Volta Ciclista a Catalunya 2018

[Koronin]

Re:

Bernal is a good option for a top-10, maybe even top-5, but not more. De La Cruz is also in some fine shape and they also do have Henao, but he has regressed a fair amount since his Paris-Nice win one year earlier.

I think Nairo will domestique for Valverde, since the route obviously suits him better than Nairo, that Valverde most likely is in better shape and maybe that Nairo hopes he will pay that back in July. At least thats how I interpret the whole situation with being more calm and super-peaking for the Tour.

I'm thinking right now what we've got between Nairo and Mikel is a battle of who can endear themselves better to Valverde. They seem more than happy to not exactly be kind to each other, but are at the same time doing everything they can to ensure they don't get Valverde upset with them. This is one of the stranger things I've seen play out in a team in awhile. It's almost like two children vying over their father's attention.

 

[Koronin]

Looking over the start list, I don't see anyone who can really challenge Valverde unless he screws up. The two riders who most likely have the best shot at challenging him who will be there are Contador (who's in the broadcast booth, and maybe he'll interview Valverde) and his own teammate Quintana. Soler isn't at his level yet.

 

[Blanco]

It's far from done deal for Valverde. We heave some serious climbers here: Chaves, Yates bros, Dan Martin, Uran, Pinot, not to mention his own teammate Quintana. Anyone of them is able to distance the field on Valter 2000 and by doing that becoming overwhelming favorite for win.

 

[Koronin]

Re:

It's far from done deal for Valverde. We heave some serious climbers here: Chaves, Yates bros, Dan Martin, Uran, Pinot, not to mention his own teammate Quintana. Anyone of them is able to distance the field on Valter 2000 and by doing that becoming overwhelming favorite for win.

Except he's already beaten Chaves and both of the Yates twins already this year. Martin, Uran and Pinot aren't as good as he is either. Quintana will be there as a domestique for Valverde.
Also remember we're talking Spanish climbs which are well suited to Valverde. Also if you look at the profile most the mountain stages end with a decent finish and one that ends at the top of a climb is a flat sprint if any group gets there together.
Between who's going and the course layout it's Valverde's to loose. (Now granted he's more than capable of managing to do that as well.)

 

[Laplaz]

Aru is also racing this, but he won't fight for the win I think. The route altough is quite taylormade for him, no muritos and TTs and on the other side not too steep MTFs.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Aru is also racing this, but he won't fight for the win I think. The route altough is quite taylormade for him, no muritos and TTs and on the other side not too steep MTFs.

Aru rode Tirreno though.

Has Catalunya ever been won by a guy coming from PN or Tirreno in it's current slot?

 

[Netserk]

Martin. Porte even more so. And Purito in '10. (No reason to count Albasini)

 

[Leinster]

Re: Re:

Bora are sending Sam Bennett. Talk about insult to injury after not picking him for MSR. What’s next on his program, the Ardennes? The Dauphine?

If he’s not going to MSR, he might as well contest a couple of WT sprint stages in a race where the sprinting field is notoriously weak. It’d do him no harm to pick up a stage or two in a reasonably prestigious race rather than twiddling his thumbs at home.

I’m a bit surprised that he’s not going to MSR, if only because he could be a useful fallback option if Sagan goes in a move but it all comes back together. Perhaps an indication that Sagan is planning to follow wheels this year.

Doubt that Bennett will get over the Cipressa and the Poggio,so its a wise move to send him to Catalunya. - And I'll add Groenewegen and Kittel to that group

If he can’t get over the Cipressa and Poggio, I can’t see him getting over the cat3s in the finales of stages 1 and 2, and stage 6 will likely go to the break after the 3 early cat2s. Yes he’ll be faster than anyone else in the field, but that’s no use if he’s in the grupetto.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Martin. Porte even more so. And Purito in '10. (No reason to count Albasini)

I swear that every time I have my facts wrong Netserk is there like 28 seconds later to point it out

 

[Netserk]

Only Porte was strong in the other race though.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Only Porte was strong in the other race though.

I remember Rodriguez being pretty good in PN 2010 wasn't he?

In any case, it probably doesn't matter too much, but I think if you ride Pais Vasco after that it's not too great.

 

[Netserk]

Yes, but he was still just ~6th. Contador won Itzulia twice in such a constellation though

 

[Koronin]

Re: Re:

Only Porte was strong in the other race though.

I remember Rodriguez being pretty good in PN 2010 wasn't he?

In any case, it probably doesn't matter too much, but I think if you ride Pais Vasco after that it's not too great.

Well Valverde did win both Catalunya and Pais Vasco last year. Granted he didn't race Paris-Nice like he was supposed to because he'd gotten sick a couple days before the start of it.

 

[tobydawq]

Re: Re:

Only Porte was strong in the other race though.

I remember Rodriguez being pretty good in PN 2010 wasn't he?

In any case, it probably doesn't matter too much, but I think if you ride Pais Vasco after that it's not too great.

After Catalunya or after Catalunya combined with PN or TA? The latter seems to be a bit tough (Contador made a clean second place sweep last year though) and the former seems doable (Valverde last year as the prime example).

 

[Koronin]

Re: Re:

Only Porte was strong in the other race though.

I remember Rodriguez being pretty good in PN 2010 wasn't he?

In any case, it probably doesn't matter too much, but I think if you ride Pais Vasco after that it's not too great.

After Catalunya or after Catalunya combined with PN or TA? The latter seems to be a bit tough (Contador made a clean second place sweep last year though) and the former seems doable (Valverde last year as the prime example).

Not only that Contador lost 2 of those races by a combined handful of seconds.

I'm going with it's doable, but you need a truly top caliber rider (such as Valverde or Contador) to actually be able to do it.

 

[Tonton]

Re: Re:

Egan vs Gaudu part III(?).

The former is obviously going to win this bike race.

What about Nairo?

What about him?

Nice exchange...I laughed...

Early in the season, I'm not sure in what kind of a shape Quintana and PInot will show, but they will be in the mix...if they race to win. Both may ride to help a teammate win and build up. We'll see.

All in all, I like the stages. Bernal-Gaudu for the win would be awesome.Great time of the year for us...first monument just around the corner, GT guys building up, Benoot win La Strade...I miss Haimar: he would have won this bike race.

 

[Kokoso]

Re: Re:

Martin. Porte even more so. And Purito in '10. (No reason to count Albasini)

I swear that every time I have my facts wrong Netserk is there like 28 seconds later to point it out

That's Netserk. He has the knowledge. It has its dark side, though. Often he's unpleasant.

 

[Ferminal]

Re:

Who's leading Sky?

In any case, I just realised what I dislike about this race. It's because the field is very specialised. Classic riders and sprinters are all preparing for other stuff elsewhere, so the field is very heavy on climbers and differences are small.

Yeh but I guess it's fairly unique in that regard. I'm happy with it except on a joke route like 2011 where you have third tier sprinters battling it out day after day.

 

[Arredondo]

Re:

Bernal is a good option for a top-10, maybe even top-5, but not more. De La Cruz is also in some fine shape and they also do have Henao, but he has regressed a fair amount since his Paris-Nice win one year earlier.

I think Nairo will domestique for Valverde, since the route obviously suits him better than Nairo, that Valverde most likely is in better shape and maybe that Nairo hopes he will pay that back in July. At least thats how I interpret the whole situation with being more calm and super-peaking for the Tour.

De la Cruz isn't going to start however; he prefers Itzulia in the run-up to the Giro.

I really don't see why Bernal can't fight for at least a top-5. The guy is a special talent, and special talents have a different growth pattern. Sky should pick him as a leader really, because Henao was poor in PN and isn't going to progress anymore at his age.

 

[Maaaaaaaarten]

I hope Gaudu gets to race for himself. I mean, with Pinot also starting it obviously makes perfect sense for Gaudu to do domestique work for Pinot, if it's needed, I'd just like to see Gaudu's level of climbing compared to a WT field.

 

[El Pistolero]

What a weak field, this is not worthy of being World Tour.

No Froome, Nibali, Geraint Thomas, Porte, Bardet, Kwiatkowski, Poels, Landa, etc.

And Quintana is thinking of the Tour only this year, so he won't go for the victory here.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

Re:

What a weak field, this is not worthy of being World Tour.

No Froome, Nibali, Geraint Thomas, Porte, Bardet, Kwiatkowski, Poels, Landa, etc.

And Quintana is thinking of the Tour only this year, so he won't go for the victory here.

You don't need to drop names of riders, who can't ride a bike, descend or change a chain to the big ring...

 

[Squire]

Re:

What a weak field, this is not worthy of being World Tour.

No Froome, Nibali, Geraint Thomas, Porte, Bardet, Kwiatkowski, Poels, Landa, etc.

And Quintana is thinking of the Tour only this year, so he won't go for the victory here.

Thank God that not every race is the Tour de France.

 

[tobydawq]

Pre-emptive strike: Let's degrade the race now, so when Valverde wins it convincingly, it wouldn't matter anyway

 

[jaylew]

Re:

Pre-emptive strike: Let's degrade the race now, so when Valverde wins it convincingly, it wouldn't matter anyway

Not the first time, won't be the last.