- SportingNonsense: Racing a GT would be a massive moment for the team, especially after being in the lowest division last season.
- CountArach: Thanks. And, I hope you are right about Ballan. Maybe his cobble stat of 74 is the magic number which allows him to go on those lucrative mid-late stage attacks.
- SotD: I suppose the wage isn't that ginormous, looking at the transfers on the whole. For sure, every, EVERY!, race day counts with Contador.
- ember: No doubt whatsoever, it's all about giving him some good support, though he probably won't need it!
- Shonak: Sounds good to me.
- Ian Butler: I have no idea where we will finish mate. But, given the massive advantage of the relegating PT teams and exisiting PCT teams I will go crazy if we promote, a top 10 looks a very tall order. Hard to say though.
The Bolivian will fit in nicely with the team, from what we have seen definitely a keg cog in the TTT machine. This really could be a rider to stay with the team for a long time.
#7: Jaime Alberto Castañeda 110K (SPR:80, ACC:79, REC:78)
The first Colombian, ever, on our humble roster is certainly no slouch. This pure sprinter, at times, mixed it up against the very best in the PCT division last season, grabbing a podium finish here and there. With flat roads and the speeds high, watch out for Castaneda.
#8: Maxim Iglinskiy 70K (MNT:77, HILL:72, REC:72)
Top 10 in the CT rankings last season, Maxim Iglinskiy flies the flag high at Bonsucro for the Eurasians! He may not be the rider he was, however, the stage race specialist still has plenty left in the legs and plenty left to offer Bonsucro.
It was around this time in the transfer window that Bonsucro said fair thee well to one of its favourite sons! Sergio Godoy's departure to Alpina - Avianca is the first time Bonsucro have ever sold a rider. It was with a heavy heart that we encouraged this deal, however, the funds gained from the deal did allow to us to use up the whole of our wage cap again, after losing much of it in the deal to acquire Contador.
We have fond memories of Godoy finishing top 5 in both the Clasico RCN and Tour of Utah, late on in the season which still gave us some hope after suffering some calamities. We wish him the best at his new South American team.
----
Signing #9: Segundo Navarette 55K (FL:73, TT:74, SPR:73)
Segundo Navarette will be the first Ecuadorian to ride for Bonsucro next season. We really are tallying off the South American countries aren't we! He will be a domestique, expect him to feature heavily in the flat races.
#10: Kiel Reijnen 74K (TT:74, SPR:72, ACC:79)
The American is in a similar mould to Navarette. That is not to say we will see him in all of the same races. Reijnen is already locked in to our Tour of America squad, vowing to give his all for the Bonsucro cause.
#12: Alex Diniz 50K (MNT:75, REC:75, FGHT:74)
After some high bidding drove him away from our grasp last season, Alex Diniz joins Bonsucro for the minimum amount. A good deal for a rider who was often seen attacking out of the bunch in the CT mountains last season, even if it often came to nothing. He and Iglinskiy both come from, disbanded, Maloja Mountain Nomads.
#13: Jeremy Roy 386K (HILL:79, FL:75, FGHT:77)
After some tense moments, we got Roy! At the start of the transfer window we didn't really have any notion of getting a top puncheur, but things quickly change. Apart from Contador, it has to be said Roy will be the most protected rider at Bonsucro.
Now last season he didn't finish in the top 200 in the PCT rankings, with less than 100 points to his name. But we are, almost, guaranteeing he will finish well in the top 100 with well over 200 PCT points to his name this time around. Under-performing and poor planning won't burden Roy this season. At least at 386K they better not!!
#14: Mauricio Sanz 76K (FL:73, COB:73, FGHT:75)
Now we won't be going to many cobbled races this season, however, in the ones we do we need some firepower. Sanz joins Ballan as the main players for Bonsucro on the cobbles.
Could Emerson Santos be the next top sprinter in Brazil? Well it is clear he is a more than capable climber, if he can evolve to be as fast as Manarelli - watch this space!
We are now over the min.20 riders for the season, just a few more pieces and the puzzle is complete.
Roy had a good season with me two years ago 470ish points if I remember correct probably get just a few less then that this year with Mccarthy and Kelderman in PCT as well
- tsmoha - Here's hoping, good on the flat and great on the hills - hopefully a potent combo for us.
- jt - Anything around that would be fantastic. Didn't know Roy was at RBC, will have to look into it.
Welcome to Bonsucro's 2015 team presentation. Where is this presentation taking place? Brasilia? Rio de Janeiro? Sao Paulo? .... It is taking place at Saugerties, New York, on the banks of the Hudson river. Yes, Saugerties is a starting point for a Tour of America stage this season, stage 5, a race which our eyes are stolidly fixed on. The quiet town will be Bonsucro's secondary training base, after Rio.
Our chief answered many of the questions proffered. Here are the key bits:
Spoiler
1) So, how did you feel the transfer season went?
A) Time will tell, of course, but I think we can be very happy with how the squad has turned out. We used our experience from our 1st transfer season well. That is not to say we did everything 'perfectly', we should have sold Godoy earlier on. But, no, overall we have to be pleased. We never would have believed Contador could be on our roster, and here he is!
Overall we have a really tight knit squad, which is a good way to have it. 20 riders from the Americas, 19 from South America and 10 Brazilians. Communication mishaps won't happen as much as they might elsewhere.
2) You mention Contador, how important is the Spanish champ this season for Bonsucro?
A) He is indispensable. He has limited race days at PCT. so every last race day counts for him. His performances will directly effect two of our race goals. We are confident we have the team capable of bringing him to the final climb in the ideal position. Aside from that Contador will lead us at the Vuelta a Espana, racing a GT is a huge milestone moment for Bonsucro.
That is not to say Bonsucro is purely Contador, we also expect a lot from Roy, who has gone under the radar thanks to last season, not to mention plenty of point winning performances from many others at races such as the ToA.
3) You mention goals, of the five, how many can Bonsucro attain?
A) Well with Contador we have great hopes of attaining the Agua classic and Tour d'Andorra goals. The Interlagos GP could be a lottery, however, surely one of Castaneda, Manarelli & Mansilla are capable of getting a top 5 finish there if it ends in a sprint. The Tour of America goal depends on the startlist, based on last season, we know what to expect and are confident of getting a good GC placing there.
From what we have seen we feel we can definitely challenge for a top 10 place in the PCT rankings. So, all could still happen. Bring it on!
4) There have been rumours about Bonsucro withdrawing sponsorship, any truth behind this?
A) ..... Yes. Bonsucro have said that they feel they will be unable to continue as a main sponsor if the team gets too big. It took very good natured co-sponsors, this season, for Bonsucro to remain as the main sponsor. If the team promotes I'd say there is a 5% chance that Bonsucro will remain as a main sponsor, if that. We will cross that bridge if we come to it.
5) Any last words?
A) Vamos Bonsucro!
We will leave you with some, artists impressions of, pictures of some of the squad, (Aguilar, Contador, Diniz, Iglinksiy, Nicácio, Roy, Sanz and Soto Pereira) turning the pedals around the USA. Yes, Jacinta was there too!
The 3rd of February will mark the start of season 2 for Bonsucro. A comparatively late start. Will this mean a refreshed or rusty Bonsucro? We hope the former! Three races in the month:
Over the winter everyone at Bonsucro has been working on their fast twitch reactions, not least the sprinters. Castaneda will be one of the faster sprinters at the race. Ideally Manarelli, who could challenge for wins here in his own right, will be leading out Castaneda to a stage win to get our season off to a memorable start. No pan-flat stages, but flat enough, we hope, for our new signing to bring us a stage win.
No GC ambitions here for us, though we hold hopes Iglinskiy can do something, a top 10/15 is not out of the question there.
The first race for, Spanish champ, Contador. In a startling startlist we believe the Spaniard, on home soil, can topple the very best in the division on his way to a GC win. With three mountain stages, the terrain is there for this to be our third stage race victory. Anything less than a podium will be one big macaque on our backs.
Being one of the top rouleur/puncheurs surely Roy will be one of the favourites for such a race? Well, after last season, we see no reason to put too much pressure on him, so a scant top 10 is the goal here. If a large group comes to the finish, Chilean, Mansilla could pop up for a decent result. We shall see!
We had the ideal start to season 2 with victory on stage 1 of the Tour of Eritrea. New signing, Jaime Alberto Castaneda, finished like a rocket to take the win and GC lead on stage 1. Taking the pressure off the team for the rest of the race. He lasted only one day in the GC lead, but it was a good one.
Iglinskiy! What more can we say!
Our Kazakhstani climber finished second on the mountainous stage of the race. After sitting on the tail-end of the favourites group he looked destined to fulfil his projected finish of around 15th, but he rallied like a phoenix to attack the favourites and move up to second in GC.
Diniz is the first Bonsucro rider to make the break this season, seen here in his maiden break on stage 6.
There was plenty of suffering for Iglinskiy on the remaining stages, he did lose some positions - but, in the end he held on for a very welcome and shockingly good 6th place. A fantastic result, which we didn't see coming, which gives us plenty of confidence for his efforts in the Tour of America later on in the season.
A large haul of points to start the season assuages any fears we had about whether the team could compete after a CT season. Contador and co will be looking to live up to these results in our next race.
Obviously a huge result for Iglinski. You could "blame" it on an easy climb, but actually, there were quite a few better climbers already suffering at that point, when Iglinski went for a huge finish (that I didn't see coming).. Results like that will certainly help to take some pressure off Contador.
- tsmoha - We didn't see that one coming by Iglinskiy. He must have been on a +5 day on that mountain stage, which is crucial with daily form looking to have a massive impact in the mountains.
The first race for Contador as a Bonsucro rider. He would start amongst the favourites but as many thought this race would go to those more adept against the clock, he wasn't too many people's choice for the GC win. That said some did rate him and the omens were good. He was racing on home soil and we just had a feeling!
Contador with the favourites on stage 2.
However, after the queen stage, a top 5 looked more likely. There was little action amongst the favourites on stage 2, where most finished together. A stage where Contador might have shined if the GC was to be his.
Contador following Machado.
Stage 3, though, did see some differences between the GC favourites. Contador put time into the rest of the favourites bar Machado, whom he lost 10 seconds to. He would be second in GC going into the long TT. Diniz made his, and the team's, second break of the season and was some help to Contador on the final climb.
Contador vs The Clock.
After the only sprint stage, where Tzortzakis showed our colours in the top 10, it was to the Stage 5 TT. Contador ..... resisted well. He would put time into Machado and only lose one position in GC. He would start the final hilly stage behind only Keizer (@'42) & Machado (@'11). The race would be won in the final kilometre.
Contador distancing Machado!
What a final stage it was. Contador dropped Machado with some 3 kilometres to go, to lead the favourites, but was re-joined with 1 KM to go...
But, Contador wasn't finished. He would drop Machado again and do just enough to take the GC in a thrilling finish. We had some doubts but the signing of Contador already looks to be a fantastic move with this GC win in his first race. Bonsucro's third such win.
Things looking for Bonscuro. Stage wins are always nice like with Castañeda but it's best when Contador delivers: And he has certainly done that. Gratz!
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
Fantastic HQ you got going on here The Rider. Very stylish.
Congrats on the Contador victory. I made an attempt to get him for myself in the PCT last season, but had to settle for Abal again as I didn't have enough cash. Happy for you that it looks like Contador still has enough firepower to win in the PCT after his stats decrease and the arrival of Machado.
Looking like a great season ahead for you. See'ya at Vasco and at the Vuelta.
Shonak - Yeah, what a start to the season, just like you have had! I think its safe to assume we will be in a good position in the rankings when they come, just like you!
Mre - Thanks. Stylish, oh, really! Well, we have given him a good home! The Abal - Bonsucro deal could have been on the cards, but the Contador deal was for us! Looking forward to some clashes in the Basque Country and the Vuelta.
Our other big signing, Roy, would be making his debut. After his time in Germany was a washout how would he fare in this beautiful race?
Maldonado makes the break.
Our new signings really are putting up some great shows. New signing Maldonado would make the breakaway, our third break of the season.
After the break was wound up 9 favourites attacked and contested the finish. Roy, would be the next home and secure his and our top 10 goal. OK! 26 points then for Roy, already more than a quarter of the points he got last season (90).
Yes I have to agree too, your HQ is fantastic. Love the flash animation and especially the mascot, I totally envy that!
Roy did very good at Strade, he must be relieved then to left Germany and found spirits right here at Bonscuro. Seems to have been a real great deal for the team but let's not get carried away, he'll need to prove himself in more races to come.
Gratz on getting your Top 10 goal.
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
tsmoha/Shonak: Great to hear! That animation thing was the only one I have ever attempted as well.
Had to correct myself about Roy though, he gets 26 points and not 45 for a one day race. Thinking about it though there must have been some 'interesting' planning choices and bad luck for Roy to only get 90 points last season.
On to March then, after February saw all the pretty hard goals being accomplished by the team, with some easier goals on the whole this time around. Like last month we will be fighting on the flat, hills and mountains. The tour of the Basque country represents our first ever WT race.
Castañeda starts here after his great show in Eritrea. He is considered one of the top 5 sprinters here, a race which has all flat stages. Ballan, is one of the better rouleurs, so he could make a late attack. We feel we have some cards to play to get some good sugar up there in the GC.
Contador enters this race, with a mountain top finish, after his great GC win in Catalunya. It will be his first HC race for us. It may be harder to hold off Machado here, his clear nemesis, but a podium is more than gettable. Can Iglinskiy keep up his great form from Eritrea?
Our first ever WT race. Contador, Spanish champ, starts and is the top climber present. Superfluous? Maybe, as it is all hills here and no mountain passes. Though, it would be great for Contador to show well in his NC jersey in a landmark race for us. Racing against the WT teams, Aker-MOT in particular (with the form they are in and being Contador's former team), is something we can't wait to do. We realize it will be hard to have a go at the GC, maybe Roy can break the top 20. A KOM jersey, through breakaways perhaps with a rider like Egidio, would be amazing!
A flat stage, a short TT and a mountain top finish. At only three race days it would have been crazy for Contador not to race here. Another podium will have to be the goal, but with only one mountain top finish, the favourites will have to go all-in.
As we start the month, so we end it, in Ireland. A lapped hilly circuit is up here. Roy will lead us, we feel his prowess on the flat will help him here more than other hilly races so a top 5 is the goal rather than the top 10 this time around.
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So plenty of action over the month for Bonsucro, can we add some more wins to the tally? Plenty of days to try!
Busy schedule for Bertie this month, I'm sure he'll do well for you. Pais Vasco will be a tough challenge for the legend, but at least Corsica is there if he needs to lift his spirits after the WT expedition.
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
- Shonak - The great thing about wildcards for us is that the Spanish Champ can race in more races than his 33/34 days would otherwise allow. 27 more days to be precise! Will be a real challenge but this season start bodes well.
A sprinters' stage race. Castañeda would be around the top 5 for top sprinters here. Could a good GC be in the offing?
Castañeda finishing like a rocket for a podium on stage 3.
A mixed bag. That is how we will describe this race for our Colombian sprinter. He did sprint to one stage podium and finish another stage in the top 5. However, after crashing on stage 5 he never contested the sprints.
The bonus seconds for places down to 10th really did benefit Castaneda here and enabled him to secure our goal of a top 8 in the GC. A bit rueful that he finished behind some lesser sprinters in the GC, on the other hand he did well not to get dropped during the race, which so easily could have happened.
In the break.
Making breakaways on stages 5 and 8, Sanz, was the other Bonsucro rider visible in this race. Ballan and Manarelli: nowhere to be seen in Ireland. Araujo (38th) does well to avoid all crashes and Santos picked up 1 point in the race!
1
Danilo Kupfernagel
Karcher-Adira
18.34.48
2
Gerald Ciolek
Team Puma - SAP
+ 11
3
Maxime Vantomme
Team TomTom
+ 38
4
Giacomo Nizzolo
AMEX-Navigon
+ 40
8
Jaime Alberto Castañeda
Bonsucro
+ 1'12
Place
GC
Points
Stage 1
J Castañeda (9)
J Castañeda (9)
Stage 2
J Castañeda (7)
J Castañeda (9)
1
Stage 3
J Castañeda (3)
J Castañeda (6)
6
Stage 4
J Castañeda (5)
J Castañeda (6)
3
Stage 5
J Castañeda (28)
J Castañeda (8)
Stage 6
J Castañeda (23)
J Castañeda (7)
Stage 7
J Castañeda (19)
J Castañeda (8)
Stage 8
M Sanz (4)
J Castañeda (8)
4
Final
34
48
A mountain top finish. Contador starts. Memories of Catalunya fresh in mind. How would it go?
The final climb.
With 18 KM to the finish, Iglinskiy, Diniz and Camargo can be seen dropping back a ways in the bunch as Contador, Keizer and Machado up the tempo.
Contador attacks!
12 KM to the finish. Contador attacks and ... only Keizer can follow! The big favourite dropped!
Another burst with 10 KM to go sees Contador drop Keizer. Sweet times. Sweet times!
Irrepressible!
The win would never be in doubt after that. A stunning climbing display sees Contador leave everyone in his wake in Kenya! Two races: two wins for Contador. The Spanish Champ is looking unstoppable so far this season. Next up for the Spanish champ: Pais Vasco. Not terrain for Contador, but in this kind of form you can't rule out anything!
@ knockout - Long may it continue! I didn't really feel for his chances in his last race, but he still got to the podium. I DO, however, have some good vibrations for his chances in Canada though.
With the season flying as fast as a falcon we have the April previews before the March reviews, which will come some time next week.
The team are placed well after the first rankings update, let Bonsucro forge on.
A unique stage race route in Canada - it starts with a mountain time trial and ends with a TTT! What a route! With hard summit finishes on two stage besides, we feel Contador has got to go all out for the GC win here. Inxausti, who hasn't been on form this season, starts as his main threat with the likes of Sella and Van Den Broeck as the key outsiders.
A stage race for the puncheurs which includes a lengthy TT. On paper Roy really should be challenging for the podium here, however (as you will find out soon), Roy is a special rider so a modest top 10 is what we are after. We don't see a stage win coming here.
One of two races for sprinters which clash. Castañeda is here and could well challenge for a victory, equally he could fail to make the top 20 if the wind picks up: like it so often does in the Netherlands.
Interlagos GP
Team: Manarelli Mansilla
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Araujo Santos Navarette Ballan Aguilar Maldonado
Goals:Top 5(Season Goal)
The last day in April sees us meet our first season goal: a top 5 in the only race in Brazil. As shown last season it can be a complete lottery: with a break taking the win: we don't expect much difference this time around. We have Manarelli if the race ends in a sprint, Ballan for a late attack, Mansilla for a harder sprint and some decent breakaway riders for such a short route. If there is one race this season where we are crossing our fingers it is this one.
If you didn't notice Bonsucro were making their WT debut at the recent Tour of the Basque Country then you can be more than forgiven. Throughout the whole race the only indication that we were racing was on the final stage when Roy was briefly in the top 3.
The positives from the race: Roy anonymously sneaked his way to a top 20 finish and, if nothing else, it will make any results in the Vuelta a Espana all the more special.
Place
GC
Stage 1
L M Mansilla (47)
L M Mansilla (49)
Stage 2
L M Mansilla (16)
L M Mansilla (26)
Stage 3
A Contador (41)
J Roy (43)
Stage 4
J Roy (36)
J Roy (31)
Stage 5
J Roy (36)
J Roy (30)
Stage 6
J Roy (11)
J Roy (20)
As last season, so this. We have little hope on the cobbles still Sanz and Ballan, 65th and 66th respectively, should have done more. What did our mascat, Jacinta, think of the race:
With Contador, the unbeaten, here we had good hopes for another top GC finish. Well, the wind was up on stage 1 so Castaneda didn't contest the sprint, a short TT followed before the deciding stage.
Contador comes home 3rd.
Another solid display, despite not being on top top form, from Contador saw him finish on the podium. A great result and exactly what we were after, even if meant his winning streak ended. Clearly from this image there was a 10 second gap back to 4th, time keepers didn't agree, a podium nevertheless.
1
Janez Brajkovic
ONCE-Eroski
6h12'33
2
Jurgen Van den Broeck
Team BPost
+ 1'03
3
Alberto Contador
Bonsucro
+ 1'13
4
Martijn Keizer
Aegon - Lavazza
+ 1'17
5
Tiago Machado
Prio - Porto
+ 1'21
Place
GC
Points
Stage 1
A Contador (20)
A Contador (23)
Stage 2
A Contador (24)
A Contador (22)
Stage 3
A Contador (3)
A Contador (3)
10
Final
103
113
Coming into the race we had, justifiable, hopes for a top 5 from Roy .....
Roy comes home as the best Bonsucro rider in 41st, having been dropped 32 KM from the finish.
Oh, Roy! The main story, beside the stage contest in Ireland, was the fact the Roy (who should be contesting for the win) was dropped so far out from the finish. We just don't know what to make of it, fingers crossed the same head-scratching moment doesn't happen at the Tour of South Africa...
Basilio Ramos Ticona 90K (TT:75, HILL:72, MNT:69)
Jaime Alberto Castañeda 110K (SPR:80, ACC:79, REC:78)
Maxim Iglinskiy 70K (MNT:77, HILL:72, REC:72)
Segundo Navarette 55K (FL:73, TT:74, SPR:73)
Kiel Reijnen 74K (TT:74, SPR:72, ACC:79)
Alex Diniz 50K (MNT:75, REC:75, FGHT:74)
Jeremy Roy 386K (HILL:79, FL:75, FGHT:77)
Mauricio Sanz 76K (FL:73, COB:73, FGHT:75)
Héctor Fabian
Alessandro
Jonathan
Luis Miguel
Polychronis 
Tour of Eritrea
Wilco Kelderman
Jay McCarthy
Hassen Ben Nasser
Alex Dowsett
Blaz Furdi
FBD Eire Tour
Kenya Mountain Classic
E3 Prijs
Tour of Vancouver
Tour of South Africa
