Vuelta a España Rest Day 2

[luckyboy]

Vuelta a España Rest Day 2

Well I think we all need a rest after today. Least of all the riders.

General Classification - Sky vs Cobo is what these last few days (and Peña Cabarga) should boil down to.
Mountains Classification - pretty much tied up, with Moncoutie taking it home again.
Points Classification - still undecided, with Sagan looking good to take back the 15 he needs on J-Rod.
Combination Classification - will probably be Cobo's to keep unless he falls out of contention somehow.
Team Classification - Geox look to have this sewn up, leading Leopard by nearly 8 minutes.

The big battle, however, is for the lanterne rouge (rojo linterna?). Will it be Veelers? Or will Nuyens add to Dwars door Vlaanderen and De Ronde and round off his season in style? Maybe somebody else can drop back to challenge..

1 Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa) Geox-TMC 59:57:16
2 Christopher Froome (GBr) Sky Procycling 0:00:20
3 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling 0:00:46
4 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team 0:01:36
5 Maxime Monfort (Bel) Leopard Trek 0:02:37
6 Denis Menchov (Rus) Geox-TMC 0:03:01
7 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Leopard Trek 0:03:06
8 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:03:27
9 Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto 0:03:58
10 Wout Poels (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team 0:04:13
11 Daniel Moreno Fernandez (Spa) Katusha Team 0:04:32
12 Mikel Nieve Ituralde (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:04:50
13 Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha Team 0:05:17
14 Sergio Pardilla Belll&#243]

 

[Izzy eviel]

I'm surprised Van den Broeck is still up there and going quite well. 2 months after I broke my shoulder blade I was still in agony and finding it hard to ride properly.

If Peter Sagan does win the points classifcation, will that make him the youngest points winner in the GT's?

 

[Ferminal]

Sadly with the design of the course, we know the winner a week out, even though there is only a 20s gap.

Basically the Peter Sagan show from here on. Hoping for Rodriguez and Anton to contest Pena Cabarga.

 

[Merckx index]

I can’t be the only one who has noticed the odd situation that has arisen in the Vuelta. Though Cobo is now the leader, Sky is the one that needs to be preventing breakaways—particularly on Wednesday’s stage, the last MTF of this Vuelta. Sky’s best chance of wresting the red jersey back is if Fromme wins that stage, and with it gets 20 bonus seconds. If Cobo finishes 4th or lower, and not in the same time, a Fromme win alone would put him in red. Even if Cobo finished second or third, Fromme could take the lead if he won with a small and certainly possible margin.

Even if Fromme doesn't finish in the top 3, I don't think 20s is out of the question. The climb is 6 km and I believe 9%, IOW, not that much easier than the last half of Angliru, where Cobo picked up most of his time. I assume there are also intermediate sprint seconds on offer, another reason to hold back breakaways.

Obviously some riders will try to break away. There are too many pre-race favorites who have nothing to show for it and badly want a stage win. Seems to me that every time someone does go on that stage, Sky should send Wiggins out. That will at least force Geox to react.

 

[More Strides than Rides]

I can’t be the only one who has noticed the odd situation that has arisen in the Vuelta. Though Cobo is now the leader, Sky is the one that needs to be preventing breakaways—particularly on Wednesday’s stage, the last MTF of this Vuelta. Sky’s best chance of wresting the red jersey back is if Fromme wins that stage, and with it gets 20 bonus seconds. If Cobo finishes 4th or lower, and not in the same time, a Fromme win alone would put him in red. Even if Cobo finished second or third, Fromme could take the lead if he won with a small and certainly possible margin.

Even if Fromme doesn't finish in the top 3, I don't think 20s is out of the question. The climb is 6 km and I believe 9%, IOW, not that much easier than the last half of Angliru, where Cobo picked up most of his time. I assume there are also intermediate sprint seconds on offer, another reason to hold back breakaways.

Obviously some riders will try to break away. There are too many pre-race favorites who have nothing to show for it and badly want a stage win. Seems to me that every time someone does go on that stage, Sky should send Wiggins out. That will at least force Geox to react.

How well can Froome and Cobo sprint? Don't forget about any intermediate sprint bonifications, as well

 

[hfer07]

the only three possibilities that I see for Sky to take back the Rojo Jersey are:
1-) somehow get either Wiggins or Froome to win time bonuses along the road- difficult task considering the immediate threat of Sagan and his bid for the Verde jersey
2-) to do a Kamikaze attack by Wiggins in the descend of Portillo de Lunada to force the chase & have Froome to come up with a solo attack in Pena Cabrales.....
3-) hope Cobo blows up, pops + or crashes

 

[jordan5000]

I bet Wiggins is wishing for a second ITT in next year`s Vuelta.

 

[jordan5000]

Somebody mentioned intermediate time bonuses, how much are they and when, also what is the points classification scoring system, if you post links English would be best, thanks.

 

[Swede1]

Geox has a super strong team to defend the lead. On the last MTF all they need to do is have Menchov hit the front with Cobo on his wheel and drill it up the second half of the climb. No one will be able to attack.

The intermediate sprints could be interesting though. But I doubt they will make too much of a difference. Cobo is probably a faster sprinter than either Froome or Wiggins anyway.

 

[Forunculo]

Wiggins lost the Vuelta in Salamanca TT, and his negative attitude to seconds bonus at sprints like at la covatilla.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Well I think we all need a rest after today. Least of all the riders.

General Classification - Sky vs Cobo is what these last few days (and Peña Cabarga) should boil down to.
Mountains Classification - pretty much tied up, with Moncoutie taking it home again.
Points Classification - still undecided, with Sagan looking good to take back the 15 he needs on J-Rod.
Combination Classification - will probably be Cobo's to keep unless he falls out of contention somehow.
Team Classification - Geox look to have this sewn up, leading Leopard by nearly 8 minutes.

The big battle, however, is for the lanterne rouge (rojo linterna?). Will it be Veelers? Or will Nuyens add to Dwars door Vlaanderen and De Ronde and round off his season in style? Maybe somebody else can drop back to challenge..

The coveted Lanterne Rouge: THIS is what Klodi should have been aiming for. He certainly had the form to take it out

Wiggins has done a great job to be so close to winning a GT that has had only one ITT. Throw another 30 kms in at the end and maybe he'd win it. His teammate Froome has been a revelation. Many have claimed that the standard of the race isn't great, but the pair are now 3 minutes clear of Nibali, so they must be doing something right.

I would expect Cobo to hang on for the victory.

Very impressed with the 2 Leopard-Trek boys in the top 10. They are clearly more than just domestiques.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Wiggins lost the Vuelta in Salamanca TT, and his negative attitude to seconds bonus at sprints like at la covatilla.

I forgot that Bradley was beaten by his teammate in the sole ITT, so maybe he'd just get 2nd with a 2nd one.

 

[greenedge]

Who will get the most aggressive here i wonder. Taaramae and Moncoutie have been, so has a few riders from AG2R. Lastras maybe for the first week???

 

[sultanofhyd]

Who will get the most aggressive here i wonder. Taaramae and Moncoutie have been, so has a few riders from AG2R. Lastras maybe for the first week???

Taaramae and Lastras have a stage, Moncoutie has the KOM, they generally don't give the combativity award to the KOM, it would be someone else who has not won anything.

 

[Tank Engine]

I think Veelers will get the lantern rouge. Nuyens has fallen back after leading for quite a while. Also, Veelers won't have to look after Kittel, so he can ride his own race . As for the points jersey, Sagan would just about be the favourite, but the Pena Cabarga looks a very good stage for JRod and there are plenty of hills dotted about. A lot depends on what breaks will go. As for the GC, I would be very surprised if Cobo didn't win as he has a very strong team and the Sky guys only finished in the top 3 in the ITT, so I can't see them getting any bonus seconds. There will certainly be a fight on the Pena Cabarga and the penultimate stage could be very interesting, especially if there are cross winds after the final climb. Apart from that, realistically speaking I would like Poels to win a stage, as he has been really strong in the mountains and just fallen short on a couple of occasions. Also, due to silly time losses in Week 1, his GC position doesn't reflect how well he has ridden.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Does Froome have any chance on Pena carbarga? That stage last year was super entertaining.

 

[jens_attacks]

Does Froome have any chance on Pena carbarga? That stage last year was super entertaining.

i think sky will ride such a high tempo on the bottom of the climb and after 2 km only wiggins,cobo,froome and menchov will be up there.everything is possible i guess.they will attack cobo that's for sure.

 

[Reverend_T_Preedy]

Does Froome have any chance on Pena carbarga? That stage last year was super entertaining.

It'll be interesting to see but I don't think he'll do it. Sky will need to drill it from the base of the climb and hope that Cobo cracks (which looks unlikely).

The only place where I see them being able to take advantage is if the wind gets up tomorrow and they can split it in the crosswinds. Geox look strong in the mountains but not so strong in the wind on the flat.

 

[Reverend_T_Preedy]

Wiggins lost the Vuelta in Salamanca TT, and his negative attitude to seconds bonus at sprints like at la covatilla.

I think the team time trial had more of an affect than the ITT.

Bonus sprints would have made no difference what so ever. No point wasting energy on getting the odd 6 seconds when he lost 1m21s on the Angliru.

 

[Lexman]

I'm surprised Van den Broeck is still up there and going quite well. 2 months after I broke my shoulder blade I was still in agony and finding it hard to ride properly.

If Peter Sagan does win the points classifcation, will that make him the youngest points winner in the GT's?

Although VDB disappointed me a bit yesterday i might go to easily beyond his injuries which were very serious. But Wiggins who als fell out of the TDF is in better form but maybe his injuries were "less serious" in a way one heals easier than what VDB had?

Anyway VDB said before the start that he would see it day by day... maybe he can take some more places on the final MTF...

 

[search]

Geox has a super strong team to defend the lead.

do you think so? It's not so much about defending leads on mountains anymore and I doubt guys like Ardila, de la Fuente, Duarte etc. are of any help if Sky starts to attack into the crosswind (or things like that)

of course, with Arvesen Sky lost an important rider for situations like that but they are still way stronger than Geox.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Although VDB disappointed me a bit yesterday i might go to easily beyond his injuries which were very serious. But Wiggins who als fell out of the TDF is in better form but maybe his injuries were "less serious" in a way one heals easier than what VDB had?

Anyway VDB said before the start that he would see it day by day... maybe he can take some more places on the final MTF...

Broken colarbone VS 3 broken ribs, broken shoulderblade and a collapsed lung, i believe.

One would think so. And it weren't so much the broken bones, but the lung that kept him in intensive care and put him back two weeks in an already very short preparation compared to Wiggins (who fell close to a week sooner in the TdF if i remember correctly). Knowing that Jurgen's biggest talent is his eagerness for training and preparation, that kind of explains a few things. I don't think he will gain places, unless Nibali, Fuglsang... just don't care anymore. He is more likely to lose a place to Poels.

 

[Lexman]

If Sky wants to win the Vuelta this must start from tuesday on attacking the Geox team and use all conditions possible (especially wind) to tear the peloton in parts.

Wit the Arvesen, Lövkvist and Sutton they must be able to get it working, GEOW musn't let be one minute to rest...

i'm not really a fan of Froome or Wiggins but don't like that look on Cobo's face ...

 

[Lexman]

Broken colarbone VS 3 broken ribs, broken shoulderblade and a collapsed lung, i believe.

One would think so. And it weren't so much the broken bones, but the lung that kept him in intensive care and put him back two weeks in an already very short preparation compared to Wiggins (who fell close to a week sooner in the TdF if i remember correctly). Knowing that Jurgen's biggest talent is his eagerness for training and preparation, that kind of explains a few things. I don't think he will gain places, unless Nibali, Fuglsang... just don't care anymore. He is more likely to lose a place to Poels.

Thanks for the details on the injuries of both riders and yes that made VDB had about 3 weeks less in terms or preparation...

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

I'm sure Wiggins didn't start training all out the day after his injury, so it 'll probably be closer to two weeks. But if your preparation is this short, those two weeks can make a huge difference. Or at least this is what i chose to believe, because Wiggins outclimbing JVDB in normal circumstances would have me start doubting the very concept of physics