20/3-2016 Cholet-Pays de Loire 1.1
Cholet – Cholet 214.2 km
The morning breakaway takes off without much reaction form the peloton, everyone knows is a long day in the saddle, and it is after all only two riders. Mattia Cattaneo (Lampre) and Richard Handley (ONE Pro)
Everything is relaxed in the peloton, Astana sitting a bit low enjoying a bright sunny day on the roads, then disaster strikes the team. The peloton hits a short but very sharp hill climb on a narrow road and breaks over.
Lars Boom ends in a 2nd group of 18 riders only with Gruzdev, Scarponi even further back in a 3rd group of 101 riders. The only rider Astana has with all the favorites in the peloton is Alessandro Vanotti.
With 140km to go Scarponi is 2’48 behind the peloton, Boom 1’42
Boom decides to sit in the 2nd group hoping the situation will improve.
Meanwhile the Astana riders in the 3rd group push hard to join Boom. They join up and set as hard a pace as they can, but even though they try their hardest the gab stays at about 2’30, clearly the other favorite are happy with Boom being left behind.
Finally the only option left, is that Boom attacks single handed, forcing his way up to the front. Alessandro Vanotti falls back to help.
Boom is sitting close to the front, when the peloton passes under the 20 km banner, the question is has he used to much energy to stay in front right to the finishing line.
He answer come pretty quickly, pedal strokes for pedal stroke he loses speed and finally hit the wall, he fall back to a group of slow moving riders.
Even up front the pace is reduced, everyone is watching each other in the first group of about 20 riders. Many is looking finished and none dare to attack, some fall off completely done. Amets Txurruka (Orica) has a bit left to attack and creates a small gap, he wins the stage in front of teammate Magnus Cort Nielsen and Movistar’s Juan Jose Lobato.
Evaluation:
Overall: This was Amets Txurruka first win since winning a stage in Tour of Norway last year, a very unexpected double by Orica, they must be thrilled.
Besides Juan Jose Lobato taking the last podium, most of the other favorites preformed below par. All in all a very rare race with a very high pace over the last 170-175 km.
Astana: disaster in a race where the team was number 1 favorite
A lot of riders would like to show them self on camera in WT races, not to mention the possibility to get a good position in the KoM standings, so the fight is hard in the morning, the pace gets extra hard because Tinkoff’s strong climber Yury Trofimov has succeeded getting away in a group of 3.
The pace settles after about 40 km, the peloton accept the fact that Trofimov will position him selv well in the KoM, but the pace is high enough to keep a limited distance, up the first climb to Coll de Ravell, Orica’s Magnus Cort sets the pace, the distance is just 1’58”
There are some craches on the downhill, Kreuziger, Barguil and Gesink are all on the tarmac, ending up in groups behind the peloton. The pace is very high on the climb to Alt de Vildrau, the breakaway is over before they reach the top. Yury Trofimov KoM dreams are over for now.
The peloton reach the last hill together with on one out in front, then Jarlinson Pantano Gomez (IAM) attacks over the top and gets a serious gap. Jarlinson Pantano wins the stage with 32 seconds to the peloton
Giacomo Nizzolo wins the bunch sprint over Ryder Hesjedal, Fabio Aru gets in as 4th.
Evaluation:
Overall: An unexpected win from 27 years old Pantano, his first world tour win, and his first win since 2011 where he won a stage in Vuelta a Colombia.
All the Race and Stage favorites got to the line with the peloton, Christophe Riblon won the KoM sprint on the cat1. climb Alt de Vildrau, taking KoM lead.
Astana: A great start for Aru having no problems sitting with the best, on a very hard stage. Andrey Zeits had a bad day but he survived the time limit, ready to help his teammates again tomorrow.
The hard stage yesterday seems to have had effect, today the peloton rides slowly for almost 30 km without a single attempt from anyone. Nothing happens until the first KoM sprint, where Visconti (Movistar) attacks followed by Cort (Orica).
Cort was only interested in the KoM and falls back, but Visconti continues with two other coming up from the peloton, the trio will be the breakaway of the day. The other are Asselman (Roompot) and Piedra (Funvic)
It Seems everyone want a quit day, both the breakaway and the peloton keeps a moderate pace, cruising through the beautiful and sunny landscape of Catalonia, the distance stabilize around 3 minutes.
The breakaway doesn’t fight for it, and they get caught near the last intermediate sprint, a peloton of 185 riders passes the last KoM together. There is 13,5 km left, when Kreuziger attacks, Robert Gesink counters.
The duo does not make it, but it was a signal for the race to begin, over the next 6 km the peloton is reduced from 185 rider to a favorite group of 16, with 6 km to the line Aru and Fuglsang is both in this group. Race leader Pantano is here, while race favorite Van Garderen haven’t been able to hold on.
With less than 2 km to the line Aru is leading the favorite group in front of Contador and Rolland. The group is now 15 riders. Jakob Fuglsang is now in the next group with Ulissi, Gallopin and a few others, they are already about a minute after. Péraud, Van Garderen, Majka, Cháves and the Yates brothers even further back.
Aru starts his sprint a little bit too early, he gains 5-6 meter on everyone but is not able to make it to the line in front, he gets over as 7th. The stage was won by Alexandre Geniez (FDJ) over Joaquim Rodriguez and Alberto Contador. 15 riders get the same time.
Evaluation:
Overall: This was Geniez’s first win since winning the Tour de l'Ain last year. Interesting to see if this will be the season where the French rider will get the breakthrough everyone have been expecting, after making it to a Giro top 10 last year.
Rather unexpected Jarlinson Pantano got in with the first 15 riders, holding on to another day in the leader jersey. Geniez and Rodriguez also looking very good in the GC, but can they keep it up when the climbing gets harder?
It is early, but some leader roles on the teams now seems clear. BMC will most likely be led by Richie Porte, with Tejay Van Garderen 2’15 behind. Tinkof will as expected be led by Alberto Contador, Rafał Majka is also down 2’15. Ag2r will most likely be Pozzovivo, with Péraud also down 2’15.
Astana:
With Jakob Fuglsang down 1’48, Fabio Aru will for sure be Astana’s race leader.
23/3-2016 Dwars door Vlaanderen 1.HC
Roeselare – Waregem 196.0 km
Alexey Lutsenko tries to join the early breakaway, but the peloton estimate that he is too strong, and won’t let him get away.
Instead the breakaway is Mourey (Fortuneo), De Clercq (Lotto Soudal), Fenn (Sky) and Campenaerts (LottoNL – Jumbo), at the end of the flat section they got 7’03 to the peloton. It is not raining but it looks like it might start any time.
The pace get higher and higher as soon as the hilly and cobbled part starts, and the breakaway is over with about 40 km left, it has now started to rain hard.
Then on a hard uphill cobbled section Zdenek Stybar (Etixx) slips away, Boom sits way too low to react.
Even worse also John Degenkolb and Jens Debusschere lays distance to the peloton on the same hill, Boom still struggling to find room to get forward.
Under the ten km banner, a stable front group has now formed, besides the three mentioned above is it also Florian Sénéchal and Sep Vanmarcke who together have been able to join up from behind.
The next group to make it to the 10 km banner is 7 riders, amongst them Lars Boom, Mathew Hayman and Yves Lampaert, they are about 1’10 after. It is quite clear they won’t catch up.
John Degenkolb wins the sprint in front of Jens Debusschere and Florian Sénéchal, Lars Boom makes it to the line as 10th.
Evaluation:
Overall: The winner John Degenkolb have had a brilliant early season, besides this important win he has already won the general ranking and a stage in Tirreno – Adriatico, and a stage and the points classification in Etoile de Bessèges.
Most of the favorites did pretty good ending inside top 10, besides Stijn Vandenbergh (Etixx – Quick Step) who ended up as no. 32, and teammate Tom Boonen ending as 27, but with three from Etixx–Quick Step in top ten that may well have been planned.
Astana: Just three day ago, Boom wasted a good opportunity in Cholet-Pays de Loire, again today his results was worse than the possibility’s due to another bad decision sitting too far back. Vinokurov is furious even though a top 10 is usually a good result.
Astana’s 38 years old Italian veteran Paolo Tiralongo gets in the morning break with Filippo Pozzato (Southeast) and Giovanni Visconti (Movistar), Tiralongo is feeling good today and might just get into the KoM contest if everything works out.
A little later Magnus Cort (Orica) attacks and joins the group, somehow a bit strange that the young Danish sprinter want to join a break in this terrain.
Visconti is the stronges on the climbs today, winning most koM sprint over Tiralongo, but right after Alt de Sante Pellaia the breakaway is over. Now the favorites prepare for the last 36 km over Alt dels Angels (cat.1).
Aru is not feeling good today so Fuglsang sits right in from of his captain trying to get him over the top without losing time.
The first to attack is Joaquim Rodriguez, Stefan Denifl (IAM) tries to counter but haven’t got the power.
Over the top also Contador, Mollema, Pozzovivo and Barguil get away from the peloton, they catch Rodriguez half way down the descent.
It comes to a sprint between the 5 riders, Contador wins a close finish in front of Mollema and Pozzovivo.
Aru and Fuglsang are in the next group of more than 50 riders, they lose 36”
Evaluation:
Overall:
This was Contadors 2nd victory of the season after winning a stage in Tour of Oman. Not the best season start from him with 4th in Down Under and 15th in Tirreno, but it is early season at he may well be gaining form now.
Jarlinson Pantano Gomez lost only 36” and will be in the leader jersey for another day.
Prominent rider losing some serious time today was Betancur (2’57) Reichenbach (2’33) and Simon Yates (3’47)
Astana: Morally not a good day for Aru not able to sit with the best, but considering the mountains coming up tomorrow 52 seconds behind the leader is not that bad.
20/3-2016 Cholet-Pays de Loire 1.1
21/3-27/3 2016 Volta a Catalunya 
but lets hope for better luck in Spain 
23/3-2016 Dwars door Vlaanderen 1.HC
