Giro 2018: Stage 4, CATANIA - CALTAGIRONE 8 May 2018 / Tuesday / 198 km *Spoilers*

milton50

Rick Chasey wrote:

Salsiccia1 wrote:

[

It's so early in the race to write him off though, even if he's got some ground to make up.

I've absolutely written him off.

He's lost 40 and 20 secs on terrain you would expect him to lose none.

I love how a couple of days ago you couldn't see how Dumoulin could win it and Froome is just too strong. After 4 stages you've now completely written Froome off :P

m.r.m.

Well to be honest already being a minute down to an in shape Dumoulin is quite a steep challenge. That being said I also think it's premature to call it.

Pross

Froome in form over the climbs yet to come in 2.5 weeks can easily take back a minute on Dumoulin. However, Froome in form doesn't lose time on stages early in a GT and he's usually one of the first GC riders across the line on these sorts of finishes (the prologue time loss was less of a guide IMO). I'm not sticking my neck on the line either way but writing him off this early is foolish.

phreak

The finish was pretty technical as well, so positioning was so important. I didn't see many Sky jerseys near the front from quite a way out, so not sure if they were caught out somewhere but they didn't seem to be in a good position before the climb even started.

blazing_saddles

It pays to watch on a decent sized tv screen, or where some perhaps not watching at all?
I know it is possible that Eurosport threw some confusion into the mix, but there was none.
Froome and Poels were there all the time. Coming to the foot of the final ramp, they were just behind the pointy bit towards the head of the bunch.
So, to me the scenario must have been that Poels did as he said at interview and tried to keep Froome in touch.
But, by the time they came around the final bend, the split had happened: Poels was in front, Froome behind.

Ergo, Froome was going backwards as others came forward.
So, not good. If this is his Giro Tour double strategy, it ain't working.

Oh and the other thing if Froome flunks: Dumoulin isn't a shoe in.
For what it is worth, I think this course is much harder than last year.

TheBigBean

TheBigBean wrote:

Any sign of Lopez?

Next to Froome. Not good.

rick_chasey

Milton50 wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Salsiccia1 wrote:

[

It's so early in the race to write him off though, even if he's got some ground to make up.

I've absolutely written him off.

He's lost 40 and 20 secs on terrain you would expect him to lose none.

I love how a couple of days ago you couldn't see how Dumoulin could win it and Froome is just too strong. After 4 stages you've now completely written Froome off :P

I had a “unless Chris’ form takes a nosedive” caveat.

But yes, I put my balls on the line when it comes to my predictions.

andyp

The severity of the final week makes time losses in the first week of the Giro less punitive than in the Tour of the Vuelta. So it might be a bit premature to write Froome off just yet, but he doesn't look like he's in form. It could be the result of the crash on Friday, so Thursday will be the first indication of where his form really is at.

gweeds

He hasn’t looked in form all year.

inseine

Froome forced to a near stop with 1k to go, according to Sky. I didn't see that, but I think he must have already been too far back

blazing_saddles

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
Yes, before you ask, Dumoulin was caught with his pants down again, so to speak.
Seems he did learn a thing or two at Astana, after all.
Nice lad.

gweeds

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
Yes, before you ask, Dumoulin was caught with his pants down again, so to speak.
Seems he did learn a thing or two at Astana, after all.
Nice lad.

I’m guessing payback will come.

Seems a daft move with 2 1/2 weeks to go.

Vino'sGhost

im going to have to watch this again. i suspect Frome is having stern words with himself over his museli. BOOM goes his double, I cant imagine hell hang around for the duration unless theres a rapid improvement. He's repeatedly talked about 5 tour victorys.

DeVlaeminck

I think froome will stay until it's unrealistic that he could challenge. He's here to win and must back himself to pull back a couple of minutes in the final week if he can ride into form - plus there is a degree of uncertainty over him riding the Tour.

With Rick on Pozzo, tipped him as an outsider pre race based on his form coming in and he continues to impress. History suggests he'll come up short but who knows he wouldn't be the first rider to take a significant step forwards after years just outside the top rank of contenders.

Vino'sGhost

Ok ive just watched the finish again, Froome and one other were def up there through the technical bit through town, it was just a mental bunfight. I can only imagine that to avoid that Froome and team would have had to take control and ride on the front superfast for the last ten K but even then with that technical approach to the ramp it wouldnt have been simple.

He's lost a bit of time, had a bit of a kicking and looked a bit beaten up and shocked at the end. Hell be fine.

mididoctors

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
.

really?

timoid.

mididoctors wrote:

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
.

really?

Can you imagine what Hinault would have done to someone who tried to pull that one?

mididoctors

Timoid. wrote:

mididoctors wrote:

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
.

really?

Can you imagine what Hinault would have done to someone who tried to pull that one?

I'm wondering what its going to cost UAE in this giro?

Dorset_Boy

Timoid. wrote:

mididoctors wrote:

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
.

really?

Can you imagine what Hinault would have done to someone who tried to pull that one?

Maybe Hinault already has punched Aru - afterall he has a face only his mother can love!

blazing_saddles

mididoctors wrote:

Blazing Saddles wrote:

So, according to Nick Roche, Aru had his UAE boys put the hammer down when a load of the GC boys had stopped for tinkle.
.

really?

With the gap down to a controllable two minutes as we approached the feed zone after 90km, for some reason the UAE team went full gas on a climb, causing pandemonium again.

Myself [Nicolas Roche] and Rohan, Dumoulin, Kreuziger, Pinot, Yates and others had all stopped for a pee when the bunch suddenly exploded in five or six groups so there was a lot of bitching about that.

Although there’s no rule against riding hard whenever you want to, I don’t really know why they did it and I suffered to regain contact just at the top of the climb where UAE stopped pulling and we took over again, calming it down to make sure some of our guys who were dropped got back to the front.

So, it seems they attacked the Pink jersey. Now, if one casts one's mind back to last year's Tour.....................