Wiggo just a Tester.

tim_wand

Will Sky really pay Bradley Wiggins £1.5 million a year just to be a TT rider.

Wiggo says hes put on 7-8 kilo to ride the Worlds TT's and he cant ever see himself being a GC contender again if the routes are mountainous.

Will sky really allow this when the likes of Froome, Porte and Kennaugh can ride across the disciplines.

Is Wiggo selling himself short or just finding excuses for a poor season by 2012's standards.

Duncanandthemachine

He won't be at the sharp end in the mountains, but he can fulfil a role on the flat, and perhaps more importantly he can be in contention at Paris Roubaix with 30km to go. Something Sky haven't managed yet...

greeny12

Hats off to the BBC Online photo editor for managing to source that pic for page lead!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/23663568

Ed-tron

greeny12 wrote:

Hats off to the BBC Online photo editor for managing to source that pic for page lead!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/23663568

haha good spot.

Pan flat TT, surely Wiggo would be one of the favourites

OT, I see Froome is out scoping the Worlds road race course. Seems a bit undulating for him, rather than pure climbing? http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/photos/2013-florence-world-championship-course-revealed/267741

Wiggo and Froome in rainbow would be awesome.

Richmond Racer

Even Rochelle Gilmore's having a good chuckle at that behind Wiggo

He has 1 more year left on his current contract.

Tim Wand: £1.5m?? And the rest. BIG increase when he won the Tour and an extra year slapped on his then-4 year contract.

Ok, so one things for sure: no more GTs as leader - and it seems that suits both Wiggins and Brailsford, just fine. Brailsford and Sky have their rather more compliant and placid Tour leader in the form of Froome - and who to be fair can go toe to toe with Quitana in the mountains, whereas Wiggins would be left behind. And they keep Porte happy by making him leader at next year's Giro. The Vuelta? Young Henao (those serial wall-finishes are never going to suit Wiggins).

So Wiggins goes for Worlds TT this year, and will pull Sky around the TTT course.

Next year? There's talk of Sutton being brought back to coach Wiggins. Word is he's going for P-R. Will he never ride for any GC again at Sky? That'll be up to Brailsford really. But anyone who knows Wiggins knows that things change from interview to interview.

But if he goes for P-R, as well as the TTs and driving the TTTs...I suspect they've got enough ROI on him to date, anyway.

There's some interesting rumour about what he could be doing beyond end-14, if you listen to the latest Humans Invent cycling podcast. Unfortunately Richard Moore and Lionel Birnie dont spill the beans. But in an interview Wiggins gave yday he talked about shooting for another gold in Rio.

tailwindhome

I would have thought Wiggins' account with Sky is clear. Everything else now is a bonus.


I do hope Cancellara is bluffing with this gambit of not being bothered about the Worlds TT.

Really want to see Cancellara v Wiggins v Martin when all are healthy, in form and motivated.

Daz555

TailWindHome wrote:

I would have thought Wiggins' account with Sky is clear. Everything else now is a bonus.


I do hope Cancellara is bluffing with this gambit of not being bothered about the Worlds TT.

Really want to see Cancellara v Wiggins v Martin when all are healthy, in form and motivated.

Me too. Problem for Canc though is that I think he knows he can not beat Martin or Wiggo over a long TT. If he turns up and is in shape then he is racing for 3rd place and he likely knows it.

Going back to the OP. If Wiggo really is going to be 7kg heavier for performance rather than pie reasons then it makes you wonder what he's capable of in the TT. GT Wiggo was by far the best TTer in 2012 (and his form would have killed everyone in the couple of years preceding also I'd suggest).

So is he fat cos he's fat. Or is he fat cos he's going to smash the Worlds TT? Answers on a postcard?

deejay

"Wiggo just a Tester". you ask.
Well No, He is a world Champion Pursuiter and World Champion Madison and he did win the Tour de France,
Paris-Nice, and Dauphine.
I think you have to ask him, what his objectives are now.
2013 has been a bad year starting with a stupid motorist knocking him off his bike and then not being helped by the weather.
The plan didn't play out this year so I wait to see what "HE" wants to achieve now.

I think he has a lot more to offer than Cadel Evans. (say no more)

smithy21

While Wiggins may have been the best TT'er in 2012 he was up against a Panzerwagon who had a season disrupted by injury.

Richmond Racer

smithy21 wrote:

While Wiggins may have been the best TT'er in 2012 he was up against a Panzerwagon who had a season disrupted by injury.

Just worth pointing out that Wiggins did beat Martin in their first TT match-up last year, at Algarve - a couple of months before Martin had his accident that started off his season's disruptions.

emadden

tim wand wrote:

Will Sky really pay Bradley Wiggins £1.5 million a year just to be a TT rider.

Wiggo says hes put on 7-8 kilo to ride the Worlds TT's and he cant ever see himself being a GC contender again if the routes are mountainous.

Will sky really allow this when the likes of Froome, Porte and Kennaugh can ride across the disciplines.

Is Wiggo selling himself short or just finding excuses for a poor season by 2012's standards.

I think he just realises that 2012 was a lucky one-off season where everything worked out really well for him. Wiggins is an exceptional Tester... but thats it. He knows that it will be another generation before we see a GT with as little amount of climbing as appeared at the '12 Tour.

Wiggins is on the road to retirement. If he doesn't pull off the World Champs TT, I would put my money on him calling it a day.

Richmond Racer

emadden wrote:

tim wand wrote:

Will Sky really pay Bradley Wiggins £1.5 million a year just to be a TT rider.

Wiggo says hes put on 7-8 kilo to ride the Worlds TT's and he cant ever see himself being a GC contender again if the routes are mountainous.

Will sky really allow this when the likes of Froome, Porte and Kennaugh can ride across the disciplines.

Is Wiggo selling himself short or just finding excuses for a poor season by 2012's standards.

I think he just realises that 2012 was a lucky one-off season where everything worked out really well for him. Wiggins is an exceptional Tester... but thats it. He knows that it will be another generation before we see a GT with as little amount of climbing as appeared at the '12 Tour.

Wiggins is on the road to retirement. If he doesn't pull off the World Champs TT, I would put my money on him calling it a day.

]


So...never mind the Tour, how many examples of your tag of 'an exceptional tester...but that's it' have won the sequence of P-N, ToR and the Dauphine?

Asking for a friend

Anonymous

emadden wrote:

tim wand wrote:

Will Sky really pay Bradley Wiggins £1.5 million a year just to be a TT rider.

Wiggo says hes put on 7-8 kilo to ride the Worlds TT's and he cant ever see himself being a GC contender again if the routes are mountainous.

Will sky really allow this when the likes of Froome, Porte and Kennaugh can ride across the disciplines.

Is Wiggo selling himself short or just finding excuses for a poor season by 2012's standards.

I think he just realises that 2012 was a lucky one-off season where everything worked out really well for him. Wiggins is an exceptional Tester... but thats it. He knows that it will be another generation before we see a GT with as little amount of climbing as appeared at the '12 Tour.

Wiggins is on the road to retirement. If he doesn't pull off the World Champs TT, I would put my money on him calling it a day.

Jesus. He won the Dauphine the year before as well. If you look at a lot of what he's said he has expressed an interest in going back to the track in Rio.

I think he will win the world TT and potentially the TTT, go around all year as the world and Olympic TT champion winning many TT's and potentially some one week races (like Martin), then at then end of the season go back to a full time track program, go to Rio and win another Olympic medal.

If this happens would you say he still hadn't lived up to your expectations.


Say Tom Boonen, who has had a poor year, goes and wins the Worlds does his year still count as a disappointment?

RichN95.

Richmond Racer wrote:

So...never mind the Tour, how many examples of your tag of 'an exceptional tester...but that's it' have won the sequence of P-N, ToR and the Dauphine?

Well, Jacques Anquetil and Miguel Indurain won two of them.

Richmond Racer

RichN95 wrote:

Richmond Racer wrote:

So...never mind the Tour, how many examples of your tag of 'an exceptional tester...but that's it' have won the sequence of P-N, ToR and the Dauphine?

Well, Jacques Anquetil and Miguel Indurain won two of them.

*sigh*

You know what I mean

emadden

Winning the sequence of sequence of P-N, ToR and the Dauphine has not been done before, but I would argue that that is because of the objectives of the riders who partake & timing in the season, rather than the difficulty of the parcours.

Romandie is treated by about 80% of the team leaders attending as a warm-up for the Giro. And as we know riders aiming for the Giro these days are not often aiming for a Tour win and hence will not be going all out for the Dauphine. Also, up until 16 years ago (I think) it was not possible to ride the Giro and Dauphine as they over-lapped. Hence, the potential number of years you could look at for a comparison are limited.

And as to Testers winning PN, ToR and Dauphine. The history of PN and ToR shows that strong TTs by testers have very frequently won those races. Less so for the Dauphine, so if anything, Wiggins performance in a fairly hilly 2012 Dauphine certainly get my kudos... but on the whole, Wiggins' 2012 successes came down to his TT'ing ability.

okgo

He used the tools at his disposal to get the best results he could, he did pretty well I'd say.

I still am struggling to see why he has purposefully put weight on, more mass means less aero I'd have thought, and less speed on any incline, and his power output hasn't changed since the days of him being a lot bigger so not sure whether its a bit of a cover up story to him just not being as arsed.

bigmat

Michael Hutchinson is a "tester and nothing else". In the Pro ranks, you could argue Tony Martin. But Wiggins? Vuelta podium and 5th on the Angliru, TdF champion, national road champion, road stage winner in a sprint finish, multiple world and Olympic track champion. To label him as a one trick pony is a bit harsh, don't you think. I think what you mean is he's not a pure climber. So what?

Richmond Racer

Wiggins is 1.90m, and is around 76kg now

Martin is 1.86m and around 75kg

The fecking lard-asses. Call Fat Fighters.

Ed-tron

Wiggins goes in the TT on Friday at this Eneco Tour, though only 13.2 km :S

Rodrego Hernandez

Road Worlds are this years target and Paris Roubaix next springs.

The team wanted to send him to Colorado but as you rightly state - they have asked Sutton to look after him again. That's if he's not looking after another tour winner by then.

Wiggins will be OK, he needs to lose the chamois sniffers and hangers on and get back to basics. Shane Sutton is the man to do that.

ozzzyosborn206

I think possibly some of the weight he has gained could be extra muscle and therefore make him faster in a TT. But i think the truth is he was fed up of living like a monk, we all know he likes a drink and probably his food to, he is just living a more normal life. But if he said that it wouldn't look good on him or sky so he has been asked the question why he has put on weight and has rolled off a load of rubbish that sounds good for a p-r perspective. As for the Worlds TT, I think we will see Phinney in the mix again

Rodrego Hernandez

ozzzyosborn206 wrote:

I think possibly some of the weight he has gained could be extra muscle and therefore make him faster in a TT. But i think the truth is he was fed up of living like a monk, we all know he likes a drink and probably his food to, he is just living a more normal life. But if he said that it wouldn't look good on him or sky so he has been asked the question why he has put on weight and has rolled off a load of rubbish that sounds good for a p-r perspective. As for the Worlds TT, I think we will see Phinney in the mix again

Needs the muscle for the classics. As the quote came from him it's likely pretty accurate, It's when Brailsford speaks that the bullShit flows

ContrelaMontre

Richmond Racer wrote:

...

There's some interesting rumour about what he could be doing beyond end-14, if you listen to the latest Humans Invent cycling podcast. Unfortunately Richard Moore and Lionel Birnie dont spill the beans. But in an interview Wiggins gave yday he talked about shooting for another gold in Rio.

Listening to the Humans Invent podcast putting 2 and 2 together and getting €2m. Tinkoff looking to setup a big bucks super team after falling out with Riis might be after a proven leader...

RichN95.

ContrelaMontre wrote:

Richmond Racer wrote:

...

There's some interesting rumour about what he could be doing beyond end-14, if you listen to the latest Humans Invent cycling podcast. Unfortunately Richard Moore and Lionel Birnie dont spill the beans. But in an interview Wiggins gave yday he talked about shooting for another gold in Rio.

Listening to the Humans Invent podcast putting 2 and 2 together and getting €2m. Tinkoff looking to setup a big bucks super team after falling out with Riis might be after a proven leader...

I don't how you came to that conclusion. He's more likely to play for Wigan Warriors than ride for Tinkov. I would expect that the lucrative deal is a bike range - like Boardman, Hoy and Pendleton before him.

milton50

Daz555 wrote:

TailWindHome wrote:

I would have thought Wiggins' account with Sky is clear. Everything else now is a bonus.


I do hope Cancellara is bluffing with this gambit of not being bothered about the Worlds TT.

Really want to see Cancellara v Wiggins v Martin when all are healthy, in form and motivated.

Me too. Problem for Canc though is that I think he knows he can not beat Martin or Wiggo over a long TT. If he turns up and is in shape then he is racing for 3rd place and he likely knows it.

He hasn't been that bothered about TTing for years now. For one because he's been there and done that dozens of times over and second because there's not really much contest between winning the likes of P-R and Flanders and winning the Worlds TT.

I would love to see a contest between the Cancellara of 2008 and Wiggins and Tony Martin. That would be an awesome battle.

morstar

So basically, Wiggins has one notable weakness that he isn't a 'pure' climber and this somehow makes him a one trick pony!?
Laughable really. I'd say the ability to keep winning different types of event shows an incredible versatility that we should be in awe of rather than keep looking at his only obvious limitation.
Yes he's an emotional guy who needs new challenges and mental focus but that is why he is establishing palmares like no other in the current era. If he wins TT gold, a monument and another Olympic gold + maybe the hour, I reckon he should be recognised as one of the greats.
If it's god damn easy to TT to win everything why haven't Canc' and Tony Martin done so?

tailwindhome

morstar wrote:

why he is establishing palmares like no other in the current era.

He's a good rider. But let's not be silly.

He has never won a one day race of any significance.
He has never won a road stage of a GT.

morstar

TailWindHome wrote:

morstar wrote:

why he is establishing palmares like no other in the current era.

He's a good rider. But let's not be silly.

He has never won a one day race of any significance.
He has never won a road stage of a GT.

Maybe a poor choice of words as I mean if he does win a one day classic. Road stage of a GT, meh, that absence is directly linked to his one limitation. If you're going to pick arbitrary elements of racing then you can stipulate bunch sprints and all sorts. I'd suggest that all sports are becoming more and more specialised and yet he has won many types of event, beating many specialists in the process.

Regarding multiple discipline success, seriously, who else in recent history has won such a broad range of events?

andyp

morstar wrote:

Regarding multiple discipline success, seriously, who else in recent history has won such a broad range of events?

tailwindhome

morstar wrote:

TailWindHome wrote:

morstar wrote:

why he is establishing palmares like no other in the current era.

He's a good rider. But let's not be silly.

He has never won a one day race of any significance.
He has never won a road stage of a GT.

Maybe a poor choice of words as I mean if he does win a one day classic. Road stage of a GT, meh, that absence is directly linked to his one limitation. If you're going to pick arbitrary elements of racing then you can stipulate bunch sprints and all sorts. I'd suggest that all sports are becoming more and more specialised and yet he has won many types of event, beating many specialists in the process.

Regarding multiple discipline success, seriously, who else in recent history has won such a broad range of events?

Well to be fair to the lad....he has won a sprint!

My point is that people (dare I say it British people) get carried away with how great he is.



Cadel Evans?