Volta Ciclista a Catalunya 2023, March 20-26

[Divergence]

You can't respond to every attack over the course of 3 weeks, and i assume he thought he could handle Pogacar. At that moment it was still rather early in the TDF and it didn't look like it was Pogacar that would be his main rival.

True, but look what happened at the end.

 

[HelloDolly]

You must be a new kind of troll.

Not sure what you mean ?

I said what I thought ...even if you dont like it

Adam yates chased Soler who imo deserved the podium

 

[Didinho]

Watching hours and not even a battle for the stage. No GC victory but another stage and 2 ugly jerseys, not bad. Bring on the Giro.

 

[Divergence]

Hhh, at least UAE won the team classification by 9 minutes

 

[Tonton]

Very entertaining race, I wonder what it would have happened had Remco not celebrated early and lost seconds at the end of stage 3. He would have had the lead, a tiny cushion, and all things being the same, today's sprint would have been for all the marbles. Woudda, coudda, I guess...

 

[Elos Anjos]

Not sure what you mean ?

I said what I thought ...even if you dont like it

It's not that I don't like it. It just doesn't make sense.
Soler gained 5 seconds with his stunt.

 

[Riek s]

Pity that the end was a gift, would have preferred Roglic working earlier and both sprinting for the win, but it is what it is.

In the end Roglic has the GC win + 2 stages. So rather impressive result and looking great for whats next. Remco showed he is in good form and also knows in which area he is lacking, onto LBL for him. (for the rest of us its GW )

Great entertaining stage race. More than initially expected tbh.

 

[HelloDolly]

It's not that I don't like it. It just doesn't make sense.
Soler gained 5 seconds with his stunt.

Maybe he would have gained more if UAE didnt chase ...which is the point of this exchange

 

[noob]

UAE is just a PR stunt to create entertainment. they will buy up Eurosport any day now

 

[Elos Anjos]

Maybe he would have gained more if UAE didnt chase ...which is the point of this exchange

You got it all wrong.
All the favorites were already chasing.
The point is that UAE continuosly shows how it doesn't have a race plan or criteria for sound decision-making. It's every man for himself. That doesn't bode well for any stage race. And the truth is that they were always like this. Pogacar's massive talent only provided a thin layer of there being sportmanship and strategical thinking. There isn't.

 

[groogster]

I don't think it was their call tbh. I think it was team cars. Why on earth else would Yates do that work? Yates ain't that dumb on his own? And would Almeida be so strong he can on his own get Yates to work for him without team cars demanding it??

I think in their heads it was a backup strategy if Soler wouldn't make it. As dumb as it was.

yes, surely was DS decision to close the gap as soon as they saw Soler being dropped by Evenepoel and Roglic and out of contention for fighting for the stage. Even so it doesn’t make any sense in my book, what’s the difference for UAE having Soler or Almeida in 3rd place in the final GC? For Soler it would be nice to finish 3rd just behind the 2 aliens in his home country and Region!

 

[gunara]

At least I'm happy to see Remco happy. What a show by him throughout the week.

It's a classy win by Roglic, yes it is, he knows perfectly how to win without doing anything wrong or losing his cool against such a ferocious opponent.

I always see Catalunya as a light all-stars screwball entertainment, while Pais Vasco and the double headers are more serious stuffs

 

[noob]

yes, surely was DS decision to close the gap as soon as they saw Soler being dropped by Evenepoel and Roglic and out of contention for fighting for the stage. Even so it doesn’t make any sense in my book, what’s the difference for UAE having Soler or Almeida in 3rd place in the final GC? For Soler it would be nice to finish 3rd just behind the 2 aliens in his home country and Region!

UAE doesn't seem to adapt on the roads? Maybe they're just as inflexible as Almeida They seem to make a plan and stick to it no matter what happens?

 

[Samu Cuenca]

#samenwinnen

https://twitter.com/x/status/1639963378536857606

View: https://twitter.com/JumboVismaRoad/status/1639963378536857606

 

[Valv.Piti]

Ah, so you did not get the point. Noted.

Lulz

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

I am not sure about that. Rogla has quite a lot of ITT wins and he is the Olympic champion where he destroyed (Remco among others) everybody. And he was coming off a TdF injury. Let us see what happens at the Giro. I hope Rogla has the time to put in some TT training now that he has a repaired shoulder.

That TT was completely different. First it's quite some time ago, secondly it was Evenepoel's comeback season so you might not want to rush to conclusions as far as he's concerned. But most importantly, that was a very hilly TT yet the first TT's in the Giro are flat, and those aren't necessarilly Roglic' bread and butter. In last year's Dauphiné, he finished behind Hayter and Cattaneo in a 30k flat TT. Last year Roglic did 2 longer TT's and won none. Evenepoel did 5 longer TT's and won 4.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Soler is an egomaniac who thinks that he's the next to Pogacar in UAE rankings.

Only in a very disorganized team will he be afforded freedom to act as he does not have teammates that not only are better, but were better placed.

In the end it's just a farsical one man clownish show.

You letting your own biases cloud your judgement of the situation.

Soler was stronger than Almida, he could follow Remco attack and Joao couldn't. Once Soler was away there was no reason to chase him at any point in the stage. I don't know how you can think Soler did anything wrong at all today's.

 

[HelloDolly]

You got it all wrong.
All the favorites were already chasing.
The point is that UAE continuosly shows how it doesn't have a race plan or criteria for sound decision-making. It's every man for himself. That doesn't bode well for any stage race. And the truth is that they were always like this. Pogacar's massive talent only provided a thin layer of there being sportmanship and strategical thinking. There isn't.

Other favourites were not leading the chase ..UAE were
Your arguments make no sense...cicular......UAE are always like thjis therefore Soler deserved to be chased down ? and say I have it all wrong...please
You also say I am a troll; ?

 

[noob]

#samenwinnen

https://twitter.com/x/status/1639963378536857606

View: https://twitter.com/JumboVismaRoad/status/1639963378536857606

I didn't notice that hug on the line :O

 

[gunara]

he could follow Remco attack and Joao couldn't.

Joao doesn't follow attack

But the rest I can agree with you

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

I didn't notice that hug on the line :O

They're wrestling.

 

[Elos Anjos]

You letting your own biases cloud your judgement of the situation.

Soler was stronger than Almida, he could follow Remco attack and Joao couldn't. Once Soler was away there was no reason to chase him at any point in the stage. I don't know how you can think Soler did anything wrong at all today's.

Please tell me more about my biases and how you don't have your own. I'm in desperate need of acknowledging them.

1. Someone chasing at a given moment doesn't prove he's stronger than one who is left behind. Soler was stronger at that point and then faded. This would happen even if UAE didn't chase, as the whole grupetto of favourites were doing that. And Almeida has been known for a style of not giving in to sudden burst of acceleralation.

That goes for your lame "point".

2. Why is it a good idea to leapfrog a team mate? Why is Soler constantly entitled to pursue his goals despite always failing at them? Who was there to build for the Giro and why is a 4th place equal to a 3rd place if you're both building form and confidence for a GT when you're supposedly to be backed for your team in going for a podium?

 

[Divergence]

That TT was completely different. First it's quite some time ago, secondly it was Evenepoel's comeback season so you might not want to rush to conclusions as far as he's concerned. But most importantly, that was a very hilly TT yet the first TT's in the Giro are flat, and those aren't necessarilly Roglic' bread and butter. In last year's Dauphiné, he finished behind Hayter and Cattaneo in a 30k flat TT. Last year Roglic did 2 longer TT's and won none. Evenepoel did 5 longer TT's and won 4.

Yes, but last year Rogla had a knee problem during and after the Basque country (where he won the ITT) at PN he was second behind Wout at 2 sec, so pretty OK. After that I would not count his results as relevant.
It is true that Remco was not at his best at the Olympics TT, but Tom was, as probably was Dennis and he destroyed them. So my point is that Rogla can really TT when he is in shape.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Yes, but last year Rogla had a knee problem during and after the Basque country (where he won the ITT) at PN he was second behind Wout at 2 sec, so pretty OK. After that I would not count his results as relevant.
It is true that Remco was not at his best at the Olympics TT, but Tom was, as probably was Dennis and he destroyed them. So my point is that Rogla can really TT when he is in shape.

I agree that Roglic is one of the best TT'ers in the world, but not on longer flat TT's. Of all the small climby/GC guys, Evenepoel is the most aero. On equal form, Evenepoel is always going to win there.

 

[VayaVayaVaya]

I would expect Roglic will hold his own and level up on TT from recent performances, coming in second to Remco, but I agree the evidence of recent years indicates that Remco will be better. That Vuelta performance by Remco was unbelievable! I do not think the gaps/km will be as large as in the Vuelta, however, as Roglic will be better.

Looking forward to Roglic going on offense and also seeing whether Remco will continue to attack with the lead or if he too will defend, and how fans react if that is the case.