Well mixed emotions for the start of my first season as a pro, I happy and settled with the team and I am excited with the prospect of what is to come for me and the team in parts 2 and 3. I've had a quiet start to the season only at Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan-San remo. Strade Bianche was hard race, especially when Sagan went, you knew it would only end one way. T-A was an exciting race and i was happy about the job I did there helping friend and compatriot Carlos to a 8th place GC finish. In fact it was also a fellow compatriot of ours Nairo who took the win. Now MS-R is always for the sprinters, or Cancellara so I wasn't expecting to much but to be drop farily early, way before the poggio I was very disappointed with my first showing at a monument. There is plenty more to come from me, with a good mix in Part 2 of the season and the big one in Part 3 .
Bonjour!
Been a busy period so i have not had much time to write. Obviously the highlight was the Crit Int where i stole away on the final day to win both the Stage and GC! Also took home the Youth jersey. It really made up for a disappointing Paris-Nice. Despite all the racing i do feel very rested and in fact i seem to be better at recovering now than at the start of the season. Combined with that i don't feel as tired after long days of racing.
Putting those skills together will be helpful in the upcoming races. For Part 2 my schedule is unconfirmed but it will be focused around building towards the Tour later in the year. I'll probably be at the Dauphine if not much else.
Finally find me on twitter #LeFaucon using @B3B_FDJ. Chat with me and check out the odd update as well. Not my main thing but a nice side edition especially if i'm on the move.
Ronde van Vlaanderen
Pais Vasco
Paris-Roubaix
Amstel Gold Race
La Fleche Wallone
Liege-Bastogne-Liege
Tour de Romandie
Giro d'Italia
Criterium du Dauphine
Tour de Suisse
Trentino
Finanzplatz
Dunkerque
Luxembourg
Nice looking team schedule that plays to our strengths, and should make for a good set of months bringing solid points. Obviously not my major time of the season, more given over to Pozzo, Betancur and Muriel, but there are still a few races i'd like to ride.
I have an interest in the Ardennes classics but it's not essential to me. Same goes for Romandie, a nice race but i can miss it if needed. On the other hand the Dauphine is a big mark on my calendar and i hope is the focus of this section of season. I'd also quite like to try out Trentino, more so than the Ardennes, with it's heavy focus on climbing.
Looking forward to the managers schedule confirmations and the get back into the regular season racing.
Hi, boss it's Christian! I'm looking a head to part 2 in hope I get more racing and some decent results. I have a fast finish for a climber so any races with DH finishes after a few mountains would be Ideal. I'd like to ride the Tour de Romandie and the Criterium du Dauphine as part of my build up to a grand tour in Part 3
It was an honour to ride for AG2R and for Betancur at the Amstel gold race, Fleche and LBL, this is what dreams are made of! I didn't really produce any results to note but I did my role in the team well I think. I helped Carlos to a top 10 in AGR, 2nd in LBL where he was very close to catching Sagan who seems to be unstoppable and another top 10 in Fleche Wallonia.
I now head to Switzerland as I ride both Romandie and Suisse in preparation for the Tour de France! (I can reveal this information right?). It is an exciting time for me and I hope I can have a good on some stages for myself! I'll be reporting back soon, bye guys...
That's the first race in Switzerland done, I love it here, the food, the climbs and the general way of life. I may even consider a house here if I become a regular at Suisse and Romandie!
So Romandie, a race with two time trials, it's not really what I like to do, it's a world of pain, I just wanted to climb and I did but for Romain Bardet. I dug in deep for him but he didn't produce a decent result in GC, I think he was 19th? I don't know. In the end I ended up being lower in the GC than Matteo Trentin, that can't be right surely. It seems I'm finding myself in the wrong place at the right time.
Next of course I will be racing Tour de Suisse in preparation for the Tour de France. Here I SHOULD be leader, I have earned it and I will be peaking for the Le Tour in search of a good result of a stage win from the break...
I will speak to you soon, sorry this was sort, I must finish my toblerone.
Bonjour,
I've started serious preparations for the Tour now. The early parts of the season i wasn't really at full fitness and it showed in my results. I was happy to work for the team, Carlos mostly, and they got good results. Now the focus for me is coming and i can build fitness. I've traveled home to the Pyrenees to scout out the mountain stages as part of my training.
Each day i trace the race route, or at least the serious climbs, as part of my long ride. I am starting to increase my stamina and fitness as well as my knowledge of the stages. I mean i know all the Pyreneen climbs well but i've never quite focused with this intensity. It should all combine nicely come July.
Before then i will be in racing action again for the big June pre-Tour races. For some people they are the goals but for me it is just a pre-Tour testing ground. We'll see where i am and hopefully it will be good news.
Part 2 of the Season picks up right where Part 1 ended, with the cobbled classics. The next 1 is a big one, but AG2R's chances of success are still minimal. So, here we go:
Ronde van Vlaanderen
Here we are once again in Belgium for the great Ronde van Vlaanderen. We're sending our cobbles team back out. Just to remind of who they are: A. Domont, J. Berard, H. Houle, Y. Hutarovich, G. Bagdonas, S. Minard, L. Mondory and S. Chainel. Our aim for this race is to get TV time, anything more is a hug bonus.
And we were totally invisible there, in yet another poor start to the Part. Minard was our best placed rider in 80th place, while Van Avermaet taking victory ahead of Boonen and Sagan.
Volta Ciclista al Pais Vasco
And next we're off to Spain for some more action with a joint french partnership of Peraud and Hinault leading the way. We're hoping that the veteran will be able to help bring on the youngster. In support we have A. Domont, J. Kern, H. Houle, G. Bonnafond, M. Montaguti and M. Cherel. We haven't any set objectives for this race, just go out and make us proud.
Stage 1 started with Thomas trying where he succeeded last time with a long range attack with some other strong riders: Monfort, Kelderman and Frank. Sadly this time the attack was fruitless but thankfully he finished with Jean in the front group.
Stage 2 saw Kern out in the break, pulling himself up to 3rd on the KOM classifications. Sadly the break were brought back, but Matteo was able to grab us a great top 10 with a lovely 6th place
After a quiet stage 3, with our main men finishing in the peleton, we sent Montaguti into the attack on Stage 4. He paired up with Javier Moreno of Movistar to distance his fellow escapees with 50km to go.
Sadly they get snapped up, as Hinault gets us a nice 8th place to leave him just outside the top 10. Stage 6 unfortunately saw him drop out of contention for a top 10 as he fell down to 14, over a minute behind.
With the final time trial stage, we never really had high hopes, yet the great Jean Christophe Peraud surpassed any expectations, grabbing a 5th place finish. Great work Jean.
Paris-Roubaix
And here we are for the hell of the North. We've brought the same team as before, but we're not hoping for much better than last time. Let's see if our boys can prove me wrong.
We were able to get Bagdonas into the break today, which is already mission achieved. Though it's a huge break, let's see how this goes.
Sadly, the cobbles took it's toll and the break was unable to make it all the way to the velodrome. Chainel impressed with 30th place, a good showing for such a prestigious race. And really the best we could have hoped for, so overall, not bad.
Armstel Gold Race
And here we are at the first of the big 3! And we've brought the team to match. We have Betancur as our leader, with loads of support from the likes of Bardet, Cherel, Dumoulin, Hinault, Muriel, Nocentini and Riblon. We've no objectives for this race, but we'll be aiming high!
We kept it quiet, waiting for our moment to pounce. That moment came with 12km to go, where Carlos followed the Attack from Gilbert, Rodriguez and Valverde. He fought hard, but wasn't able to hang on to the storming trio. He struggled on and managed to make a solid 8th place.
La Fleche Wallone
Here we are for number 2. Hopefully we can build on our work from the last race. We're still behind Carlos, with Bonnafond and Domont replacing Bardet and Nocentini the only changes to the squad. Let's do this
Once again Carlos is good enough to make the cut and got into the lead group of 8. Once it got down to the final sprint, he faded near the end, ending up a well placed 6th. A nice improvement on Armstel, let's hope we can keep this going.
Liege-Bastogne-Liege
So here we are, the big one. We've been building up to this one for the past 2 races. We've built a strong team together for this one, with Bardet and Nocentini returning along with Pozzovivo, Gadret, Cherel, Hinault and Muriel. Now our objective for the race is only a top 20, but we'll want to do better than the previous 2. Let's light it up.
Things were looking good when our boys got involved in pulling the peleton along after the excapees. Carlos must be feeling good today.
Then, after pulling back an attack from Rodriguez, and Carlos makes his break. Sagan is still up ahead, so he's got some work still to do!
And he comes very close! He closes the gap down considerably, but he just isn't able to make contact. He does however distance everyone else and grabs and excellent 2nd place. Great way to round off the Monuments.
Yes it as been a time since i last write blog. This part of season has not been best for me. I have struggled to match the best riders across a whole race and my team mates like JCP are challenging in the general classifications. I can look to few mountain stages for comfort. I podiumed a stage of the Dauphine and have not been far behind on the long climbs i love. The picture for Le Tour is complicated. Perhaps general classification will not be good to me, but i do think i can match the best on some climbs. I think a stage win can be done and i think the King of the Mountains or U25 Jeresey is possible with a bit of luck.
If JCP comes to Le Tour i will be able to learn a lot from someone of his quality. He has been looking much strong in Dauphine. He experience will help me over a long three week. The team, Ag2r, could have a strong race. In the past they have gotten many wins and the riders are not weaker. Two or three wins is a possible real. It should be good on home soil.
The break is here now and i hope to use time to improve. I will be working on my endurance, my ability to last long on the bike. This will be done from my home in Pyrenees on the route of Le Tour. Come the big mountains you will see my face on tv.
After Le Tour i don't know what races have. My manager i'm sure will guide me to a good plan of racing for the rest of the season. Hopefully i can do well and prove i can keep my role for next season. There is long way to go and i think the team can not relegate, and get results good.
Best of luck to all my team mates and i will talk again during Le Tour.
We're here now for another race on home soil, and this time we've got stage wins in mind. We need a win here, and so we've brought the best team we thought for the terrain. Bagdonas is going to lead the way on this one, with Belletti as his main helper. The rest of the squad is made up of: Houle, Minard Iglinskiy, Gaustauer, Chainel and Bonnafond.
For the first stage we missed out, with Gediminas only managing 14th. For stage 2, we came so close! Bagdonas was delivered perfectly up to the front, and looked like he might do it until the pink jersey of Roelandts beat him down into 2nd place. Dissappointing.
Stage 3 was a dissappointment as even though we tailed Roelandts, when it came to the sprint we had nothing left to give. Then with the queen stage 4, we decided to use a different tactic, with Chainel going into the break.
Bagdonas then follows the attack from Kenyan Sky Rider Sithembile in a late dash for glory.
Sadly, the victory was already won by an impressive Roth. Bagdonas took 14th on the stage, dropping to 7th on the GC. Chainel was dispatched into the break for the 5th and final stage.
He fought extremely valiantly, only being reeled back in with 2km to go! Chapeau sir, thank you for your great effort. In the end Belletti managed 6th place as we failed with this objective. We came agonisingly close, and it certainly wasn't a bad race for us, just no end result. Shame.
There's an impressive line up here in Romandies this year, with the likes of Contador and Moreno leading the line. However, we're hoping to get into the mix, with a number of great daring riders: Nocentini, Bardet, Muriel, Bonnafond, Chainel, Houle, Kern and Gaustauer. We haven't any objectives on this race, though we're up to set the race alight.
Time trials are not our strong point, so we can be fairly pleased with our prologue result. Muriel showed off the jersey setting an early best time, and 25th at the end is a good result for our Colombian.
With a lumpy profile for the 1st stage, there was just a small possibility of a break victory, so we sent Houle up the road just in case. He fought valiantly at the front, though the sprinters were determined to bring it back together, so it just wasn't to be today.
Stage 2 was a quiet one for the team, simply staying out of trouble. We remedied this on Stage 3 with a blistering attack from Romain Bardet!
Sadly he was reeled in on the final climb, and fizzled out to nothing. Stage 4 was another quiet day. The stage 5 time trial was a bad stage for the team, as Bardet dropped out of the top 20. Hopefully we can get that back.
I can't find the final stages of Romandie, can anyone help me??
Giro dell Trentino
Pozzovivo is coming here to try and defend his title from last year. And we're going all out to help him towards that goal, to show the faith we have in him, and his importance in the team. So helping Domenico we have Peraud, Bardet, Bouet, Montaguti, Nocentini, Iglinskiy and Kern. We've an objective here of at the least a top 5 GC, though we are after a win.
On stage 1, Nocentini gave a statement of intent with an attack with just 14km to go. Even though he was swallowed up, he still managed an 11th place, showing we're definitely to be watched here!
Stage 2 was the team time trial, so we weren't particularly confident heading into this stage, but we were definitely going to give it 100%. And we get 3rd! In a really surprising result, we nap the bottom step on the podium thanks to a fantastic effort from the guys here today!
Stage 3 was the 1st real test for our GC hopes, and we didn't disappoint! Though there were a clear front trio of Bertie, Nibbles and Purito, we had our own trio of Peraud, Pozzivivo and Bardet. They seemed to be the best of the rest scoring 4th, 5th and 8th on the stage! Not over yet! We also took over the U25 and Team rankings with that great showing.
Stage 4 was rather a nightmare for the team, with our 3 musketeers falling to 8th, 9th and 10th on the GC. Today effectively ended our GC challenge. We've still got an objective to meet though. So we put it all into the 5th stage. Domenico was able to stick to Bertie's attack on the final climb, couldn't ask for better than that!
Yet it was Peraud who managed to pull himself up into 6th on the GC, just 30 seconds of our goal! So close! As consolation, Bardet gets to take the U25 jersey home and we did win the team prize. Still gutting, that stage 4 really did for us.
And so we're here in Italy for the start of the Giro d'Italia. We've had a good start to the season, but this is where things get serious. And we're taking it seriously. Based on our turn out at Trentino, we've shown that we're a strong team, and extremely capable of performing on the top level.
Here's the line-up for these 3 weeks:
Carlos Betancur
Carlos will be our leader for this race. He's been on solid form so far this season. He had a fantastic 2nd place in Liege and a strong top 10 in Tirreno-Adriatico. He's here today as our GC contender. With our objective being to get a top 3 in the U25 classification, he's our man in the spotlight. We've got faith in him, let's see what he can do.
Domenico Pozzovivo
His main lieutenant will be our new man Domenico. He's come in and blended well with the squad. He gave a strong showing in Trentino with a 9th place and a 14th in Catalunya. And we're expecting to see more of the same fight over the next 3 weeks.
John Gadret
Our leader on the road and our experienced head, John will be the level character who will help balance out the youth of Carlos, and help steer him to glory. He himself hasn't had any great results so far this year, because he's been such a great team player, and we're expecting this same dedication here.
Christophe Riblon
A second experienced man on the squad is Christophe. He's already got a great 2nd place in the GP di Lugano when he's had the opportunity to lead, and we're hoping that he can show the same drive in a helping role.
Hubert Dupont
Another super-domestique is the great french treasure, will be giving his all for the ambitions of Carlos and the team.
Davide Appollonio
Our sprinter here for this race is Davide. He's not going to have a great time over the climbs, but hopefully he'll be able to do some scrapping on the flatter stages. Whilst he certainly won't be among the greatest of the sprinters here, he can still get an opportunists result.
Anthony Ravard
A rider here to help him out Davide is Frenchman Ravard. Beyond helping Davide, he can pull our boys along on the flat and make sure to take care of them.
Lloyd Mondory
Another man for the flat and for the sprints is Lloyd, and he'll be up for the same job as Anthony.
Sam Dumoulin
Our jack of all trades rider is Sam Doumoulin. He'll be capable of making it over some of the lesser climbs, as well as being able to help out on the flat. The perfect all rounder, he's a great addition to the team.
So that's us. We've got high aspirations, and a high quality squad to get us there. Giro d'Italia, let's be having you!
And so we're here for the start in Napoli for this undulating route. It's listed as a sprint stage, so we'll see how this will go.
And a top 5! Great work there from Samuel. What a fantastic start to this race. Carlos kept himself safe there coming through in 18th. The only concern is that our sprinter Davide came in 74th. Hopefully he can improve on that.
Result:
4
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
3h31'55
18
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
41
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
44
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
49
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
50
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
74
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
101
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
164
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
Stage 2
Next up is the 17.4km Team Time Trial. Given the squad that we have here, we aren't really hoping for an awful lot. Really all we can try for is not to lose too much time on the rest of the big favourites.
And 4th place! This really was out of the blue. We really didn't expect to do so well, and rather than not losing any time, we've been able to put time into most of the rest of the favourites, with 10 seconds over Quintana and 14 over Nibali. Fantastic start, absolutely fantastic.
Result:
4
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 16
Stage 3
And today starts us onto the climbs. While we don't expect to see any gaps between the favourites today, we'll certainly do our best to keep Carlos in a good position.
Wow, well there were certainly plenty of fireworks today. And we're glad to see Carlos fighting it out with the best of them. Getting 2 riders in the top 10 is also a great result. Good man Gadret. Another big plus is seeing U25 challenger Majka dropping over 4 minutes. 1 less to worry about.
Result
7
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
5h21'30
8
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
17
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
23
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
32
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
76
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
120
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'12
148
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
174
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'23
Stage 4
And here's our first really big final climb. Again, it'll be the same tactic today, and seeing Carlos isn't afraid to attack, let's see what he can do.
Another solid top 10. Sadly Nibbles got away from us, though Carlos did well to distance our major U25 target Quintana by a full 2 minutes. This also pulls him up to 5th overall. Solid work Carlos, keep this up.
Davide is really struggling on these climbs, hopefully he can produce something for us on the flat.
Results:
7
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 27
19
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'24
25
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
42
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
77
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 3'57
78
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
93
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
105
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'07
193
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 21'51
Stage 5
We've a much flatter stage today, though there are a few lumps in it, so we'll just see how today pans out. Too bumpy for Davide, but maybe Domoulin could improve on his 4th.
VICTORY! We have Victory! Did not expect it to pan out like this. Fantastic Carlos, absolutely fantastic! And the pink jersey as well. Magnifique!
Results:
1
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
4h33'33
20
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
40
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
43
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
57
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
62
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
100
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
151
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'39
191
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 8'28
Stage 6
So here we are for an almost completely flat stage today. The plan for this stage. Protect the jersey. Appollonio can try for the sprint if he wants, but that's secondary, Carlos must be well looked after today.
And the plan worked just fine. Carlos kept well out of trouble, which was all the more significant given that both Quintana and Uran had heavy crashes and have seriously injured themselves. Sadly, this is the first stage of the race with no top 10, though that wasn't the plan for today. We succeeded in holding onto pink for another day.
Results:
13
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
3h13'08
14
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
47
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
50
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
54
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
62
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
72
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
75
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
151
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'14
Stage 7
CARLOS! What a victory for the maglia rosa! And in what style. He really is a true champ! The team worked really well for him today, and he definitely deserves all the plaudits for this fantastic scalp. This Giro really couldn't be going any better!
Results:
1
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
3h54'25
19
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'20
42
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
45
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
82
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
86
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
114
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'31
160
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'09
187
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 15'22
Rest day 1
Wow what a week it has been! 2 stage victories, and only 1 stage without a top 10, this race really couldn't have started any better. Wearing three of the four jerseys, as well as being the top of the team classification, we really are on cloud 9. The one disappointment so far, is that whilst we have a rider at the top of the GC classifications, we also have one at the bottom. I'm unsure that Davide will be able to survive this Giro, but I know that he will give his very best.
It'll take a miracle for Carlos to hold onto his maglia rosa today, but he's guaranteed to fight to the death for it. This is mano-e-mano, and we're not prepared to lose.
And here we are with our last sight of pink, at least for 1 stage. He really did give it his all, and did well for it too. Only losing 40 seconds over that distance against a rider of Nibali's calibre is impressive, a sign of just how well we're doing in this race.
Results:
18
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'22
20
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'33
26
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'47
89
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'48
101
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'08
136
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'48
176
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 7'21
186
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 9'01
187
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 9'36
Stage 9
And we're back onto the climbs. Though given the profile of the stage we look to finally have a breakaway victory. But we remember what happened the last time we said that. And given Betancur's form, we can never write him off.
We were right this time, though with Carlos getting another nice top 10, and gaining almost a minute on Richie Porte, we can certainly count this as a good stage for us. Keep 'em comin'.
Results:
7
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'58
39
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 3'41
42
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
48
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
109
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
113
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
116
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
130
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 10'24
187
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 27'03
Stage 10
And here we are for the first mountain top finish. And we're poised to strike. With the best climbing squad here, and Carlos doing so fantastically, we can't rule anything out. We're certainly aiming at pink. Nibbles, we're coming for you.
We couldn't quite manage it there today. Quintana showed why he really is one to watch. Just think how great a threat he would have been without that crash. Still Carlos did very well to cling to Nibali, and has really established himself on that number 2 spot after this stage.
Results:
3
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'26
15
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 8'17
23
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
25
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
34
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 8'59
94
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 20'36
104
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 22'14
122
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 25'29
186
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 38'44
Stage 11
Another hilly stage again today, just with a couple of larger bumps. Expecting to see the break take this one. Just got to make sure that we can stick to the shark.
And we managed it too. Looking fine in the points jersey, he did well staying right on Nibali's wheel, tearing past him to take a very pleasing 5th, which, with the breakaway win, is a great result.
Results:
5
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'05
No exported results, so no more results.
Stage 12
Another stage for the break I feel. Just a little too bumpy for the pure sprinters. Same plan as yesterday. Hopefully the same result.
We weren't right this time, and this becomes the 3rd stage without an AG2R man in the top 10. Disappointing that on a day which ends up in a mass sprint, that Davide ends up almost 7 minutes down. He really is clinging on.
Results:
33
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
2h50'47
41
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
48
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
50
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
53
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
55
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
144
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'56
152
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
172
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
Stage 13
These few bumps near the end make it look like a break stage, unless the puncheurs are really out for blood today. Our tactics have become much the same from day to day, and it's no different today.
And sure enough we stuck to the game plan, as this image shows Carlos glued to our man. And we almost caught the break. Yet another very nice top 10, again coming through as the top man of the GC contenders, and further solidifying his place at the top of the points classification. A good job well done.
Results:
7
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 41
34
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'04
52
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
54
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
66
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
69
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
105
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
128
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'27
180
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 11'34
Stage 14
Here we are again on the up. The tactic is the same, and if we can possibly burn past Nibali on the finish and grab a handful of seconds back, then all the better. Gotta watch for Quintana as well though.
With the attack over the first climb from Nibbles, we made sure to reel him back. With the maglia rosa back in sight, Carlos tried to attack him, though he was just too strong today. In the end it was a strong Sky 1-2, and now Porte is dangerously close to us. We gotta watch out for him.
Results:
10
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'29
14
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'16
19
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'30
35
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'09
48
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 7'02
102
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 15'35
103
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
107
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
182
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 23'45
Week 2 Summary
This 2nd week has still been a good week for us. While it never reached the heady heights of last week, it's been a solid progression, as we've shed other rivals out the back door. Just Nibali stands in our way. 5 of the 7 stages had Carlos in the top 10. 1 nice podium as well.
While we may have relinquished the maglia rosa, we still have a firm hold on both the points and U25 jerseys. For some reason we've lost the Team Rankings, though we dispute that as we clearly have the highest top 3 riders, with Pozzovivo and Riblon also putting in great rides for the team and sitting within the top 20.
And here we are on the another big stage. And it's a big day today, with the Col de Galibier. We're hoping to keep Betancur in contention and hopefully shake off some more contenders.
And yet another day of tailing Nibali. And we managed to stay the course. And we got to distance Kreuziger, so just Porte left to shed. We're doing incredibly well, let's just keep this going!
Results:
5
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 47
12
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'56
13
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
39
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'45
48
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 7'58
93
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 20'27
98
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
109
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 22'56
185
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 39'30
Stage 16
Looks like yet another break away stage today. Can just keep it together for yet another stage. That late climb will make it tough for those sprinters to deal with.
And we let him go. It was tough, Carlos did very well staying as close as he could, and actually managed to put a full minute in on all the rest of the contenders. We can kiss goodbye to top spot, but we're definitely in for that middle step on the podium.
Results:
8
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 6'36
27
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 10'33
34
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
55
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 12'20
64
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 15'10
70
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
98
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
135
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 18'40
183
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 22'32
Stage 17
A very flat stage today, shouldn't be an issue only there's a medium climb near the end. We'll definitely going to be able to get over it, though I'm not expecting to see Davide make it to the finish.
And that did not go as I expected. The climb was much tougher, but Carlos made sure not to get caught out. And he puts another minute and a half into Richie Porte. This is looking extremely good for our 2nd place.
Results:
13
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'38
23
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'15
41
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
51
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
62
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
86
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
139
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 8'39
143
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
173
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 9'34
Stage 18
And here we are for one of the toughest stages of this year's Giro. This Mountain Time Trial should hopefully suit Carlos better than the last one, but still he'll have to ride out of his skin to stay with Nibali and Porte on this one.
Well that just shows who the greatest rider is on this tour. Nibali really was in a class of his own here today. Quintana may have taken the stage, but he had already lost this giro. Today was Nibali's coronation. Another worry now is that Quintana could take the Points jersey as well as the Mountain jersey. Carlos is going to have to fight to hold onto his slim 9 point lead over both Nibali and Quintana.
Results:
10
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 1'26
22
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'02
23
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'04
24
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
34
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 2'27
91
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'05
128
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'31
139
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4'36
177
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 5'04
Stage 19
Today is an extremely tough day, with 3 huge climbs on the parcours. Let's see how we can get on today, and we really do need to try and finish above both Nibali and Quintana if at all possible.
Oh boy that was a rough one. Everything looked to be going well, with Carlos able to follow compatriot Nairo ahead of Vincenzo. However, 3 weeks of intense racing took their toll and the shark hunted him down. Carlos finished 3 spots below his countryman and 2 behind the race leader. Thankfully though, there were enough riders leftover for the breakaway victory to allow Betancur to hold onto his points jersey by 5 points. Just 1 more stage to go.
Results:
8
Carlos Betancur
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 10'01
22
Domenico Pozzovivo
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 11'59
28
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 13'24
38
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 15'43
51
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 19'22
99
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 27'51
110
Anthony Ravard
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 29'16
113
Samuel Dumoulin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
176
Davide Appollonio
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 37'08
Stage 20
Here we are for the final epic stage before the more leisurely ride to finish off this year's Giro d'Italia. Betancur's position in 2nd place is secure, but his points jersey is far from it. So we need a really stellar performance today to try and hold onto it. And he's against the 2 most in form riders here, Quintana and Nibali. The team will give him the best support they can.
And we just couldn't do it. After a full 3 weeks battling it out with Nibali, on the roads, today was the first stage where Carlos really blew up. He just couldn't give anymore. He was still able to manage yet another 7th place finish, but with the shark taking first with Quintana biting at his heels, the points jersey has slipped away. Chapeau to Carlos, he really did give his all, and can still be extremely pleased with 2nd place and 1st in the U25 classification, achieving our team goal for this race.
Tour
San Sebastian
Pologne
Eneco
Vuelta
Vattenfall
Plouay
Quebec
Montreal
Lombardia
Beijing
Burgos
USAPCC
Varesine
GP Wallonie
Milano-Turino
Piemonte
Vendee
Emilia
Paris-Tours
Chrono
. 
Le Faucon
![imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg](https://imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg)
Tour de Romandie and the 
Christian Muriel
Ronde van Vlaanderen 
Volta Ciclista al Pais Vasco 
Armstel Gold Race 
Giro dell Trentino 
![s1291.photobucket.com/user/Sh0nak/media/Team%20NetApp%20-%20Endura/Giro%202013/s7_zps90d11d72.jpg.html[/img]<br />
<br />
Today is bumpy enough to possibly allow our first breakaway victory, and certainly we won't mind that, though we will keep a close eye on the breakaway and make sure to keep Carlos in Pink through tomorrow's rest day.<br />
<br />
[img]https://i1291.photobucket.com/albums/b543/Sh0nak/Team%20NetApp%20-%20Endura/Giro%202013/2014-04-1908_32_16-Greenshot_zps6d987a5f.jpg](https://s1291.photobucket.com/user/Sh0nak/media/Team%20NetApp%20-%20Endura/Giro%202013/s7_zps90d11d72.jpg.html[/img]<br />
<br />
Today is bumpy enough to possibly allow our first breakaway victory, and certainly we won#39;t mind that, though we will keep a close eye on the breakaway and make sure to keep Carlos in Pink through tomorrow#39;s rest day.<br />
<br />
[img]https://i1291.photobucket.com/albums/b543/Sh0nak/Team%20NetApp%20-%20Endura/Giro%202013/2014-04-1908_32_16-Greenshot_zps6d987a5f.jpg)
