where would Juan Jose Cobo go???

[auscyclefan94]

Yes i do. The problem is the roster is full.
How old is Belda? ACF would you warm to GE if Cobo signed??? I would prefer for GE to have Richie though.

Yes and no. In all seriousness Cobo would have to be pretty stupid to go to Greenedge. I would warm to them a bit more but I have a strong dislike for how 1 dimensional greenedge are so I guess he would be a good addition.

 

[MADRAZO]

he tore down everywhere he rode in spanish elite cycling and I'm looking forward seeing him in a level above

Impressive season indeed from J. Belda, but I dont think it counts for to much anyways with his age. As you selv has stated the level is low there, and generally older amateurs that becomes pros tend to fail badly, as they dont develop much further normaly. Riders like Diego Gallego and Javier Ramirez Abeja was also huge dominators in the spanish amateurraces when they were 23-25 or so and they have failed big time as pros. And as 36 Belda must be even less likely to develop further, even if he seems to have started riding very late.

Still though it could be fun enough too measure what Belda could do amongst the pros after his total dominance this season. I dont think it will happen though.

 

[Michele]

I remember reading an interview about Belda on Ciclismo a Fondo when I was in Calpe last January and he was saying to be working part time or something like this; did he give up work for full concentrating on racing?
In the interview it sounded like he was doing it just as a hobby.

 

[therealtimshady]

Now he is confirmed for movistar and rumours about
Races next year? Assume he will do the vuelta but what about the tour?

 

[maxmartin]

i think in an interview, he want to go for tour vuelta double

Now he is confirmed for movistar and rumours about
Races next year? Assume he will do the vuelta but what about the tour?

 

[gingerwallaceafro]

Thought he had to go to a Spanish team really, will probably do well in the Vuelta again. I hope Movistar back Kiriyenka and give him a shot as leader for the Tour, I don't think he'd let them down.

 

[therealtimshady]

Valverde will lead the team in the tour but I think cobo should go in as a protected rider as well

 

[gregrowlerson]

Why would Cobo ride the tour? Isn't his TT not very good? Considering how strong he was on the steep slopes of the Angliru, I would think the Giro to be perfect for him. Anyone else agree? Or is he not quite good enough to be able to compete with Basso and Nibali?

Very little TT in next years Giro.

 

[The Hitch]

Thought he had to go to a Spanish team really, will probably do well in the Vuelta again. I hope Movistar back Kiriyenka and give him a shot as leader for the Tour, I don't think he'd let them down.

Agreed. Kiriyenka is awesome.

 

[craig1985]

Cobo is a former Spanish u23 TT champion. Fair to say he must have some ability on a TT bike.

 

[El Pistolero]

Thought he had to go to a Spanish team really, will probably do well in the Vuelta again. I hope Movistar back Kiriyenka and give him a shot as leader for the Tour, I don't think he'd let them down.

Valverde will be the leader.

 

[maxmartin]

Look at the built of Cobo, he is not just a skinny pure climber

Why would Cobo ride the tour? Isn't his TT not very good? Considering how strong he was on the steep slopes of the Angliru, I would think the Giro to be perfect for him. Anyone else agree? Or is he not quite good enough to be able to compete with Basso and Nibali?

Very little TT in next years Giro.

 

[greenedge]

I'm happy for Cobo. He can get a chance to ride the TDF if he wants ( stage hunting in the mountains ) and then he will be able to go to the Vuelta for GC ( whilst Valverde can go for stages ). I'm sure Cobo could improve his ITT. Kiryienka should be allowed to have a shot at going for GC in a GT ( just even a top 10 ). He proved at the Giro he can climb and at the Criterium International.

Movistar will now have a really strong team. Arroyo/ Lastras/ Kiryienka for breaks. Konovalas, Guiterrez for ITT's, Ventoso and Rojas for sprints and Valverde/ Cobo for GTs'. Costa along with Valverde can target the Ardennes.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Not sure he should bother with riding the Tour. He can perhaps do the Giro, Valverde can lead the Tour (come on, do we really think he won't?), then Cobo can look to defend his Vuelta title.

 

[Swabian Lass]

There is not a cat in hell's chance of anyone but Valverde being leader at the Tour.

 

[blaxland]

So, what if Valverde wants to ride the vuelta too...Will Cobo play second fiddle again?I think he deserves a chance to defend his title(Grand tour)

 

[craig1985]

I'm happy for Cobo. He can get a chance to ride the TDF if he wants ( stage hunting in the mountains ) and then he will be able to go to the Vuelta for GC ( whilst Valverde can go for stages ). I'm sure Cobo could improve his ITT. Kiryienka should be allowed to have a shot at going for GC in a GT ( just even a top 10 ). He proved at the Giro he can climb and at the Criterium International.

Movistar will now have a really strong team. Arroyo/ Lastras/ Kiryienka for breaks. Konovalas, Guiterrez for ITT's, Ventoso and Rojas for sprints and Valverde/ Cobo for GTs'. Costa along with Valverde can target the Ardennes.

They also have Visconti for that as well.

 

[Forunculo]

Movistar is a much better team than last season (in theory). I would love to see Movistar involved in a GC battle at one GT at least.

 

[greenedge]

Yeah i agree with that sentiment, that they are stronger. Poor Xavier though.

Thx for Visconti i forgot about him.

 

[jens_attacks]

Why would Cobo ride the tour? Isn't his TT not very good? Considering how strong he was on the steep slopes of the Angliru, I would think the Giro to be perfect for him. Anyone else agree? Or is he not quite good enough to be able to compete with Basso and Nibali?

Very little TT in next years Giro.

cobo will certainly be the leader for le tour.he already said that he wants so much to come back in le tour and kick it.

about giro,absolutely no chance.also cobo said he doesn't like giro climbs because it doesn't suit him.the interviewer said something like "but bloody hell you've won on angliru".he said the tour's long,less steep climbs suit him way better.

valverde-cobo combo will be fun for le tour.let's hope they both will have a super form.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

So, what if Valverde wants to ride the vuelta too...Will Cobo play second fiddle again?I think he deserves a chance to defend his title(Grand tour)

Valverde will probably want to ride the Vuelta too, but whereas he'll probably be main leader in France, he'll have to co-lead in Cobo. They'll give him the CHANCE to defend his title, but probably take each race day as it comes and make a decision after a while - after all, Valverde's the better rider on paper but will have been leader at the Tour so may have less left in the tank.

Yeah i agree with that sentiment, that they are stronger. Poor Xavier though.

Thx for Visconti i forgot about him.

And Juan Mauricio. And Rubén. And Andrey. And Beñat.

Really horrible year for Abarcá coming to an end.

 

[roundabout]

Cobo is a former Spanish u23 TT champion. Fair to say he must have some ability on a TT bike.

You can probably count on one hand the number of time trials where he finished in the top-5 during his pro career.

 

[Reuell]

Valverde will probably want to ride the Vuelta too, but whereas he'll probably be main leader in France, he'll have to co-lead in Cobo. They'll give him the CHANCE to defend his title, but probably take each race day as it comes and make a decision after a while - after all, Valverde's the better rider on paper but will have been leader at the Tour so may have less left in the tank.

And Juan Mauricio. And Rubén. And Andrey. And Beñat.

Really horrible year for Abarcá coming to an end.

If I remember correctly, Valverde doesn't understand the meaning of sharing or co-leading

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Top 5s perhaps not, but he has got some top 10s.

9th, Vuelta al País Vasco 2006 stage 6 (24km) +36" from Gómez Marchante (just behind some guy called Contador)
8th, Clasica a Alcobendas 2006 stage 3 (9,7km) +36" from Hruska
3rd, Vuelta al País Vasco 2007 stage 6 (14km) +4" from Samuel Sánchez
6th, Clasica a Alcobendas 2007 stage 3 (9,7km) +8" from Valverde
8th, Volta a Catalunya 2007 stage 5 (17,1km MTT) +1'11" from Menchov
15th, Tour de France 2007 stage 13 (54km) +1'59" from Evans
9th, Dauphiné Libéré 2008 stage 3 (31km) +2'07" from Valverde
4th, Volta a Portugal 2008 stage 10 (31,2km) +1'37" from Guerra
2nd, Vuelta a Chihuahua 2008 stage 4 (18,9km) +26" from Camaño

However, in 2009 his TT started to drop off along with his motivation. I didn't even bother looking at his 2010 results. This year his TT has been decent, but not as good as it was pre-2009.

 

[meat puppet]

Good. Here's hoping that Movistar's band of r(a)iders give everyone hell in the hilly classics. To me the roster looks somewhat balanced and despite Valverde's comeback, I think there will still be room for serious tactical movement should race action necessitate changing plans. Chiefs aside, also some of the indians should be able to drop their disguises and feature seriously. To name names, it will be sweet when Rui Costa exploits the big favourites' watching one another in LBL.