Should Mark Cavendish swallow his pride and retire?

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Comments

  • Charlie_Croker
    Charlie_Croker Posts: 1,727
    I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed Cav winning – absolutely and totally brilliant!

    The Manx Missile rides again! :D

  • Dorset_Boy
    Dorset_Boy Posts: 7,573
    DQS saying Cav is the first rider to win multiple stages across 8 editions of the Tour.
    Yet another thing to add to the list of his achievements.
  • amrushton
    amrushton Posts: 1,312
    Cav was desperate for a last chance. it happened and right now he is golden with a team/lead out that is committed to him. he knows it cant get any better. Another year could see him ill/injured/against some wunderkind sprinter in the manner that Pogacar appeared and lit the race. Get to Paris intact with perhaps another stage (at least) in the bag and thats it. he will have done what many dream of/never thought possible.
  • No_Ta_Doctor
    No_Ta_Doctor Posts: 14,656
    Interesting to see on DK TV2 that while Cav is saying "don't mention that name, I'm just pleased to be here" Mørkøv says that he personally believes in the dream of green in Paris/Merckx record and thinks Cav can do it.
    Cav seemed quite chuffed when they told him what Mørkøv said.
    Warning No formatter is installed for the format
  • Lanterne_Rogue
    Lanterne_Rogue Posts: 4,334
    On the retirement question, no matter how neat an ending retiring immediately would provide (and it's making rather too many assumptions about what happens over the next couple of weeks for my taste), I suspect he won't - you're a long time out of the game and people who know Cavendish always mention how much he enjoys racing. If pointlessly toiling around with the peloton for a few years didn't tip him into retirement it's hard to imagine that returning to winning ways will manage it.
    Twitter: @canocola @thedreadships
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,985
    edited July 2021
    .
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  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    Petacchi was winning at 39
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • amrushton
    amrushton Posts: 1,312
    Made the time cut today. Others didn't. 2 less to worry about.
  • mrb123
    mrb123 Posts: 4,819
    amrushton said:

    Made the time cut today. Others didn't. 2 less to worry about.

    Merlier abandoned too. If he can avoid getting timed out anywhere he really will be overwhelming favourite for the remaining sprint stages.
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 11,985
    edited July 2021
    Who were the 2, Merlier aside who are out of the race, or just had any points removed?

    Saw MVDP has left the race too.
    Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
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  • Lanterne_Rogue
    Lanterne_Rogue Posts: 4,334
    daniel_b said:

    Who were the 2, Merlier aside who are out of the race, or just had any points removed?

    Saw MVDP has left the race too.

    Coquard and Demare.

    Demare struggled the day before, toiling in after the gruppetto, so not really a surprise.
    Twitter: @canocola @thedreadships
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,463
    daniel_b said:

    Who were the 2, Merlier aside who are out of the race, or just had any points removed?

    Saw MVDP has left the race too.

    Demare was one but he wasn't much of a threat.

    Colbrelli looks the biggest threat if he keeps taking points on mountain stages and the loss of sprinters probably helps him more than Cav as they would likely finish behind Cav but ahead of Colbrelli in bunch sprints. DQS really need to shut down any moves Colbrelli tries to get into.
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 21,927
    No other teams to work on flat stages too.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,463
    TheBigBean said:

    No other teams to work on flat stages too.

    DSM usually seem quite keen to get Bol a 6th - 8th place and Bike Exchange might help out as they don't seem to have much else to do.
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    TheBigBean said:

    No other teams to work on flat stages too.

    Well Cav will certainly be laying into FDJ for not riding for a sprint now.
    Correlation is not causation.
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,726
    edited July 2021
    Pross said:

    TheBigBean said:

    No other teams to work on flat stages too.

    DSM usually seem quite keen to get Bol a 6th - 8th place and Bike Exchange might help out as they don't seem to have much else to do.
    Arkea might, given how good Bouhanni has looked so far.

    If Vingegaard wasn't in contention for the GC, it's a fair bet Jumbo would want to try and salvage a stage with their Teunissen WVA combo.

    DQS could also think about Morkov doing what he's done at the Intermediate Sprints and keep on rolling. He's clearly faster than Colbrelli and Bling.
    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    There was someone on the Cycling Tips podcast (presumably a journalist) who was convinced that Cavendish had been planning to usurp Bennett and do the Tour from the day he rejoined DQS. He was Irish though.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • ddraver
    ddraver Posts: 26,698
    Genuinely - what has happened to Demare this year..?
    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • bobmcstuff
    bobmcstuff Posts: 11,435
    blazing_saddles said:

    Pross said:

    TheBigBean said:

    No other teams to work on flat stages too.

    DSM usually seem quite keen to get Bol a 6th - 8th place and Bike Exchange might help out as they don't seem to have much else to do.
    Arkea might, given how good Bouhanni has looked so far.

    If Vingegaard wasn't in contention for the GC, it's a fair bet Jumbo would want to try and salvage a stage with their Teunissen WVA combo.

    DQS could also think about Morkov doing what he's done at the Intermediate Sprints and keep on rolling. He's clearly faster than Colbrelli and Bling.
    Bouhanni and Bol will both fancy their chances.

    Isn't Philipsen still here too? Alpecin would presumably want to set him up still. Probably makes it easier for them since they won't be arsing about trying to choose between him and Merlier.
  • Lanterne_Rogue
    Lanterne_Rogue Posts: 4,334
    Problem for Alpecin and Philipsen is that Merlier and MvdP were two thirds of his leadout. There's been a bit of discussion about whether Merlier was giving it his all in the leadouts or trying to sprint for himself though - maybe it makes Philipsen's job easier if he knows he has to surf wheels? It was also always the plan for Merlier to leave at some point during the race.

    Bouhanni had the fastest top speed on the third sprint stage (Cavendish's second), if that means much - he suggested afterwards he didn't quite have it, but it was positioning that let him down as much as anything else.

    Twitter: @canocola @thedreadships
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    edited July 2021
    bobmcstuff said:



    Bouhanni and Bol will both fancy their chances.

    Isn't Philipsen still here too? Alpecin would presumably want to set him up still. Probably makes it easier for them since they won't be arsing about trying to choose between him and Merlier.


    Philipsen is still there but he's lost not only Merlier, but also Van der Poel from his lead out. Elsewhere Van Aert will most likely enter the fray. The day after Ventoux he'll certainly have his eye on.

    There's five chances left.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • gweeds
    gweeds Posts: 2,613
    RichN95. said:

    There was someone on the Cycling Tips podcast (presumably a journalist) who was convinced that Cavendish had been planning to usurp Bennett and do the Tour from the day he rejoined DQS. He was Irish though.

    That sounds like wishful thinking to me.

    My guess is Bennett wanted a big pay-rise. Pat told him no. It all got a bit aggy with the agent and team and went south from there. Bennett should know that Lefevre operates a ‘no rider is bigger than the team’ policy, and also knows Cav is a team player with a lot to offer regardless of wins.

    But that doesn’t make as good a headline.
    Napoleon, don't be jealous that I've been chatting online with babes all day. Besides, we both know that I'm training to be a cage fighter.
  • takethehighroad
    takethehighroad Posts: 6,822
    I saw some confusion yesterday over the green jersey rules.

    Some were saying that if you're outside the time limit but get kept in you lose all the points from the race so far, some were saying you just lost whatever you'd won that (i.e. at the Intermediate Sprint)

    Does anyone know the actual rules?
  • Lanterne_Rogue
    Lanterne_Rogue Posts: 4,334
    All your points are toast


    Twitter: @canocola @thedreadships
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    edited July 2021
    Those rules are a little ambiguous (standard UCI). In practice the autobus is usually deducted the points that the winner got that date when this has happened in the past.

    Although with no stages left with an early climb, this should be a moot point.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 21,927
    They should really just standardise it. If 10 riders are over the limit then they are all out. If 50 riders are over the limit then 50% are out based on lots, and the other 50% lose all points etc. Maybe with additional rules around how much over the limit.
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    It is fairly standardised. It's just badly written in the rules. If a group of 20% misses the cut they stay in. It's just very rare that it happens so everyone forgets (last time I can remember was the famous Formigal stage in the 2016 Vuelta)

    The rule is there to stop substandard riders into the race and stop clearly injured/exhausting riders riding on, not to eliminate large sections of the peloton.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 21,927
    edited July 2021
    RichN95. said:

    It is fairly standardised. It's just badly written in the rules. If a group of 20% misses the cut they stay in. It's just very rare that it happens so everyone forgets (last time I can remember was the famous Formigal stage in the 2016 Vuelta)

    The rule is there to stop substandard riders into the race and stop clearly injured/exhausting riders riding on, not to eliminate large sections of the peloton.

    Yes, I complained about it then. I think they should draw lots and eliminate some of them. The main purpose of the rule is to stop riders having a rest day, but when enough of them have a rest day there is no consequence as was the case in 2016.

    But you're right that there do seem to be rules in place, just not the ones I'd like.
  • Mad_Malx
    Mad_Malx Posts: 5,183
    Can’t see how making it an actual lottery improves matters
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 21,927
    Mad_Malx said:

    Can’t see how making it an actual lottery improves matters

    It would have stopped the 2016 Vuelta rest day and made it a race. Essentially the riders were saying that the organisers won't throw out that many riders, because otherwise it wouldn't be a race, so what could they do? Removing points wouldn't encourage them either, but a bit of decimation might have.

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