima".

 

[Red Rick]

We learn, riding the ronde as a preparation race is not a good idea.

Nah man, I'm onto him.

This is all a plot to win Paris-Roubaix obviously

 

[Climbing]

Recon of most of this year TdF pavè sections for Nibali and Pellizzotti.
https://twitter.com/Bahrain_Merida/status/985909399519711234

 

[Sestriere]

How do you guys rate his performance at Amstel? 32nd, 2 minutes down in a group with Kwiatkowski, among others.
I expected a bit more as he should be approaching top shape right now. Did his problem at Itzulia jeopardize his preparation or was he even sandbagging to fly under the radar in Liège? Or was his performance good after all and I'm just imagining things?

 

[Netserk]

His best ever result in Amstel is 18th from 2009. So who knows?!

 

[Gigs_98]

Gotta say, I'm a bit disappointed. Ofc LBL suits him a lot better, but I expected him to be one of the 3 strongest riders in Liege and I don't see that improvement happening. Let's hope I underestimate him and he'll still make all hell break lose on the RaF

 

[Bardamu]

Re:

His best ever result in Amstel is 18th from 2009. So who knows?!

In 2009 and 2015 he attacked from far out though.

But I think the nervousness of the parcours in Amstel doesn't really suit him. I guess he will be fine in LBL.

 

[Summoned]

The only basis I have for the following opinion is that he was with Pellizotti taking a look at the cobbles for the TdF, but it seems like he may not be as focused on LBL as originally planned, especially since he won the MSR. But this is a very uninformed take on what is going on.

 

[Climbing]

Yeah, he wasn't particularly convincing, hopefully he's not going down form but just doing a mini build up with AGR/FW towards LBL.

 

[Climbing]

Re:

The only basis I have for the following opinion is that he was with Pellizotti taking a look at the cobbles for the TdF, but it seems like he may not be as focused on LBL as originally planned, especially since he won the MSR. But this is a very uninformed take on what is going on.

Nah, that was planned, the recon during Ardennes.
But yeah who knows, maybe he peaked too early.

 

[skippo12]

Re:

Recon of most of this year TdF pavè sections for Nibali and Pellizzotti.
https://twitter.com/Bahrain_Merida/status/985909399519711234

He should have probably taken a more experienced cobbles rider with him. Pelizotti won`t be of much help during the stage. I wonder who will be choosen to guide Nibali through the cobbles. I really hope that they will select Haussler...he did an excellent job during the tour of flanders. Nibali himself is an expert when it comes to positioning in normal stages but when it comes to cobbles things are a little different...a veteran like Haussler would be the ideal `Capitaine de Route` for the cobbled stage.

 

[Koronin]

Re: Re:

Recon of most of this year TdF pavè sections for Nibali and Pellizzotti.
https://twitter.com/Bahrain_Merida/status/985909399519711234

He should have probably taken a more experienced cobbles rider with him. Pelizotti won`t be of much help during the stage. I wonder who will be choosen to guide Nibali through the cobbles. I really hope that they will select Haussler...he did an excellent job during the Ronde van Vlaanderen. Nibali himself is an expert when it comes to positioning in normal stages but when it comes to cobbles things are a little different...a veteran like Haussler would be the ideal `Capitaine de Route` for the cobbled stage.

I'm pretty sure Nibali did fairly well the last time cobbles were part of the Tour. If I remember right he did better than any of the other GC riders on that stage. Although for a recon it may have been wiser to bring someone like Haussler as well.

 

[SafeBet]

He was fine in AGR, looked good until the final Cauberg and then probably didn't want to dig too deep, knowing he didn't have a chance anyway.

FW will tell us more.

 

[Bardamu]

Re: Re:

Recon of most of this year TdF pavè sections for Nibali and Pellizzotti.
https://twitter.com/Bahrain_Merida/status/985909399519711234

He should have probably taken a more experienced cobbles rider with him. Pelizotti won`t be of much help during the stage. I wonder who will be choosen to guide Nibali through the cobbles. I really hope that they will select Haussler...he did an excellent job during the Ronde van Vlaanderen. Nibali himself is an expert when it comes to positioning in normal stages but when it comes to cobbles things are a little different...a veteran like Haussler would be the ideal `Capitaine de Route` for the cobbled stage.

I'm pretty sure Nibali did fairly well the last time cobbles were part of the Tour. If I remember right he did better than any of the other GC riders on that stage. Although for a recon it may have been wiser to bring someone like Haussler as well.

He'll need a rider like Haussler. However, Nibali didn't just do better than the other GC-contenders, he did better than all those so called cobbled specialists apart from Boom.

 

[Rollthedice]

Re:

He was fine in AGR, looked good until the final Cauberg and then probably didn't want to dig too deep, knowing he didn't have a chance anyway.

FW will tell us more.

This. A reminder of the Ardennes placements in 2012: Amstel 104, Fleche 8, LBL 2.

 

[Nirvana]

Probably going to Pais Vasco was a bad decision, with Colbrelly nowhere to be seen he should have tried something in Amstel, anyway looking at the race seemed a sort of free for all for Bahrain. In Liege they should go with a plan and try to make the race hard from far out, if not for Nibali (in case he lack the form needed) at least for Pozzovivo, on the paper they are the stronger team and the better hope for who doesn't want a sprint.