Cycling thread

The 99 season seems apt in general as there were crazy performances all over the place, whether Pantani, Armstrong, or Vandenbrouke. I mean 2010 Cancellara would have come almost dead last yesterday. One of the best classics riders ever just 13 years ago. The jump both in speed across the board and the Pogs and vdPs on another level again is quite something.
 
Bruce Wayne said:
The 99 season seems apt in general as there were crazy performances all over the place, whether Pantani, Armstrong, or Vandenbrouke. I mean 2010 Cancellara would have come almost dead last yesterday. One of the best classics riders ever just 13 years ago. The jump both in speed across the board and the Pogs and vdPs on another level again is quite something.
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To me, even more interesting, is that Kasper Asgreen, winner of Flanders in 2020, was desperate and scrambling to get in the early escape.
I can't imagine that the Q-S training regime has changed for the worse in recent years. He used to be absolutely elite and defeated VdP in a one on one sprint...

Gianni Vermeersch, who was snubbed by Q-S three years ago, is now a super-domestique. Jasper Phillipsen, a good but not excellent rider, is now second after besting a world champion after 270 km...

Still, Trek was absolutely wrong to chase Politt. I would've let VdP lead the chase on his own.
 
FrenchDarrenBent said:
To me, even more interesting, is that Kasper Asgreen, winner of Flanders in 2020, was desperate and scrambling to get in the early escape.
I can't imagine that the Q-S training regime has changed for the worse in recent years. He used to be absolutely elite and defeated VdP in a one on one sprint...

Gianni Vermeersch, who was snubbed by Q-S three years ago, is now a super-domestique. Jasper Phillipsen, a good but not excellent rider, is now second after besting a world champion after 270 km...

Still, Trek was absolutely wrong to chase Politt. I would've let VdP lead the chase on his own.
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Vermeesch was insane. He was covering everything and still managed to snag 6th.
 
FrenchDarrenBent said:
To me, even more interesting, is that Kasper Asgreen, winner of Flanders in 2020, was desperate and scrambling to get in the early escape.
I can't imagine that the Q-S training regime has changed for the worse in recent years. He used to be absolutely elite and defeated VdP in a one on one sprint...

Gianni Vermeersch, who was snubbed by Q-S three years ago, is now a super-domestique. Jasper Phillipsen, a good but not excellent rider, is now second after besting a world champion after 270 km...

Still, Trek was absolutely wrong to chase Politt. I would've let VdP lead the chase on his own.
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Asgreen has never recovered from trying to hold Pog's wheel on the Koppenberg a couple of years back - no human can withstand such an effort.

No idea why Trek raced like that, Mads tactics are often hard to understand imho. He's the one rider there with at least some belief he can beat MvdP, yet he's racing like he's happy to be on the podium. Perhaps that is actually the case in this race - no one outside of WvA can live with vdP on flat cobbles.
 
Brabantse pijl was earlier this week - I didn't see it, but apparently the absence of vdP and other absolute elite riders produced an exceptional race of ebb and flow. The paradox of having such dominant riders produce dull racing. At least when we play City or someone there's sort of the suspension of disbelief that we can compete for a bit.

Young UK rider Joe Blackmore got fourth which is a fantastic result - seen him a few times racing cyclocross here, didn't realise he had taken such a step up. Cosnefroy got the win.

Amstel Gold on Sunday, which usually produces some top racing. vdP will be a mad favourite but it's a punchy parcours - plenty will compete. Pidcock does well in this race (2nd and 3rd) and starts at the weekend.
 

Black Belt Jones said:
Brabantse pijl was earlier this week - I didn't see it, but apparently the absence of vdP and other absolute elite riders produced an exceptional race of ebb and flow. The paradox of having such dominant riders produce dull racing. At least when we play City or someone there's sort of the suspension of disbelief that we can compete for a bit.

Young UK rider Joe Blackmore got fourth which is a fantastic result - seen him a few times racing cyclocross here, didn't realise he had taken such a step up. Cosnefroy got the win.

Amstel Gold on Sunday, which usually produces some top racing. vdP will be a mad favourite but it's a punchy parcours - plenty will compete. Pidcock does well in this race (2nd and 3rd) and starts at the weekend.
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Looked at betting for Amstel Gold earlier, Pidcock 2nd favourite at 16s!!!

Shows MVDP's dominance but nobody can win every time they start!
 
TheWinslowBoy said:
Looked at betting for Amstel Gold earlier, Pidcock 2nd favourite at 16s!!!

Shows MVDP's dominance but nobody can win every time they start!
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yeah there has to be a comedown from doubling Le Ronde and Roubaix as world champion - I mean that is legendary. Just mentally he cannot be on that same level. Alpecin are bringing a strong team for Amstel although the threat of Philipsen won't be so prominent you'd think.

I don't really know cycling betting but you see some strange prices (both ways), like the market isn't big enough to equilibrate properly. The fact that only a very select few can win a major classic race, because they are so hard, must make e/w betting on places a bit random.
 
Black Belt Jones said:
yeah there has to be a comedown from doubling Le Ronde and Roubaix as world champion - I mean that is legendary. Just mentally he cannot be on that same level. Alpecin are bringing a strong team for Amstel although the threat of Philipsen won't be so prominent you'd think.

I don't really know cycling betting but you see some strange prices (both ways), like the market isn't big enough to equilibrate properly. The fact that only a very select few can win a major classic race, because they are so hard, must make e/w betting on places a bit random.
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Tough to win a lot on cycling betting....for example I bet on Pog to win last year's Liege, only got about evens but that's OK because he was guaranteed to win.

Except he was in an ambulance before the tv coverage started. Same could easily happen to MVDP or he's just not on it.

I see Ben Healy rides on Sunday, I might have a very small each way bet on him.

If nothing else it keeps a bit of interest in the race for 2nd in case a lad in a rainbow jersey finishes 5 minutes ahead.
 

Brutal Fleche Wallone today - snow, rain and wind produced just 44 finishers, several of the top riders electing to retire and save the legs for LBL this weekend.

But the race threw up a great victory, on the hardest finish there is - Stevie Williams from Aberystwyth! Massive comeback win from a rider who made the pro tour but hit a really knee bad injury that stopped his career for 18 months. Built back up and has looked really strong this year - everyone absolutely dead on the Mur (including him, he said) and he timed his attack to perfection.

 

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