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Cheshire Cycling Tour - Discussion
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| Luis Leon Sanchez |
Posted on 27-01-2022 10:47
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 Cheshire Cycling Tour - Preview
It's the beginning of May and the cycling world turns their attention to the UK for the Cheshire Cycling Tour. A race which attracts plenty of attention as it's one of few Pro Tour races that feature Cobblestones outside of mainland Europe.
The race is no different this year and features 2 cobblestone heavy stages at the start and the end with 3 flat stages for the sprinters sandwiched in the middle. The first stage doesn't look all that friendly given the bumps in the road but these will only play a small part, if any.
History often tells us a lot about what to expect but this doesn't really add to much to what we already know. The Podium is filled with the top cobblers that the professional peloton has seen in recent times. However it does show that the Top Favourites don't always win it as the second tier riders do make a strong feature.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | | 2020 | Kasperkiewicz | Summerhill | Spengler | | 2019 | Summerhill | Stallaert | Vanspeybrouck | | 2018 | Baugnies | Vanbilsen | Blythe |
In terms of the favourites for this year's race, there's certainly 1 name at the top of the list that stands out which is  Wisniowski. He's a very well rounded rider and is capable of sprinting too. He's also got an incredible support cast here with Pedersen as his Number 2 who will have ambitions of his own.
Hometown hero  Adam Blythe will have the support of the locals and will be hoping to succeed in his home country.
 Zepuntke and  Altur are 2 very similar riders and should be up there fighting for a Podium or Top 5 as well.
We then move our attention to  Tinkoff duo of Senechal and Kamyshev. These 2 aren't the sprinting types but they could work together very effectively to upset Grieg.
Finally, no discussion of favourites in recent years is complete without looking at  Bewley who has become a legend within our sport. He's not quite as strong as he once was but he's still a very capable sprinter so the others will want to shake him off before they reach the 1km kite.
| | | FLA | HIL | STA | RES | REC | COB | SPR | ACC | | Lukasz | Wisniowski | 80 | 71 | 75 | 76 | 71 | 83 | 73 | 76 | | Adam | Blythe | 76 | 66 | 76 | 71 | 77 | 82 | 76 | 73 | | Ruben | Zepuntke | 72 | 69 | 79 | 72 | 64 | 82 | 72 | 65 | | Marcos | Altur | 75 | 70 | 75 | 70 | 70 | 82 | 72 | 68 | | Florian | Senechal | 75 | 67 | 79 | 74 | 70 | 82 | 69 | 74 | | Arman | Kamyshev | 77 | 65 | 81 | 75 | 64 | 82 | 66 | 60 | | Sam | Bewley | 76 | 69 | 75 | 73 | 82 | 81 | 81 | 80 | | Mads | Pedersen | 77 | 69 | 78 | 80 | 77 | 81 | 78 | 77 |  | Matteo | Trentin | 74 | 74 | 76 | 71 | 75 | 81 | 75 | 76 |  | Floris | Gerts | 77 | 78 | 76 | 80 | 74 | 81 | 72 | 70 |  | Mike | Teunissen | 76 | 67 | 77 | 73 | 70 | 81 | 67 | 69 |  | Przemyslaw | Kasperkiewicz | 76 | 74 | 75 | 77 | 70 | 81 | 59 | 66 |  | David | Per | 79 | 70 | 74 | 75 | 71 | 79 | 74 | 74 |  | Mekseb | Debesay | 75 | 74 | 75 | 79 | 70 | 79 | 69 | 78 |  | Tom | David | 74 | 75 | 76 | 74 | 70 | 78 | 70 | 73 |
Surprises have become less surprising in the sprints so far this season so it's going to be pretty hard to pick this one. A lot of teams will be focussing on their GC leaders so the sprints may be a little messy. It is worth noting that there are 3 stages that these riders will target which does open up an opportunity to win the Points Classification as well.
We will focus on  Degenkolb and  Gronewegen who stand out as the Top 2 sprinters present here in Britain. Their teams don't have a top tier cobbled leader here so they should be well protected. There are plenty of other riders more than capable of winning a stage here as well so we'll just have to pay close attention.
| | | FLA | REC | SPR | ACC | | John | Degenkolb | 76 | 74 | 84 | 81 |  | Oscar | Guerao | 73 | 80 | 82 | 75 | | Dylan | Groenewegen | 73 | 85 | 82 | 81 |  | Ben | Swift | 72 | 77 | 82 | 79 | | Sam | Bewley | 76 | 82 | 81 | 80 |  | Lahcen | Saber | 75 | 78 | 81 | 79 | | Artem | Samolenkov | 74 | 78 | 81 | 79 | | Daniel | Vesely | 73 | 76 | 81 | 80 | | Danny | Van Poppel | 72 | 78 | 81 | 78 | | Tom | Van Asbroeck | 75 | 79 | 80 | 78 | | Hsuan Ping | Hsu | 75 | 73 | 80 | 79 |  | Jiankun | Liu | 74 | 80 | 80 | 80 | | Giacomo | Nizzolo | 73 | 71 | 80 | 79 |  | Luke | Rowe | 78 | 79 | 79 | 80 | | Sebastian | Lander | 77 | 79 | 79 | 77 | | Tom | Scully | 74 | 78 | 79 | 80 |
Start List
Spoiler | Nathan | Van Hooydonck | Aegon - Peroni | | Kevin | Eeckhout | Aegon - Peroni | | Taco | van der Hoorn | Aegon - Peroni | | Gianni | Vermeersch | Aegon - Peroni | | Ludovic | Robeet | Aegon - Peroni | | Lucas | Schädlich | Aegon - Peroni | | Dylan | Groenewegen | Aegon - Peroni | | Bilguunjargal | Erdenebat | Aegon - Peroni | | Matteo | Trentin | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Olli | Kulppi | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Ramon | Sinkeldam | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Sebastian | Lander | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Matus | Stocek | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Joel | Suter | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Mathias | Krigbaum | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Gyasi | Sulvaran | Carlsberg - Danske Bank | | Lahcen | Saber | Cedevita | | Matija | Mestric | Cedevita | | Miha | Poljanec | Cedevita | | Ivan | Siric | Cedevita | | Goran | Antonijevic | Cedevita | | Matic | Groselj | Cedevita | | Gasper | Katrasnik | Cedevita | | Jefferson | Cepeda Hernandez | Cedevita | | Andrew | Fenn | cycleYorkshire | | George | Atkins | cycleYorkshire | | Jocelyn | Bar | cycleYorkshire | | Jacob | Hennessy | cycleYorkshire | | Matt | Rowe | cycleYorkshire | | Ian | Stannard | cycleYorkshire | | Ivan | Centrone | EA Vesuvio | | Jay | Lampawog | EA Vesuvio | | Kristofer | Gunnlaugsson | EA Vesuvio | | Harry | Tanfield | EA Vesuvio | | Dan | Holloway | EA Vesuvio | | Byron | Munton | EA Vesuvio | | Michel | Ries | EA Vesuvio | | Luc | Wirtgen | EA Vesuvio | | Adam | Blythe | Eurosport x GCN | | Clenne Morvan | Moulingui | Eurosport x GCN | | Jon Ander | Insausti | Eurosport x GCN | | Jonas | Rutsch | Eurosport x GCN | | Kaden | Groves | Eurosport x GCN | | Ryan | Gibbons | Eurosport x GCN | | Giacomo | Nizzolo | Eurosport x GCN | | Simon | Carr | Eurosport x GCN | | Mike | Teunissen | Gazelle | | Marc | Potts | Gazelle | | Kamil | Malecki | Gazelle | | Steven | Kruijswijk | Gazelle | | Jonel | Carcueva | Gazelle | | Ildar | Arslanov | Gazelle | | Mekseb | Debesay | Generali | | Lucas Manuel | Gaday | Generali | | Milan | Menten | Generali | | Jasper | De Buyst | Generali | | Dylan | Van Baarle | Generali | | Julien | Vermote | Generali | | Stefan | Kung | Generali | | Lukasz | Wisniowski | Grieg-Maersk | | Mads | Pedersen | Grieg-Maersk | | Jo Kogstad | Ringheim | Grieg-Maersk | | Nejc | Kosic | Grieg-Maersk | | Christophe | Laporte | Grieg-Maersk | | Erik Nordsaeter | Resell | Grieg-Maersk | | Nils | Eekhoff | Grieg-Maersk | | Niklas | Larsen | Grieg-Maersk | | Floris | Gerts | Huski Chocolate | | Tiesj | Benoot | Huski Chocolate | | Timo | Roosen | Huski Chocolate | | Jordi | Meeus | Huski Chocolate | | Alex | Hoehn | Huski Chocolate | | Danny | Van Poppel | Huski Chocolate | | Lennard | Hofstede | Huski Chocolate | | Emil | Dima | Huski Chocolate | | Abdul | Gani | Indosat Ooredoo | | Dylan | Page | Indosat Ooredoo | | Viktor | Verschaeve | Indosat Ooredoo | | Sakchai | Phodingam | Indosat Ooredoo | | Sandy | Nur Hasan | Indosat Ooredoo | | Andreas Odie Purnama | Setiawa | Indosat Ooredoo | | Muhammad | Abdurrahman | Indosat Ooredoo | | Abou | Sanogo | ISA - Hexacta | | El Mehdi | Chokri | ISA - Hexacta | | Sam | Harrison | ISA - Hexacta | | John | Degenkolb | ISA - Hexacta | | Chun Kai | Feng | ISA - Hexacta | | Guy | Sagiv | ISA - Hexacta | | Erik | Baska | ISA - Hexacta | | Emerson | Santos | ISA - Hexacta | | David | Per | Isostar - Specialized | | Shaun Nick | Bester | Isostar - Specialized | | Jonas | Rickaert | Isostar - Specialized | | Tom | Scully | Isostar - Specialized | | Aliaksandr | Riabushenko | Isostar - Specialized | | Harry | Sweeny | Isostar - Specialized | | Barnabas | Peak | Isostar - Specialized | | Stef | Krul | Isostar - Specialized | | Przemyslaw | Kasperkiewicz | King Power | | Ricardo | Ferreira | King Power | | Varsham | Darbinyan | King Power | | Nur Amirul | Marzuki | King Power | | Michael | Vanthourenhout | King Power | | Hsuan Ping | Hsu | King Power | | Rune | Herregodts | King Power | | Zeke | Mostov | King Power | | Sam | Bewley | Mapei | | Julius | van den Berg | Mapei | | Pit | Schlechter | Mapei | | Issiaka | Cisse | Mapei | | Dominik | Neuman | Mapei | | Aaron | Grosser | Mapei | | Cristian | Rodriguez | Mapei | | Alex Ariya | Destribois | Mapei | | Ruben | Zepuntke | Minions | | Bert-Jan | Lindeman | Minions | | Laurens | Sweeck | Minions | | Mathias | De Witte | Minions | | Leandro | Marcos | Minions | | Bjorn | Selander | Minions | | Daniel | Vesely | Minions | | Antoine | Duchesne | Minions | | Tom | David | Philips - Force India | | Tomas | Paprstka | Philips - Force India | | Jasper | Bovenhuis | Philips - Force India | | Tom | Van Asbroeck | Philips - Force India | | Daniel | Moricz | Philips - Force India | | Roy | Jans | Philips - Force India | | Marten | Kooistra | Philips - Force India | | Victor | Lafay | Philips - Force India | | Marcos | Altur | Podium Ambition | | Logan | Owen | Podium Ambition | | Darren | Matthews | Podium Ambition | | Alexander | Edmondson | Podium Ambition | | Jyme | Bridges | Podium Ambition | | Akil | Campbell | Podium Ambition | | Joshua | Gayral | Podium Ambition | | Jay | Major | Podium Ambition | | Jerome | Baugnies | Polar | | Nipuna Shira | Manamalage | Polar | | Ivan | Garcia Cortina | Polar | | Oscar | Guerao | Polar | | Artem | Nych | Polar | | Welle | Jallays | Polar | | Jan | Brockhoff | Polar | | Mathieu | Bernaudeau | Polar | | Arman | Kamyshev | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Florian | Senechal | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Alexander | Sulimov | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Matvey | Zubov | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Kelland | O'Brien | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Einer Augusto | Rubio | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Artem | Samolenkov | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Alan | Banaszek | Team Tinkoff - La Datcha | | Saya | Kuroeda | Voyagin - Bird | | Shiki | Kuroeda | Voyagin - Bird | | Pierre | Barbier | Voyagin - Bird | | Jiankun | Liu | Voyagin - Bird | | Tushantha | Rajapakshage | Voyagin - Bird | | Yuriy | Natarov | Voyagin - Bird | | Xianjing | Lyu | Voyagin - Bird | | Jacob | Salcone | Voyagin - Bird | | Luke | Rowe | Xero Racing | | Johann | van Zyl | Xero Racing | | Florian | Vermeersch | Xero Racing | | Jamalidin | Novardianto | Xero Racing | | Bachirou | Nikiema | Xero Racing | | Luke | Mudgway | Xero Racing | | Morne | Van Niekerk | Xero Racing | | Nils | Schomber | Xero Racing | | Aviv | Yechezkel | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Eric | Young | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Stepan | Kurianov | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Daniel | Eaton | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Clement | Russo | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Ben | Swift | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Mark | Cavendish | Zwift Pro Cycling | | Carlos | Verona | Zwift Pro Cycling |
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| cunego59 |
Posted on 27-01-2022 10:56
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Not having this in my PTHC bands is one of my few, but major regrets in terms of season planning. But seeing the strength and depth of this starting field gives me a little relief. Stallaert could have competed for a podium, but may very well have ended up towards the bottom of the Top 10 or even outside, in a worst case scenario. Anyway. Good luck everyone!
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 27-01-2022 10:57
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 18187
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All-in support Altur here, but Matthews, Edmo & Major can all sprint in a smaller group and Owen could hang in there as well. But based on Altur's riding since we payed for his 82CB i'm expecting a 10th place GC finish and maybe a Stage Top 5.
As with so much of this season i'll be keeping a close eye on Akil Campbell & Josh Gayral for our future on this terrain.
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| redordead |
Posted on 27-01-2022 11:04
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Posts: 4881
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The startlist for the cobblers is very strong as expected. Unfortunately the list of sprinters is no worse. I think it's unlikely we'll reach our pre-race targets against this level of competition, so I might have just wasted 5 of Saber's race days 
Thanks for the preview 
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| tastasol |
Posted on 27-01-2022 11:49
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Happy to see the startlist here. Of course a strong list of riders, but a few of the top guys missing and some of the best hill/cobbles combo guys missing. Would be great to finish off the "cobbles season" with a win. Also very much needed, given that we won't score much in the Ardennes.
First time in this race for us, so exciting to see how it will turn out.
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| Marcovdw |
Posted on 27-01-2022 12:18
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Grand Tour Champion
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Every year this race is too difficult for Zepuntke but I have no other option than to bring him here. Three opportunities for Vesely to disappoint me even more.
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| roturn |
Posted on 27-01-2022 13:43
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Groenewegen can fight for stage wins here I hope.
Not seeing Van Hooydonck on the favourite list is a bit worrying. Seeing him being a regular top5-10 performer this season on any cobbles, I hope he can be up there as well here with good team support. |
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 27-01-2022 13:51
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Strong startlist! I hope for a Top5 for Per, should be possible but it might be a different race if stage 1 isn't decicive.
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 27-01-2022 14:43
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Hope we can compete for some points here, both in the stages and in the GC. We have a strong cobbles squad to support David, so no excuses for a complete failure. Don't expect anything exceptional but do hope he can keep his consistent run going.
Thanks for the preview!
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 27-01-2022 15:09
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We have a top 5 goal here despite this being a PTHC field and very stacked. Not too optimistic, but it's an opportunity for Trentin to score some massive points if he can show up on stage 1. It's a big if though, with that kind of competition. We'll have to hope the hills have an impact and there's a good selection (one that our team makes). High stakes for sure.
A bit suprised to see such a strong sprinter's field here. In years past there would be a significant risk that a few of those guys wouldn't survive stage 1 and would be looking at losing 5 races days. I know I did that with my sprinters a few times and regretted it. PCM 20 seems to not have many abandonments though, so maybe that's been calculated as an improbability.
Thanks for the preview!
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 27-01-2022 16:35
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Packed startlist for both GC and sprints.
Even though the first stage is not hilly rated, the route should suit Gerts quite well so I have big hopes for this one despite the strong opposition.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 22-11-2024 14:49
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| Marcovdw |
Posted on 28-01-2022 13:36
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Given that Zepuntke failed at this exact stage in all years prior, this does not come as a shock. At least hoped someone had tried in a breakaway attempt but hopefully we can do that on the final stage at least.
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| redordead |
Posted on 28-01-2022 13:42
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I'm not surprised this stage was highly selective, was the same last year. But Kasperkiewicz being in the breakaway and then winning, along with some other riders placed weirdly. This stage and race definitely needs to be looked at and adjusted.
I had no expectations from my own team here so I'm not disappoined even if Saber did look to be doing pretty well at one point.
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| roturn |
Posted on 28-01-2022 13:43
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Having Van Hooydonck being 19 min down in GC now due to taking care of Groenewegen I guess, the pressure is high on later to deliver in the sprints now. 
What a bad decision by my team to not got for the GC with 2-3 decent options here.
5th stage might be a chance for a long break now of course. Let`s see.
While my team was hit hard, some other teams were similarly hit here by bad AI, Isostar another extreme example.
Surely a race to re-consider next season.
Thanks for the report anyway. I know that it sucks to play and report with such awful AI. |
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 28-01-2022 14:20
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Tour de France Champion
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That might be our worst ever AI performance as a team in MG game history! And i'm including the seasons when we had Crashes on!
How does Altur, who in his last race at Roma Maxima finished 10th with attacking riding, drop over 12 minutes? If you gave me the results i'd say "oh yeah, he crashed and Owen & Edmo (also both solid cobblers) tried to help him". But we don't have crashes!
I.... what?! On the positive side, at least he's now basically secured as the MG's worst ever training spend.
Also positive, Darren Matthews finished 16th in a good group, minutes ahead of some other major named cobblers
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LLS - You're a star for reporting this sh*t show and the following stages!
And you gotta give it up for Kasper! That was a monster ride!
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| Ollfardh |
Posted on 28-01-2022 14:40
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Glad we're not in this one I guess
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 28-01-2022 15:12
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What? What was that? What just happened?
I've never seen anything like that before. I'm kinda just stunned. Obviously Trentin went absolutely bonkers to decide to hang back with Lander, who has 73 cobble and bad hill. But then again Sinkeldam made the front group and was winning KOM sprints somehow. A wide selection of top cobblers weren't even trying, including the lead group in the final. And Kasper, who for some reason went in the breakaway despite being a two star favorite, has the energy to win the stage?
I can only concur that this is the strangest AI I have ever seen, bar none. In any case, with Trentin out of the picture, I guess it's all in on Sinkeldam now, for better or worse.
Edit: Thank you for the report LLS! It must have been insane to follow and keep up with. The detail and care is appreciated.
Edited by baseballlover312 on 28-01-2022 15:13
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 28-01-2022 15:12
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We're not getting much from this race either I guess. At least Bovenhuis tried, so it kept me interested for a bit.
Congrats to Bikex and thanks for the report
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 28-01-2022 15:31
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I definitely like the big gaps. Decent result from Gerts, but it definitely could have been much better given the profile.
I guess it was a mistake sending Benoot here. Wasted race days and missed out on Fleche Wallone as well.
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 28-01-2022 17:53
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Posts: 9099
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What the fuck. I mean what the fuck.
Thanks for the report though!
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![imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg](https://imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg)
