Pre-Race
Except for the last twelve flat kilometres, this stage does not look so different from an Ardennes classic. Totalling nine categorized climbs, the riders will have to be careful not to be caught out in this dangerous stage. Attacking riding is lilkely to yield results, so an open race is expected. A real test for those with aspirations in the general classification as they have to gauge their efforts to keep enough in the tank for tomorrow's tough stage around Nice.
My prediction for the day: Samuel Sanchez. The Spaniard is out of contention for the overall rankings owing to the disastrous falls in the first stage. However, he has looked strong ever since and his attack in the stage to Mende had a real sting to it.
Race Report
167 riders were present on the line in Brignoles under blue skies. Radioshack took the responsibility of making the pace in the early stages in defence of the yellow jersey on Thomas Rohregger's shoulders, a fact which would likely change by the end of the day given the lumpy terrain and the energy spent by the Austrian in the two previous stages.
The attacks did not take long to start with the terrain favouring escapees. It only took 5km of racing for the first move to materialise. Ten riders went away. The group was not to the liking of many teams as they chased hard. Katusha, Lampre, GreenEdge and SaxoBank were the frontrunners in trying to reel the move back in.
Ten riders attacking early on
The break was quickly caught and as the peleton bridged the gap to that group, Bulgac attacked out of it. He was the only man ahead of the peleton until five riders attacked.
Soon afterwards, Michael Rogers attacked for the second time, having been part of the earlier 10 men group. He had Vanmarcke for company this time. Lampre held the pace high and caught Rogers back. Vanmarcke, on the other hand, managed to make his way into the front group.
Four more riders tried their luck and this time the peleton gave in. These four included two FDJ riders. Roy and Herrada were the last ones to make it across to the front group as the eleven riders grouped up on the earlier slopes of the first climb.
Roy and Herrada making it across
More attacks near the summit saw Greg Van Avermaet forge his way clear while all the other attackers were easily caught by the bunch.
Van Avermaet surging clear near the top
A split near the summit of the first climb saw the breakaway men separate in two clear groups. Herrada, Docker and Zingle did not manage to hang on to the group and were left with an energy-sapping pursue on their hands.
The two groups ascending the second climb of the day
Van Avermaet demonstrated real strength in making it across to the group of pursuers on his own atop the second categorized climb. In the group ahead, Jeremy Roy had recuperated and after only managing third on the first climb, he ensured he was the first atop the second climb.
Seeing the gap grow beyond seven minutes, Radioshack were intent to keep things under control. Bakelants, Rast and Roulston were all prominent near the front, making the pace.
Radioshack make the pace
The group of four behind the leading group, despite their very best efforts, never managed to cut down the gap under one and a half minute. Their chances of making it to the front were quickly disappearing with the kilometres.
In the bunch, Rabobank and Astana were not one bit satisfied with Radioshack's work. They took over the pace setting, sending a number of their men to the front.
Rabobank and Astana take over
On the Col de Bourrigaille, Mangel lost contact with the leaders, while Van Avermaet left his three companions. Seven men were left in the break and they still had six minutes left with 65km to go. This group looked like they had a chance for the stage win!
On that very climb, 66km from the line, a kilometre from the summit, Henao attacked from the peleton, dragging along four riders. These five built up a gap of forty so seconds on the Astana-led peleton while some riders started to suffer at the back due to the high pace.
Henao attacks on the ramps of the Col de Bourigaille
On the long descent towards the final ascent, Astana and Rabobank reeled the five-men move back in. The front group still had a five-minute lead at that point but the work done by Rabobank and Astana was eating away at this gap.
The breakaway tackled the final climb, the Col du Tanneron, 25km from the line, boasting an advantage of 4'30! They had kept the gap from the peleton stable all the way down the very long descent. The win was surely not going to escape them now.
The peleton started the climb at a high pace, still led by Rabobank and Astana, who were controlling things for Mollema and Kreuziger respectively. The young riders jersey wearer, Romain Kreuziger, was the one to open hostilities. He accelerated with real intent and nobody really responded straight away.
Kreuziger attacks as others hesitate
An interesting group of riders countered, led by Jelle Vanendert, 7th in the overall rankings, 11s down on Kreuziger. Following him were Ballan, Pauriol, Voigt, and interestingly Tossato on the German's wheel. The veteran Italian was putting up a real fight to be the top rider at the end in Nice!
Jelle Vanendert leads the counter
At the same time, Jeremy Roy crossed the final climb ahead of his breakaway companions, taking his KOM points to a total of 31 points, taking the pokka dot jersey off of the back of Thomas Rohregger.
Roy first over the top of the final climb
A second group attacked out of the peleton. This time, Thomas led the move. Radioshack were the ones who benefited from the move most though, with Gallopin and Zubeldia both taking the wheels to get across to their leader, Jens Voigt.
As the riders went over the top, the situation became clearer. Jelle Vanendert was the only rider to have made it across to Kreuziger. Behind them, all the other attackers managed to regroup and form a 10 men group in pursuit of Kreuziger and Vanendert, a minute up on the peleton. Of the top 10, Mollema, Ignatenko, Cunego and Le Mevel all missed out on the move.
Kreuziger and Vanendert on the descent
The breakaway riders contested for the stage win in a sprint finish. Sep Vanmarcke was the one who still had the freshest legs and he outsprinted Jeremy Roy and Grega Bole in the finale. Garmin and Vanmarcke, with that stage, took their first big win of the season.
Vanmarcke wins
Kreuziger crossed the line 2'18 down on the first group, with Vanendert close on his wheel. A strong finish from Gallopin after some excellent work by the 10-men group meant that Voigt, Tossato and Thomas would lose no time to Romain Kreuziger.
Gallopin catches up to Kreuziger and Vanendert
Van Avermaet deserves a special mention for his efforts today. He rode in pursuit all the way from the moment he attacked. He never gave up along the way, riding part of the way in a 4 men group, but most of the time, he was on his own. A magnificent ride, it has to be said. He held on, in the end, to finish in the same time as Kreuziger.
The peleton arrived more than a minute down on the group of Voigt and Tossato.
Results
Stage Results:
1
Sep Vanmarcke
Team Garmin - Barracuda
4h05'56
2
Jeromy Roy
FDJ - Bigmat
s.t.
3
Grega Bole
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
4
Thibaut Pinot
FDJ - Bigmat
s.t.
5
Gorka Verdugo
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
6
Nicki Sorensen
Saxobank - Sungard
s.t.
7
Brian Bulgac
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'20
8
Roman Kreuziger
Astana
+ 2'18
9
Jelle Vanendert
Lotto - Belisol
s.t.
10
Tony Gallopin
RadioShack - Nissan
s.t.
General Classification:
1
Matteo Tosatto
Saxobank - Sungard
26h12'14
2
Jens Voigt
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 6
3
Roman Kreuziger
Astana
+ 11
4
Jelle Vanendert
Lotto - Belisol
+ 22
5
Thomas Rohregger
RadioShack - Nissan
s.t.
6
Geraint Thomas
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 31
7
Tony Gallopin
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 56
8
Thomas De Gendt
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 1'01
9
Haimar Zubeldia
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 1'03
10
Petr Ignatenko
Katusha Team
+ 1'21
Points Classification:
1
Geraint Thomas
Sky Professional Cycling Team
82 pts
2
Tony Gallopin
RadioShack - Nissan
67 pts
3
Matthew Goss
GreenEdge Cycling
59 pts
4
Jens Voigt
RadioShack - Nissan
44 pts
5
Matti Breschel
Rabobank
36 pts
Mountains Classification:
1
Jeromy Roy
FDJ - Bigmat
31 pts
2
Thomas Rohregger
RadioShack - Nissan
26 pts
3
Thibaut Pinot
FDJ - Bigmat
18 pts
4
Brian Bulgac
Lotto - Belisol
16 pts
5
Nicki Sorensen
Saxobank - Sungard
12 pts
Young Riders Classification:
1
Roman Kreuziger
Astana
26h12'25
2
Geraint Thomas
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 20
3
Tony Gallopin
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 45
4
Thomas De Gendt
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 50
5
Petr Ignatenko
Katusha Team
+ 1'10
Post-Race
Kreuziger put himself in prime position for the overall. Tomorrow's final climb on the Col d'Eze could be the place where he makes the difference on Voigt and Tossato. The latter has shown he is not race leader purely by luck and if he can hold on tomorrow, he will take the biggest victory of his career!
Mollema was the big loser today. Having shown real promise in Mende, he failed to make the right decision today and lost a minute as a result. His only move tomorrow will be to try and get away on the early slopes or the Col d'Eze, if not before that. The final stage in Nice promises to be an exciting one!
Edited by nightguy on 03-07-2012 17:33
Pre-Race
The time-trial. Finally, the time has come for the favourites to set their marks. With Simon Gerrans having the humongous lead he was gifted yesterday, the best riders will be fighting for a place on the final podium at best and the battle starts here. The 22km of not so flat terrain might go to a time-trial specialist as well as anybody who is good against the clock and on the hills.
My prediction for the day: Fabian Cancellara. Spartakus is a coming into form ahead of Milan-San Remo and he will likely beat off competition from riders like Chavanel and Luis Leon Sanchez.
Race Report
The early best time was posted by Joost Posthuma of Radioshack. He covered the first 7km in the same time as Henderson, 7'28. However he did extremely well in the remaining flatter kilometres to finish the course in 23'47, a whopping 41s faster than Henderson!
The first serious challenger to the Dutchman's time was Sebastian Rosseler. The latter clocked in 7s faster at the intermediate. He lost some time on the flatter parts though, but he still managed to beat Posthuma's time by 4s to take the driving seat!
Sebastian Rosseler on the first uphill
The first good Italian performance came from Daniele Bennati. The sprinter crossed the finishing line just 1s short of Posthuma's time to be provisionally on the podium.
Cameron Meyer was on the course too and a good performance was expected of the Australian. However, he was disappointing. only managing 24'11, some way down on Rosseler.
Meyer in the final kilometre
Popovych was next in line amongst riders with a decent chance at a podium place. Unlike Meyer, the Ukrainian rouleur delivered a great performance. He covered the course in 23'32! That was 11s faster than Rosseler.
With Cancellara taking on the course though, Popovych's time was under serious threat! Spartakus laid down his mark at the intermediate, clocking in at 7'16! And on the second part of the course, he gained even more time! He finished at 23'10! A performance worthy of his standards. Fabian Cancellara was in the driving seat and looking good for the stage win.
Cancellara crosses the line ahead of his minute man
Cataldo was only 2s slower than Cancellara at the intermediate checkpoint, laying the foundations for a great performance. But the second part of the course did no favours to a rider like him, He lost 49 more seconds to Cancellara to finish in 24'01.
Radioshack's riders were performing far better than everyone else in the course! Fuglsang clocked in a great time too! 2s shy of Popovych's time to make it three Radioshack riders on the provisional podium.
Fuglsang in the final run-in
Evans was a big favourite for today's stage alongside Cancellara. We were about to see whether last year's Tour winner was coming into form for the Ardennes classics. Wow! He did better than Cancellara in the opening 7km, he was 5s faster at the intermediate checkpoint. Unfortunately, he could not keep up with the Swiss on the second part of the course. He still dislodged Popovych out of second place by finishing 20s down on Cancellara.
Evans climbing in the first part of the course
His BMC teammate, George Hincapie, a big rouleur himself, finishes at a respectable 23'58.
Boom does great in the first 7km, he equals Evans' time. And unlike the Australian, he does great on the second part of the course too! He gets the second best time, 23'14. That's only 4s slower than Cancellara. Maybe the latter's time is gonna be eventually beaten.
Boom reaching the first checkpoint
Machado, Radioshack's leader at the Tirreno, is 5s slower than Evans at the intermediate checkpoint. A great performance from him! He finishes with a time of 23'20. He gets on the provisional podium, taking Evans off of it.
Machado reaching the finish
Leipheimer did well at the first intermediate checkpoint, 7'15 was his time. However, 23'42 is the best he could muster to get into the top 10 at the finish. Omegapharma still had one card to play though, Sylvain Chavanel, who was considerably closer to the top in the overall rankings.
Luis Leon Sanchez, in his national time-trial jersey, was disappointing. He only managed a time of 23'58, outside of the top 10.
Luis Leon at the start ramp
Sagan was the next one to beat the intermediate time, one of the many riders to do better than Cancellara at that point. Whether he would beat Cancellara at the finish was yet to be seen. The answer was no. He slowed down considerably in the second part of the course, still clocking in a good 23'35 nevertheless.
Rujano and Rodriguez, both magnificent climbers, were the next riders everyone laid their eyes on. They were certainly going to feature in the front in tomorrow's stage, but today's time-trial was going to be a tough ride for them. They both impressed in truth, Rodriguez losing less than a minute to Cancellara and Rujano losing 1'21 to the Swiss.
Rodriguez in his element
Chavanel posted an excellent intermediate time, 7'12, just 1s behind Evans and Boom. He also lost time on Cancellara in the second part, finishing in the top 10 with a time of 23'35. A good performance from the Frenchman ahead of tomorrow's decisive stage.
Chavanel coming to the line
Gerrans started the course in the leader's jersey, looking to limit his losses to keep a good enough lead that he would be able to defend in the mountains tomorrow. 1'40 down on Cancellara at the finish was, in fact, not so bad, leaving him with a lead of seven and a half minutes over Rodriguez, a lead which should be enough for him to keep the jersey all the way to the end of the race.
Leader of the race starting the course
Results
Stage Results:
1
Fabian Cancellara
RadioShack - Nissan
23'10
2
Lars Boom
Rabobank
+ 4
3
Tiago Machado
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 10
4
Cadel Evans
BMC Racing Team
+ 20
5
Yaroslav Popovych
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 22
6
Jakob Fuglsang
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 24
7
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 25
8
Sylvain Chavanel
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
s.t.
9
Levi Leipheimer
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 32
10
Sebastien Rosseler
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 33
Spoiler
11
Matthew Busche
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 36
12
Joost Posthuma
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 37
13
Daniele Bennati
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 38
14
Luis Leon Sanchez
Rabobank
+ 46
15
Sebastian Langeveld
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
16
George Hincapie
BMC Racing Team
+ 48
17
Daniel Oss
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
18
Giovanni Visconti
Movistar Team
+ 50
19
Dario Cataldo
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 51
20
Stefano Garzelli
Acqua & Sapone
+ 52
21
Bruno Pires
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 54
22
Ruben Plaza
Movistar Team
s.t.
23
Steven Kruijswijk
Rabobank
s.t.
24
Thomas Dekker
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 55
25
Joaquin Rodriguez
Katusha Team
+ 57
26
Vladimir Gusev
Katusha Team
+ 58
27
David Lopez
Movistar Team
+ 1'00
28
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'01
29
Cameron Meyer
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
30
Mikhail Ignatiev
Katusha Team
+ 1'02
31
Lars Ytting Bak
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'03
32
Enrico Gasparotto
Astana
s.t.
33
Stijn Devolder
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 1'04
34
Marcus Burghardt
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'05
35
Thor Hushovd
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'06
36
Rinaldo Nocentini
Ag2r - La Mondiale
s.t.
37
Andrew Talansky
Team Garmin - Barracuda
s.t.
38
Simon Spilak
Katusha Team
+ 1'07
39
Paul Martens
Rabobank
+ 1'10
40
Christian Knees
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'11
41
Tomas Vaitkus
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 1'13
42
Joost Van Leijen
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'14
43
Stuart O'Grady
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
44
Kevin De Weert
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 1'15
45
Alessandro Petacchi
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
46
Marco Marcato
Vacansoleil - DCM
s.t.
47
Gregory Henderson
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'18
48
Nick Nuyens
Saxobank - Sungard
s.t.
49
Jose Serpa
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
s.t.
50
Alessandro Proni
Acqua & Sapone
+ 1'19
51
Jaroslaw Marycz
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 1'20
52
Jose Rujano
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 1'21
53
Maxim Iglinskiy
Astana
+ 1'22
54
Andreas Klier
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 1'23
55
Tom Boonen
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
s.t.
56
Riccardo Chiarini
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 1'24
57
Rafal Majka
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 1'25
58
Jurgen Roelandts
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'26
59
Massimo Codol
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
60
Sergio Pardilla
Movistar Team
s.t.
61
Pablo Lastras
Movistar Team
+ 1'28
62
Rigoberto Uran
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'30
63
Andre Greipel
Lotto - Belisol
+ 1'31
64
Luca Barla
Team Idea
+ 1'32
65
Jimmy Casper
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 1'34
66
Frederik Willems
Lotto - Belisol
s.t.
67
Emanuele Sella
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 1'35
68
Nicola Dal Santo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 1'36
69
Sylvester Szmyd
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
70
Maarten Wijnants
Rabobank
s.t.
71
Jose Herrada
Movistar Team
s.t.
72
Martijn Maaskant
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 1'37
73
Stijn Vandenbergh
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
s.t.
74
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
75
Mathieu Ladagnous
FDJ - Bigmat
s.t.
76
Robert Wagner
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 1'39
77
Danilo Wyss
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
78
Frederic Guesdon
FDJ - Bigmat
+ 1'40
79
Imanol Erviti
Movistar Team
s.t.
80
Simone Stortoni
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
81
Simon Gerrans
GreenEdge Cycling
s.t.
82
Elia Viviani
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 1'42
83
Kenny Dehaes
Lotto - Belisol
s.t.
84
Johnny Hoogerland
Vacansoleil - DCM
s.t.
85
Enrico Franzoi
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 1'43
86
Matthew Hayman
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'44
87
Carlos Betancourt
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
88
Tomas Aurelio Gil Martinez
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 1'45
89
Miguel Minguez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 1'47
90
Daniel Moreno
Katusha Team
s.t.
91
Simone Ponzi
Astana
+ 1'49
92
Marco Frapporti
Team Idea
+ 1'50
93
Yonathan Monsalve
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
s.t.
94
Gianluca Randazzo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 1'54
95
Lloyd Mondory
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 1'55
96
Francesco Gavazzi
Astana
s.t.
97
Fabian Wegmann
Team Garmin - Barracuda
s.t.
98
Jorge Azanza
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 1'56
99
Takashi Miyazawa
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 1'58
100
Ruslan Karimov
Team Idea
s.t.
101
Giuseppe De Maria
Team Idea
s.t.
102
Bjorn Leukemans
Vacansoleil - DCM
s.t.
103
Bernhard Eisel
Sky Professional Cycling Team
s.t.
104
Danilo Hondo
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
105
Giuseppe Di Salvo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 1'59
106
Jose Sarmiento
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 2'00
107
Manuel Belletti
Ag2r - La Mondiale
s.t.
108
Juan Manuel Garate
Rabobank
+ 2'01
109
Allan Davis
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 2'03
110
Enrico Peruffo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 2'04
111
Miguel Rubiano
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
s.t.
112
Cristiano Fumagali
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 2'05
113
Andrea Palini
Team Idea
s.t.
114
Leonardo Bertagnolli
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
115
John Gadret
Ag2r - La Mondiale
s.t.
116
Alessandro Malaguti
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 2'07
117
Vladimir Miholjevic
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
118
Alessandro Bisolti
Team Idea
s.t.
119
Fabio Taborre
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
120
Manuele Mori
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
121
Simone Boifava
Team Idea
+ 2'10
122
Luca Dodi
Team Idea
s.t.
123
Leopoldo Rocchetti
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 2'11
124
Morris Possoni
Lampre - ISD
+ 2'13
125
Anthony Ravard
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 2'14
126
Steve Chainel
FDJ - Bigmat
+ 2'16
General Classification:
1
Simon Gerrans
GreenEdge Cycling
18h04'39
2
Andrew Talansky
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 2'09
3
Jose Sarmiento
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 2'46
4
Simone Stortoni
Lampre - ISD
+ 5'12
5
Sebastian Langeveld
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 6'38
6
Sylvain Chavanel
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 6'39
7
Maxim Iglinskiy
Astana
s.t.
8
Pablo Lastras
Movistar Team
+ 7'19
9
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 7'35
10
Joaquin Rodriguez
Katusha Team
+ 7'36
Spoiler
11
Tiago Machado
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 7'42
12
Matthew Busche
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 7'43
13
Rinaldo Nocentini
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 7'49
14
Christian Knees
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 7'51
15
Jose Rujano
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 8'02
16
Levi Leipheimer
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 8'04
17
Luis Leon Sanchez
Rabobank
+ 8'17
18
Stefano Garzelli
Acqua & Sapone
+ 8'24
19
Steven Kruijswijk
Rabobank
+ 8'26
20
Lars Boom
Rabobank
+ 8'28
21
Marcus Burghardt
BMC Racing Team
+ 8'34
22
Stijn Devolder
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 8'36
23
Cadel Evans
BMC Racing Team
+ 8'44
24
Jakob Fuglsang
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 8'48
25
Sergio Pardilla
Movistar Team
+ 8'58
26
Johnny Hoogerland
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 9'11
27
Daniel Oss
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 9'12
28
George Hincapie
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
29
Giovanni Visconti
Movistar Team
+ 9'14
30
Ruben Plaza
Movistar Team
+ 9'18
31
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 9'23
32
Thor Hushovd
BMC Racing Team
+ 9'26
33
Enrico Gasparotto
Astana
+ 9'27
34
Lars Ytting Bak
Lotto - Belisol
s.t.
35
Marco Marcato
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 9'33
36
Paul Martens
Rabobank
+ 9'34
37
John Gadret
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 9'37
38
Stuart O'Grady
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 9'38
39
Joost Van Leijen
Lotto - Belisol
s.t.
40
Alessandro Petacchi
Lampre - ISD
+ 9'39
41
Alessandro Proni
Acqua & Sapone
+ 9'43
42
Riccardo Chiarini
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 9'48
43
Rigoberto Uran
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 9'54
44
Fabian Cancellara
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 9'58
45
Maarten Wijnants
Rabobank
+ 10'00
46
Mathieu Ladagnous
FDJ - Bigmat
+ 10'01
47
Kenny Dehaes
Lotto - Belisol
+ 10'06
48
Daniel Moreno
Katusha Team
+ 10'11
49
Yonathan Monsalve
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 10'14
50
Francesco Gavazzi
Astana
+ 10'19
51
Thomas Dekker
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 10'21
52
Fabio Taborre
Acqua & Sapone
+ 10'31
53
Alessandro Bisolti
Team Idea
s.t.
54
Dario Cataldo
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 10'49
55
Vladimir Gusev
Katusha Team
+ 10'56
56
David Lopez
Movistar Team
+ 10'58
57
Tomas Vaitkus
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 11'06
58
Nick Nuyens
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 11'11
59
Kevin De Weert
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 11'13
60
Yaroslav Popovych
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 11'23
61
Bernhard Eisel
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 11'25
62
Emanuele Sella
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 11'33
63
Sylvester Szmyd
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 11'34
64
Jose Herrada
Movistar Team
s.t.
65
Lloyd Mondory
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 11'48
66
Bjorn Leukemans
Vacansoleil - DCM
+ 11'56
67
Simon Spilak
Katusha Team
+ 12'08
68
Jose Serpa
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 12'45
69
Fabian Wegmann
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 12'51
70
Carlos Betancourt
Acqua & Sapone
+ 13'11
71
Danilo Hondo
Lampre - ISD
+ 13'18
72
Manuel Belletti
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 13'27
73
Cameron Meyer
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 13'31
74
Daniele Bennati
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 13'48
75
Miguel Rubiano
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 14'41
76
Jaroslaw Marycz
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 14'42
77
Manuele Mori
Lampre - ISD
+ 14'46
78
Juan Manuel Garate
Rabobank
+ 14'47
79
Mikhail Ignatiev
Katusha Team
+ 15'10
80
Steve Chainel
FDJ - Bigmat
+ 15'26
81
Bruno Pires
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 15'38
82
Tom Boonen
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 15'54
83
Jurgen Roelandts
Lotto - Belisol
+ 15'57
84
Imanol Erviti
Movistar Team
+ 16'11
85
Leonardo Bertagnolli
Lampre - ISD
+ 16'36
86
Morris Possoni
Lampre - ISD
+ 16'44
87
Rafal Majka
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 17'25
88
Dominik Nerz
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 17'37
89
Allan Davis
GreenEdge Cycling
+ 18'03
90
Elia Viviani
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 18'50
91
Stijn Vandenbergh
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
+ 20'17
92
Matthew Hayman
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 20'36
93
Enrico Franzoi
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 21'00
94
Massimo Codol
Acqua & Sapone
+ 21'26
95
Giuseppe Di Salvo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 22'07
96
Simone Ponzi
Astana
+ 22'56
97
Anthony Ravard
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 23'47
98
Sebastien Rosseler
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 23'58
99
Frederic Guesdon
FDJ - Bigmat
+ 24'09
100
Frederik Willems
Lotto - Belisol
+ 25'37
101
Vladimir Miholjevic
Acqua & Sapone
+ 26'04
102
Jorge Azanza
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 26'33
103
Joost Posthuma
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 28'30
104
Alessandro Malaguti
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 28'49
105
Gianluca Randazzo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 29'26
106
Jimmy Casper
Ag2r - La Mondiale
+ 29'43
107
Danilo Wyss
BMC Racing Team
+ 30'08
108
Andreas Klier
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 31'12
109
Gregory Henderson
Lotto - Belisol
+ 31'15
110
Andre Greipel
Lotto - Belisol
+ 34'33
111
Giuseppe De Maria
Team Idea
+ 35'23
112
Tomas Aurelio Gil Martinez
Androni Giocattoli - CIPI
+ 35'41
113
Ruslan Karimov
Team Idea
+ 36'17
114
Marco Frapporti
Team Idea
+ 36'26
115
Luca Barla
Team Idea
+ 38'05
116
Nicola Dal Santo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 41'05
117
Robert Wagner
RadioShack - Nissan
+ 41'27
118
Luca Dodi
Team Idea
+ 41'52
119
Enrico Peruffo
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 44'28
120
Takashi Miyazawa
Saxobank - Sungard
+ 44'54
121
Andrea Palini
Team Idea
+ 45'33
122
Simone Boifava
Team Idea
+ 51'07
123
Miguel Minguez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
+ 53'00
124
Martijn Maaskant
Team Garmin - Barracuda
+ 53'42
125
Cristiano Fumagali
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 58'26
126
Leopoldo Rocchetti
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 1h17'03
Points Classification:
1
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
24 pts
2
Marco Marcato
Vacansoleil - DCM
15 pts
3
Simon Gerrans
GreenEdge Cycling
14 pts
4
Sebastian Langeveld
GreenEdge Cycling
13 pts
5
Pablo Lastras
Movistar Team
13 pts
Mountains Classification:
1
Simon Gerrans
GreenEdge Cycling
10 pts
2
Sebastian Langeveld
GreenEdge Cycling
8 pts
3
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
5 pts
4
Sylvain Chavanel
OmegaPharma - Quick Step
5 pts
5
Lars Boom
Rabobank
3 pts
Young Riders Classification:
1
Andrew Talansky
Team Garmin - Barracuda
18h06'48
2
Jose Sarmiento
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 37
3
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 5'26
4
Steven Kruijswijk
Rabobank
+ 6'17
5
Daniel Oss
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 7'03
Post-Race
Gerrans held on to a large portion of his lead. His closest rivals are Sarmiento and Talansky who are both better climbers that him. Two minutes is a nice cushion for the Australian to limit his losses in the mountaintop finish though.
Joaquin Rodriguez is showing magnificent form here! He lost less than a minute to Fabian Cancellara on this course. He will be the man to watch tomorrow.
Fabian Cancellara was simply the best today, he flew to the finish line at an average speed of 51.8 km/h! Lars Boom was excellent too. They both will be looking to the cobbled classics and their form looks good ahead of their objectives in late March and early April.
Edited by nightguy on 04-07-2012 06:18
I took most screenshots from replays where the interface is not there. Time trials can't be saved as replays though, so I had to crop the screenshots.
@ sutty68
Yeah a great performance, but unrealistic unfortunately. These hilly time trials give weird results, but I decided to play them anyway because I'll have the situation turned the other way when they are long and flat.
Pre-Race
The final stage of the Paris-Nice has hardly changed in recent years and the usual first category climbs of Col de la Porte, La Turbie and Col dgEze will all feature. The riders will fight it out over the climbs for a final opportunity to make some time over their opponents. The overall favourites will certainly be at the front on the Col d'Eze, which will prove to be the decisive climb of this year's Paris-Nice as the top 7 riders sit inside a minute.
My prediction for the day: Romain Kreuziger. He has proved again, yesterday, that he was by the best of the lot, with Jelle Vanendert the only one able to match his attack. The Astana rider is sure to attack on the Col d'Eze and his descending skills will certainly prove useful to keep a lead.
My prediction for the overall: Romain Kreuziger. He sits only 11s from the front, with Voigt and Tosatto ahead of him. He is by far a better climber than those two and the Col d'Eze will prove to be their undoing.
Edited by nightguy on 08-07-2012 07:53
It happened to be that bad.. Blue screen popping up when I started my windows, that was after getting it repaired. Tried to copy my data somehow but my hard disk has a funny port on top of the pins, which looks fixed, so I wasn't able to use it with a casing as an external hard disk. In the end, I had to reformat everything.. Well..
I think I'll start another career after a while though, with a different team maybe. After I've fixed everything else on my laptop.
Was great fun writing the story! And thanks to all the readers and all those who commented.
