I bet 10 PCM$ that one Euskatel rider will fall, and he will take at least one frenchie with him.
Or a major GC contender.
Gilbert should take this one - it is tailor-made for him. Rojas is an interesting pick though...
I'm cruious as to whether any sprinters will try to get into the breakaway for the sprint point, then drop back into the peleton after that. Could be a way to get an early lead over their competition.
10theri wrote:
My bet is on Thor Hushovd, he always finds he's top form for the tour.
No cobbled stage where Cancellara burns himself out for Andy Schleck this year though. That was a 'gimmie' for him in that small group. He's not the same rider as a few years ago, think he might struggle, even though he finally won a race last month in the WC jersey.
I think a late escape might take it, Vino? How steep is the finish because depending on the grade a sprinter might have the power to get to the line first.
I think the stage tomorrow will be very intersting, and it might have a sensational outcome. Gilbert is considered to be the massive favourite due to his fantastic performances in the hill classics, but he got a huge challanger in the norwegian bull; THOR HUSHOVD! I think this stage fits Thor extremely well, because he is widely considered to have the best finish in a slight uphill sprint. He is very confident about his slight uphill sprint, and has never hidden that for all cycle fans around the entire earth. The question is if he will be able to beat the huge favourite Phillipe Gilbert as he did last the et to a really big battle, in the world championship. That time Gilbert didn't stand a chance in the sprint against Hushovd, he was totaly crushed. I really hope we will witness a simular situation tomorrow, that would be mindblowing.
Anothecr challenger to the stage win will be the Kazakhstanian crackhead Alexandre Vinokourov. He is famous for his fantastic willness to attack when nobody expect it, and these attacks can last for long, maybe because of great crack? I don't know, but Vinokourov will make a huge impact on this years tour, and I predict it will happen from the very first stage.
So many people think Hushovd will win? That is because he won one stage this year by few centimetres to Sagan, who was in the mountain breakaway the day before?Edited by Avin Wargunnson on 02-07-2011 07:24
