Tour de France 2012

Wiggins is going to be a great in history. First british man in Yellow. TT champion.

the set up dosent work! it fails froome and cav and supports a weaker rider (wiggins) with the worst attitude in the tour.

he shouldn't be team leader then he isn't strong enough and he has a pathetic attitude. focus should be on CAV or froome, wiggins isn't ever going to be remembered as a great.

Sod off and troll bikeradar instead

Jimmy, I don't think you give Cav enough credit, he's at Sky to win things, and because they are paying him a truckload of money and the majority of the british team at the olympics are Sky riders so will know each other and be comfortable on the road together.

Cav is a student of cycling history, and he wants to part of history, helping the first briton to win the tour de france is I think more of a carrot than we think, William Fotheringham was telling a story yesterday about Cav helping out the Isle of Man team at the commonwealth games, I think, when he was already knocked out of the competition, or finished, driving the car, being a impromptu DS, and generally helping out wherever he could, because he could.

Cav has personal goals to achieve, and I think he wants to achieve them with a british team. If Froome leads into a grand tour, I think the composition of the squad will be different as he wouldn't need as many climbers around him to haul him up the hill at a certain pace a'la Wiggins. You could in all honesty split the team 5/4 GC/GJ and Four climbing/general domestiques for the GC attempt and Three for Cav's leadout train.

Also whats wrong with Sky being ambitious and trying to go for the GC and the Green Jersey at the same time, more history to be made and as mentioned before that is what Cav - it would seem - is interested in most, making history...

That is what I was saying largely: he's more than happy to be part of this team and going for yellow, but if he wants to keep winning stages and over-hauling Merxck's record I think he needs a team more prepared to throw their weight behind and get him up to the front on Stages like 13. I've already said that Froome needs less nursing than Wiggins so yes, potentially if he and not Wiggins is leading the team next season they may put more weight behind Cav's challenge for green but personally I'm sceptical. EBH was one of his support men but he was rapidly deployed to replace the injured Sitsou in making the early pace on mountains when essentially he came to this race as lead out man.

That all said Geraint is Cav's usual lead out man, at least he was in the Grio, and he will be back next year. Also if I was Sky I'd go after Renshaw: he's better off as a lead out than a out and out sprinter.

Nothing wrong going for green and yellow, it's just whether it's achievable without compromising one or both challenges.

the set up dosent work! it fails froome and cav and supports a weaker rider (wiggins) with the worst attitude in the tour.

Let's see who pans who in the TT on Saturday - then we'll talk about weak riders. The Tour isn't all about climbing.

Cav and Froome knew what they were getting into when they signed for Sky.
Lets see the time difference between Froome and Wiggins in the last TT before you claim Froome is better

the set up dosent work! it fails froome and cav and supports a weaker rider (wiggins) with the worst attitude in the tour.

That Italian prunt has the worst attitude in the tour. Besides, Froome knew he was going be Wiggins' bitch when he signed the contract for the amount he did. A great climber he may be, but he's a terrible negotiator.

the set up dosent work! it fails froome and cav and supports a weaker rider (wiggins) with the worst attitude in the tour.

If you are going to troll at least use capital letters, moronic typing like that offends my eyes.

And has anyone noticed how much better Wiggins looks talking to the press? Really relaxing and amiable, enjoying his time in yellow methinks, and he came across really well when slowing the peloton yesterday.

Do yourself a favour and fuck off.

WAC

Personally think that Wiggins emergence as a genuine GC contender made it easier for Sky to be created, probably helped in many ways as here was already someone who could win the thing, and made the dream of a briton winning the tour, a touchable reality. If Wiggins wins the thing, then he's done all he needs to do and will be remembered eternally in british cycling, and british sport. And if he does, Sports Personality and a Knighthood beckon in his future...

Cav's younger and will have plenty of opportunities to win stages at the tour and other grand tours.

@Jimmy,
someone's run for a jersey will always be compromised when a team is going for green and yellow, it also depends on how the tour itself is composed, if the team doesn't have to defend the yellow for two thirds of the race, they can spend more time providing a leadout train for Cav. Swings and roundabouts.

And what's wrong with Wiggo's attitude? He held out the olive branch to Nibali when he had every right to give him a slap for the shit the guy had talked in the press. He acted as lead-out man for EBH, He wrote that Guardian article and he says "cunt" a lot. What's not to like?

Cav was fully supported in the Giro by Sky, who didn't have anyone going for pink, and he would have taken the red jersey if he hadn't been unlucky with a couple of crashes. He was one point off. There are more races in a year than the Tour and this year, he's targeted two things he doesn't have, a red jersey and a gold medal.

So in fact it's just a load of bollocks to suggest that Sky don't/can't support him just because they aren't going for green in this tour.

And what's wrong with Wiggo's attitude? He held out the olive branch to Nibali when he had every right to give him a slap for the shit the guy had talked in the press. He acted as lead-out man for EBH, He wrote that Guardian article and he says "cunt" a lot. What's not to like?

This.

I reckon Froome will flounce from Sky at the end of the season, end up in an outfit that doesn't know how to get the best out of him and he'll end up getting nothing better than top tens for the rest of his career.

He forgets that he's benefited from the same training regime, scientific approach and meticulous preparation as Wiggins. He's also had the protection of EBH, Rogers and Porte. True, he's shepherded Wiggins to the top of the climbs, but most of the race he's been given the same star treatment as Wiggins.

I'd like to see how he gets on in Astana, or Radio Shack, where he'd be left to his own devices more than he is at Sky.

One has to wonder, seriously, if Froomey was the patron then would he be performing as well?
One thing Bradley has credited his performance to is his vast experience of handling pressure, expectation, the big occasion, and putting it all aside to concentrate on his job. All that takes a lot of experience of performing at the highest level on the biggest stages. Froomey doesn't have that, and may not have handled the pressure as well.

The job of bass guitarist is a lot easier than the job of front man.

I reckon Froome will flounce from Sky at the end of the season, end up in an outfit that doesn't know how to get the best out of him and he'll end up getting nothing better than top tens for the rest of his career.

He forgets that he's benefited from the same training regime, scientific approach and meticulous preparation as Wiggins. He's also had the protection of EBH, Rogers and Porte. True, he's shepherded Wiggins to the top of the climbs, but most of the race he's been given the same star treatment as Wiggins.

I'd like to see how he gets on in Astana, or Radio Shack, where he'd be left to his own devices more than he is at Sky.

Agreed, the L'Equipe interview was badly judged IMO, no matter how much was manipulated in the translation and it makes his position difficult at Sky. I think they will want to hold onto him as I think he's a more natural GT rider than Wiggins, and I sort of think Wiggins wants to win it, tick that one off and then go back to living his life i.e. not sleeping in an oxygen tent and being able to spend time with his family. Froome also signed up for 3 years after the Vuelta and not many teams have the financial clout to prise him away. I don't think he would ride as well for other teams, or have the protection he too gets from EBH, Porte and Rogers.

heh so the RShack rumours hold some ground - "Leopard SA spokesman Carlo Rock confirms the Schlecks and Cancellara complained at the UCI because of unpaid wages"

The pelton just went past the house I used to live in in Marciac.

csb

I don't think that there's any doubt that Wiggins will go down as a great. Look at what he's been part of.

He doesn't need babysitting. That's just the set-up that works for him.

So I could get a babysitter for myself and that wouldn't be weird?

Consults phonebook for London-based French Finishing Schools...

Consults phonebook for London-based French Finishing Schools that had midgets on their books...

fixed.

he shouldn't be team leader then he isn't strong enough and he has a pathetic attitude. focus should be on CAV or froome, wiggins isn't ever going to be remembered as a great.

His attitude is to win. How is that wrong?

the set up dosent work! it fails froome and cav and supports a weaker rider (wiggins) with the worst attitude in the tour.

I think you'll find there's no jersey for 'attitude'.

Sod off and troll bikeradar instead

Nah, this will be fun..

any team going to try to close the gap? Lotto maybe? Who's on the front?