|
Milan-San Remo Discussion
|
| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 06-12-2020 06:14
|
Directeur Sportif
Posts: 12681
Joined: 27-07-2015
PCM$: 1961.50
|
The first Monument of the year - La Classicissima - as it is also called, the Milan-San Remo will be raced across the traditional route in just a day's time. The anticipation is high as always with the riders looking to add their names on an illustrious Hall of Fame. Speaking of which, let us take a look at all the names that have won this race in it's past editions:
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | | 2019 | Edvald Boasson Hagen | Dylan Groenewegen | Arnaud Demare | | 2018 | Nick Van der Lijke | Sam Bewley | Eduard Grosu | | 2017 | Michael Van Stayen | Jurgen Roelandts | Sam Bewley | | 2016 | Sam Bewley | John Degenkolb | Michael Van Stayen | | 2015 | Sam Bewley | Mikhail Ignatiev | Edvald Boasson Hagen | | 2014 | Riccardo Ricco | Tejay Van Garderen | Philippe Gilbert | | 2013 | Tom Boonen | Sam Bewley | Daniele Bennati | | 2012 | Diego Ulissi | Filippo Pozzato | Gert Steegmans | | 2011 | Alessandro Ballan | Sam Bewley | Santo Anza | | 2010 | Filippo Pozzato | Gert Steegmans | Alessandro Ballan | | 2009 | Franco Pellizotti | Samuel Sánchez Gonzalez | Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver | | 2008 | Samuel Sánchez Gonzalez | Stefan Schumacher | Paolo Bettini | | 2007 | Filippo Pozzato | Paolo Bettini | José Ivan Gutiérrez Palacios |
Coming to this year's edition, the race will be run on a 293.8 km course covering six major inclines; Passo del Turchino, which the riders will tackle almost exactly midway through the race, the triple threat of Capo Mele, Capo Cervo and Capo Berta, inside the final 50 kilometers, which will lead up to Cipressa and finally Poggio, the final two always being favourites for late attacks. Make no doubts about it, this will be a long hard battle of skills, wit and attrition.
Boasson Hagen broke the four year streak of sprinters taking out top honours in this race by attacking on the Poggio in last year's edition and holding on for the win ahead of the sprinters. Before 2015 however, this race always favoured the punchers more than the fast men. There is a fantastic mix of the top sprinters and punchers in this edition as well, so it is very hard to call which direction the pendulum is likely to swing tomorrow.
Boasson Hagen returns to defend his crown, Bewley, Van der Lijke and Van Staeyen are also on the startlist, meaning that the winners of the previous five editions are all back to try and win it again. Bewley is aiming to become the first three-time winner of this race. The other podium finishers in the last two editions - Groenewegen, Demare and Grosu, are also back to improve on their best finishes. Van Garderen and Degenkolb are two more riders who've finished on the podium of this race before and are also on the startlist this time.
We now look at the top contenders for this, separated into the sprinters and punchers.
| FLA | HIL | STA | RES | SPR | ACC |  Van Stayen | 76 | 79 | 76 | 71 | 84 | 78 |  Demare | 73 | 80 | 75 | 72 | 82 | 81 |  Van der Lijke | 73 | 76 | 73 | 71 | 82 | 79 |  Grosu | 73 | 73 | 74 | 70 | 83 | 80 |  Ewan | 75 | 71 | 73 | 71 | 83 | 81 |  Bewley | 77 | 70 | 77 | 75 | 82 | 82 |  Degenkolb | 76 | 69 | 73 | 71 | 84 | 81 |  Coquard | 73 | 66 | 71 | 74 | 84 | 83 |  Ahlstrand | 74 | 67 | 74 | 73 | 83 | 82 |  Howard | 76 | 68 | 75 | 70 | 82 | 79 |  Theuns | 72 | 74 | 76 | 73 | 77 | 76 |  Pedersen | 77 | 69 | 78 | 80 | 78 | 77 |  Groenewegen | 73 | 67 | 74 | 71 | 82 | 81 |
First up, it's the sprinters.
2017 winner and third in 2016, Van Staeyen starts as top favourite for this race. Along with Coquard and Degenkolb, who we shall talk about soon, he is the fastest rider in the race, and his ability to up inclines, makes him the prime candidate for candidate for the win. Eislers and Dzamastagic consists of his leadout, while Tvetcov is here to help him tackle the hills.
Just a little slower, but just a little better on the hills, Demare is top challenger to Van Staeyen. The Puma leader will be looking to improve on his best of 3rd place in this race, and this year provides a great opportunity for him to do so. His support will be a bit weaker though, and he will rely more on surfing trains to put himself into the best possible slot for a dash at the finish.
2018 winner Van der Lijke is a slight weaker version of both Van Staeyen and Demare, and he has already proved his mettle in this race by winning it before! Along with the previous duo, these three look likely to be the best sprinter candidates to take out the win in this race.
Grosu is another rider who has already stood on the podium of this race, two years ago in 2018. He too will be hoping to do better this time. His team seems to have concentrated more on including hills firepower than bringing much support for him for this race.
Wildcard team Podium Ambition bring Ewan as their top contender for this race. Having reached his peak in the off-season. he has all the abilities to put one over on the PT sprinters (and punchers) and take the win (and precious points) in this race. As in most races where Ewan rides, he has a strong support squad to put him into the best position before the final sprint.
Winner of the 2015 and 2016 editions, Sam Bewley has an enviable record in this race, having been on the podium four more times as well. This off-season, age finally started catching up to him and he falls down the favourites' list for the first time in a long time. However, his energy stats are very well suited for this race, and he may be one of the freshest sprinters around at the finish. Moser have brought a strong sprint squad to help him.
Another fast man in the race, Degenkolb carries the hopes of his team, both for this race and the season, and looks to reach the heights of 2016, or better yet, go one better. Not the best on the hills in this field, he will be hoping to that the climbs are run too hard and then take advantage in the sprint. He has started the season well in Qatar and will look to keep it up here.
A similar rider is Coquard, who has had an up and down start to the season and will look to bring his Paris-Nice form to this race, rather than Qatar's. A surprising name missing from the honours board of this race, he will want to make that right this time around. He doesn't have the strongest help on the flats though.
Ahlstrand is another rider who carries a lot of hopes of his team on his shoulders. He too is similar to Degenkolb and Coquard in his make-up, but a little weaker in terms of top speed.
Last year's runner up Groenewegen, who actually won the bunch sprint behind  Boasson Hagen, finds himself surprisingly low in the favourites list. However, if 2019 is anything to go by, he has it in him beat faster sprinters on paper. Howard is equally as quick, and is better on the flat and stamina-wise than the former. Where he lacks is in the explosiveness in his finish.
Pedersen is the strongest roluer in the race, making him a strong candidate for late accelerations and attacks causing havoc in the peloton.
Theuns will be hoping to use his puncher skills in the closing stages to put the other sprinters in trouble and then use his competitive sprint skills to take out the win.
| FLA | HIL | STA | RES | SPR | ACC |  Ponzi | 75 | 83 | 76 | 71 | 75 | 79 | | Hagen | 76 | 84 | 80 | 73 | 72 | 78 |  Lutsenko | 69 | 83 | 76 | 73 | 72 | 81 | | Van Garderen | 73 | 82 | 78 | 75 | 70 | 79 |  Bakelants | 70 | 82 | 78 | 75 | 71 | 75 | | Gerts | 77 | 78 | 76 | 80 | 72 | 70 |  Bellis | 75 | 78 | 80 | 71 | 74 | 75 |  Kinoshita | 73 | 83 | 80 | 77 | 68 | 77 | | Koretzky | 73 | 81 | 77 | 70 | 71 | 79 | | Vakoc | 71 | 80 | 75 | 71 | 71 | 74 |  Mohoric | 72 | 83 | 78 | 72 | 67 | 77 |
Ponzi had the best possible start to life in his new team by taking out the season opening Badaling International. His team will be hoping for more of the same from their leader.
Defending champion Hagen is back and is among the strongest punchers in the race, He will be looking for a copycat move to try to catch the sprinters unawares and make it back-to-back victorites.
Van Garderen has already tasted podium success in this race way back in 2014. He will be looking to impress in his new team and reach those heights once again. He doesn't have the best form coming into this race but does have the support of Gastauer. The pair could become a lethal 1-2 punch for their team in the closing stages.
Bakelants started the season horribly in Badaling and will be hoping to make amends here. His team have not really helped his cause, with only Le Roux and Luchshenko there to help.
Gerts is the perfect foil for Grosu, for their team, and will look to follow attacks made by other punchers, or initiate his own. He did well in the season opener and could be a rider to watch in this race, and indeed this season. With Boswell also riding, eBuddy might just have most bases covered among all teams.
Bellis is in a similar mould to Gerts and is another who will look to make an impact on the hills before taking their chances from a reduced bunch sprint.
Kinoshita and Mohoric are very strong punchers but somewhat lack sprint capabilities. As such, they will be looking to get away from their rivals in the closing stages and keep them at bay till the finish.
Koertzky and Vakoc play similar roles in their teams, that of taking up leadership duties in case their sprinters get caught out or if the punchers are able to force a selection in the closing stages.
Spoiler | Last Name | First Name | Team | | Groenewegen | Dylan | Aegon - Peroni | | van der Poel | Mathieu | Aegon - Peroni | | Van Hooydonck | Nathan | Aegon - Peroni | | Vliegen | Loic | Aegon - Peroni | | van der Hoorn | Taco | Aegon - Peroni | | Stuyven | Jasper | Aegon - Peroni | | Ballerini | Davide | Aegon - Peroni | | Toupalik | Adam | Aegon - Peroni | | Hagen | Edvald Boasson | Air France - KLM | | Bystrom | Sven Erik | Air France - KLM | | Gaudu | David | Air France - KLM | | Paez | Andres | Air France - KLM | | Lietaer | Eliot | Air France - KLM | | Ludvigsson | Fredrik | Air France - KLM | | Martin | Guillaume | Air France - KLM | | Edet | Nicolas | Air France - KLM | | Silva | Nihal | Aker - MOT | | Trondsen | Trond Hakon | Aker - MOT | | Anderberg | Hampus | Aker - MOT | | Losch | Max | Aker - MOT | | Sosa | Ivan | Aker - MOT | | Larsen | Niklas | Aker - MOT | | Yzeiraj | Marildo | Aker - MOT | | Pedersen | Casper | Aker - MOT | | Howard | Leigh | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | David | Tom | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Lane | Patrick | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | McCormick | Hayden | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Gunman | Taylor | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Wohler | Alex | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Christensen | Ryan | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Culey | Marcus | Bennelong - Mitchelton | | Bellis | Jonathan | cycleYorkshire | | Cullaigh | Gabriel | cycleYorkshire | | Van Baarle | Dylan | cycleYorkshire | | Fenn | Andrew | cycleYorkshire | | Boudat | Thomas | cycleYorkshire | | Tennant | Andrew | cycleYorkshire | | Crncevic | Aleksa | cycleYorkshire | | Skaarseth | Anders | cycleYorkshire | | Van Garderen | Tejay | EA Vesuvio | | Van der Lijke | Nick | EA Vesuvio | | Gastauer | Ben | EA Vesuvio | | Reimer | Martin | EA Vesuvio | | Smit | Willie | EA Vesuvio | | Gesbert | Elie | EA Vesuvio | | Fritsch | Sven | EA Vesuvio | | Kneisky | Morgan | EA Vesuvio | | Grosu | Eduard | eBuddy | | Gerts | Floris | eBuddy | | Boswell | Ian | eBuddy | | Lammertink | Maurits | eBuddy | | Ariesen | Tim | eBuddy | | Kaczmarek | Jakub | eBuddy | | Roosen | Timo | eBuddy | | Vermeltfoort | Coen | eBuddy | | Van Stayen | Michael | Evonik - ELKO | | Eislers | Ingus | Evonik - ELKO | | Dzamastagic | Mark | Evonik - ELKO | | Tvetcov | Serghei | Evonik - ELKO | | Neilands | Krists | Evonik - ELKO | | Riesebeek | Oscar | Evonik - ELKO | | Naud | Patrick | Evonik - ELKO | | Stoltz | Yannick | Evonik - ELKO | | Coquard | Bryan | Festina - OAKA | | Koretzky | Clement | Festina - OAKA | | Karatzios | Georgios | Festina - OAKA | | Bouglas | Georgios | Festina - OAKA | | Kastrantas | Charalampas | Festina - OAKA | | Farantakis | Stylianos | Festina - OAKA | | Miltiadis | Andreas | Festina - OAKA | | Osorio | Juan | Festina - OAKA | | Formolo | Davide | Gazelle | | Furdi | Blaz | Gazelle | | Tratnik | Jan | Gazelle | | Konrad | Patrick | Gazelle | | Malecki | Kamil | Gazelle | | Hofland | Moreno | Gazelle | | Senyenov | Roman | Gazelle | | Arslanov | Ildar | Gazelle | | Theuns | Edward | Generali | | Gaday | Lucas Manuel | Generali | | De Buyst | Jasper | Generali | | Masnada | Fausto | Generali | | Oliveira | Ivo | Generali | | Laporte | Christophe | Generali | | De Gendt | Aime | Generali | | Lecourt De Billot | Olivier | Generali | | Wisniowski | Lukasz | Grieg-Maersk | | Pedersen | Mads | Grieg-Maersk | | Würtz | Mads | Grieg-Maersk | | Ringheim | Jo Kogstad | Grieg-Maersk | | Andersen | Soren Kragh | Grieg-Maersk | | Cosnefroy | Benoit | Grieg-Maersk | | Serrano | Gonzalo | Grieg-Maersk | | Krigbaum | Mathias | Grieg-Maersk | | Bakelants | Jan | Indosat Ooredoo | | Vanderbiest | Romain | Indosat Ooredoo | | Markus | Barry | Indosat Ooredoo | | Speirs | Isaac | Indosat Ooredoo | | Luchshenko | Sergey | Indosat Ooredoo | | Le Roux | Romain | Indosat Ooredoo | | Ji | Cheng | Indosat Ooredoo | | Bolor-Erdene | Enkhtaivan | Indosat Ooredoo | | Degenkolb | John | ISA - Hexacta | | Vakoc | Petr | ISA - Hexacta | | Harrison | Sam | ISA - Hexacta | | Contreras | Emiliano | ISA - Hexacta | | Zakarin | Ilnur | ISA - Hexacta | | Kreder | Raymond | ISA - Hexacta | | Juarez | Daniel | ISA - Hexacta | | Feng | Chun Kai | ISA - Hexacta | | Mohoric | Matej | Isostar - Specialized | | Per | David | Isostar - Specialized | | Polanc | Jan | Isostar - Specialized | | Calmejane | Lilian | Isostar - Specialized | | Peters | Nans | Isostar - Specialized | | Gabburo | Davide | Isostar - Specialized | | Tarvis | Peeter | Isostar - Specialized | | Jans | Roy | Isostar - Specialized | | Lutsenko | Alexey | King Power | | Kasperkiewicz | Przemyslaw | King Power | | Hsu | Hsuan Ping | King Power | | Viviani | Elia | King Power | | Sirironnachai | Sarawut | King Power | | Quita | Ronnilan | King Power | | Vanthourenhout | Michael | King Power | | Nielsen | Joanis Albert | King Power | | Bonifazio | Niccolo | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Vanbilsen | Kenneth | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | De Plus | Laurens | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Gamper | Patrick | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Fedeli | Alessandro | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Sajnok | Szymon | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Covi | Alessandro | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Dewulf | Stan | Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo PCTeam | | Bewley | Sam | Moser - Sygic | | Granjel Cabrera | Raul | Moser - Sygic | | Soupe | Geoffrey | Moser - Sygic | | Cerny | Josef | Moser - Sygic | | McKenna | Sean | Moser - Sygic | | Baska | Erik | Moser - Sygic | | Schönberger | Sebastian | Moser - Sygic | | Boros | Michael | Moser - Sygic | | Ewan | Caleb | Podium Ambition | | Altur | Marcos | Podium Ambition | | Cataford | Alexandor | Podium Ambition | | Alaphilippe | Julian | Podium Ambition | | Aberasturi | Jon | Podium Ambition | | Edmondson | Alexander | Podium Ambition | | Bridges | Jyme | Podium Ambition | | Lawless | Christopher | Podium Ambition | | Kinoshita | Tomohiro | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Sibilla | Michel | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Hayakawa | Tomohiro | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Kuroeda | Shiki | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Liu | Jiankun | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Arashiro | Yudai | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Silva | Rafael | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Reus | Kai | Rakuten Pro Cycling | | Demare | Arnaud | Team Puma - SAP | | Declerq | Tim | Team Puma - SAP | | Aregger | Marcel | Team Puma - SAP | | Mager | Christian | Team Puma - SAP | | Cavagna | Remi | Team Puma - SAP | | Niu | Yikui | Team Puma - SAP | | Sagiv | Guy | Team Puma - SAP | | Madouas | Valentin | Team Puma - SAP | | Senechal | Florian | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Kamyshev | Arman | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Samolenkov | Artem | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Moser | Moreno | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Vogt | Mario | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Chernetskiy | Sergey | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Trakhov | Dmitry | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Strakhov | Dmitry | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Ponzi | Simone | Team UBS | | Reichenbach | Sebastien | Team UBS | | Bohli | Tom | Team UBS | | Müller | Patrick | Team UBS | | Abreu | Jorge | Team UBS | | Fumeaux | Jonathan | Team UBS | | Schäppi | Martin | Team UBS | | Ramos Ticona | Basilio | Team UBS | | Ahlstrand | Jonas | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Appollonio | Davide | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Halvorsen | Kristoffer | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Tiller | Rasmus | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Sweeck | Laurens | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Vendrame | Andrea | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Asgreen | Kasper | Volvo acc. by Spotify | | Beukeboom | Dion | Volvo acc. by Spotify |
Edited by AbhishekLFC on 06-12-2020 13:23
|
| |
|
|
| roturn |
Posted on 06-12-2020 09:10
|
Team Manager
Posts: 22043
Joined: 24-11-2007
PCM$: 3900.00
|
Decided against a top puncheur here and going for the tactic from last year, where Groenewegen came in 2nd as best from the peloton. Obviously needs a +2 to +5 day but we will see.
Looking forward to the battle of puncheurs and sprinters. |
| |
|
|
| tsmoha |
Posted on 06-12-2020 09:15
|
Directeur Sportif
Posts: 11786
Joined: 19-07-2010
PCM$: 300.00
|
Same as roturn, I'm just hoping for an extraordinary day from Howard, who's our only realistic shot at this race anyway. So let's keep them sprinters at the front until the end, please 
|
| |
|
|
| ember |
Posted on 06-12-2020 09:22
|
Team Leader
Posts: 7058
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
|
Great preview!
Thank you for that, Abhi. I'm also looking a lot forward to the report, as this is a race where we have absolutely no expectations, making it easy to only enjoy the racing whatever outcome. Best of luck to all favourites, and maybe this is the year where MVS adds another MSR win to his palmares? At least it feels like Evonik has the right flow seeing how well they did in the triple header 
AbhishekLFC wrote:.
| Pedersen | 77 | 69 | 78 | 80 | 78 | 77 |
 Pedersen is the strongest roluer in the race, making him a strong candidate for late accelerations and attacks causing havoc in the peloton.
Can't just everyone just take this as clear evidence Pedersen is obviously going to ride next season for Aker - MOT, no matter what tastasol might say?  |
| |
|
|
| Ad Bot |
Posted on 06-12-2025 23:15
|
Bot Agent
Posts: Countless
Joined: 23.11.09
|
|
| IP: None |
|
|
| Croatia14 |
Posted on 06-12-2020 10:18
|
Directeur Sportif
Posts: 9137
Joined: 13-03-2013
PCM$: 2100.00
|
So weird not to expect a lot from the race. Will be very interesting to see how this pans out.
|
| |
|
|
| tastasol |
Posted on 06-12-2020 10:30
|
Classics Specialist
Posts: 3030
Joined: 11-09-2010
PCM$: 200.00
|
ember wrote:
AbhishekLFC wrote:.
| Pedersen | 77 | 69 | 78 | 80 | 78 | 77 |
Pedersen is the strongest roluer in the race, making him a strong candidate for late accelerations and attacks causing havoc in the peloton.
Can't just everyone just take this as clear evidence Pedersen is obviously going to ride next season for Aker - MOT, no matter what tastasol might say?
Haha, dream on
Excited for this one. Pedersen, Wisniowski, Kragh and possibly others could all do good here. We don't have any great hilly riders, so hopefully not full gas over Cipressa and Poggio, but hope to see them with something save in their legs when we come towards the end.
|
| |
|
|
| Ollfardh |
Posted on 06-12-2020 11:13
|
Tour de France Champion
Posts: 15025
Joined: 08-08-2011
PCM$: 11500.00
|
Yes, I am embarrased here.
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
|
| |
|
|
| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 06-12-2020 11:33
|
Tour de France Champion
Posts: 17833
Joined: 12-05-2012
PCM$: 0.00
|
Ewan here without either Ricki or Kek, instead we opted to respect the Wildcard opportunity and bring along all our best riders. Hopefully we can put the extra support of AC and Altoro to some use, and rely on Julian to pilot us in the later stages.
A Top5 is the target but as a free race we honesly don't care and will enjoy the experience. Can we win the Monument and be relegate to CT in the same season?
|
| |
|
|
| alexkr00 |
Posted on 06-12-2020 11:38
|
World Champion
Posts: 13561
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 400.00
|
Well, instead of lead-out riders I went with riders that definitely can go over the hills so Grosu can have as many team mates with him as possible - riders good both over the hills and on the flat. And if Gerts will be there, he can be a very good lead out himself
|
| |
|
|
| SotD |
Posted on 06-12-2020 13:01
|
World Champion
Posts: 12631
Joined: 29-11-2006
PCM$: 2980.00
|
I have the same setup around Coquard that I did in Qatar, where it didn't work - and in Paris-Nice, where it worked perfect...
I don't have big expectations to be honest. Coquard is the weakest of the top riders in terms of hilly/mountain capabillities, and Koretzky is probably not strong enough to make the race so difficult that the fast men can't finish with him.
If we can somehow land a top 10 it would be great. Last season, Coquard made the elite selection of 20-odd riders, but didn't have any power left to participate in the sprint. If he can keep up again, and maybe claw back a little bit of energy, then a top 10 is possible, but I find it unlikely.
|
| |
|
|
| SportingNonsense |
Posted on 06-12-2020 13:17
|
Team Manager
Posts: 31706
Joined: 08-03-2007
PCM$: 200.00
|
Well I've sent a strong team here to support Van der Lijke, so the opportunity is certainly there for a good result.
|
| |
|
|
| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 06-12-2020 13:26
|
Directeur Sportif
Posts: 12681
Joined: 27-07-2015
PCM$: 1961.50
|
Sorry to have unwittingly sparked the Pedersen debate again
Corrected now. Forgot to change the team ID in the mini jersey after pasting earlier.
|
| |
|
|
| matt17br |
Posted on 06-12-2020 13:30
|
Directeur Sportif
Posts: 10519
Joined: 28-09-2013
PCM$: 200.00
|
Not expecting any relevant presence here from my team. Maybe Theuns feels particularly good and hits a good form or Laporte GOATs his way to the Lungomare but otherwise not gonna be a race in the spotlight for us. Thanks for the preview Abhi!
|
| |
|
|
| Bikex |
Posted on 06-12-2020 13:52
|
Team Leader
Posts: 7385
Joined: 25-08-2012
PCM$: 600.00
|
Last year I did not send Lutsenko here but this time I have fewer suiting races for him and considering Hagen's success last time, he will be at the start this time. However seeing that he is missing in the preview I somehow doubt he left a lasting impression in the race. 
Anyways I don't have much expectations and a few riders among the first 50 would probably already be enough for me. |
| |
|
|
| DubbelDekker |
Posted on 06-12-2020 14:30
|
Classics Specialist
Posts: 2797
Joined: 20-04-2008
PCM$: 200.00
|
A good result is unlikely for us here. But getting a couple of riders into the top 50 is possible and would also result in ok points.
|
| |
|
|
| knockout |
Posted on 06-12-2020 16:57
|
Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8236
Joined: 21-12-2010
PCM$: 500.00
|
ember wrote:
Best of luck to all favourites, and maybe this is the year where MVS adds another MSR win to his palmares? At least it feels like Evonik has the right flow seeing how well they did in the triple header
<3
First time since promoting to PT, that we didnt pick this race as a goal race after last season was a bit disappointing. Imo it looked a bit too random last season to make a good prediction about who is gonna win or where Van Stayen will finish.
But obviously he should still be one of the big favourites here. Hard to imagine a scenario that doesnt fit him. Brought mostly my flat beast setup here and its one of the few races where i brought Eislers and Dzamastagic as a support duo. Doubt that there will be a proper leadout train so might as well send both for maximum power and maximum depth in the hope that one of them will make it over the Poggio with MVS. Tvetcov the big change to most flat classics as he can add value on Cipressa/Poggio while still being able to sprint for depth points.
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
| |
|
|
| valverde321 |
Posted on 06-12-2020 19:20
|
World Champion
Posts: 12429
Joined: 20-05-2009
PCM$: 530.00
|
Re: Pedersen discussion, I'd actually argue Arashiro is the best rouler Atleast not accounting for Sprint stat (which may have been part of your reasoning)
Kinoshita is our best shot at something, so hoping it will go the way of the punchuers, but it probably wont if Im being honest. There just werent many races I needed him for this year, so he rides MSR as well.
Most of my team is full of riders with high Fighter, so Im hoping we go on the attack a lot, and with a bit of luck, we'll get a good result.
|
| |
|
|
| cio93 |
Posted on 06-12-2020 19:52
|
World Champion
Posts: 10616
Joined: 29-10-2007
PCM$: 500.00
|
We need to bounce back from the disappointment in Hallstadt heading straight into our next sponsor goal race here.
Arnaud has proven he can podium on the Via Roma, and that's what our sponsors expect again, so Top 3 has to be the clear aim.
In case we're forced to lead Demare out, we have improved our sprint train with Marcel Aregger, who's potent enough as a main leadout to keep us at the front, with Yikui Niu and/or Remi Cavagna as great first leadouts who should both survive the route well to set us up.
If Demare is allowed to train surf though, I'm confident that can be an advantageous position as seen so often this season already, then it's just about where the pre-sprint shuffling leaves him to start his sprint from.
However, with the Poggio certainly at least disrupting the regular sprint prep, if not tearing the race apart as a whole, there's surely a chance that a leadout can only form so late that it's actually not a disadvantage to have one anymore.
Either way, our support squad is good enough even in the absence of Arndt, with Mager as a good puncheur, Sagiv and Declerq as rouleurs who won't mind the capos too much, and Madouas as the allround domestique learning how to finish this race well in order to have a shot at winning it in a handful of years.
Again, a lot depends on where the game sees us in the pecking order, with positioning and team support being crucial in such a long and twisty race.
We NEED to be attentive and active.
We risk a steep rankings drop if we mess this up, and there's only one more sponsor goal left after this that I feel comfortable about.
|
| |
|
|
| SotD |
Posted on 07-12-2020 07:27
|
World Champion
Posts: 12631
Joined: 29-11-2006
PCM$: 2980.00
|
Well well well. That was a very pleasant surprise from Coquard. It was difficult to keep track of who was where, and while I didn't read Coquards name among those dropped in the split I kinda expected him to be - so I was very happy when I read atleast Koretzky was there, only to then see he was leading out Coquard!
For a moment I thought the win was possible, but you won't see me complain about 4th that's for sure! Too bad Koretzky couldn't keep his pace, as 28th doesn't really amount to anything significant. Nice to see both Kastrantas (as always) and Bouglas also making the top 50 to add a few extra points. Those can be very valuable in the end.
Weird strategy by Bewley here, but if he didn't feel like he could win the sprint I guess he did what was needed - atleast his acceleration saw the peloton react, otherwise I think Søren Kragh would have won - which would have been very cool too. Great result from Grieg btw.
Not so much for Evonik though, but still it shows remakable quality to kill the leader of the team and still end up 11th and 20th with an additional 3 riders making "bonus points".
Big congrats on the win to ISA - I can't help but be rooting extra hard for them to survive this season, and results like this definately is a good push towards that!
5th for Demare isn't too shabby either looking at the results.
Overall I think Gazelle was probably hit the worst from that split, which only add to the negative spirale they are currently in with Madrazo also heavily underperforming. Things aren't quite going their way like they were last season. Can they still compete for the win? The won by a huge margin last time!
Thanks for a very nice report
|
| |
|
|
| roturn |
Posted on 07-12-2020 07:54
|
Team Manager
Posts: 22043
Joined: 24-11-2007
PCM$: 3900.00
|
Oh well...a sprinter finish this MSR and Groenewegen on a bad day...unfortunate.
24th far from decent scoring even if VdP is also in top40.
Seeing the top10, there basically was no needed hill stat this time.
Congrats Scorchio for the great win, Degenkolb really deserved this one after some struggle lately.
And thanks for the report. Even though it was not nice to read a Groenewegen mention for the first time when he was on the wrong side of the split. |
| |
|
