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Down Under Classic Race Discussion
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| Dippofix |
Posted on 02-10-2026 08:03
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4114
Joined: 29-01-2013
PCM$: 300.00
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Quite surprising to see our sprint train work more or less perfectly only for Ewan himself to not manage to deliver a good sprint. Was expecting the opposite scenario if anything. 4th not the end of the world but we really need to be winning these sort of races given we have precious little other chances for scoring this season.
Congrats MRE and thanks red for kicking the season off with a nice report!
Edited by Dippofix on 02-10-2026 08:40
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 02-10-2026 08:16
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4175
Joined: 20-04-2020
PCM$: 425.00
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Great sprint report, congratulations to Zwift.
Herzog with his first appearance in the peloton and same for Gojkovic, who was obviously a vital cog in the machine for Willems' sixth place 
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| betancur |
Posted on 02-10-2026 08:43
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Under 23
Posts: 90
Joined: 19-07-2026
PCM$: 100.00
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Cool race, strategy didn't work too well but a Top10 is okay. |
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| jt1109 |
Posted on 02-10-2026 09:08
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3752
Joined: 23-07-2008
PCM$: 700.00
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ideal start for DVP zero complaints, as expected all the leadouts are equally average so no big disadvantage for Ewan which could be a big thing for him come later in the season. Zwift starting strong is menacing with better riders to come |
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| Heine |
Posted on 02-10-2026 10:04
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 5098
Joined: 08-04-2007
PCM$: 200.00
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Quite happy with 3rd from Coquard. Welsford did a good job and he started the sprint in a good position even though the guys on his wheel managed to beat him in the end.
Can't complain
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 02-10-2026 12:16
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7944
Joined: 22-06-2009
PCM$: 850.00
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Wow, that's how you start a season! Great sprint from Enger to work his way through the crowd and steal it at the end. Couldn't have asked for a better debut race from him, obviously. Hopefully this is a sign of more good things to come and not just a fluky result.
Thanks for the report and kind words from everybody. Awesome way to start my Friday! 
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| Laurens147 |
Posted on 02-10-2026 12:34
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Sprinter
Posts: 1774
Joined: 26-04-2020
PCM$: 900.00
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Congrats MRE!
MG - Lotto - Caloi
[MG] New Manager of the Year - PCM.daily Awards 2022
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 02-10-2026 12:36
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Team Leader
Posts: 5501
Joined: 29-09-2018
PCM$: 185.00
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Oof... Pretty much the worst possible outcome.
But please, can anyone (@jt?) explain Szarka's behavior? Listed as a Top 10 favourite, he makes what might do down as our dumbest move of the year, attacking in a pan-flat classic with 30-ish km to go, and then completely misses out on the sprint?
I mean, it cannot be that the engine considered Holzer (finishing 25th, for whatever reason) to be our leader, given that we also had Christen (75/77 Spr/Acc) - I really don't understand what was going on here. Just makes no sense at all (btw, Kulikovskiy in 26th is also wtf...)
We'll take those 5 points by Holzer and just have to hope this won't repeat in our other flat classics - Szarka definitely not making a strong case in terms of renewals ^^
Congrats to Mre, looks like we might struggle more to keep you behind us that what I would have thought, if even your non-climbers are doing that well 
Pretty surprised to see Coquard do well, too, with no Fl, no Sta, and relatively low Acc, guess I still don't understand this engine at all ^^
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| Heine |
Posted on 02-10-2026 13:14
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 5098
Joined: 08-04-2007
PCM$: 200.00
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Fabianski wrote:
Congrats to Mre, looks like we might struggle more to keep you behind us that what I would have thought, if even your non-climbers are doing that well
Pretty surprised to see Coquard do well, too, with no Fl, no Sta, and relatively low Acc, guess I still don't understand this engine at all ^^
I can try to explain to the best of my knowledge
He is set as a top sprinter based on having one of the top sprint stats of the race, that secures him a train and he had the best train present (even though jt calls all trains average Welsford and Trondsen are a good leadout, and I had flat and sp guys before them). That means even with low flat he is placed at the front where sprint stat is the king. I was also very clear I did not want to risk it with his leadout having higher acc than him so he could loose the wheel.
Stamina means very little (to none) on flat stages (in my experience), and specially on one that dosent have any lenght at all like this one.
In other words, his sprint stat secures him a train, where the flat stat of Welsford and Trondsen, as well as their sprint helps him get in front where his sprint stat can matter. If I am right he will get pretty consistent results all season (I hope I am)
When it comes to Szarka I am no expert, but I think it is the same as how Coquard is secured a train, he is ranked just low enough on sprint while high enough on flat for the game to consider him an late attacker (He would've been a dream leadout rider though)
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 02-10-2026 23:25
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Bot Agent
Posts: Countless
Joined: 23.11.09
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| jt1109 |
Posted on 02-10-2026 13:16
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3752
Joined: 23-07-2008
PCM$: 700.00
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Fabianski wrote:
Oof... Pretty much the worst possible outcome.
But please, can anyone (@jt?) explain Szarka's behavior? Listed as a Top 10 favourite,
Judging by his SP stat he seems to have missed the cut off point for a sprinter and been given a flat attacker role similar to Konychev also looks like Kulikovskiy got the same as a 78SP guy, Though it is notable on one of picture Hozler?! or Szarka is on Kulikovskiy wheel so im wondering if they were meant to be on one of the leadout trains (i count 5 and there can be 6) and something went wrong with the Force India leadout just based on where the Force India guys finished (all in a row).
I'd say the first one is more likely and one of the reasons 78SP can be a nightmare as that cutoff can be brutal
EDIT: Also agree with everything Heine says re Coquard ST means little (they never use there Yellow bar enough) especially in easier races), and Leadouts matter a lot so Heine has a leadout suited to Coquard |
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| seancoll |
Posted on 02-10-2026 14:07
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1081
Joined: 20-12-2022
PCM$: 500.00
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A very fun race for only 80km! Congrats to MRE for pulling out a victory with Enger and for all who found success early on.
Was especially fun trying to parse through the photos and figure out what new jerseys were added that I hadn't realized before. Might need to read the next report with the helmet assignments up to help.
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| Booker |
Posted on 02-10-2026 14:33
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1238
Joined: 03-07-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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Congrats to MRE, and thanks very much for the excellent report red.
Not terrible all things considered for Hesters in 14th, average opening points for the year, against a not bad field. We'll take it and hope for better in races that suit him more down the line (e.g. longer and slightly more stamina testing...)
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 02-10-2026 16:52
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Team Leader
Posts: 5501
Joined: 29-09-2018
PCM$: 185.00
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Heine wrote:
When it comes to Szarka I am no expert, but I think it is the same as how Coquard is secured a train, he is ranked just low enough on sprint while high enough on flat for the game to consider him an late attacker (He would've been a dream leadout rider though)
jt1109 wrote:
Judging by his SP stat he seems to have missed the cut off point for a sprinter and been given a flat attacker role similar to Konychev also looks like Kulikovskiy got the same as a 78SP guy, Though it is notable on one of picture Hozler?! or Szarka is on Kulikovskiy wheel so im wondering if they were meant to be on one of the leadout trains (i count 5 and there can be 6) and something went wrong with the Force India leadout just based on where the Force India guys finished (all in a row).
I'd say the first one is more likely and one of the reasons 78SP can be a nightmare as that cutoff can be brutal
EDIT: Also agree with everything Heine says re Coquard ST means little (they never use there Yellow bar enough) especially in easier races), and Leadouts matter a lot so Heine has a leadout suited to Coquard
So, basically just bad luck ^^ Would've expected him to be close to someone like Hesters, but alas. I can absolutely see Szarka as a "late attacker", but "mid-race" is definitely not my definition of "late". No rider having an outside shot at a result would try a 40km move I guess...
And yes, according to the Bib it was Holzer (wtf!?!) on Kulikovskiy's wheel. 25th is a good result for a 73 sprinter I guess, but still no clue why he was even there ^^
So concerning Coquard, you'd say he'd struggle more in a 200km+ race like Paris - Tours, and probably even more so on a more undulating route like Lisbon? If not, and he's competitive everywhere, we really have to stop taking secondary stats into account for OVL calculation, or at least giving them much less weight. Obviously good news for Heine that he seems to work brilliantly 
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| Caspi |
Posted on 02-10-2026 20:18
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1124
Joined: 22-09-2022
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Mresuperstar wrote:
Feels weird having a sprinter on the favourites list again, been a while. A top 5 would be a nice way to start the season.
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| Caspi |
Posted on 02-10-2026 20:19
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1124
Joined: 22-09-2022
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Nothing for us. As expected.
Good to have the season started
Thanks for the preview and report.
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| liefwarrior |
Posted on 02-10-2026 21:51
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1073
Joined: 04-07-2019
PCM$: 300.00
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Slightly frustrating to see that Madan did end up as the third man in our leadout, as we were hoping for one of our lads with a bit more FL. Did it cost Pedersen, and in turn Walls, tough to tell.
Nice to see the better sprint trains working though, hopefully they can keep it up throughout the season. Would be good to have investment in a good sprint squad being rewarded with consistent results.
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 02-10-2026 22:19
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 18076
Joined: 12-05-2012
PCM$: 0.00
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All that island experience shining through as Hopkins surfs to a good result. If he can replicate in most races i'll be ecstatic!
Also, this was a Win Goal, so that 5th place bags us a goal point i do believe. Flying start!
But seeing how the sprint trains went, on the off-chance we make on in a couple of less obvious stage races, we've got some good feeling we can deliver him well enough.
Also, we're not Hololive, we're Bacharu for short (until we inevitably rebrand for next season)
Cracking start to the season, even if the 80km criterium is not exactly representative.
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 02-10-2026 22:47
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 13394
Joined: 27-07-2015
PCM$: 1961.50
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Not a good start to the season, same as two years ago. Pretty consistent behaviour from Kulikovskiy across game versions Getting outsprinted by two of his un-maxed teammates is new though! Some points are better than nothing. It can only get better from here, hopefully...
Congrats to Mre and thanks for report red
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