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[PCT '23] Sony - Force India
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 18-09-2023 10:37
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It is time to reveal this year's calendar. Our bands and race choices were always going to lean towards favouring Benoot and Choi, as they were our leaders going into transfers. Beyond that, our signings in the transfer window helped us to decide the other races on the calendar.
| Start | End | Race | Category | | 9-Jan | |  Down Under Classic | HC | | 13-Jan | 18-Jan | Tour Down Under | C1 | | 2-Feb | |  Omloop Het Nieuwsblad | HC | | 2-Feb | |  Viana do Castelo | C1 | | 10-Feb | | Le Samyn | HC | | 15-Feb | 20-Feb |  Volta a Catalunya | C2 | | 22-Feb | 26-Feb |  Circulo de Juarez | HC | | 26-Feb | | Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne | C1 | | 11-Mar | 16-Mar |  Vuelta a Colombia | PTHC | | 17-Mar | 20-Mar |  Tour of Guadeloupe | C1 | | 18-Mar | |  Strade Bianche | HC | | 22-Mar | 27-Mar |  Tour of South Africa | HC | | 30-Mar | |  Lillestrom GP | C1 | | 6-Apr | 10-Apr |    Baltic Chain Tour | C1 | | 12-Apr | 18-Apr |  Tour de Pologne | HC | | 20-Apr | |  Badaling International | C1 | | 25-Apr | | GP Wallonie | HC | | 28-Apr | | Lisbon Classic | HC | | 1-May | |  Cheshire Cycling Tour | PTHC | | 3-May | 8-May |  Tour de Romandie | C1 | | 11-May | 31-May | Vuelta a Espana | GTM | | 13-May | 16-May | Tour of Lithuania | PTHC | | 19-May | |  1 Jour de Dunkerque | C1 | | 1-Jun | |  Hanko Classic | C1 | | 4-Jun | |  Pro Hallstatt Classic | HC | | 5-Jun | 8-Jun |  Tour of East Java | PTHC | | 9-Jun | 13-Jun |  La Tropicale Amissa Bongo | C1 | | 14-Jun | 20-Jun | Criterium du Dauphine Libere | PTHC | | 18-Jun | |  Frankfurt Eschborn | C1 | | 22-Jun | 28-Jun |  Tour of California | HC | | 1-Jul | |  Torshavn GP | C1 | | 9-Jul | 11-Jul |  Tour of Eritrea | C1 | | 13-Jul | | Philadelphia International Championship | PTHC | | 13-Jul | 18-Jul |   Benelux Challenge | HC | | 20-Jul | | Paris Tours | C1 | | 10-Aug | 15-Aug |  Tour du Maroc | C1 | | 11-Aug | 15-Aug |  Post Danmark Rundt | HC | | 20-Aug | 22-Aug |  Ras Tailteann | PTHC | | 20-Aug | |  GP Kigali | C1 | | 8-Sep | 13-Sep |      Balkans International | PTHC | | 26-Sep | | Tour of the Battenkill | PTHC | | 26-Sep | | Rheden GP | PTHC | | 28-Sep | | Milano - Torino | C1 | | 1-Oct | 6-Oct |  Tour of Japan | HC | | 9-Oct | |  Grands Prix Cycliste | PTHC | | 13-Oct | | Japan Cup | PTHC | | 18-Oct | | Giro dell'Emilia | HC |
*Races in bold are Goal races.
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 19-09-2023 11:28
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I don't mind not being present of two of your goal races  Guess Aular will just need to try and follow Choi as long as he can in Dauphine, and I do hope Higuita outperforms his hill stat a bit in Emilia. In general a nice calendar I'd say, and I'm sure you filled all/most of your races with a squad ready to grab some nice points!
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 21-09-2024 15:13
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 19-09-2023 11:57
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I think Choi should have gone to ToA to go one better this year 
More seriously, I think you put together a nice calendar for your leaders. I obviously don't know exactly where each of them will go, but most of their schedules should be pretty clear from the calendar. And you said Choi and Stüssi will only meet three times, so I guess that will be Romandie, Hallstatt and California?
Benoot will cause us some nightmares, both in the hills and on the hilly cobbles I guess, whereas I'm wondering if Vesely can be more consistent than in the last couple of years (where he sometimes was great, and sometimes just didn't show up). With the 4th sprinter bug hopefully gone, I think he'll do really well for you And I'm glad I'm not in Guadeloupe, with all those top sprinters going there
Wish you good luck for the season - if everything goes smoothly, you could actually end up very high up in the rankings
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 20-09-2023 12:24
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@Nemo: Not surprised our race and goal selections are very different given the kind of riders we each took into transfers. Easier to cheer for each other that way too  Did try to have as few leaderless races as possible, but off course there's always a couple that become orphaned! Higuita can do whatever he wants as long as he stays out of Benoot's way
@Fab: Choi needed a new challenge and we need more points! Hopefully this translates. Choi meets Stussi in Romandie, California and Japan  Hoping Benoot can at least get close to last season's output with his improved stats, and cause problems for everyone, not just you Pretty much hoping Vesely lives up to his stats and not his inconsistencies. Thanks for the good wishes
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 22-09-2023 15:19
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It is time for us to take a look at the schedules of our leaders for the season.We continue our philosophy of trying to have a leader for every race and as many stages in each race as possible, and we have again got close to that.
Tiejs Benoot | Puncher | Start | End | Race | Category | | 2-Feb | | Viana do Castelo | C1 | | 18-Mar | | Strade Bianche | HC | | 22-Mar | 27-Mar | Tour of South Africa | HC | | 12-Apr | 18-Apr | Tour de Pologne | HC | | 25-Apr | | GP Wallonie | HC | | 1-May | | Cheshire Cycling Tour | PTHC | | 8-Sep | 13-Sep | Balkans International | PTHC | | 26-Sep | | Tour of the Battenkill | PTHC | | 28-Sep | | Milano - Torino | C1 | | 9-Oct | | Grands Prix Cycliste | PTHC | | 13-Oct | | Japan Cup | PTHC | | 18-Oct | | Giro dell'Emilia | HC |
Benoot will concentrate more on the hills this season and goes to just three cobbles races. He will be responsible for trying to achieve our two harder goals in Emilia and Balkans International.
**Races marked in bold are Goal races.
 Ki Ho Choi | Climber/Stage Racer| Start | End | Race | Category | | 11-Mar | 16-Mar | Vuelta a Colombia | PTHC | | 3-May | 8-May | Tour de Romandie | C1 | | 11-May | 31-May | Vuelta a Espana | GTM | | 5-Jun | 8-Jun | Tour of East Java | PTHC | | 14-Jun | 20-Jun | Criterium du Dauphine Libere | PTHC | | 22-Jun | 28-Jun | Tour of California | HC | | 9-Jul | 11-Jul | Tour of Eritrea | C1 | | 1-Oct | 6-Oct | Tour of Japan | HC |
Probably the easiest of our leaders to plan for. A very simple mountains only calendar for Choi this, with no frills attached. A repeat of last season's results in these kinds of races will do nicely for us. He will also try to achieve two of our goals - Colombia and Dauphine.
**Races marked in bold are Goal races.
 Daniel Vesely | Sprinter| Start | End | Race | Category | | 9-Jan | | Down Under Classic | HC | | 13-Jan | 18-Jan | Tour Down Under | C1 | | 22-Feb | 26-Feb | Circulo de Juarez | HC | | 17-Mar | 20-Mar | Tour of Guadeloupe | C1 | | 28-Apr | | Lisbon Classic | HC | | 13-May | 16-May | Tour of Lithuania | PTHC | | 1-Jun | | Hanko Classic | C1 | | 9-Jun | 13-Jun | La Tropicale Amissa Bongo | C1 | | 18-Jun | | Frankfurt Eschborn | C1 | | 1-Jul | | Torshavn GP | C1 | | 13-Jul | | Philadelphia International Championship | PTHC | | 11-Aug | 15-Aug | Post Danmark Rundt | HC | | 20-Aug | 22-Aug | Ras Tailteann | PTHC |
Pretty straightforward calendar for Vesely as well. He covers all but one of our flat races, with a couple of stage races included in search of stage results.
Jo Kogstad Ringheim | Northern Classics | Start | End | Race | Category | | 9-Jan | | Down Under Classic | HC | | 2-Feb | | Omloop Het Nieuwsblad | HC | | 10-Feb | | Le Samyn | HC | | 26-Feb | | Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne | C1 | | 17-Mar | 20-Mar | Tour of Guadeloupe | C1 | | 30-Mar | | Lillestrom GP | C1 | | 6-Apr | 10-Apr | Baltic Chain Tour | C1 | | 28-Apr | | Lisbon Classic | HC | | 19-May | | 1 Jour de Dunkerque | C1 | | 1-Jun | | Hanko Classic | C1 | | 18-Jun | | Frankfurt Eschborn | C1 | | 1-Jul | | Torshavn GP | C1 | | 13-Jul | 18-Jul | Benelux Challenge | HC | | 20-Jul | | Paris Tours | C1 | | 11-Aug | 15-Aug | Post Danmark Rundt | HC | | 20-Aug | | GP Kigali | C1 | | 26-Sep | | Tour of the Battenkill | PTHC |
Ringheim will be our leader on all the flat cobbles and a couple of the hilly cobbles races as well. He will also accompany Vesely in multiple flat races. He only races with Benoot once in the whole year, at Battenkill.
Bob Jungels | Time-Trials | Start | End | Race | Category | | 13-Jan | 18-Jan | Tour Down Under | C1 | | 26-Feb | | Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne | C1 | | 22-Mar | 27-Mar | Tour of South Africa | HC | | 6-Apr | 10-Apr | Baltic Chain Tour | C1 | | 12-Apr | 18-Apr | Tour de Pologne | HC | | 3-May | 8-May | Tour de Romandie | C1 | | 13-May | 16-May | Tour of Lithuania | PTHC | | 9-Jun | 13-Jun | La Tropicale Amissa Bongo | C1 | | 14-Jun | 20-Jun | Criterium du Dauphine Libere | PTHC | | 22-Jun | 28-Jun | Tour of California | HC | | 13-Jul | | Philadelphia International Championship | PTHC | | 11-Aug | 15-Aug | Post Danmark Rundt | HC |
Jungels rides every race with a ITT, TTT or Prologue, except the Vuelta, which clashes with Lithuania. Much like Ringheim, he too will accompany Vesely in multiple flat races.
**Races marked in bold are Goal races.
Giovanni Carboni | Climber | Start | End | Race | Category | | 11-Mar | 16-Mar | Vuelta a Colombia | PTHC | | 18-Mar | | Strade Bianche | HC | | 20-Apr | | Badaling International | C1 | | 25-Apr | | GP Wallonie | HC | | 3-May | 8-May | Tour de Romandie | C1 | | 11-May | 31-May | Vuelta a Espana | GTM | | 4-Jun | | Pro Hallstatt Classic | HC | | 14-Jun | 20-Jun | Criterium du Dauphine Libere | PTHC | | 22-Jun | 28-Jun | Tour of California | HC | | 9-Jul | 11-Jul | Tour of Eritrea | C1 | | 10-Aug | 15-Aug | Tour du Maroc | C1 | | 1-Oct | 6-Oct | Tour of Japan | HC |
Carboni will get to lead the team at Badaling, Hallstatt and Maroc. He's no Penasa, so we only really expect a decent return from Maroc out of these. He will spend the season being the chief domestique to either Choi or Benoot in all other races he attends.
**Races marked in bold are Goal races.
Gijs Leemreize will lead the team in our only C2 race - Volta a Catalunya.
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 27-09-2023 07:25
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| Rider | Role | | Daniel Vesely | Leader | | Jo Kogstad Ringheim | Leadout | | Saya Kuroeda | Leadout | | Shiki Kuroeda | Leadout | | Piotr Havik | Roleur | | Marten Kooistra | Leadout | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
As always, we start our season in the Down Under Classic, with Vesely our new leader for this race this time. We have brought a strong flat squad in support and hope to get off to a strong start. Expectation: Top 10
Watch Out For: Piotr Havik
| Rider | Role | | Daniel Vesely | Sprinter | | Bob Jungels | Domestique | | Jan Tratnik | Free Role | | Piotr Havik | Leadout | | Mick Van Dijke | Domestique | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Leo Hayter | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
We take a much weaker squad to this race than last season, with Vesely here to target the sprints and hope to hang on as good as he can on the hills. Expectation: Top 20
Watch Out For: Daniel Vesely
January starts and ends in Australia for us, with just two races. Vesely is expected to lead our line for both races. We are also excited about seeing the first ever Indian in action in the MG, with Alben on the startlist of both races. We hope to lay down a solid foundation this month from which we can build on for the rest of the year.
Can't wait to get started
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 27-09-2023 07:46
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We start with a clash! Although you're telling I should watch out for Havik, I think I'll just tell Manninen that Vesely is your main guy Won't meet each other in TDU, so best of luck there. In theory there should be some better suited riders than Vesely there from other teams, but you never know how far he can go with some good (opening) sprints
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| redordead |
Posted on 27-09-2023 12:51
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I gotta face Choi and Vesely in a couple of races each.
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 29-09-2023 12:59
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@Nemo: It's just a diversionary tactic, which you didn't fall for it seems
@red: Cool, see you there!
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 10-10-2023 08:36
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We did a lot of work chasing the break and succeeded in that. We were one of the two teams to get a sprint train up for Vesely but it disintegrated at the crucial juncture and Vesely lost all momentum as a result. He finished 17th, and was also our only points scorer. A very disappointing result after a lot of effort!
Stage 1 was similar to DUC - we did a lot of work but Vesely could only get 5th in the sprint.
Stage 2 saw the break surviving and Vesely not in contention for the hard sprint finish.
Vesely finally got his act together on Stage 3, finishing 2nd in the sprint and moving up to 4th in the GC.
Vesely was able to survive on the hilly Stages 4 and 5, losing a small amount of time, but no GC positions.
Vesely finished in the main pack on Stage 6, but didn't have the legs to contest to sprint. He did hang on for 4th in the GC! He was 5th in the Points.
We went into the month hoping for a good result from DUC and not much from TDU. The results were reversed and we came away more or less with a similar number of points as we were expecting.
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| redordead |
Posted on 10-10-2023 10:40
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Only cool if we kick your butt
Looks like TDU was very sprinter friendly this year. Good start of the season by Vesely
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 11-10-2023 07:37
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No need for violence please! There's enough points available for the both of us
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 12-10-2023 08:31
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| Rider | Role | | Jo Kogstad Ringheim | Leader | | Saya Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Shiki Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Muhamma Afif Ahmad Zamri | Domestique | | Piotr Havik | Domestique | | Marten Kooistra | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
Ringheim starts his first race as a leader, although this is not his debut for us. The Kuroedas are also here and we hope our strength in numbers pay dividends in this first cobbles race of the season. Expectation: Top 15
Watch Out For: Jo Kogstad Ringheim
| Rider | Role | | Tiesj Benoot | Leader | | Bakhtiyar Kozhatayev | Domestique | | Yamato Shirota | Domestique | | Jan Tratnik | Domestique | | Choon Huat Goh | Domestique | | Mick Van Dijke | Domestique | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Leo Hayter | Domestique |
Benoot starts his season in the race where we expect the most from him, or at least better than last year's result! Kozhatayev is the preferred cobbles lieutenant while the rest of the domestiques are more those who handle hills. Expectation: Podium
Watch Out For: Tiesj Benoot
| Rider | Role | | Jo Kogstad Ringheim | Leader | | Saya Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Shiki Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Piotr Havik | Domestique | | Marten Kooistra | Domestique | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Leo Hayter | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
Similar expectations here as in Omloop to be honest with our three-pronged co-leadership expected to bring some much needed depth points. Expectation: Top 15
Watch Out For: Shiki Kuroeda
| Rider | Role | | Gijs Leemreize | Leader | | Yamato Shirota | Domestique | | Muhamma Afif Ahmad Zamri | Domestique | | Choon Huat Goh | Domestique | | Mick Van Dijke | Domestique | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Leo Hayter | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
Our only C2 outing of the season sees Leemreize leading a competitive team, with Shirota and Ahmad Zamri also viable GC options for the minor places. We do hope to get a good result from this race. Expectation: Top 10
Watch Out For: Gijs Leemreize
| Rider | Role | | Daniel Vesely | Sprinter | | Choon Huat Goh | Domestique | | Marten Kooistra | Leadout | | Victor Alejandro Ocampo | Domestique | | Tim Van Dijke | Domestique | | Leo Hayter | Domestique | | Esow Alben | Domestique |
Vesely is back after a successful trip Down Under for the first sprint stage race of the season. We don't have any of his regular support here because of the KBK clash, so he'll have to look out for himself mainly. It is probably better that we don't have trains again anyway! Expectation: Top 10
Watch Out For: Daniel Vesely
Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne | Rider | Role | | Jo Kogstad Ringheim | Leader | | Saya Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Shiki Kuroeda | Co-Leader | | Piotr Havik | Domestique | | Bob Jungels | Domestique | | Mick Van Dijke | Domestique |
Another (mostly) flat cobbled classic and Ringheim and the Kuroedas are once again charged with leadership here. Expectation: Top 15
Watch Out For: Jo Kogstad Ringheim
February has six races for us, which a big chance to get some important points on the board. With four of those races being cobbles, there's a lot riding on Ringheim and the Kuroedas in particular this month.
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| Imladrik |
Posted on 12-10-2023 08:46
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Cobbles! Cobbles everywhere!
We'll not meet on the cobbles (if I'm not mistaking on my own calendar, and I hope I'm not), but in Catalunya!
“...the secret of the Great Stories is that they have no secrets. The Great Stories are the ones you have heard and want to hear again. The ones you can enter anywhere and inhabit comfortably."
A. Roy
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| knockout |
Posted on 12-10-2023 18:58
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Ringheim, the Kuroeda bros and Havik are definitely a nice group for the cobbles. Definitely has the potential for the odd overperformance or at least good depth points. And then there is of course Benoot in Castelo. Very interesting month with opportunities in every race. Hopefully, your team can convert some of those!
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 12-10-2023 20:45
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I guess Theuns and Ringheim will know each other pretty well after this month
Benoot should be the obvious favorite (again) in Viana, but we'll see...
Bol and Vesely will meet again in Juarez for a TDU rematch - your sprinter should however easily have the upper hand again. So there's lots of clashes again, except for Catalunya where we unfortunately won't be defending Masnada's title.
Good luck, should be a fun month for you
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 13-10-2023 07:15
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@Imladrik: Love them cobbles! Favourite month of the year for a reason (also because it's my birthday month ). See you in Catalunya.
@knockout: Depth in the flat cobbles and good results from the other races is what we're hoping for. Let's see if we can get that.
@Fabianski: Hopefully Ringheim can get to know Theuns towards the end of those races as well and not just as a part of the peloton Never had much luck when my riders have been top favourites for anything, so we'll see in Viana indeed. Sprint stages and races are almost always a lottery, so anything is possible in Juarez. Looking forward to some consistency from Vesely. Thanks, hope so
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| cunego59 |
Posted on 13-10-2023 10:50
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Fabianski wrote:
I guess Theuns and Ringheim will know each other pretty well after this month
Add Stallaert to the mix The start of the cobbles season is exciting and you have a whole lot of options to score, for which I wish you the best of luck except for the very first places
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 14-10-2023 11:58
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cunego59 wrote:
Fabianski wrote:
I guess Theuns and Ringheim will know each other pretty well after this month
Add Stallaert to the mix The start of the cobbles season is exciting and you have a whole lot of options to score, for which I wish you the best of luck except for the very first places
Thanks for the conditional wishes
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 15-10-2023 10:43
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Except for C2 we meet everywhere, and I'm looking forward to it! Little bit less looking forward to racing against Benoot in Viana, but maybe we can find some kind of agreement there to try and drop the others on the climb. I'll very gladly settle for second then.
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