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Sakartvelo Trophy Discussion
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| Tamijo |
Posted on 23-05-2020 10:16
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Team Leader
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 Sakartvelo Trophy
Welcome to Georgia for just the 2nd edition of Sakartvelo Trophy, a mountain classic made for the strongest climbers able to climb several hard mountains on a very long demanding route. Raced in the most southern part of the greater Caucasus Mountains just north of the capital Tbilisi
Last season the race was won by Vitor Rodrigues riding for Banco de Bogota, now riding for PCT team Berg Cycles he will also participate this time, but the 33 years old chances may seem to be thin taking a 2nd win.
Favorites:
Colliding with Tour of Bulgaria we got a relative weak start-list, with  Eastman,  Ratiy and  Pinot all taking part in the European stage race. Unusual for a C2 race we got a very slim continental presence with just 6 teams up against 4 pro continental and no less than 7 amateur teams.
With this  Intxausti a the clear favorite to take the win here, not only the being the best climber but also by far the most durable riders amongst those with a reasonable shot at a top 10 result. Intxausti may lack the acceleration needed to shake of rivals in a burst of energy, but they most likely won’t be able to hold wheel, when he diesels up the later climbs. Le Bon and Juodvalkis as backup fine but not the best support compared to his closest rivals
We got three obvious podium candidates in  Pantano Gomez, Vinhas and  Kiserlovski, all very similar riders, good legs on the day may well separate who end on the podium from the unlucky one not making it. My wildest guess would be to see Kiserlovski 2nd based on a bit more punch something that may give him an edge creating a small gap over that last mountain top, on the other hand Pantano Gomez have that little extra when it come to longer routes and also slightly faster downhill, anyway as said it seems to be who got the best day.
Regarding team debt I’d say GCN ProTeam strongest, Potocki clearly very important but also Cuming and Hategeka need a mention, could be valuable saving Potocki as long as possible.
Andorra comes with a 6 rider team in it self not ideal, but Hirschlein a strong lieutenant.
BNZ got Camier a fine climber but with a rather weak overall skillset and he is all alone with his leader, a clear downside to Kiserlovski chances.
Beneath those top four we got seven to ten riders that might just have the option to steel a podium with unreal good legs on the day. Potocki,  Bardet, Hirschlein, Squire,  Rodrigues, Solis, Camier, Chaves,  Bagot and  Rojas Villegas
Can’t run through everyone but will highlight a few that for one reason or another catch my eyes as someone to “look out for”:
Azteca – NBCSN comes with a strong duo:
Squire will be my first pick as a bet worthy outsider for a podium if the odds are good. He got the punch to set an extreme high pace over a shorter distance and a bit of acceleration too.
Another option is looking a bit further down the list (hopefully even better odds) for teammate Chaves another climber with a huge punch and also a nice gift for those long rides. The team also got Solis so good riders indeed, but can they work together?
Potocki with a very fine skillset for a race like this same goes for Bardet, no real weaknesses just on paper slightly weaker riders that the four top favorites.
We also got two opportunistic fighter types, Camier and La Lavandier, interesting to observe will they wait for a safe and solid result, or will they take chances, with the well know high risk/reward result here in Georgia.
A last mention goes to last year winner Rodrigues, also he a well-rounded rider considering the profile, the although Berg Cycles haven’t got that top 2nd climber there is good debt in the squad.
List of favorites:
| Rider | MO | HI | St | Re | Ac | F | Do | | Intxausti | 81 | 70 | 77 | 77 | 69 | 66 | 63 | | Kiserlovski | 79 | 74 | 71 | 74 | 65 | 70 | 65 | | Pantano Gomez | 79 | 71 | 73 | 74 | 68 | 63 | 68 | | Vinhas | 79 | 69 | 72 | 73 | 60 | 65 | 65 | | Squire | 77 | 77 | 70 | 70 | 71 | 76 | 65 | | Bardet | 77 | 74 | 72 | 70 | 75 | 67 | 71 | | Potocki | 77 | 72 | 74 | 71 | 64 | 66 | 69 | | Rodrigues | 77 | 72 | 70 | 73 | 71 | 73 | 67 | | Hirschlein | 77 | 71 | 71 | 71 | 59 | 64 | 69 | | Camier | 77 | 67 | 65 | 67 | 62 | 77 | 67 | | Solis | 77 | 58 | 65 | 75 | 64 | 71 | 64 | | Chaves | 76 | 79 | 74 | 73 | 72 | 69 | 64 | | Bagot | 76 | 73 | 74 | 69 | 64 | 71 | 61 | | Rojas Villegas | 76 | 64 | 60 | 71 | 74 | 58 | 69 |  Niyonshuti | 75 | 73 | 73 | 72 | 67 | 68 | 61 | | La Lavandier | 75 | 73 | 73 | 70 | 63 | 77 | 68 |  Jones | 75 | 73 | 72 | 71 | 66 | 73 | 68 |  Izagirre | 75 | 73 | 71 | 69 | 63 | 76 | 65 | | Juodvalkis | 75 | 73 | 69 | 70 | 68 | 68 | 58 |  Mat Senan | 75 | 71 | 74 | 71 | 70 | 65 | 59 | | Le Bon | 75 | 70 | 73 | 74 | 66 | 71 | 68 |
Start list:
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| quadsas |
Posted on 23-05-2020 11:30
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2518
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First goal race of the season, and this should be a gimme for Intxausti. Not winning would be a complete disaster. 2nd place is pathetic and 3rd or lower is gulag
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 23-05-2020 14:31
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First of two C2 races in the season and a good chance for Bardet to get a Top 5. Pantano got us a podium here last season, and looks like he's again a favourite to repeat the same, but for his new team. Not sure this race will help too much in the survival push, but a good result is always welcome.
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 23-05-2020 14:40
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Grand Tour Specialist
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Not participating here, and I don't like the startlist. Eastman is missing 
But given the startlist, it might have been a good idea for us to split our climbers between Bulgaria and Georgia. Well, it'll still be an interesting race - let's see which riders are favored by PCM 18. Intxausti should definitely win, though.
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| cio93 |
Posted on 23-05-2020 14:50
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World Champion
Posts: 10845
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All I can see is two cats divided by a mountain.
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| Yellow Jersey |
Posted on 23-05-2020 14:59
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Classics Specialist
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Proper excited for this one, getting in the C2 but with big targets to net some points, Intxausti is the man to beat but Pantano is very very close and I'm having big hopes that he can finish on the podium, he's got a strong team and the startlist isn't that strong. Also loving to see how we can deal with Kiserlovski, it's so nice to be racing with him again.
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 23-05-2020 16:13
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We came here with no climbers cause I don't completely think this race will be decided on the climbs. I do fancy the chances of a breakaway group and Pfingsten for our squad.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 24-11-2024 15:39
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 23-05-2020 16:13
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We came here with no climbers cause I don't completely think this race will be decided on the climbs. I do fancy the chances of a breakaway group and Pfingsten for our squad.
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 23-05-2020 17:04
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8059
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Only here because we have to be. I was stupid when filling out our schedule and double booked both of our C2 races this season to overlap. So that's why we only have seven cyclists here and seven cyclists going to the Tour of Bulgaria.
Will be interesting to see how Carter Jones gets on being the team leader for a race.
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| Ulrich Ulriksen |
Posted on 23-05-2020 17:19
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cio93 wrote:
All I can see is two cats divided by a mountain.
Definitely. 2 cats and 1 mountain too many for McCormick.
Man Game: McCormick Pro Cycling |
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| Kentaurus |
Posted on 23-05-2020 20:47
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Classics Specialist
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Obviously came to this with the intent that super climbing legs may not be required and if I can get either Squire or Chaves into the selection I like my chances of having more of a puncheur in the finish.
Based on the startlist only Intxausti really stands out as being able to pull away from my guys on that final big climb, and then he'd have to be able to solo away for the remainder of the race. I like my chances here with the puncheurs who are also very solid climbers.
AZTECA - NBCSN  |
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| roturn |
Posted on 24-05-2020 10:17
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Nice to see the outcome is kind of what was wanted with such profile, which is rather unique as well for a one day classic.
Break caught, selection of top climbers but then a fight of who has most energy left with surprises obviously possible in comparison to a mountain top finish. |
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| jandal7 |
Posted on 24-05-2020 11:14
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The old CT King still has it - congrats fintas (and Bikex who will no doubt be delighted  )
Nice to see Mansilla in a breakaway, not who I'd have picked to do it but hey
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant."
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| the_hoyle |
Posted on 24-05-2020 13:49
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Grand Tour Champion
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Now that was a shock podium for Vinhas! Did not expect that result and very happy with the outcome. Some nice points scoring when Pinot is otherwise engaged.
Congrats fintas on the win and thanks tamijo for the report
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 24-05-2020 14:06
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Not a smart ride sending nobody up the road with Pfingsten as best climber. Congrats to the front group!
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| Yellow Jersey |
Posted on 24-05-2020 14:30
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 2809
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A decent race, no gaps made but Pantano finishing strong for a 4th place, what he came here to do. Congratz Berg and thank you Tamijo for the report!
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 24-05-2020 14:34
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Grand Tour Champion
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Youngster Jack Burke showing out for a top 10 and three guys inside the top 25 is a nice result for a race I had no ambitions in. Well done boys. Thanks for the report.
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 24-05-2020 15:27
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7th is an ok result for Bardet. Was hoping for a Top 5 after seeing the startlist.
Congrats to fintas and thanks for the report Tamijo 
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| SotD |
Posted on 24-05-2020 19:03
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That wasn’t too shabby for an amateur-team! 2nd and 9th is significantly better than expected, although we did have a decent Pre-race setup here!
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| Kentaurus |
Posted on 24-05-2020 19:45
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3999
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Fun race, as expected the climb was only somewhat selective, sad that more of my riders weren't able to make that selections, worse it may have been my own rider who pushed them out the back.
AZTECA - NBCSN |
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