Hello and welcome to jandal's jandally preview of the CT! This is proven to be 100% inaccurate and nobody will finish where I say they do. Except Philips. I'm feeling lucky. but that would make it 95% innacurate... nevermind.
The format is pretty simple but also kinda complicated because I realised I was copying matt halfway through thinking of it and made it more complicated: teams in the red will probably be our bottom feeders. Teams in very orange are in danger of becoming one whilst those that are sort of orange will be safe from disaster and may even fight for top half. Pretty little yellow zone teams will be safely mid-table and could knock on the top 10 or the bottom 8 if things go well or not so well. Then there's a trio of weird teams who are green because they're better than yellow teams but not in the direct promotion fight. Blue teams will be in and around direct promotion, even the podium with lots and lots of luck. Then purple teams are chea- um, very good teams who will be jousting for the title.
The rationale is much more complicated because it's all my thoughts with no stats, no science, nothing that will help me be accurate really. It's where this preview will fall down and so don't worry if you're down low, and do worry if you're happy with your place because I definitely jinxed you. All jokes are jokes, if I seem to be a jealous of a certain team or rider I definitely am. I try not to take expected manager skills into account or schedule announcements (so stop sending your leaders to fricken TOA or you're moved to 24th ), if I do mention the latter it's probably for a joke because that's how bad they are. I try not to waffle on but already failed that one so let's just get into it. Also thanks to trekbmc for the microjerseys.
These teams, unfortunately, just aren't quite good enough. One has ony a sub-top to top leader in the most random of terrains. Three have the same type of leader. One of them actually has a good sprinter. They'll all get more wins than you will anyway because breakaways. Let's meet our teams which are in the red...
24. Statoil Pro Cycling
Cons:
- Talents are good but not much point scoring to be done taking away from team total
- Park isn't a good enough sprinter to make points
- TT randomness means potentially no top point scorer
Pros:
- Nice surprise riders in hills and mountains
- National focus!
- Bookwalter should perform
Top Scorer: Brent Bookwalter
The time triallist should score some points but will be bogged down by a strong TT field and the randomness of time trials. Can also do well for small GC points or breakaways in hilly or mountainous races.
Rider to Watch: Krister Hagen
Hagen isn't proficient in a certain type of breakaway, with no major strength in climbing or cobbles. But he does like to get into them and is a decent enough sprinter and attacker that if he finds the right one could take the win.
The new Scandinavians on the block have taken on quite a lot of homegrown talents for their first year as a pro cycling team and that's where most of their wages have gone towards. It's an admirable strategy that should pay long-term dividends but short-term success may be hard to come by. Their national focus is very good to see but really they just have too many riders and not enough quality. 17 of their 20 riders are on minimum wage, which sounds nice but most really are worth it... and not a cent more.
But there are positives. The aforementioned national focus, some great climbers for free roles, Ratto surprising and also a pair of riders who could score reasonably well. Bookwalter is a great time triallist to have though his backups are lacking, whilst Taborre is a proven CT scorer (32nd last year) who whilst not as near to the top as last year could still net some good points with nice stamina and acceleration. It will be a tough debut season for Statoil but there will be bright spots with their couple of attacking guys as well as the two competent bicycle riders. But I'm sorry to say, they're just not very good.
23. VMP - Argon 18
Cons:
- Many of their guys still really really suck a lot
- No big points scorer, and no subtop points scorer bar Panayotov
- Too many riders, only a few can score and wage depleted
Pros:
- No Zeits
- Panayatov has a good train
- Grega Bole
Top Points Scorer: Petar Panayatov
The Bulgarian climber has returned to his home country to lead in the CT in the exact wrong season but luckily could far better than some of our other subtop climbers we'll meet along the way. He's got a nice gaggle of riders to support him and the hopes of a nation betrayed by the hippie Carribean-Aussie-Chilean-Mauritian monstrosity that is Podium Ambition, now supporting VMP - Argon 18. It's a hard knock life for Bulgarian cycling fans.
Rider to Watch: Oleg Berdos
The Romanian can climb, power the flats, and sprint, which makes him a great candidate for many breakaways and even breakaway wins. He isn't known as a super aggressive rider but has the potential.
The team with three sponsors have put that money to good use, realising how conzeitsted their old leader was being about his wage, sacking him and getting a pair of good leader who will perform in CT: Petar Panayatov and Grega Bole. They have taken the hot fresh popular new route of getting a 78 mountain leader, a decent train, and a few crappy sprinters. Payayatov fills the hole of mountain leader and is quite good at it. He has a few good riders to support him which will help out. Thire returns to underwhelm again alongside Grega Bole, who isn't actually a crappy sprinter, because he didn't cry in school when he had to measure an angle over 2% with his protractor. For proof of hilly sprinter's abilities in CT, see Simon Geschke, general beast and record holder for all-time most CT wins. Though his presence is a year too late as hilly classics with flat finishes aren't that hip anymore (praise the fricking lord). But he will still perform - much more than the rest of the team, at least.
Here come the problems. They've got too many riders, many of whom suck and/or are overpaid. They don't have a solid sprinter or puncheur - Bole only has 57 days to do both and Thire will stop him sprinting anyway. They aren't the best breakaway team (cementing their place below the next two teams) but their two Albanians, including their beloved loanee Khamberaj, could make something on that front. So a much improved outfit this time around that, due to inflation and still not being that good, will not improve much in the way of placing.
22. SanCor
Cons:
- No major points scorer other than Diaz
- No top sprinter for that leadout train
- Not 100% Argentinian yet
Pros:
- National focus <3
- Plenty of decent backup for leaders
- Only one useless rider, lots of options for points on all terrains
Top Point Scorer: Daniel Ricardo Diaz
Now the top Argentinian cyclist in the world, Diaz has the weight of expectations on his shoulders. It's a big year for climbers in the CT, most teams have a quality one but Diaz had some support stats that make him a good stage racing option that should do well for the Argentines.
Rider to Watch: Lucas Manuel Gaday
One of Argentina's brightest talent, Gaday is a classics man and already a very good one. He isn't a top cobbler yet and is further from the top hilly guys but he combines them in a way that he's going to be an outside threat in many classics, especially with a combination of both.
This team is an odd creature in the best way: plucky outsiders, fiercely loyal, many in great support of one man with 78 mountain. So with that last bit, why are they 22nd you ask? Because quite a few other teams had the same idea (I'm not criticising as I did too).
They've won countless fans as a likeable, national focused team full of riders with huge hearts and fighting spirit. But unfortunately, this isn't just a gush session on likeable teams, this a ranking of all teams and so let's reviw SanCor. Their ideals mean they have limited tools to work with and so they have a top quality lead-out train but with the decline of legend Richeze they have no leader to consistently score points - Andriato and Richeze the younger will pick up some here and there but they are not in the same class as Haller or Salleh. They have some nice climbers, including their top leader Diaz, all of whom can score points in stages but only Diaz can vye for those big GC points. Godoy is powerful uphill but isn't complete enough to score many points. On cobbles Gaday should do well. This is a good breakaway team, no doubt, which could see them jump two or three placs up this standings in my eyes.
But this isn't a team with reliable top scorers outside of Diaz, who isn't a top 5 stage racer himself anyway. They'll be scrapping for points, and their breakaways are solid, but unfortunately whilst teams further up the rankings have worse breakaway teams, they also don't have breakaways as their plan B.
21. Garmin - BikeNZ Cycling
Cons:
- Not enough imagination in terms of bottom half team leader type choice
- Not enough depth of point scorers
- No Americans! Pros:
- Have a sprinter
- Have a true stage racer
- Have mastered the art of the deal - the "let us win this stage from a breakaway" deal
Top Points Scorer: Piter Campero
Tougher choice than stats suggests but like VMP and SanCor they have a 78 climber to lead the charge. Not terrible over hills or on a time-trial bike, The Bolivian hasone random African they have because he can't keep his dirty paws of my - I mean other people's almost done deals and Timothy Roe in support, who his manager clearly prefers and will get preferential treatment. Wait is it too late to change my pick?
Rider to Watch: Erdenebayar Daspuntsag
A remnant of their humble Mongolian beginnings, Daspuntsag is still on the team because he's actually a quality rider who could do well - he's taken famous victories before and whilst they won't be on the scale of his USAPCC GC win he can certainly do it again.
First they were Mongolian and bad, then they were Australian and better and now they're American and... the same? Well they have improved despite the loss of Bakari, but on the flipside he now gives Wim De Vocht the chance to re-see the leadership role in cobbles - and also see how bad he is in the 2017 CT. Sneaky stage racer Roe is back and Jakstar fended off tsmoha's advances by signing no more Kiwis or Aussies, and also included Americans because he thought they had the exact same focuses. Or something. I'm not going to be a nationality Nazi. Or regular Nazi, same diff.
But he did sign Piter Campero, and I know you're tired of this but last time we can do this, another 78 mountain guy for a team trying not to come in the bottom 4. He's ably supported by the aforementioned Roe and should score for them nicely. The major difference here is that they have a sprinter who can do something in Steele von Hoff, who isn't the top sprinter in the division but can be not terrible at hills sometimes. Crucially, this is what gives them the chance to make it out of the bottom4 and in the the top 20.
They have a few riders adept at breakaways including seasoned attack artist Daspuntsag, fellow Mongolian Delgerbayar and Cameroonian climber Kamzong. They should make a few victories and help them - if any of these stage wins or near-stage wins translate into GC battles they could move further up the table than first thought. But the climbing, stage racing, cobbles and sprint competition in the CT is too strong for their leaders to make enough of an impact to get them too far without some big luck or big attacks.
These teams are maybe just a cut above those in the red - maybe they have depth, a top scorer or multiple good leaders. They could go up towards mid table with a lot of luck, but they could easily be surpassed by the teams below in the red.
20. Proximus Continental Team
Cons:
- No reliably top points scorers
- Neither stage race outsider has any acceleration
- Brus doesn't have any secondary abilities to make him useful
Pros:
- Depth and scoring potential in all terrains
- Cobblers are good on hills and sprints
- Jelle and Welle united
Top Point Scorer: Bert-Jan Lindeman
The Dutchman has bounced around a bit from new team to new team the last three seasons, never scoring too many points but improving despite inflation. He's been overshadowed, unlucky, badly planned, whatever you call it. But 2017 could be different for the cobbler with a mean sprint. He has top notch support and a divison where only three riders as proficient as he or better over the cobbles can match his finish. Sounds good, but one of them is a full-on sprinter in Yoeri Havik. Uh-oh.
Rider to Watch: Laurens De Vreese
He's a highly sought after versatile domestique but if he attacks he can be dangerous on almost any terrain. If he gets some free reign and good opportunites he could be a very good points scorer as well as being an outside threat for cobbled races and just an all-around amazing domestique.
I know some may predict Proximus lower, some higher. They could fall behind for lack of a top leader. Their depth and wildcard riders could boost them ahead. It all depends on luck and planning, which basically means they are a normal team because I could say that everywhere. They are, true to form, built for the classics: a deep backlog of Dutch and Belgian cobblers and puncheurs will be fighting for surprises and/or minor points. They also have found wildcard climbers, sprinters and a time triallist in the region. None of whom will score much and not consistently but could provide moral support. Or surprise. But definitely moral support. Always important.
This team are rac- uh, very nationally focused and should be given respect even if they are from two of the biggest countries in cycling. But nationality focus means sweet FA and so we have to examine their squad as if they were some Qatari international school of cycling (*cough* minions *cough*). Lindeman should be a top 10 cobbled scorer with able backup and other scorers with him, but unfortunately as a sprinter/cobbler has arrived at a time where, whilst Thomas is gone, Thwaites and Yoeri will wreak Havik on the top cobblers if they don't drop them, which is kinda Lindeman's thing. Lietaer is their hope for the hilly classics and has decent support stats and a fighting spirit which could see him gobble up minor points or take unexpected fliers that result in surprise results. Either way, my description makes him seem like a chicken. Jelle Wallays should be making late attacks in the hills whilst Welle Jallays should be making them on the flats. Rumour has it they get stat boosts when on the same team. Brus doesn't have a saving grace of being a decent cobbler or puncheur to save him from typical bottom team crappy sprinter-ness. Boy van Poppel isn't as fast but an interesting rider who will get blocked by Brus.
Proximus are an odd bunch but unfortunately will fare worse off than other classics teams in will not be the top purple team either. They're a hard one to place but just slip into orangeness with some tasty depth.
19. Aeropostal Venezuela Ciclismo
Cons:
- Climbers aren't very good in this field
- Grippo can't score at the top
- Cruz is focusing on TTs so there's no respected cobbled leader Pros:
- They don't have squads for the sprints or cobbles so I can't criticise their sprint or cobbles squads
- Cabrera is beastly because high flat stat or something
- Depth in the mountains Top Points Scorer: Raúl Granjel Cabrera
Well we finally have a top sprinter amongst the red and very orange teams and it's living TOA legend Raúl Granjel Cabrera. He should be there or thereabouts in all the sprints he attends but the question does linger as to how many of them will be in C2 races given his proficiency in the PCT GT.
Rider to Watch: Eduardo Sepulvelda
The Argentinian who still hasn't peaked specialises in prologues and sprints but is an able climber as well and his all-around skillset but unpeaked stats lend themselves all too well to some breakaway funtime.
Aeropostal came down from PCT with a great climbing squad but the circumstances of their renewals and subsequent missing of early transfers and other teams' as well lead to their possible dreams of dominance being shattered. Only Atapuma really looks like a top calibre CT climber and even then he looks no different to a Panayatov or a (former rider) Rujano, both of whom have better backups anyway. This squad, naturally focused on climbing, can't even do that better than what seems like half the teams in the division, making them a heavy very orange that could slip into the red if they aren't careful.
On the plus side, Cabrera is a very good sprinter who should be up there in every sprint and could net enough points to do more than his share of keeping them out of the red in the Tour of America, but that race could also be disastrous for the team if he doesn't deliver. But who am I kidding he totally will. Pirazzi is the king of fighters and an amazing fighting climber for stage wins and KoM jerseys. Grippo isn't a bad hilly leader but he isn't great either, with no great kick or energy stats. Pesada will be a nice guy for the hills if he can do his own thing and not support Grippo. Dall'Antonia could do well from a break if he gets a shot. So could a few others. Moschella isn't bad per se but isn't really good and cramps Atapuma's style.
As you could see I was struggling a bit there near the end as without Atapuma, Pirazzi and Cabrera this team isn't hugely inspiring. Most of climbing train doesn't have the support stats to fight at the top. Cruz isn't a top TTist. They could almost struggle to score in a lot of race days. But great planning and some luck could see them well above this level too. it isn't a great outlook at Aeropostal, but it isn't all doom and gloom either.
18. Eddie Stobart
Cons:
- Thorsen can get the odd result but blocks their bottom of division trademark crappy sprinters
- No good leaders on any terrain outside mountains
- Climbers can't do much apart from climb mountains
Pros:
- Said climbers can climb very well
- Climbing domestiques have good res
- Thorsen might still score more than your average crap sprinter
Top Scorer: Jaime Suaza
The only option really, the Colombian can climb, time trial a bit, but mostly climb.
He can do it at a nice tempo or very fast. But it needs to be over 5kms. Or he gets dropped by Cimolai in training camps.
Rider to Watch: Paul van der Ploeg
The Aussie has already made some nice attacks before but with his brother out on loan he has his chance to make even more. Eddie Stobart is known as a very good breakaway team in CT and PVDP could be their best of the lot this season with all-around power and a nice sprint.
Eddie Stobart have finally signed a top leader in Jaime Suaza from Vesuvio. The Colombian is a climber with a mean acceleration and surprisingly decent in a time trial. He's a bit better than the rest of the orange and red climbers becuse he is on different level when it comes to climbing. However he has clear weaknesses, the hills for example, which is kind of weird. He's not a very good bike rider, just a good climber. Mevdevev, also part of the deal, but he can't TT, or accelerate very fast, but can go downhill. He'll be a useful lieutenant nevertheless. So why is a team with an actually not terrible climber down so low. Because their other leader makes Suaza look like freaking Gesink when it comes to rounded stats. The man, the myth, but certainly no legend, Daniel Thorsen.
He's treading on the toes of their established sprint leader in Cimolai, who's yet another crappy sprinter who wouldn't score much anyway so Thorsen isn't a bad signing per se. Other leaders include Cherel as a decent puncheur that won't score big due to the strength this year, Gert Joeaar for some surprise time trial placings and Yannick Martinez as a solid enough sprinter/cobbler who could stick around to compete for the semi-classics. Riders such as Lewis, Joeaar and van der Ploeg can certainly garner stage wins from breakaways as well, which Eddie Stobart seem to be proficient at.
But really this squad is a mishmash of riders, some of whom can score points, some of whom definitely can't, and one of whom is a quality climber who will need a lot of effort to do make it over hills and flats. They should make it out of the red but they're never certain, and so they are the highest of our very orange teams.
Those That are Less Orange
These three teams should be safe from the bottom 5 but aren't quite top half material - they could end up fighting for mid-table but most likely they'll be in the no man's land of the bottom half. If a team below does well or these team's don't it could be bottom 5 though, as none have a huge scorer to guarantee points. They both have multiple decent leaders and a bit of depth to speak of.
17. Wiggle p/b Boardman Bikes
Cons:
- No top leader
- No consistent scorers
- Haussler blocks three potentially better sprinters
Pros:
- Good depth
- High fighter stats
- Good backups
Top Points Scorer: Tobyn Horton
It's hard to pick a top points scorer for a team without a clear one but his huge acceleration and skill for the semi-classics means Horton is my pick. He's a bit of a hit and miss sprinter but his hits could be huge, big enough to make him Wiggle's #1 man.
Rider to Watch: Mickaël Delage
The Frenchman is good over flats, short climbs and has a good sprint which makes him an outstanding breakaway candidate capable of winning over three terrains. He's skilful baroudeur who should serve his team well.
"jandal" I hear you ask. "With those cons you listed, this team sounds really really bad. Why are they only sort of orange?" Well, kiddo, I've been asking myself that question as well, and to be honest I could be very wrong about them. But even though Pozzovivo isn't a top 10 climber on paper, he could do well with support stats. Even though their sprint train could block each other so much they all crash, they could also surprise the bigger teams. But most of all, their other riders have good support stats, high fighter stats and surprise potential. They have great depth in hills and mountains, with 72-74 statted guys with good sprints and good backup that can make good use of breakaways and even surprise stage results on less selective days. Delage and Barclay among others pose big breakaway threats.
But that ultimately won't make up for their lack of scoring at the front, consistently. Pozzovivo, despite doing better than the Stetinas or Mevdevevs of the divison who are a) less balanced and b) domestiques, still isn't a top scorer. Their sprint train is messy but do have the quality for some results if AI doesn't screw them over. Big if. So Wiggle are a hard team to predict and maybe I have made a mistake. Maybe I haven't. We'll have to wait and see.
16. Andorra Cycling Project
Cons:
- No good sprinter or puncheur scorer
- Solis sucks and might hinder better climbers
- Not many breakaway dudes
Pros:
- TT scoring
- Flaksis should score where other orange teams won't
- Climbing depth
Rider to Watch: Bonaventure Uwizeyimana
The obvious choice, perhaps, but the Rwandan is a good one. Heading up the team's odd African contingent, he can surprise over mountains and hills and isn't even maxed yet.
Andorra Cycling Project bounced around my list for a while and were yellow zone until i realised they were basically a slightly stronger version of your average team in the red and could well be in danger of the bottom 5, where many other predictors have them. However they are stronger, putting the crappy sprinter, cobbler and good climber and TT potential of all the teams below them into one multinational monstrosity. With the threats of other Spanish and French teams above and around them this team is a ragtag but nevertheless likeable group of riders that aren't really from either. So a suitably Andorran team, really. Getting the negatives out of the way: they don't have the best breakaway riders or top scorers which will hinder their way into the top 15. They have some nice talents and Andorran riders but many of them just aren't very good and will stop the team's progress this year, but should come up good in the long run. Passalaqua's a bit rubbish.
Solis is a strong climber but somehow worse than even Suaza at everything, which is saying something. Rujano is much better and so hopefully should end up as their leader to duel for top 10s with the likes of Panayatov, Diaz, Campero and the like. Luxembourgian champion Claerebout and Baltazar are a nice pair of climbing doms, the former could also do well for himself Flaksis should score where not many red or orange teams will and Nazir Jaser is a perfectly bad sprinter so Andorra don't feel excluded from the other bottom teams. Then the TT squad looks quite good, with Mottin a one-dimensional rider but very good at what he does. Africans Laizer and Kireva should also pick up a few points from chrono stages. Uwizeyimana is a very nice rider and could do quite well from breakaways and even pose a GC threat if he gets too much time
On the whole Andorra has nice mountain and TT squads for this level but Flaksis isn't good enough on the cobbles, Jaser isn't good enough in a sprint and Passalacqua isn't good enough in the hills to help this team rise up to mid-table. Not the best new squad put together but a damn fine place to start. Just lacking scoring power.
15. Löbauer Stadtwerke - Etixx
Cons:
- Missing a big scorer for 80% of their race days
- Martin isn't unique in the divison
- 4/6 terrains won't earn many points
Pros:
- Exciting and versatile riders
- Martin and Geschke are beasts
- Backups
Top Points Scorer: Tony Martin
It could have easily been Martin but alas Reus and Dennis have come to CT as well. It could have been Geschke but his kinda races are being phased out. So it's the former, banking on getting full support (because there's no way Paul won't give him super special treatment) and his slightly lower flat stat getting him into road race breakaways.
Rider to Watch: Mathieu van der Poel
This kid is only a neo pro but he's so good there's whispers he may even have somewhere close to a Novardianto of a season. There is not a terrain the former CX world champ isn't already good at and whilst one day he'll be a great leader this year he is a threat for a surprise victory in almost any stage and should be up the road quite a lot.
Löbauer have improved quite a bit since last year and should slither up the table quite a bit but unfortunately so has everybody else. Still, there is enough new CT team fodder that they safely in the sort of orange zone and five places up. They have some decent leaders under the surface though there is still the question mark over Vanderaerden's scoring capabilities. They have a decent leadout train but take away Geschke for hilly races and it looks a bit frail. Since Martin's whole thing is how good he is solo they don't have a true leader to get themselves behind, and so the squad is mostly a bit of a mercenary bunch, each having terrains of choice but just getting points on their own. But they are at least decent at it. Geschke is less of a beat every season as hilly sprints get less and less but it still great at it and should do well again this year. Bille overperformed for La Poste last year and could do again with an exciting stat combination. 4 riders have hill and sprint above 70 which is nice for breakaways, whilst De Clerq is no scrub of a stage racer but won't be as good as last year. Most riders have scoring potential from breakaways or minor points. Interesting race situations could see big surprises from Löbauer.
But then why are they orange? Becuase of the cons above. Martin isn't unique and worse than Reus and Dennis. None of their exciting riders will be consistent and none can be taken for granted. Veraederan isn't a 100 point plus man that he maybe needs to be to go yellow. Their talents are nice but only Van der Poel is one to watch and so they take away from points this year (why aren't they loaned out?). De Clerq is saturated even more by the division strength and we won't see the nice performances he occasionally stumped up with last year. And Benoot sucks.
Löbauer could go up or down from 15th but they would be pleased with this I think but should keep their upwards trajectory next year and multiply it a bit. For now, it's a squad with some positives but just a few too many negatives for the comfort of the yellow zone.
The yellow zone is a place for teams who should be safely mid table or just below. They have the top half, even top 10 potential but could also end up beaten and bruised on the doormat of the bottom 6. But they should be peacefully safe in the yellow zone. Probably the best teams out of the wider promotion fight.
14. The Balkan Cycling Project
Cons:
- Lejman is one of many puncheurs lacking acc to score big
- No top points scorer/second consistent good one by Karnulin
- No subtop TT or cobbler
Pros:
- Depth and good depth, none of the low 70s climbers are only climbers and can do well elsewhere
- Karnulin should outscore other bottom half climbers
- Great attacking riders
Top Points Scorer: Denys Karnulin
The Ukrainian may appear as one of those stage racers I've criticised countless times already for being pretty average for a bottom half team to have but he's one of the most dangerous of the 78 climbers right there with Cataldo and Bennett. He's a quality stage racer with great backups and a strong, strong squad around him.
Rider to Watch: Marko Stankovic
This man is a bit of a beast - an attacking, climbing, sprinting rider who exemplifies the exciting versatility of domestiques in this team. He's an able helper for Vingerling, Lejman and Karnulin and could also do very very well given his own opportunities.
The Balkan Cycling Project is a very exciting team. They don't have any "bad" riders that aren't level 1 and great mountain depth. You may have noticed the consistent stream of great mountain domestiques in the Free Agency? That was them and they've put together a hell of a squad in support of dangerous stage racer Karnulin whilst sticking to their regional ideals. Clearly focused on climbing and sprints, they've got a great subtop leader in both with able support, Vingerling with a fast leadout and Karnulin with deep support. Their domestiques are all either quite strong or versatile with their puncheurs sprinting, their climbers are stage racers, meaning it's a dynamic team that will be very interesting to see how new manager Djordje manages.
However, it's not all sunshine and buzzwords for the best "Cycling Project" team in the whole darn CT. They do lack scoring on the hills, cobbles and TTs. Lejman isn't great with that ACC and will be overtaken by riders like Vichot and Haavardsholm. He scored under 30 points last year, so may struggle to even make that again. There is nobody for the cobbles and whilst Kasa is a neat rider to have he's no big TT scorer, only making 59 points last season with a much-improved TT field this year, meaning he's useful but they'll be starved for chrono points.
But Mezgec, Vingerling, Karnulin and really most riders The Balkan Cycling Project have in their ranks should elevate them into the comfort of the yellow zone, and gives them ample room for interesting planning and aggressive racing. Certainly a great team for a neutral to follow who doesn't have time for all the races: just don't read cobbles or chronos!
13. Campari - Super Dry
Cons:
- No second top leader
- Verbist and Bratashcuk don't have the acc to overachieve enough for green
- Small team mentality with that poor sprinter
Pros:
- Cataldo is a legitimate threat to the top three in mountains
- Gatto is a very dangerous rider
- Decent mountain support
Top Points Scorer: Dario Cataldo
The Italian climber is a class act and should outscore his teammates quite easily and pose a big threat to the more discussed climbers such as Valls or Eastman. He has a good set of skills and a decent squad behind him and should make quite the points haul.
Rider to Watch: Oscar Gatto
A great sprinter to steal cobbled and hilly races from under the noses of the favourites and also for breakaways or bumpy sprints. A versatile rider with a fast finished, Gatto brings experience and wily racing to Campari and should be a threat in most races he attends.
The Italian - Japanese combination throughout history has had some really bad outcomes but Danish manager Tamijo has blended these focuses well into a nice looking and likeable squad with potential to push for top 10 with some great planning. He's brought in a top climber in Cataldo to be their leader and given him good enough backup but tried not to put all his eggs in one basket and has leaders of varying quality for all four road terrains.
The worst of them is Belletti, the sprinter, who is no better than your Thire or your Jaser in terms of being an obligatory sprinter worse than many teams' leadouts. He isn't terrible over hills but not to the point where he could surprise in some bumpier stages. Ukrainian puncheur Bratashcuk isn't that bad but just won't score many major points with low ACC, but could surprise by following the wheel in races with a few medium mountains chucked in for good measure. Verbist isn't the most flashy cobbler but he's attacking enough that he could overperform, but his sprint, acceleration and hill count against him. Finally, Dario Cataldo is a very good climber and will be up there with the best of them in most races. He also has the best support with a strong mountain contingent at his service.
Gatto is the other big name recruited by Campari and is a massive threat in hilly sprints as well as semi-classics on the cobbles. He's also a decent sprinter though from the Matt Rowe school of high top speed, but 0-60 very slowly. Kebede is also worth a mention as a good climber and puncheur who should serve Cataldo well and maybe even outdo Bratashcuk. Puerto Rican Colon should be the best of the rest over flats and cobbles in a team with not the most breakaway scoring potential. Ssabagwanya could do well too.
All in all, Campari is a team who could well climb into the top half and maybe even top 10 but will struggle without that second great leader behind Cataldo and a bit more limited scoring options than a team pushing for top half would like.
12. Goldcorp - Nordstrom Rack
Cons:
- Farrar is only slightly above crappy sprinter
- Only one top leader
- Can't control the cobbles
Pros:
- GVK is the best in his terrain
- Their puncheurs are decent outsiders
- Plenty of attacking options
Rider to Watch: Gatis Smukulis
Though he may be too much of a flat powerhouse to be allowed in breakaways watch out for the Latvian if he does, or in the mix on bumpy days. He's a powerhouse with a huge engine but great punchy abilities as well, making him dangerous in many races and a valuable domestique as well.
The team I'm not yet convinced isn't owned by a Bond Villain, Goldcorp presents a various mix of North American and journeyman European riders with a vast range of skills. They have an interesting hill division, a vague attempt at a sprint train, a small cobbles team and a few climbers. Some of it's good, some of it isn't so good. Let's take a look.
Their hill squad is lead by Simon Pellaud, who is actually one of the better 77 hill riders out there and should get the odd top 5 and some decent placing points. Ryan Anderson is a dangerous man for less selective punchy races with a very good sprint, and Gaimon is pretty similar. Rybakov should be an attacking rider and get decent results there as well. Goldcorp's sprint train is lead by Farrar, who isn't a points-scorer really but will make a few points in sprints and maybe off a semi-classic or two.
Their cobbles team is the golden goose egg of the team despite it being... not that strong. Only Lebris and Hamilton - with useful sprint and hill stats respectively - are decent domestiques whilst Farrar will be around for some of them. But it is lead by van Keirlsbulck who is possibly the top cobbler in the CT and that means something - whilst he can't have the dominant season of Thomas last year who was one of the leading CT riders full stop he can pick up plenty of cobbled points. The climbers are Peterson, who could do OK in stage races but won't do much, Salas, who is strong but doesn't have great support stats, and Britton, who could make some surprises but ultimately these guys won't perform too well or pick up more than 50 points between them.
Golas and Smukilis are great breakaway riders but could be seen by the peloton as too much of a threat being powerful roleurs. Hamilton could surprise with a Clifford-esque breakaway in a race such as the Benelux Challenge but ultimately just isn't strong enough to be a classics threat. All in all, this isn't a team that will set the world alight but a strong hill squad and GVK should leave them mid-table, and maybe even top half.
Teams Going Green
These teams are just a bit above the yellow teams but have another cutoff between them and the blue teams. Their goal is the top 10 but with some great planning and overachieving they could be looking at promotion. They usually have a few good leaders - or one massive one. You know who you are.
11. Repsol-Honda
Cons:
- Lacking a sprinter
- Lacking a second top scorer
- If Valls has a couple of poor C2HC races it's a slippery slope
Pros:
- Hill and mountain depth
- Valls is a helluva rider
- Attacking riders who can score around the leaders
Top Points Scorer: Rafael Valls
Lol I don't have to justify this. Valls is a beast and bigger than the team, he's perhaps the best stage racer and will net hundreds of points alone. With plenty of support, he's talking a big game and so is the Repsol HQ, so the pressure is on.
Repsol-Honda, a.k.a. Bad Grandpas, are arguably the best team... at climbing. Aquarius quickly fulfilled his dream to have Valverde and Cunego ride for him, got his #1 target then just kind of filled up his squad. Luckily he did it with some good guys and nice talents, but he also neglected the fact you need sprinters and guys who don't turn into children, saying "are we there yet?" every 15 seconds on flat sections waiting for the climbs, in your team. Stacchiotti is worse than the bottom half token crap sprinters and you can't convince me yet that he saw Marcato's cobble stat and wasn't just looking for a hilly guy with a nice finish. Though in saying that, Kneisky is very strong on tha flats and not a bad chronoist so maybe he really meant for a flat team and just kept - sorry I can't write that whole sentence I'm laughing too hard. They're a Spanish team it's OK.
So who are these top notch climbers we keep hearing about? Well there's golden boy Valls, a super strong stage racer making big bucks to be Spanish and be amazing at cycling his bicycle. There's Giro d'Italia dominator and all-time great Damiano Cunego, looking to perform for a CT team after helping VisitUkraine out of the PCT even on his decline. There is Rafa Serrano, who is a seriously cool rider and deserves more attention (and that's a FACT!). He should score quite well in mountain days with a super acceleration. Hideto Nakane is the only Japanese rider on the half-Japanese team (and before you say anything I will roast myself for having no South Africans) and true to his name will be a little more anonymous than the other two domestiques. Then there's a few other talent climbers you won't care about for a few years and also Valverde, who is cool to have but kinda sucks now. Sorry, Bala, I still love you.
Cunego will also double as part of the leading puncheur duo with fellow old fart Gilbert, who himself is fresh off of helping Strava promote. They aren't the top puncheurs and should come up with a few points but not too many in the hilly races. They also have a bit of hilly depth as well, with the only other scoring potential coming in the form of Stefano Agostini and Marco Marcato, who also heads up the team's cobbles lineup but only poses a threat from surprises and maybe the Benelux Challenge. And I just named their whole cobbles lineup so let's move onto their sprint train, working for crappy crap sprinter Stacchiotti. They also have Beyer "leading him out" who won't do anything because not only does he have to lowest hill stat by 10 points, which is OK, but also the lowest flat stat in a Spanish climbing team. That is not OK for a sprinter. Kneisky is the last rider of note in the squad and should be a threat for late attacks on flat days and for minor placings in time trials.
So, Repsol is a strange team but not a completely new breed by any means: Valls is a top scorer, we know that. Cunego and Gilbert are something of a constant stream of hill points. Cunego and Serrano should also score in the mountains. Then there's couple of other riders who could score a significant enough number of points that they stand on their own. If all guns fire, Repsol could crack the top 10. If a few don't then they could well tumble into the bottom half with yellow teams waiting to shut the gap between them and the green teams.
10. Team Reddit
Cons:
- No backups
- One stat wonders block actual leaders in two terrains
- Won't have many wins
Pros:
- Depth
- With high risk comes high reward
- Hill squad is actually decent
Top Points Scorer: Winner Anacona
It's tough to believe I'm picking a rider with 61 ACC to be a top points scorer but Winner Anacona has a good shot at being a top climber in the CT with a decent hill stat. The lack of true stage races means his TT won't be that much of a handicap most of the time and although he won't win any races with that ACC he will be consistent enough to score some points.
Rider to Watch: Bob Schoonbroodt
Much like Repsol their rider to watch is actually their cobbled leader but a) he's a quiet favourite for quite a few races, especially Benelux and b) he's one to watch on all terrains from early or late attacks. Also Reddit didn't vote for many good breakaway riders.
Many critics are thinking this team might be a bit r/tifu with those backups, but others are saying this community run project could feature on r/bestof. I think it'll be a bit more r/fityfifty. Haha, reddit jokes.
But seriously though this is one of the very interesting teams in the CT this year, interesting not as in "woah those are cool riders" but more "will they actually be any good"? They have a bunch of climbers who are very good at climbing but their only one who has an acc above 70 is their third best and he's still only 73. It takes until their seventh best climber to have both MON and ACC over 70 again. Plus, only three climbers have good MON or HIL stats, and none can put them together. Alright enough of that stats stuff, it doesn't suit me or flatter Team Reddit. Let me just say I can't stress enough personally how much I hate riders with bad backups and ACC, which makes it hard to cheer for some of Reddit's riders. But unfortunately for me, despite their terribleness, they can actually perform so let's face the honest realities of each rider.
But nevertheless Kransoperov can perform when he wants, Anacona and Manfredi are still quality riders and the depth isn't there to win races. With stage races being a little more Andorra and Trentino and a little less Southland and USAPCC it should mean that the multinational list of one-note climbers should perform well enough, though expect them to generally come in behind riders of the same main stat, with the exception of Manfredi.
The sprinters are all perfect for the team in their own way, by which I mean they're all horribly unbalanced. Kip is their leader for races without a speedbump or that are too long by which I mean races without any difficulty before the sprint. Meyer isn't the most balanced sprinter but is still okayish, whilst Canelon is Kip levels of bad going up stairs (and hills) and accelerates very fast to a pretty average speed. But the thing is, all three are nevertheless very fast. Croket is laughable as well but should be decent for the semi-classics. Speaking of cobbles, Bob Schoonbroodt is an actual nice leader and decent hill domestique who should fall behind on most classics but get minor placings and lap up the likes of Geraardsbergen and the Benelux Challenge.
The hill squad is understated but actually the most rounded part of Team Reddit, with Monfort the leader being pretty good, especially by Reddit standards, and next in line Julien Simon being very good with great stamina and sprint stats as well. Neither are a top hill rider but should both do pretty well. Schoonbroodt is also there as a good lieutenant. And finally I have to mention Haijun Ma, who's just sort of doing his own thing, time trialling and doing it pretty well, might pick up some nice points with some luck. Their three loanees could make something from breakaways but aren't anything special yet.
So all in all this is one of the biggest "hit or miss" teams in cycling, but should make it into the green zone. They could miss hard and tumble down the rankings, or they could hit the CT hard and move up to be with the blue teams.
9. Telia-Brussels Airlines
Cons:
- No top 15 points scorers
- A couple of leaders are missing the backups to take themselves to the top level
- Lack of cobbled and time trial leaders gives blue teams some more advantage
Pros:
- Great depth and support
- Exciting riders, nobody is useless
- ACC of Haavardsholm and Hacecky bring them way above their main stat
Top Points Scorer: Giacomo Nizzolo
Three viable candidates for this but Nizzolo is a proven scorer and could possibly score even more this year than last season for New Balance. The Italian has a decent leadout and is very fast but lacks the backups to be the top sprinter in CT.
Rider to Watch: Michael Torckler
The Kiwi performed well last year with his most memorable performance winning stage 3 of La Tropicale Amissa Bongo, eventually taking 3rd on GC. He's a proficient hilly sprinter who loves an attack which makes him a very dangerous rider.
Telia-Brussels Airlines have improved a lot over the transfer season by selling or releasing all their bad riders from KAYAK-Clas Ohlsen, adding three of the best four New Balance riders from last year, bringing in last year's top 10 surprise Martin Hacecky and adding a couple of domestiques for good measure. They built up a very strong hills and mountain squad as well as building a serviceable sprint train for new star Nizzolo.
The mountain squad has the aforementioned Hacecky as leader, who via excellent decisions from Ruby Twoface was top 10 in the individual rankings last year. However due to stronger competition and less variety in CT mountain races he won't have a repeat of that which could have sent Telia well into the blue. He will still be one of the strongest 77MON riders with high ACC and backups, and will be on the hunt for stage wins. He's supported by two more newbies, both former New Balance riders. Khripta is a very nice superdom for the mountains and hills whilst De Marchi is fighting climber who should be seen on the attack regularly for Telia. There is also returning Jim, Poorseydi and Dahlberg, who have gone from aimless occasional KoM hunters to repurposed domestiques, though expect them to continue their attacking riding.
The hill squad is lead by their best rider last season Ole Haavardsholm, who despite lacking the completeness to be a top top puncheur like the similar Vichot, he has a furious acceleration and will always be an outside contender. Khripta is a strong co-leader whilst many of the mountain squad will be used here as well. Torckler joins them as well as a useful domestique and option for the easier hilly races or breakaways. Nizzolo is the sprint leader and will be lead out by Berger, with no other pure sprinters on the team riders like Torckler, Reijnen, Sonnery and Meeusen will have to fill in. The latter two deserve mention, Sonnery for being an amazing climber-sprinter who can do glorious things in breakaways or less selective stages, and Meeusen, who is Telia's cobbled leader and isn't going to score much except from breakaways.
Other riders of note are almost everyone, really. Kristofs Vandewalle and Goddaert are fine time triallists and the former a nice breakaway man too. Young talent Magnusson returns after knocking on the door of the top 50 last year with breakaways and a stellar, Novardianto-esque race in Scotland. He and Santambrogio are very nice attacking riders and will pose threats from breakaways all season.
All in all you can't say much bad about Telia-Brussels Airlines. Except that they don't have enough big scorers to elevate them to the blue zone and their manager still has a quote in his sig from a year ago from when I said that he had a sound tactical mind In all seriousness this is a really likeable squad with some very nice riders and scoring options that unfortunately can't bridge the gap to the blue teams without a bit of luck or amazing planning.
Now we're on to our likely promoters and direct promotion candidates. These four are just a bit off of a proper title push but could go for the podium with an amazing season. They have multiple quality leaders and some good depth. But who are they?
8. Sauber Petronas Racing
Cons:
- No top scorer in 5 terrains
- Climbers and puncheurs at risk of being outmuscled by higher statted riders
- Fatty sprinters
Pros:
- Fast fatty sprinters
- Lovely rounded riders
- Almost everyone is a scorer
Top Points Scorer: Mohamed Harrif Salleh
There's a few options for Sauber but you can't beat their surprisingly solid sprinter.
The fastman should take some stages though might not stick around for GCs as most stage races these days have these weird things called gradients over 3%.
Rider to Watch: Danilo Wyss
Wyss is a cobbled-sprinter domestique but isn't bad over the odd hill and so is a nice candidate for some surprises, particularly in cobbled classics but also if he gets allowed into breakaways. He's got a fast finish and enough power to make it there at the front.
Sauber are a tricky team to place but the San Marinese-Swiss-Malaysian hybrid team should improve on last year's placing of 10th despite flying under the radar a bit. They have brought in a cobbled leader which should help and despite stat inflation their other leaders are either very strong or very complete and either way still very capable of earning them a spot in the promotion conversation.
They have capable leaders over every terrain so let's start with the simple one: cobbles. Arnaud Grand is the major signing for Sauber this year and should bring in extra points but isn't the best cobbler around. Wyss is a very nice backup and could make some surprise results with his sprint finish. Neither will set the cobbles alight but will bring in some points for Sauber to assist any promotion push and score where they haven't before. Aside from a couple of stage racers, Hofer is the main TT man and is among a host of 78 TTers wanting to take some big wins. He's no worse equipped than anybody there but isn't the best, and so should pick up some points but not bucketloads. He is also a decent enough flat breakaways man but nothing special really.
The stage races team is again lead by Zoidl, who is still a very strong rider despite the increased competition but will struggle to score as many points last year due to a mix of the calendar and the field he's in. Ahmad Zamri is the same but not as good as Zoidl, and won't score as well. Mat Senan isn't quite good enough to score much but is a decent climbing wildcard and could win from breaks. Overall they'll get fewer points than last year in the mountains but Zoidl is still an outside threat for stage races.
Hugentobler was a star last year and is a very nice rider who can do very well with his ACC, though his backups are lacking enough to outperform his 76HIL too much. Othman isn't as good but is also a nice rider with a fast finish over hills, whilst Wayhudi could do well in medium mountain stages but will only add depth to hills and not any surprise potential. Same goes for Schurter. These for riders together though are a very interesting prospect and give Sauber some nice depth and strength in the hills, and certainly the possibility to surprise.
But the star of the show, of course, is Mohamed Salleh, the second best Mohammed Salah in the world. He's a very fast sprinter even if his house does need a handrail for the step up to his front door so he doesn't get scared, and should pick up a few wins. He's got a very fast train as well, including Awang who has a panic attack when riding on the side of the road because of the slight gradient to the middle, and Manan, who whilst better than the other two uphill is still adjusting to the panic having to get things off of his new house's high shelves. But the main point is, they are all very fast and are going to again score massively for manager Sammy and probably be their strongest terrain. I'd also be remiss not to mention Chavanne, who is a super strong prolgue rider and despite being 4th man from the front of Sauber's sprint train would be a great crappy sprinter for any bottom half team.
The drawback of this team is, obviously, that Salleh notwithstanding nobody is a top rider and nobody will consistently score big. This puts them below the rest of our blue teams and is the main reason they won't get on the podium even in a crazy season. The way I see it, all of the blue teams have at least: A better cobbler, not too far behind in hills, better mountains. Sauber beats them for sprints and some for TT but they can't match the strength of each team (though could beat them of course, that's the idea of the blue zone) on paper, though they do beat each team in different terrains. Sauber are a very strong squad and thoroughly deserve their spot in blue.
7. Xero Racing p/b Octagon
Cons:
- Three terrains without top leader
- Not too much scoring depth
- Cobbles and sprint lack support
Pros:
- Scoring options across four terrains
- The climbing trio
- Multi-faceted domestiques and barodeurs
Top Points Scorer: George Bennett
A tough choice against Anthony Roux but Xero's home leader and golden boy George Bennett had the climbing skills and hills co-leading ability to be their leading man, particularly with the pressure loosened by Salinas and Antón.
Rider to Watch: Jamalidin Novardianto
The Indonesian had a stellar debut season last year, racking up plenty of good results, many breakaway miles and 8th place in the cross-division Rider of the Year awards. He's back again with his attacking spirit, all-around capabilities and even better skills.
Xero had an interesting debut season last year with many highs and lows, including PCM sucking and Novardianto being awesome. But the main criticism that could be levelled at them was their lack of a top scorer, and though Scully didn't help matters it was true, and one reason why they missed out on any type of promotion challenge. This year they thought they'd fix that with a new puncheur and climber at 78. To their dismay, leaders with 79 and 80 are here now and Xero's new boys are still subtop to top leaders. But that's not to say they haven't improved their standing in the division - they definitely had. Bennett and Roux are better than Salinas and Diggle were last year, Vandenbergh is better than nobody and Clarke = Clarke. So the half South African team with no South Africans (seriously Xero pick your game up) are now promotion contenders.
Their mountains squad is the obvious focus. Salinas was a solid leader last year but inconsistent and not quite as good as the Tvetcovs, Antóns and De La Cruzes that were in the CT. Now he's shifted into a co-leader role which should let him have more the attacking spirit he showcased in Bulgaria and the Middle East, and less of the pressure sickness he got in Southland. Speaking of Antón, he's not a top leader anymore but is understated a bit in their lineup and is equally good in the co-leader slot. But the leader here is George Bennett, who's a complete climber who isn't as good as a Valls or Penasa but should score well, and is maybe the best GC man in the hills, though they're less important for climbers this year. Juodvalkis is a decent lieutenant, won't score too much individually but should serve the main trio OK, whilst Nzeke and Kossohorou are decent as well The three leaders, though, pose a big threat to the top guns and collect quite a few points if they use their numbers to their advantage.
The puncheurs are lead by new signing Anthony Roux, who is in the "big four" puncheurs and overall the weakest of the four. He does have the best stamina and acceleration which could help him out quite a bit, but it's up in the air how he'll handle Hugenhaben or Chaves upping the pace. Diggle was a good rider last year, making top 30 in the rankings, but doesn't have the best backups for a puncheur and so wouldn't do it again. He is a decent co-leader/lieutenant and will come into his own in San Luis and Britain as a decent time triallist as well. Nzeke is the best climber from the main puncheur squad but isn't a points-scorer really, maybe when the ratio gets more towards mountains. Speaking of which, Bennett could score some minor points in the few races he can make in the hills and strengthen the depth. There's then four riders at 73, of which Kossohorou is the best bet to score anything in the hills with his nice sprint. Davison also deserves a mention for seeming to always outperform his stats in stage races due to doing well in the prologue, which could change this year with even more strong prologue riders in the CT.
The sprint squad is most Clarke train-hopping. He picked up plenty of decent results last year and some crappy ones but it'll be a little more crappy this year, especially with no real backup. Kossohorou, Ngamoki-Cameron and Kennett are all decent sprinters but have commitments everywhere, on the cobbles and at all the C2 races respectively. Clarke is also not the most-rounded sprinter, as evidenced by his CV, which has the words "Raced for BelarusBank" on it. Cobbles is a little better but not great. Vandenbergh will not win races and will be outdone by Thwaites and Havik among others on less stats but is strong enough to make a few points, whilst Ngamoki-Cameron and Schreurs are decent for breakaways with nice sprints but not too much help in the latter stages of races.
True to manager jandal's style, the team cannot really TT. I mean sure a few of them can not ruin their GC by doing averagely in a stage race but there won't be any points scored off the chronos. The breakaway riders are plenty, with most of the domestiques happy to have a go. The ones that pose any kind of threats are ultra-domestique Kossohorou and the boy with a free role every day, Novardianto.
But it is hard to ignore the fact that Xero really lack a bit of depth scoring and a top leader that could take them into direct promotion and the purple title fight. Bennett and Roux aren't quite top 5 scorers yet and there's only 6 or 7 riders that will score much. They're still in contention for 4th or 5th as a blue zone team but there just isn't enough scoring power for anything above that. Compared to other blue teams, they possibly have the strongest mountain squad and best hill leader but lag a bit on cobbles, TTs and sprints, meaning there are still two blue teams I'd rate above them. Let's see who.
6. cycleYorkshire
Cons:
- Lacking a top leader for pure climbing, hills or sprints
- Tvetcov has only one useful rider in dedicated support
- Lack of CT TTTs and not enough depth for winning PCT TTTs
Pros:
- The time trial depth
- Thwaites and Tvetcov will easily outperform their main stats
- Rowe will probably somehow pick up one win as per usual
Top Points Scorer: Serghei Tvetcov
It could be a tough choice with the lack of more traditional stage races and options is a CT stage racer's schedule but it's also hard to look past last year's individual rankings winner. He has a good sprint, TT, punch which all adds up to his 2-stat or 1-stat deficit in the mountains being much more even and possibly not enough to stop him showing his class again.
Rider to Watch: William Ford
Probably their best rider to pick without being a leader, the Australian is certainly the best of a bad bunch in terms of excitement and breakaway appeal in the squad. He's a fighter and decent over hills or on the flats, and loves to go solo.
cycleYorkshire are a team stacked with time triallists, with a decent sprint train for van Heerden disciple Matt Rowe and then a solo leader on the cobbles and stage races, both of whom are very good. But apart from that I'd say the rest of the squad are domestiques or just not very good, but could definitely threaten from a breakaway, but would struggle to be the strongest there.
The time triallists are four among the division's strongest, with Rohan Dennis the spearhead. The Australian's skill over hills and mountains makes him a threat for the GC win not only in flat stage races but also in San Luis or Britain among others. He is also the favourite for many prologues in the division which could take him towards the business end of the stage wins standings. Tennant has had a solid couple of years at CT, starring in Strava's second place in 2015 and being outmuscled by Yatsevich for much of 2016 but still being a big contributor to Isostar's promotion. He's maybe the weakest of the four (though personally given those backups I think not) but a viable threat for attacking in road stages as well meaning he'll score quite high. Stelly and Stannard are strong in the chronos but not much else. Still, 79 isn't to be sniffed at.
The sprint train is for Matt Rowe, who as I mentioned is unbalanced in his sprinting attributes, with the sprint of a top CT rider and the acceleration of an eager neo-pro - good for attacking, bad for sprinting. And he won't attack given how he's leading flat days and has only a fighting chance at surviving any form of climbing. Thwaites is his leadout-man, sometimes. This is because although a very good sprinter Thwaites is also the leader of the cobbled department of cycleYorskire, and probably, relative to the rest of the division, better at that. Otherwise, it's Murray filling in the role whilst Brammier is a capable pilot. Rowe won't do too much but will grab a victory somewhere to the delight of nobody (come on ryant deep down you'd much rather a nice rider won) because 80 sprint.
Scott Thwaites is the man for the cobbles and what a man (what a mighty good man) he is. He's not got the best support, with only Takenouchi really being of much help. But he's a capable over the cobblestones and in a sprint in the same way as Havik and a few other riders this year are, and should score well for them. He's not far off the top cobblers anyway and his sprint could see him score quite a lot of points.
Last year's individual rankings winner and stage race extraordinaire Tvetcov is the mountains leader, with ever so slightly better support than Thwaites. He's not the top pure climber this year but with his hill, TT and sprint stats the Romanian is definitely a big threat wherever he races and should overachieve compared to his mountain stat in most stage races.
The weak points are there despite these positives. Other than the aforementioned lack of support for Thwaites and Tvetcov, there won't be much scoring in the hills other than stage races. Yes there is some ways to cover it up but if you look outside San Luis and Britain there won't be too much scoring going on there for the Brits. Ford and Semple are decent but otherwise the rest of the squad is lacking in surprise and breakaway potential, certainly less than the other three blue teams. But cycleYorkshire's outstanding depth in the TTs, the very good leaders in cobbles and stage races and whatever Rowe ends up doing should lift them well into the direct promotion talk.
5. Philips-Continental
Cons:
- No super duper guaranteed winners
- Second leaders on same stat in mountains and hill could be screwed up
- If the main leaders there never work their position could be quite different
Pros:
- Superbly weighted team in every way, domestiques, terrains, nationality, etc.
- Only one rider unlikely to score
- Fantastic opportunities for scoring in every single race
Top Points Scorer: Jempy Drucker
A tough choice perhaps but I see a big season for the Luxembourgish rider with potential to score very highly on the cobbles. He's got a fast finish to go with his strength on the stones and some very good domestiques to help him be in the best possible position for the win.
Rider to Watch: Albert Timmer
This is a squad full of riders to watch but Timmer stands out. For Isostar last year the versatile Dutchman shined and managed to almost reach the 100 point mark. Adept as a powerhouse or explosive rider over the high peaks or flat classics, Timmer is a fighter and fears nothing except the cobblestones. Why do they have to be so bumpy and wet and gross and hard to ride on?
Philips are my second-highest new team this year and it's not hard to see why. Manager Abhishek should be facing first-year promotions in two story games in a row after putting together a very good squad whilst remaining balanced in nationality focused and, well, balanced riders. He's put together a squad with a preference for the flatter stuff maybe but some very good wildcards in mountains and hills as well. It's a dangerous squad on literally any race day which should bring in a lot of points.
I'll start with the negatives and this shouldn't take long: There is probably no top 10 scorer who is guaranteed to bring in big points and victories throughout the season. Costa and Battaglin are clearly inferior to Wyss and Bardet respectively but AI is screwy with these situations at the best of times and they won't be leaders but may not ride to the best of their attacking or domestique-ing abilities. If that sounds like two weaknesses that really won't have too bad of an effect, you'd be right. The first one would have lifted them into title contention possibly but it's no weakness when comparing them in their current band in blue.
So starting on the long list of positives now and let's look at their sprint train. In Kreder and Krieger there are two dangerous leaders for Philips, or even scarier one as a leadout for the other. Their sprint train is also very capable though I would say there's few races where they'll be at full strength (I guess), given that most of them have general domestique duties or on the cobbles as well. Either way, they look very strong with both leaders top riders, especially Kreder can survive bumpier races which makes him very good.
Speaking of that cobbles squad they have maybe their top leader in Jempy Drucker there who should bring in a large points haul this year. Not only is he one of the outright strongest on the cobbles in the CT he also possesses a very good sprint which makes him one of the best cobblers in the division. There are a few good domestiques for him and whilst van Emden and Leezer are also useful domestiques elsewhere loanee David Per and especially Matzka, another cobbler-sprinter, will be very helpful dedicated domestiques. The cobbles squad isn't the deepest but they are strong enough to ensure Drucker should be at the front at the business end, and he's a big boy who can take care of himself from then on.
The time triallists, the last of the flat terrains that they naturally prefer given their national focus, Grabovski and Van Zandbeek, two powerhouses who won' take home big points but will still pick up some to add to the tally. Grabovski especially is actually a really nice rider, an able climber and puncheur as well as a fighter, which should make him a dangerous powerful rider to let in the breakaway on any day.
The climbers could be called wildcards and not as important but that's a bit unfair to the skills of Romain Bardet, who is a very dangerous climber and should trouble the 78-80 climbers regularly with his hill and acc stats. He's joint by Battaglin, who flopped at Hankook and won't be very good here either, though good planning can get a few points out of him. Ruigh is another dangerous rider, he won't win from favourites but for stages and KOMs he's a big threat as well as a good domestique for Bardet. Elsewhere Grabovski and Costa should be nice riders from different terrains to pop in and Timmer is a very good domestique or attacking rider here but won't make all of them most likely.
Marcel Wyss is a very good puncheur, unlucky that the division is so strong but a dangerous rider for some surprisingly good results who's good over a long race and has a very punchy acceleration. He should get a nice points total, and much like the climbing situation is joined by an inferior rider on the same main stat Joao Costa, who to his credit is still a nice rider just not as good as the Swiss. Bardet is a nice wildcard when he can pop in whilst a lot of those versatile domestiques and climbers will be useful when they make it as well.
So who are these versatile domestiques that keep popping up. Well, to start us off Jos Van Emden is a very powerful rider on the flats who is great in a time trial or on the cobbles but knows his way about a sprint too, which makes him useful in any flat race. Tom Leezer can be an deluxe domestique in any non-mountainous race but has a great acceleration which makes him a useful rider for breakaway victories or even from broken race situations. Albert Timmer, who was my rider to watch for them, is proficient on flats, climbs and sprints and is a strong scorer in his own right with those skills. The future star and loanee from Isostar David Per is not bad on any terrain and will be a valuable domestique and is especially a threat in cobbled breakaways or for minor results even (think Kasperkiewicz for Ticos last season).
So all in all this is a strong team with I think only one rider who probably won't score, and I can even actually see him getting points. They have dangerous leaders, fantastic wildcards with good acc, great domestiques and breakaway riders. They will certainly be towards the top of the blue zone and direct promotionn. Philips should definitely be Pro Continental next season.
These teams are the big guns. The top teams. The title fighters. You can probably tell how much I'm battling to make three cons for some of them. They all want to be numero uno, and rightly so. They should directly promote, for many of them that's not the big aim. The podium and eventually the title is where it's at. They've got the big names, they've got the depth and the power needed to go all the way. But there can only be one. One of four.
4. Azteca - NBCSN
Cons:
- No real scorers on three out of five terrains
- Leaders are almost too good and may even get into RD trouble
- Almost all of them are massive wusses going downhill
Pros:
- Two top leaders
- Great depth
- Despite many high end riders the leaders are clear
Top Points Scorer: Esteban Chaves
Though the obvious choice may be American star Ryan Eastman I pick Chaves to take this one out, though immediately writing this Eastman's case becomes quite strong. But the Colombian is one of the best puncheurs of the division and has the potential to win a lot of races.
Rider to Watch: Wilson Marentes
Another Colombian, Marentes is an all-around stage race domestique but is also a fantastic KOM hunter and breakaway man. Expect stage wins and plenty of entertainment with his fast bursts of power and aggressive riding.
You may notice that the pros and cons of Azteca have to do with their mountain and hill divisions, or lack of scorers elsewhere. And that's actually all there is to it, really. This is a team gone from the one-man dream of Superman Summerhill and putting those subtop PCT climbers and Beltran money to use, and put together a truly formidable climbing and hills team. They did have it very easy going into CT but Kentaurus has still done a very good job.
The leaders are, emphatically, Ryan Eastman and Esteban Chaves. Eastman is the top CT stage racer and despite his comparatively low acc still one of the best climbers in the division as well. He's ridiculously good, really, which actually puts him below the number of mountain race days in C2HC and C2. The other thing that could bog him down is the lack of his speciality: traditional stage races. Chuck in a long time trial somewhere and he'd be away by minutes on his closest rival but Trentino has a MTT which doesn't count and Bulgaria has one but it's just over 20 kilometres with three summit mountain finishes around it. That's not to say he's not a good bet for the win anyway but it takes away his advantage over Valls or Penasa. His backups will keep his lead over others but many near his quality there and Valls surpasses it, giving him only his 80 mountain up his sleeve. Given a more balanced calendar he'd be a serious bet for the individual standings but for now he's just a very good climber who will have to fight for his wins rather than just fend off second.
Chaves, on the other hand, doesn't have the top stat but in fact almost shadows van der Hugenhaben in many regards - he's got the good mountain stat but is just a bit less, etc. His main stat in advantage is acceleration, so he'd be hoping to outsprint him or otherwise put in a very good attack for the win. He'd also benefit from a more balanced calendar with some balanced hill/mon stage races but on a lesser scale, and his RD problem limits his scoring but he won't miss too much, if anything.
The hill depth behind the Colombian isn't as impressive as the mountain stuff and so Squire (when present) notwithstanding it's more good support than scoring depth. Marentes could do decently in a less selective race but isn't quite strong enough for it (breakaways can-do though) and Becerra is a good domestique but may even score less than the other domestiques with his horrible acceleration. Other than that it'll just be mountain guys or even sprinters and cobblers filling up race days.
In the mountains, it's much better looking. Stetina is the #2 on main stat but unfortunately, that's kinda all he offers - I wouldn't expect much scoring from him though of course his quality will still help. Squire is probably their 2nd best rider here as in the hills with some solo potential for minor scoring and being an invaluable asset for Eastman. Mannion is a good climber but nothing special, will do well in support and maybe some minor points. Briceno and Ochoa are both good and the others are actually all nice riders just less strong in the mountains.
Elsewhere there's not much really. Angarita will get some minor points but isn't anything special really with a lack of hill or TT ability or even great backups to elevate him into a big scoring threat. The cobblers may pick up some minor points but I don't see it being much without backups, puncheur skills or a sprint on either of them.
I'll elaborate later but Azteca are one of a few teams I feel a bit iffy about my placing of. That being said the pure quality of the climbing squad and to a lesser extent the hill team is amazing and will serve them very well. Unlike others to me it's unlikely they'll challenge for the title with this calendar (both the races involved and the format) and the very one-sided squad. They're in the blue zone on merit for sure and direct promotion is likely. But it's no guarantee.
3. World Cycling Centre
Cons:
- No "extra" scoring terrain on the others
- Harrison aside, sprint/cob leaders are fatty flatties
- Not enough opportunities to flex all the sprinters' muscles
Pros:
- Sprint leader depth could end up working very well
- Classics leaders are classy scorers
- At least outside options for every race day
Top Points Scorer: Robert Bush
A tough choice and I was with Boily for a long time but his counterpart from the south and in a different form of classics could perform very well this season. Buoyed by the departure of Thomas but bogged down a bit with the arrival of Van Keirlsbulck, the American should still score very well on the cobbles.
Rider to Watch: Giovanni Visconti
The Italian is a dangerous rider in the classics as an attacker, outside shot or as a domestique to help WCC's potent hill and cobble leaders. He's not what he used to be but Visconti is a very very strong rider who brings a lot of experience to the fold.
WCC have concocted a very nice plan this off-season: Loan out their talents and build a squad that will promote them to PCT so they can do their developing even better on better talents. And I have to say they have knocked it out of the freaking park. They've brought in David Boily as their main attraction to complement their other classics man but also strengthened their depth in all terrains and added in three very good sprint leaders.
Boily is a very good hill leader, and one of what I've been referring to as the "big four". He is in the enviable position of being able to beat each of the others in certain races, but unfortunately, I don't see him beating all of them in most races. He has the acceleration on the similar rider-types in Chaves and van der Hugenhaben, and when the hills get tougher he's much better in the mountains than Roux. However his backups aren't as good, and neither his support. Rodriguez Galindo performed well above expectations last year and brought home a lot of points but would have struggled to again and so the arrival of Boily gives him a great opportunity to be a bit of a wildcard or serve his leader well. Armee and Visconti are two of my favourite riders on the team, both are interesting wildcards or attackers as well as great domestiques. Koshevoy should be decent backup when he makes it and Thomson is a great rider too.
Koshevoy also will make an appearance in the C2HC mountain races as a leader, but how many points he can score directly against the Valls and Eastmans of the CT is yet to be seen. He's a pretty good rider though and be it from attacks or minor points isn't a bad rider to have. Boily is a great climber but will be focusing on the hills for the most part I'd guess, whilst Rodriguez Galindo could make some crossover attacks. Asides from that I don't see anybody scoring here for WCC.
The cobbles are where a lot of WCC's points came from last year with their man Robert Bush, who's returning for more this year. They put a lot of faith in him and often he comes good, sometimes (usually in C1 races), not as good. But he will score well regardless, being probably the 2nd best CT cobbler behind GVK. He actually has the drop on the Belgian in a sprint, too. The weakness, of course, over the hills, which could affect him in races such as Geraardsbergen-Bosberg but shouldn’t be too bad. The support isn't the greatest but Armee and Visconti are very good riders who could also help the less incline-inclined Bush uphill, and Harrison, when he does start on the cobbles, is a good domestique and also very dangerous on his own as one of the division's better sprinters anyway.
The sprinters are an obvious focus but with the CT calendar I don't see them being utilised to their full potential. Harrison may be shifted more towards the cobbles which will help them out (despite him being, in my opinion, the best of the trio) but it's also yet to be seen how Castañeda and Lay will race together. It is hard with Harrison being better but likely treated as a leadout but these two may just block each other. However they are both very fast and could also do wondrous things together. Both are textbook fatty sprinters which won't help them out. Thankfully Vasylyuk, Quintero and Venturini is a great leadout train which should help them deliver those two to the line. Jury's out on these ones but if the sprinters click WCC are in for a title fight, I think.
Other riders of note are: Sanogo as a very interesting breakaway man, some would even say in the vein of Novardianto. Vandousselaere is a good time trialist who should pick up a few randomness points there but is a great flat breakaways guy and leadout help as well. If San Luis or Britain gets into a broken GC race don't count out Thomson for a result if you want to be a little bold.
So, all things considered, WCC are in an odd spot of probably being in the title fight but in my opinion they'll be a small way behind the top two, not so far it's a big gap but I don't have much doubt in my rating of them in third. If we look at the facts:
Cobbles just above Kulczyk, above In-n-Out but a more "minor" terrain. Bush will need to do well in C1 to make it count and limit Havik's presence at the business end of races. Also Harrison performing well wouldn't hurt
Hills behind In-n-Out, just above Kulczyk. Again will need to drop Vichot, and also not be dropped by van der Hugenhaben.
Sprints could be ahead of both but probably tied with Kulczyk, behind In-n-Out. Kulczyk could be in a similar pickle with their leaders, but could also outperform WCC by making the race tough. Haller is probably better than either team's leader.
Mountains a little behind In-n-Out, way behind Kulczyk.
TTs way behind Kulczyk, way way behind In-n-Out.
It looks to be a very interesting title fight, and although that's not all it boils down to it shows that it'll take some luck and very good planning to overhaul both of the top two, though just overhauling one is very possible. So with all said and done here, let's find out the order of those two.
2. In-n-Out p/b Carrefour
Cons:
- No great mountain or classics leader
- Only two non-sprinters have 70+ acceleration
- They're too good and must be cheating
Pros:
- Robin Van der Beastenhaben
- Kai Reubeast
- Beasto Haller
Top Scorer: Robin van der Hugenhaben
The elite puncheur didn't score too highly in the PCT but the step down sees him as one of the #1 candidates for the individual rankings. He has a disadvantage in acceleration to the other top puncheurs but who cares when you can drop them all anyway?
Rider to Watch: Roman Kreuziger
A tough pick but the Czech time triallist is also very skilled over short hills and has a surprising punch for such a powerhouse, meaning he could score quite well from breakaways.
A team which many people have put at #1, I myself had at #1 until a recent change of heart, and will probably be #1, is In-n-Out. And you can see why. Their trio of leaders will probably (maybe not Haller) all outscore some of the bottom feeders of the division with their great skills which will see the Americans take a lot of victories (seriously why no stage win goal ?). The two road race leaders have some very deep support which will see the white and blue jersey controlling the race until Haller or Hugenhaben are ready to be unleashed.
However, with great power comes not so many race days for Hugenhaben. He wouldn't have enough RDs for all the CT hill events but may end up chasing waterfalls in the PCT a bit, which could see his total points haul slide a bit (or shoot up with some luck). Kratochvila is a more than capable fill-in for some other hill leadership but this would also mean that neither of them can do much in the mountains, effectively castrating any hopes they may have had (not great but the right choice). Hardy and Le Bon are nice wildcards though and could make some points, but aren't leaders. To support him in the hills, though, is Kratochvila (who's one of the top 15 best in CT anyway) and Durasek, who is a very interesting rider with a good TT on him but a HORRIBLE acceleration meaning not many points from him.
But the man himself, Hugenhaben, is crazy good. He's got brilliant backups as well as main skills in the mountains, and foremost, is the best in the hills. The only way other riders can beat him is through great form or, and this is the key difference between him being a dominant #1 and "merely" the favourite, his acceleration. It's not bad per se but compared to Chaves, Roux and Boily, and also to other challengers like Vichot and Haavardsholm, it is bad and could see him lose races where he wasn't purely strong enough. However he is still the #1 favourite for any hilly race, especially a tough one with some longer climbs.
They also had to sacrifice the cobbles to bring in such great leaders, however Aulas isn't bad for a terrain with basically zero effort put in for when they have to attend and is also good for the sprint train. The sprint train is the best in CT. Haller is a top leader and Bar, Kruopis and Bercz are all fantastic leadouts and also are much better than most of the sprint leaders in the bottom half teams. Each of them are decent over hills which could be interesting and help Haller. They'd also be decent for semi-classic cobbled races but there aren't many that'd suit them in the cycling world, nevermind CT. Though Haller isn't a dominant leader he is one of the best in CT and so I expect a big haul from this side of the squad, especially if the train gets into top gear regularly.
Kai Reus is the third of the major leaders and is one of the top time triallists of the division just looking at his talents in chrono events. But add to that his skills at climbing and he seems second to (n)one in Rohan Dennis. The rivalry will be interesting with the Aussie better in prologues and climbing and the Dutchman in longer chronos and having insanely good backups. He should be a threat in any time trial he enters as well as races like San Luis. He could also factor into the Benelux Challenge with some good leader's bonus as he's not bad over the cobbles. Probably not but anything can happen there. Also men with no frie- I mean who like time trialling are Roman Kreuziger (a great domestique for Reus given his TT and hill skills) and Maxime Bouet. The former is a much better hope for points scoring with some breakaway potential as well as great TT skills but the former could pick up a few points too.
So put it all together and what do you have? Well with all that power and potential you probably have the division title. The three leaders along with a few other scoring riders should do it for them. So why are they second?
Well, personally I just don't see the potential to score much above and beyond. Yes, the leaders will score big, the second tier sprinters will grab some points, and Kratochvila and Kreuziger will do well too. But they don't have those nice riders with great acceleration and surprise potential of Kulczyk, and they also don't have the fallback of being good on all five terrains, only having powerful leaders on three. However if I had to bet on one to win, I'd bet on maxime's lads, who could score massively at full potential and blow other teams out of the water.. An odd attitude for sure but I hope you understand my philosophy.
As for their final positon, I can only see first or second, and they won't stop fighting until Zuri. It'll be very close most likely, certainly they won't let get anyone a big gap. they'll be the overdog in any race the leaders enter, they just have to make it count and squeeze what they can out of their underdog leaders Aulas, Le Bon and Hardy.
1. Kulczyk - DMTEX
Cons:
- Sprinters could block each other
- Won't do much controlling of the race
- Lack a #1 top leader
Pros:
- Truly great leaders in every terrain (the only team!)
- Acceleration stats
- Penasa can fit all mountain racedays in
Top Scorer: Pierre Paolo Penasa
A terrifying prospect for any CT climber, Penasa is a brilliant stage racer who also manages to have the acceleration of a pure climber. He's one of the best in the division and should never fail to excite or to deliver for the new team.
Rider to Watch: Kamil Gradek
Capable in TTs and over hills, Gradek also has a very fast acceleration which should benefit him in breakaways. With his power and speed he's a dangerous man to let go be it in a pan flat stage or a hilly classic.
Kulczyk are the only new purple team and for good reason: They've instantly brought together a likeable and strong group of riders in all terrains (and for the record I think they've been the best team at doing that anyway) and impressively stuck to their roots as well. The focus on having no clear focus and being a threat for every race day has affected their squad, with some nice depth but often they'll have to leave the controlling of the race to teams with lots of depth in one particular terrain. As I mentioned they have great acceleration stats (let's call them Team Reddit's good twin ) which should see them overperforming a bit with plenty of surprise riders.
Penasa is also a big name in the "dangerous acceleration" pile. The Italian is still very young, only this year hitting his peak, and so will have on opportunity to test his skills in the CT already. He's a great stage racer, with skills in the hills and the time trials but is a very exciting climber with a fast turn of speed uphill. He's one of the top climbers in the CT and could easily outdo Valls or Eastman. Certainly a contender for even the individual crown with a good season, definitely will be up there. He's supported by a pair of good riders in Pozzo and Cieslik. The latter is your garden variety climber dude with decent backups but the former is a quality rider, especially well-supported by - you guessed it - a great acceleration, which will make him a very dangerous rider to play off his countryman Penasa, or to salvage a stage race. The mountains division of Kulczyk doesn't have great depth but it's light years ahead of the other top three teams' and so is a major plus point for them in the title fight.
The sprinters are both very fast but could run into trouble from being on the same main stat. Neither are anything special (Bennett is the best by virtue of better support stats) as neither are much good over cobbles or hills. If they don't block each other they could score quite a lot, or even if they do and they're split up well enough they could still be effective. Havik is incidentally also on the same stat but will be used as their cobbled leader but could surprise if he does attend any sprints with some good backups. Dabkowski is a decent leadout man whilst Hacecky could be good as well, especially as he's a time triallist and therefore will be attending many flat races anyway.
Speaking of the time triallists, Hacecky is a very useful one to have in the CT (and a great attacker, early or late) but the star of the show is Ryan Mullen. The Irishman is a proficient time triallist and could easily take wins with a bit of "luck". He's also decent over hills when needed but won't make too much impact on San Luis or Britain. However with a decent acceleration he's nice in a hilly breakaway. I'm not sold on the pointscoring potential for this duo but they're solid and it's a plus against WCC and Azteca. I'll also mention my rider to watch for this team, Gradek, here. He's got skills in hills and TTs and a very fast acceleration and his all-around stats lend themselves perfectly to the Pole being a very dangerous attacking rider this year.
So this all adds up to look very, very nice for the Poles. I was very close to putting them at #1 for a while and about two days before this I made the switch. Either way, I am firm in the belief they're the #1 challenger to In-n-Out. They are a great example of a team excelling in all areas and this shows as aside from hills they won't have a terrain where they lose ground to all three other purple teams. Their other disadvantage to In-n-Out is the former can maybe control races a bit better, especially on the flats.
To win the title for them would be in their own hands rather than "Hugenhaben has a shitter" like a few other teams Vichot pokes his nose ahead of the big names in a final sprint a few times. Bennett and Hochmann find a niche and take wins around, or in the absence of, the favourites. Penasa takes consistent 2nds and 1sts. Havik hangs onto the cobbled leaders. Mullen pulls in some good stage and GC results. The potential is there, and they should run In-n-Out, WCC and whoever else is up there very very close. And if you want a prediction on how they'll overturn them: Vichot wins them the title by winning Zuri in a sprint whilst Boily, VDH and Chaves finish in the lower top 10.
Love the reviews of all the teams and the predictions for where they go. Shocked to see Aeropostal on this list already but can understand when the points are made. (Still think they will finish in the top half with ease).
Love the reviews of all the teams and the predictions for where they go. Shocked to see Aeropostal on this list already but can understand when the points are made. (Still think they will finish in the top half with ease).
First of all, unbelievable level of effort put into this, so thank you jandal! Love the sass, the biting honesty, and the clever twists worked in throughout. Consider me a fan, and an addicted one in the absence of racing.
Secondly, it's tough to argue with much of the rationale, but like Kent mentions, the gut feeling for some of the rankings is that some just have to be off, right?! (Aero, Proximus, Andorra for me)
Third, Mr Havik appreciates the cameo appearance, he'll wreak some on your and my behalf.
Thanks for the nice response everyone Andorra and Aerpostal are two which I'm not sure of but it's where my gut has them (well actually Andorra started high and were slowly slipping everytime I adjusted my ranking, whilst I just don't have enough faith in Aeropostal ).
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." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
Excellent work sir, I doff my cap most floridly, chapeau! Alongside SN's detailed preview, the CT is now getting some serious pre-season examination. Nervous as to which of your colour bands WCC will slide into. Fingers crossed we have to wait a while before we find out .
Thanks a lot guys Another band uploaded, this time it's those teams who've made it into the yellow zone!
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." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
I haven’t been mentioned yet!
Loving the analysis, jandal!
Disclaimer- Most of my posts are me thinking aloud. And most of what I think is rubbish.
Winner of a FIFA Prediction Fair Play Award (a phrase becoming increasingly ironic) "... Because he (me) has a sound tactical mind in general..." jandal7, at 9:30 am GMT on 12th May 2016
), if I do mention the latter it's probably for a joke because that's how bad they are. I try not to waffle on but already failed that one so let's just get into it. Also thanks to trekbmc for the microjerseys.
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Another band uploaded, this time it's those teams who've made it into the 
