Bardet 2015

specialgueststar

develop to next level yeay or nay ?

easy to forget his 10th liege Bastogne Liege , 5th Dauphine - but not 6th Tour

joelsim

He's good but I don't think he's a Quintana. Hopefully he beats Valverde anyway.

The_Boy

Tour Route will suit him seeing as he has no real TT to speak of, though the TTT isn't really great for him either.

Don't think he's gonna a genuine contender ftw in GTs - more of a top 10/top 5 guy which is no mean feat. Reckon He'll win a Liege at some point though - said that in his first year in the pros.

jimmythecuckoo

Looks a little bit leaner than last year unless its photo shape.

ugo.santalucia

It would be good to have a real French contender... don't think Pinot is one

RichN95.

ugo.santalucia wrote:

It would be good to have a real French contender... don't think Pinot is one

I'm the opposite. I think Pinot is the real deal and Bardet isn't. (As a top notch GC rider - Bardet will still have a decent career)

milton50

It's so difficult to tell how riders will develop, even without the added unknown of new riders coming through. Who could have predicted after seeing Bradley Wiggins withdraw in 2007 that he would win the Tour 5 years later?

Personally, I don't see how either of them is going to challenge the likes of Contador, Froome and Quintana in the Tour for the foreseeable future.

If you look at the headline fact, Pinot's 3rd place in the Tour, then you might think he's a credible challenger. But people forget that he was 8 minutes down on Nibali and finished behind a 37-year-old as well. So I wouldn't get too excited yet.

ugo.santalucia

Neither of them is any good at time trialling, but Pinot is almost the finished article... might get a bit better, but I doubt he will get dramatically better. Bardet is an unknown quantity, he might turn out to be an awesome climber, or even not.

RichN95.

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Neither of them is any good at time trialling, but Pinot is almost the finished article... might get a bit better, but I doubt he will get dramatically better. Bardet is an unknown quantity, he might turn out to be an awesome climber, or even not.

I think there's room for improvement in Pinot's head though. If he starts believing he is a contender and riding like one, rather than looking for a safe top ten, then I think he will become a contender.

ugo.santalucia

RichN95 wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Neither of them is any good at time trialling, but Pinot is almost the finished article... might get a bit better, but I doubt he will get dramatically better. Bardet is an unknown quantity, he might turn out to be an awesome climber, or even not.

I think there's room for improvement in Pinot's head though. If he starts believing he is a contender and riding like one, rather than looking for a safe top ten, then I think he will become a contender.

He needs a mentor and doesn't have one at FDJ... Nibali had Basso at Liquigas and he benefitted from being with someone who knew how to win a 3 weeks race.
Froome learnt something from Wiggins, Contador had Bruyneel and Quintana is a cycling genius

joelsim

Not helped by his descending fears, but he just about managed to do that last summer.

dish_dash

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Quintana is a cycling genius

He also has Valverde at Movistar. Though I have no idea what the dynamic between the two of them is...

ugo.santalucia

dish_dash wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Quintana is a cycling genius

He also has Valverde at Movistar. Though I have no idea what the dynamic between the two of them is...

I don't think Valverde is much of a mentor... he might teach him how to suck a wheel, but Quintana doesn't seem that kind of rider. For someone his age is surprisingly mature... haven't seen him making a tactical error yet... his Giro win was a masterpiece

EKIMIKE

Unzue has been around the block too!

Pinot showed a good progression against the clock last year and Bardet has stated he is giving that aspect some serious attention. Things look promising in this respect.

I really can't agree that Pinot is nearly the finished article - he's 24! I think people are quick to judge him, like Sagan, as if he were in his prime. The analysis of his results to date should be the opposite - he is way ahead of the conventional development curve and has proven that he is more than just a flash in the pan.

I think both will only get better off the back of last year's experiences at the Tour. Pinot espcecially looks like a rider that needs confidence to thrive.

ugo.santalucia

EKIMIKE wrote:

Unzue has been around the block too!

Pinot showed a good progression against the clock last year and Bardet has stated he is giving that aspect some serious attention. Things look promising in this respect.

I really can't agree that Pinot is nearly the finished article - he's 24! I think people are quick to judge him, like Sagan, as if he were in his prime. The analysis of his results to date should be the opposite - he is way ahead of the conventional development curve and has proven that he is more than just a flash in the pan.

I think both will only get better off the back of last year's experiences at the Tour. Pinot espcecially looks like a rider that needs confidence to thrive.

Some riders are late developers, because they struggle to find space in their team or suffer injuries through their career, but Pinot has been racing as leader of FDJ in GT for a while now.
Nibali was only allowed to be team captain at the Tour 2009 and Vuelta 2010... which he won, age 25. Nibali was a more complete rider: good climber, good TT and excellent descender. Pinot might get tactically better and might improve his TT marginally, but he won't suddenly leave everyone for dead on a climb and if he does, he might get caught on the descent. There are still 2-3 years in Nibali and Contador, maybe more in Froome... the three of them are superior to Pinot. Then there is Quintana and for sure someone else will crop up, possibly Aru, which seems to me a stronger climber. I doubt Pinot will ever win a GT

EKIMIKE

Nibali is actually a good prototype for someone like Pinot to follow. Use the Giro and Vuelta to develop leadership skills and the confidence of victory, then take on the Tour and GT superstars with that behind you.

Let's face it, Nibali was hardly blowing second rate GT riders away on climbs before his 2013 Giro win, let alone the Contador's, Schleck's and Basso's of that time. His palmares looked a lot like Pinot's. He beat Uran and Evans (way past his GT prime) in the 2013 Giro and Mosquera and Velits in the 2010 Vuelta (plus Igor Anton was very much the strongest climber before crashing out).

If you put Pinot up against that level of quality, I think there'd be a fair chance of him winning.

The point is, Nibali's never beaten a top rate GC rider in a GT or even ridden a Contador, Froome or Quintana off his wheel but he has clearly developed a lot and been successful since his days of 6th at the 2009 Tour and 3rd at the Giro 2010.

Pinot could do something similar, but the pool of GT talent is somewhat deeper these days.

DeadCalm

Interesting interview with Romain at velo101.com.

Been working on his TT but somewhat reluctantly by the sounds of it. Says he doesn't want to compromise his climbing.

Not prepared to state his ambitions for the tour medium term as he isn't experienced enough. This year just looking to get as close to top 5 as possible. Wants to win a classic in the short term. Feels LBL is his best bet but he'll need to be clever as he doesn't have the best sprint.

Interestingly, says he wants to be a similar rider to Valverde, inasmuch as he is competitive throughout the season and not just focused on the tour.

http://www.velo101.com/pros/article/ag2 ... det--11772

joelsim

ugo.santalucia wrote:

EKIMIKE wrote:

Unzue has been around the block too!

Pinot showed a good progression against the clock last year and Bardet has stated he is giving that aspect some serious attention. Things look promising in this respect.

I really can't agree that Pinot is nearly the finished article - he's 24! I think people are quick to judge him, like Sagan, as if he were in his prime. The analysis of his results to date should be the opposite - he is way ahead of the conventional development curve and has proven that he is more than just a flash in the pan.

I think both will only get better off the back of last year's experiences at the Tour. Pinot espcecially looks like a rider that needs confidence to thrive.

Some riders are late developers, because they struggle to find space in their team or suffer injuries through their career, but Pinot has been racing as leader of FDJ in GT for a while now.
Nibali was only allowed to be team captain at the Tour 2009 and Vuelta 2010... which he won, age 25. Nibali was a more complete rider: good climber, good TT and excellent descender. Pinot might get tactically better and might improve his TT marginally, but he won't suddenly leave everyone for dead on a climb and if he does, he might get caught on the descent. There are still 2-3 years in Nibali and Contador, maybe more in Froome... the three of them are superior to Pinot. Then there is Quintana and for sure someone else will crop up, possibly Aru, which seems to me a stronger climber. I doubt Pinot will ever win a GT

I agree. More youngsters coming through like Chaves, the Yates', Lopez Moreno (and Contreras), Power, Formolo just to name a few

ugo.santalucia

DeadCalm wrote:

Interesting interview with Romain at velo101.com.

Been working on his TT but somewhat reluctantly by the sounds of it. Says he doesn't want to compromise his climbing.

Not prepared to state his ambitions for the tour medium term as he isn't experienced enough. This year just looking to get as close to top 5 as possible. Wants to win a classic in the short term. Feels LBL is his best bet but he'll need to be clever as he doesn't have the best sprint.

Interestingly, says he wants to be a similar rider to Valverde, inasmuch as he is competitive throughout the season and not just focused on the tour.

http://www.velo101.com/pros/article/ag2 ... det--11772

I think he fails to understand that improving his TT won't affect his climbing... it's a myth... look at Contador, look at Froome. It's not about beefing up, but having a better position and making the most out of the power he's got

specialgueststar

A sprint, as often, and a victory of Mark Cavendish concluded Classica de Almeria but for AG2R LA MONDIALE Pro Cycling Team, it has been a good collective result, with the king of mountain and the most aggressive rider prize after a long breakaway for Romain Bardet and a 7th place for Lloyd Mondory.

or Romain Bardet, it was a test. "It’s a good day of work, he says. I decided to ride in front, like during my first seasons with the professionals, being free to attack and to be aggressive. To day’s efforts will be useful for the Ruta del Sol, next week. The general behaviour of the group is a satisfaction."