Fotoreporter Sirotti
With Thor Hushovd’s win Tuesday at the Tour de Suisse and Tyler Farrar’s relatively anonymous showing at the Criterium du Dauphiné, is it safe to expect Thor to be Garmin-Cervelo’s protected sprint captain in France? Heinrich Haussler’s just been announced as not riding–is Garmin-Cervelo’s murky Tour roster getting a bit more clear?
Share your comments below.
Fotoreporter Sirotti
Interesting cycling items from across the Internet, June 9, 2011
Fotoreporter Sirotti
Here’s this week’s Monday Musette:
1. The Criterium du Dauphiné—the first of two important pre-Tour stage races—wrapped-up yesterday with Team Sky’s Bradley Wiggins taking the most impressive road victory of his career. While unspectacular, Wiggo’s win is an important morale booster for the rider and his team as both attempt to shrug-off a rather lackluster showing in last year’s Tour de France.
The win was rather Indurain-esque. The Brit used a powerful time trial to forge his lead, and then defended it methodically in the mountains, following the wheels of his closest rivals all the way to the end. Wiggins looked quite lost after last season—one in which he fell far short of what was expected by his fans and his team. A win in the Dauphiné is no small accomplishment as it comes at a time when many riders are putting the finishing touches on their form for July.
2. Then again, it was apparent that many of the Dauphiné’s best riders were clearly there for training and reconnaissance. For example, Cadel Evans—second overall by the end of the race—looked content to let others set the pace, saving himself for the Tour de France. And after a relatively trouble-free build-up and a season in which the Aussie seems to be riding as well as at any point in his career, is it once again time to consider BMC’s captain a Tour-contender?
3. Benelux hopefuls Jurgen Van den Broeck and Robert Gesink appear right on schedule as well (don’t be fooled by the 11+ minutes Gesink lost on Friday—he was arguably the best climber in the race Saturday and Sunday). Both were pleased with the their results in the Grenoble time trial and they displayed no apparent difficulties in the high mountains. As the more aggressive of the two, I rate Gesink a bit higher heading into this year’s Tour, but at the rate they’re progressing, I wouldn’t be surprised to see both riders on the podium in Paris.
4. Quieter but no less positive performances were put in by Radio Shack’s Janez Brajkovic and Euskaltel’s Samuel Sanchez. Only Brajkovic managed a finish inside the top-10, but given that the Tour is still less than 3 weeks away, that’s little cause to worry.
5. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Liquigas’ Ivan Basso. The Italian never figured in the results, limping home to a 26th-place finish after a rather unspectacular race. Basso seems to be struggling to come back from a training crash that required 15 stitches. And while there have been cases where riders have come from off the radar to find a place the Tour’s final podium (Denis Menchov finished third in last year’s Tour after a shaky build-up), Basso certainly hasn’t done himself any favors. He’ll need a few days in the mountains—and a relatively easy first week—if he hopes to contend for a high overall placing at the Tour.
6. Meanwhile, the Tour de Suisee kicked-off Saturday with Fabian Cancellara taking the victory in the opening stage’s short ITT. Lampre’s Damiano Cunego currently sits atop the GC over Movistar’s Juan Mauricio Soler (remember him?) and Rabobank’s Bauke Mollema. Things should settle down over the next two days, but an hors categorie summit finish awaits the riders Thursday.
Cunego’s biggest competition will likely come from Mollema, Leopard Trek’s Jakob Fuglsang, HTC-HighRoad’s Tejay Van Garderen, and Radio Shack’s Levi Leipheimer as all of these men can climb, time trial, and have strong teams backing them. Of course, a win would help Cunego’s confidence greatly, but I have serious doubts as to whether he’ll prove able to hold off the rest.
7. Switching gears, there’s more news on the transfer front as BMC has announced itself as a major player in the Philippe Gilbert Sweepstakes and Tom Boonen has said that he will announce his team for 2012 by the Belgian National Championships.
This is indeed an interesting development as Boonen is certainly forcing teams to give him their best offers without knowing the future whereabouts of Gilbert. So if indeed BMC covets Boonen’s services as well as Gilbert’s (something I pondered weeks ago), they’ll have to make a decision about one or the other sooner rather than later. I wonder if Boonen’s not too confident that his asking price will remain intact after the Tour de France.
8. And speaking of sooner rather than later, GreenEdge is inching closer and closer to becoming a reality as several riders—namely Sebastian Langeveld, David Millar, and Mathew Goss—have been linked to the Australian squad. Millar’s denied any connection, but Langeveld made his intentions known long ago, and Goss—well, I think it’s safe to say he’s on his way out of HTC-HighRoad given how silent he’s been on the topic.
So that’s all for me—what’s on your mind?
Fotoreporter Sirotti
Interesting cycling items from across the Internet, June 10, 2011
Fotoreporter Sirotti
Aside from the grand tours, the Tour de Suisse is probably the most prestigious national tour a rider can add to his resume. At nine days, it’s also one of the longest. And while some recent editions have tended to favor riders of a different sort, this year’s difficult parcours favors a true all-rounder—someone who can time trial and survive high alpine passes. All in all, the race covers over 1200 kilometers, offers three summit finishes, and has two trials to test many of peloton’s best. For some, this is the final stop before an all-out assault on the Tour de France; for others, it’s the perfect chance to take what many consider to be an impressive victory in it’s own right.
Here are some teams to watch at this year’s race:
Whether he likes or not, Frank Schleck is not Leopard Trek’s most important rider right now. And while some might say the team can take a two-prong approach to the Tour de France, it’s clear that younger brother Andy is the faster, more proven option. That makes a race like the Tour de Suisse all the more important to Frank. The defending champion, Frank will likely be given the green light to try and win the race again for himself, with full knowledge that he’ll be expected to play the role of dutiful lieutenant in France. For some, it’s a sacrifice; to me, it’s an important compromise—one that could reap dividends come July. With Linus Gerdemann, Jakob Fuglsang, and Fabian Cancellara racing as well, the Tour de Suisse could be a banner week for the team.
HTC-HighRoad brings a premier squad to Switzerland, headlined by Mark Cavendish and Matthew Goss making what might just be their final appearance together. Both riders will be hunting for stage wins, supported ably by Bernie Eisel and Bert Grabsch. Michael Albasini—fresh from a stage win in the Bayern Rundfahrt—is another man looking for daily success, albeit from a breakaway. For the GC, Tejay Van Garderen and Peter Velits are the team’s best options. Van Garderen’s third place in last year’s Dauphiné shows the American knows how to handle himself in June, while Velits will be looking to prove his podium place in the Vuelta was no fluke. He might just be the race’s best all-rounder in that he can time trial as well as he climbs.
Another team taking a multi-pronged approach to the Tour de Suisse, Radio Shack hopes that Andreas Kloden and Levi Leipheimer have the legs to contend for the overall victory. Chris Horner was originally slated to participate, but convinced team management that he would be better served by staying at home and training on his own. After his dominant win at May’s Tour of California, can you blame him? For Kloden and Leipheimer, their performances will likely determine the length of the GC leash they will be given by DS Johan Bruyneel at the Tour de France. With Janez Brajkovic on his way to another high finish at the Dauphiné, there’s little margin for error if these two veterans want the support of their squad in France.
Omega Pharma–Lotto comes to Switzerland led by sprinter Andre Greipel. The Swiss tour offers the German a fine chance to prove himself against some of the fastest men in the world. Look for Giro-animator Jan Bakelants to do his best to take a stage or two as well.
Rabobank’s Matti Breschel continues his return to racing at the Tour de Suisse, but his team will likely rely on Oscar Freire for stage wins. In the GC, Robert Gesink is racing the Dauphiné, leaving Bauke Mollema and Giro-revelation Steven Kruijswijk to lead the team here. While Kruijswijk might be at the tail-end of his fitness, Mollema could be poised for a breakout ride of his own.
Next we have Garmin-Cervelo, a team my gut tells me isn’t as harmonious as one might think. Taking a two-tiered approach to the Swiss tour, Garmin brings Heinrich Haussler and Thor Hushovd for stage wins and Ryder Hesjedal, Christian Vande Velde, and Tom Danielson for the GC. For these three North Americans, their Swiss performances will tell us a lot about their prospects for the Tour de France. Will Hesjedal improve upon his stunning ride last year? Will Vande Velde bounce back from his injury-riddled 2010? And will Danielson finally earn a spot on the squad for the French race? As for Thor and Haussler, they’re likely looking to assert themselves ahead of Tyler Farrar in Garmin-Cervelo’s sprint hierarchy.
Last but not least, Quick Step comes to Switzerland with the bulk of Tom Boonen’s lead-out train in tow in an attempt to assess the Belgian’s sprint form. And don’t forget cyclocross star Zdenek Stybar—he’s making an appearance in what will certainly be his most challenging road test to date. Saturday’s Prologue suits him well.
So there you have it—the teams I expect to make the most noise next week. Who are your picks?
Fotoreporter Sirotti
Interesting cycling items from across the Internet, June 9, 2011