Should Ineos swallow their pride and disband?
Inspired by a Philippa York article in cycling news about team Ineos...
"Arriving at the start in Brittany with four protected riders, the tactics seemed fluid at best and confusing at worst... Thomas was damaged, Porte had settled into the support role he had returned to do, Geoghegan Hart was looking more than a little shell-shocked with the level that exists at the Tour. Carapaz was left to take on Pogačar but was ultimately left behind as the Ecuadorian was out-climbed, out-sprinted, and comprehensively out-ridden against the clock.
That they never looked like winning a single stage is a damning conclusion that Jim Ratcliffe, the team owner, will have noted. He’ll be asking where his money went and wondering about the loss of momentum from a team known for planning ahead."
Braislford with serious health problems
Nicolas Portal r.i.p.
Bernal with a dodgy back.
Geraint unable to stay on his bike.
Carapaz out of puff
Porte past it.
After a "disastrous" tour should the team disband?
"Arriving at the start in Brittany with four protected riders, the tactics seemed fluid at best and confusing at worst... Thomas was damaged, Porte had settled into the support role he had returned to do, Geoghegan Hart was looking more than a little shell-shocked with the level that exists at the Tour. Carapaz was left to take on Pogačar but was ultimately left behind as the Ecuadorian was out-climbed, out-sprinted, and comprehensively out-ridden against the clock.
That they never looked like winning a single stage is a damning conclusion that Jim Ratcliffe, the team owner, will have noted. He’ll be asking where his money went and wondering about the loss of momentum from a team known for planning ahead."
Braislford with serious health problems
Nicolas Portal r.i.p.
Bernal with a dodgy back.
Geraint unable to stay on his bike.
Carapaz out of puff
Porte past it.
After a "disastrous" tour should the team disband?
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Have a look at their results this season. Loads of teams would *love* to have had that kind of success.
Their Tour was wrecked by a stupid woman with a sign. That's it.
I think they'll have to adjust to a world where they don't have the best GC rider in the world (nor do they have the best classics rider).
Carapaz was right in the mix for the win on the 2 Pyrenean MTFs, but Pog is just stronger than every other rider in the peloton at the moment.
The early crashes hit Ineos hard, and impacted the race overall, though Pog would still have won the GC.
Sure it wasn't the Tour that Ineos would have hoped for, but they've had a very good season otherwise so far.
So yes, let's hope Mr Ratcliff pulls the plug as that would be really good for pro cycling............................
.....not.
i think they'll be alright.
i think they'll be alright.
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Also from that article
" I’ve been wondering when was the last time the multiple-leaders scenario produced the goods and, from memory, it might just have been the 1985 Tour with Bernard Hinault and Greg Lemond. "
I'm going to say 2019 with Thomas and Bernal. And before that 2018 with Thomas and Froome. There was also Froome/Landa in 2017 and Wiggins/Froome in 2012.
ROI? does Ratcliffe care ?
Their record speaks for itself, so they’re not enjoying the dominance they had on the Tour, and that’s a bad thing for the sport?
Equally the publicity and profile for the team is still the same but for different reasons
Desmond Tutu
If they stopped now, Ineos would have had the sort of season most teams would give their right legs for so...no.
- @ddraver
Journos: "who's the real leader.?"
Team: "the road will decide"
The Road: *decides on rider x*
Journos: "rider x was the real leader in the team's bluff"
@DrHeadgear
The Vikings are coming!
You say that as though it was once something else
I can't help but think they need to revisit that strategy.
If that is viewed as failure, then that says more about the state of the sport than Ineos. Most other teams would kill their grandma for those results.
Maybe not disband but they need some new and fresh ideas.
Some innovation from the DS team as helping Pog get back on to JV after Ventoux made me so angry.
If their objective was to get Carapaz on the podium, then job done. But if it was to be disruptive and bring chaos to the race then it was a total fail.
Don't spend the last week riding for Pogacar though, not cool.
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No-one was competing with Pog this year, it shows the level of success that Ineos / Sky have had over the last decade that people are heralding a Tour podium as some kind of failure. If Radcliffe is wondering where his money has gone I dread to think what the people putting money into any team other than UAE, JV, DQS, Alpecin and Bahrain (maybe Lotto) are wondering.
York has become a bit of a parody of the ex-sportsman making a living off past glories. It's going to be fun treating this thread like the Cav one when Tom P dishes Pog up with some of his own medicine next year
I suspect Thomas will not ride another GT as leader / joint leader (he may not even be with the team as he's out of contract), and that Porte will not be there next season. A team of the following (max age 26) doesn't look too shabby - a bit light on flatland riders but Ganna is teh equivalent of 2 or 3 whilst Pidcock and Hayter are more than comfortable on pretty much any terrain.
Bernal
Pidcock
Hayter
Martinez
TGH
Ganna
Dunbar
De Plus
Who's the future and who's the past.
I have no doubt they will recover and mount a serious challenge for the tour again next year.
Castroviejo has been superb but most of the time Carapaz was left to attack on his own with no support.
Last year was obviously a right off, and the year before none of their super domestiques was able to out ride Alaphalippe, which is surely not what they'd want.