Pro-cycling thread

Did he have any support on the climbs at the Vuelta? Seen very little of it sadly.

QS are unlikely to ever have domestiques lining up to help him but he might also get free rein to be leader for GTs depending on Alaphilippe’s ambitions.

Will there be any attacks tomorrow or is it a roll around and a sprint as in the tour?

Same as the Tour (and the Giro) the last stage is a procession, almost purely ceremonial.

Do we think this would hold if in future the gap was just a second or two?

I'd say if he has genuine GC aspirations Mas should leave Quickstep but then he has just managed second.

I'm sure with Valverde close to retiring, Quintana going backwards and Landa not doing the business, Movistar are taking a long hard look at Mas

Aru vs Alien.

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Can you imagine Quickstep going to the Tour for the GC? It just doesn't fit it's not their mentality

Movistar is a hot mess though I mean ok Landa got injured but it hurts to see Quintana ride like this.

When you've had 26 victories and half of them are by a 38 yr old convicted doper, yeh, it's not a good look.

Yes.

One hard look. Or más.

Quintana needs to leave Movistar. A team which doesn’t ride so defensively, which gives him full support and doesn’t make him race to win so much would benefit him I think.

Yes. It’s partly convention, but it’s also going to give your team such a bad reputation that others will work to ensure you don’t win in the future.

Has the internet already started rounding on Simon Yates or does he get a pass for not being Sky?

I did see a Guardian article yesterday which mentioned Friday's stage and the likelihood of Yates winning, and mentioned his doping "violation" with very little contextualisation, along with the Jiffy bag and salbutamol stories.

Something definitely needs to change with both rider and team it has been sad to watch.

Most people's minds are made up either way. But the only race that really stirs up the masses is the Tour. The rest of the season is spared the polemics of July thank fuck. But the usual corners are saying the usual things.

Congratulations ! Simon Yates, so very happy you've won this ! So glad this has happened so soon after the Giro. Well done !

does yates have an irish drawl
can't fathom his accent

it's called Northern, he's from Bury

https://youtu.be/O5qMWWKq8f8

Sounds like a bit of Irish/Aussie with that thing you do when you talk to someone foreign.

I can’t ever see Movistar changing, they’ve ridden like this for nearly 30 years.

I did see a Guardian article yesterday which mentioned Friday's stage and the likelihood of Yates winning, and mentioned his doping "violation" with very little contextualisation, along with the Jiffy bag and salbutamol stories.

The Guardian can't stand anyone British winning anything. I imagine competing and succeeding is considered too right wing for the Grauniad to approve of.

^Brought to you by the Friends Of The Daily Mail.

Nope. I dislike the Mail's political posturing even more. Still, such a polarised and polarising approach to political discourse seems the norm these days, sadly.

Carlton Kirby as well as Richard Moore mentioned Irish passports on Friday.