There's no denying MvdP's strength and skills but I think he's also slightly flattered by picking a limited set of races that work for his strengths. That's not a bad thing but it'd be interesting to see how he goes with a full road season rather than jumping in for stuff that suits him. I'm sure his competitors hope that a full season would slow him down a bit as the prospect of a full season of competing against that sort of strength would be depressing for a lot of other pro riders.
Why not dance around across different disciplines? He'll likely win more, prompt loads more articles about being the greatest, sponsors will continue to flock to him and he will be paid more.
Sounds much more appealing than being someones teammate, fetching bottles, in a race he cannot win.
There's no denying MvdP's strength and skills but I think he's also slightly flattered by picking a limited set of races that work for his strengths. That's not a bad thing but it'd be interesting to see how he goes with a full road season rather than jumping in for stuff that suits him. I'm sure his competitors hope that a full season would slow him down a bit as the prospect of a full season of competing against that sort of strength would be depressing for a lot of other pro riders.