Teams & Riders Vincenzo Nibali discussion thread

[Gigs_98]

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.

Technically this post is correct but saying he did fairly well must be the understatement of the year. He completely smacked his opposition and even most cobbles specialists. Haussler should better take Nibali with him when he goes for his next ParisRoubaix recon :lol:

Seriously, I can't understand how some people have already forgotten about that performance in 2014. Since that stage there hasn't been a single tour stage anywhere near as memorable.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Yeah, I guess one could say that he did alright...

Wonder where my avatar comes from. :lol:

Still one of the best pictures in cycling.

I could never commit to a Nibbles avatar when Contador was still riding.

 

[Red Rick]

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.

Technically this post is correct but saying he did fairly well must be the understatement of the year. He completely smacked his opposition and even most cobbles specialists. Haussler should better take Nibali with him when he goes for his next ParisRoubaix recon :lol:

Seriously, I can't understand how some people have already forgotten about that performance in 2014. Since that stage there hasn't been a single tour stage anywhere near as memorable.

Nibali is truly a force on cobbles. In 2015 he was clearly one of the best on the cobbles despite being garbage in the first half of that Tour. That stage simply wasn't hard enough. Nibali did get the combativity award that stage, which is one of my fave little stats

I'm trying to remember how hard 2010 was but I think the most important selection there was made because Frank Schleck sacrificed his collarbone for Andy. After that I think it was mostly Cancellara chilling out on the cobbles and riding like crazy on the asphalt.

 

[hrotha]

That 2015 cobbles stage was the biggest letdown since the whole "the world not ending" thing back in 2012.

 

[SafeBet]

Re: Re:

I really doubt Fleche Wallonne will tell us anything about Nibali's form. His best result is 8th in 2012, and he was in really good form then, and was 14th and 20th in 2014-15 respectively, while being in not so good form. So if we draw conclusions from there, if he ends up in Top 10 he's good, out of it - not very good.

If he's good as I expect him to be, he'll attack before Huy.

After AGR he posted something on IG saying: my legs told me NO in the final kms. He's normally not so candid about being under the expected level, which leads me to believe he's very confident.

 

[Climbing]

2010 had like 13 km of cobbles, but can't remember for sure, while 2015 had a very low amount and was quite easy.
2014 was hard, similar to this year, but of course rain made it absolute carnage.
Let's hope for fireworks this year as well.

 

[skippo12]

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.

Technically this post is correct but saying he did fairly well must be the understatement of the year. He completely smacked his opposition and even most cobbles specialists. Haussler should better take Nibali with him when he goes for his next ParisRoubaix recon :lol:

Seriously, I can't understand how some people have already forgotten about that performance in 2014. Since that stage there hasn't been a single tour stage anywhere near as memorable.

I know that Nibali is great on the cobbles but are you guys seriously ignoring the fact that his teammates were all time great that day. The final split included 3 Astana riders ( Nibali, Fuglsang, Westra) and Boom. Westra paced the leading group for what felt like hours and basically buried all other GC-candidats. Westra had a once in a lifetime performance and worked for 3. He even made the final acceleration to drop the likes of Sagan and Cancellara. The only rider who could follow the Astana trio was Boom. Westra was cooked after his final effort and finished the race in the second group while Nibali and Fuglsang finished 2nd and 3rd behind Boom.

Nibali was great on the cobbles and showed himself to be just as good the next year but sadly the stage wasn`t hard enough to get any gaps.
Nevertheless acting like Nibali did it on his own in 2014 is ridiculous. It makes me think that some people have selective memory and only remember the great performance of Nibali while his teammates get ignored.

Nibali will need a similar team if he wants to gain time on the cobbles this year. Haussler is his safest bet and has more experience on cobbles than rest of the team combined.

 

[SafeBet]

Re: Re:

I know that Nibali is great on the cobbles but are you guys seriously ignoring the fact that his teammates were all time great that day. The final split included 3 Astana riders ( Nibali, Fuglsang, Westra) and Boom. Westra paced the leading group for what felt like hours and basically buried all other GC-candidats. Westra had a once in a lifetime performance and worked for 3. He even made the final acceleration to drop the likes of Sagan and Cancellara. The only rider who could follow the Astana trio was Boom. Westra was cooked after his final effort and finished the race in the second group while Nibali and Fuglsang finished 2nd and 3rd behind Boom.

Nibali was great on the cobbles and showed himself to be just as good the next year but sadly the stage wasn`t hard enough to get any gaps.
Nevertheless acting like Nibali did it on his own in 2014 is ridiculous. It makes me think that some people have selective memory and only remember the great performance of Nibali while his teammates get ignored.

Nibali will need a similar team if he wants to gain time on the cobbles this year. Haussler is his safest bet and has more experience on cobbles than rest of the team combined.

Absolutely. I'd even say Haussler is not enough if the plan is to really make the difference in that stage. It's going to be a very good team climbing-wise (Ion + Gorka, Pozzo, Delfino), but the other 3 selections will be crucial having the TTT and the cobble stage in mind. Not easy.

 

[Red Rick]

For Nibali I think the question for the cobbled stage is if he can hang on when Sagan takes off. Sagan won't sacrifice a stage win for Squalo, but I'm sure he'll work with him.

 

[Rollthedice]

I don't think anybody can forget Westra, hope he is fine somewhere today and Birdsong did his best (and only) performance for his captain. As for Haussler, I'm not sure he is in the plan, they are thinking about bringing Sonny.

 

[Rollthedice]

Re:

For Nibali I think the question for the cobbled stage is if he can hang on when Sagan takes off. Sagan won't sacrifice a stage win for Squalo, but I'm sure he'll work with him.

 

[Carols]

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.

Technically this post is correct but saying he did fairly well must be the understatement of the year. He completely smacked his opposition and even most cobbles specialists. Haussler should better take Nibali with him when he goes for his next ParisRoubaix recon :lol:

Seriously, I can't understand how some people have already forgotten about that performance in 2014. Since that stage there hasn't been a single tour stage anywhere near as memorable.

Indeed I still have it on my dvr for easy viewing

 

[EroicaStradeBianche]

I was thinking that Nibali was hiding himself last Sunday like he did at T-A, but afterwords he said that at the Amstel he didn't had the legs in the last 20 km. It's not the best sign.
I believe that his form is growing, he will fight in Liege, but this isn't the super Shark seen last October who was dropping everyone at Emilia and Tre Valli Varesine. This is a problem because to win next Sunday he'll have to drop everyone and arrive at the foot of the last dumb climb with at least 30 seconds on the peloton, and without the absolute best form it'll be very difficult for him to do so.
Sad that Iglinsky found the day of his life the wrong day, only until Nibali will win in Liege he'll concertate all himself on the cobbled classics.

 

[Red Rick]

After seeing today, I´m not optimistic for Sunday.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Re:

After seeing today, I´m not optimistic for Sunday.

Nope, what a weak attack on Cherave. Had expected much more once I saw he was in the break.

 

[Gigs_98]

Re:

After seeing today, I´m not optimistic for Sunday.

This.
To be fair he wasn't beaten by Schachmann uphill, so getting dropped by him might give you a wrong impression, but a Nibali in top shape definitely could have closed that gap. I wonder what happened to him. Is it possible that the problems he had after the Ronde completely f*cked up his preparation because it doesn't look like he has improved since that at all.

Edit: Nibali in top shape might even have won this race today.

 

[Red Rick]

Re: Re:

After seeing today, I´m not optimistic for Sunday.

This.
To be fair he wasn't beaten by Schachmann uphill, so getting dropped by him might give you a wrong impression, but a Nibali in top shape definitely could have closed that gap. I wonder what happened to him. Is it possible that the problems he had after the Ronde completely f*cked up his preparation because it doesn't look like he has improved since that at all.

Edit: Nibali in top shape might even have won this race today.

Certainly possible. Vlaanderen+ half of PV + health problems ain't so good.

But he has absolutely bombed Fleche before doing a decent LBL before. The peloton that chased them down wasn't so big.

 

[Rollthedice]

Re:

After seeing today, I´m not optimistic for Sunday.

He was less optimistic before today's race about doing something in Fleche and he did do something. Nobody was not even thinking about optimism before MSR. So I will not loose my optimism for Liege. Though it's not quite optimal optimism.

 

[hrotha]

"Do something" is fine for, say, Haig or Schachmann, not so much for Nibali.

 

[El Pistolero]

Re:

"Do something" is fine for, say, Haig or Schachmann, not so much for Nibali.

He already won a Monument this season and just made today's racing very exciting. I'm more than happy so far. Even with a less than optimal shape he still rides aggressively and entertains me. This is why I love the guy.

 

[ice&fire]

Strade and Tirreno were not exactly good predictors of his performance in MSR. And last Sunday in AGR Valverde was clearly stronger than Alaphilippe. So who knows?

 

[hrotha]

I'm assessing his FW, not his season.

 

[Rollthedice]

Re:

"Do something" is fine for, say, Haig or Schachmann, not so much for Nibali.

He never "did something" of today's relevance in this particular type of race.

 

[yaco]

Think Nibali is going well - Will have to go from far and possibly a rider like Kreuziger ( who is in good form ) will go with him - He's a definite chance in LBL.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Think Nibali is going well - Will have to go from far and possibly a rider like Kreuziger ( who is in good form ) will go with him - He's a definite chance in LBL.

Kreuziger being one of very few to try in LBL is one of few certainties in life.