To be honest this is an overkill of too much talent for me - especially the ripping apart of some teams like Lotto-Soudal I really don't like to see...I guess I won't really follow this because it's too much of a mainstream best talents and great riders team :/
Definitely this is the most balanced team that i have ever played with in PCM.
I have to say that there's only three riders left to be anounced. My plan in that the last rider will be presented tomorrow morning, so for the next week I can start with races
Croatia14 wrote:
To be honest this is an overkill of too much talent for me - especially the ripping apart of some teams like Lotto-Soudal I really don't like to see...I guess I won't really follow this because it's too much of a mainstream best talents and great riders team :/
I understand your point, but i have to remember you that i have choosen random potentials, and from what i have saw in the aprox potentials of my riders, not necessarily the real life highest potential riders are going to be the next superstars.
I know that Lotto Soudal might have harmed a lot, but they still have 6 riders with >75 AVG. Apart for them, no other team is really harmed, because only BMC (and they have several >77 riders) and Lotto had contributed with 3 riders to my team
Jesus Herrada, former Spanish RR champion back in 2013, has signed for HTC-HighRoad.
Herrada, who has 7 pro wins, have been last 5 years in Movistar Team. He will be a great addition to the Ardennes team, to ride in support of Tim Wellens
Jonathan Castroviejo
Jonathan Castroviejo has signed a contract with HTC-HighRoad for the next two seasons. The Basque rider, who finished forth in ITT World Championship last week in Richmond, is a great timetrialist, who has also good climbing abilities.
The Spanish rider will have his chances in one-week stage races with TT, before supporting Tejay van Garderen in the Tour, saving one bullet for himself for the ITT Worlds
Tom Dumoulin is the last rider to sign for HTC-HighRoad, in a 3-year contract.
The Dutch rider, who comes from winning 2 stages and leading until the penultimate day in Vuelta a España, will be the center of the new HTC project.
He became pro rider in 2012, when he signed for Argos-Shimano (now Giant-Alpecin). He ended sixth in Vuelta a Andalucia, and fifth in Tour de Luxembourg.
In 2013, before making his debut in Tour de France, he ended fifth in Belgium Tour, and made it into the podium in both Dutch nationals. Later that season, he was leading Eneco Tour before the final stage, but Zdenek Stybar took the win from him in Geraardsbergen, relegating him to second place overall.
In 2014 Criterium International timetrial, he won his first ever pro win in Porto Vecchio. In June, he was second in Belgium Tour, and in both TT in Tour de Suisse, before winning the Dutch TT nationals. In the final TT of the Tour, he was only beaten by Tony Martin. Again, in Eneco Tour he was leading the GC before the queen stage, after winning the ITT, but lose the GC to Tim Wellens, finishing third overall.
Ending the season, he finished second in GP de Quebec, and won the bronze medal in ITT Worlds.
In 2015 he won the final TT in Pais Vasco, before finishing third in Tour de Suisse, after winning both TT in the race. A crash in Tour de France while leading the youth classification made him ride La Vuelta, where he made his breakthrought. After being beaten in the line by Esteban Chaves in the uphill finish in Caminito del Rey, he got the red jersey after some gaps in a sprint finish. He won the uphill finish in Cumbres del Sol, beating Chris Froome, to retake the red jersey from Chaves, which he would lose in the queen stage to Fabio Aru, before retaking it again after winning the TT.
He cracked in the final mountain stage in Cercedilla, making him lose even the podium, and finishing sixth overall. He could only finish 5th in Richmond ITT.
For 2016, he will focus in one-week stage races, before going to Tour de France as co-leader with Van Garderen
That is a massively OP team - good luck keeping everyone happy, but it would have been nice to see some sort of challenge to the story. At the minute, you could win every race you enter...
the_hoyle wrote:
That is a massively OP team - good luck keeping everyone happy, but it would have been nice to see some sort of challenge to the story. At the minute, you could win every race you enter...
the_hoyle wrote:
That is a massively OP team - good luck keeping everyone happy, but it would have been nice to see some sort of challenge to the story. At the minute, you could win every race you enter...
From the first post
I will play this career as DS. I mean, I will do all the management stuff, but tecnically, I won't be controlling my riders, just setting the tactics. and put all the riders in auto in 3D mode
For a fair competition, I will be playing in normal
Not a great day for Caleb Ewan and neither for Damien Howson, with both having a -3. In the end, Howson was nearly catched by Rohan Dennis, who went onto winning the Australian TT C’ship by the first time in his career
Rank
Name
Team
Points
1
Rohan Dennis
BMC Racing Team
49'35
2
Cameron Meyer
MTN – Qhubeka
+ 11
3
Rory Sutherland
Movistar Team
+ 26
4
Luke Durbridge
Orica-GreenEDGE
+ 46
5
Jack Bobridge
Team Budget Forklifts
+ 48
6
Travis Meyer
Drapac Professional Cycling
+ 1'04
7
Adam Phelan
Drapac Professional Cycling
+ 1'28
8
Michael Hepburn
Orica-GreenEDGE
+ 1'28
9
Jacob Kauffmann
Team Budget Forklifts
+ 1'29
10
Michael Matthews
Orica-GreenEDGE
+ 1'32
14
Damien Howson
HTC – HighRoad
+ 1'49
61
Caleb Ewan
HTC – HighRoad
+ 4'22
Road Race
Our plan will be trying to set a sprint for Caleb Ewan, only if Damien Howson can’t make it into the breakaway.
In the first kilometers, Howson tried to escape from the group, but BMC and Orica never let him go away, so he finally sit up and started working for Ewan.
At the bottom of the last climb, Simon Clarke launched his attack.
He opened a gap quickly that in the end was impossible to reduce
It’s only Clarke’s forth pro win, after a stage and overall in Herald Sun Tour 14’, and a stage in La Vuelta 12’, the year he also went onto winning the KOM.
Both Orica – GreenEdge riders, Michael Matthews and Simon Gerrans, completed the podium in the Australian Nationals. Finally, Caleb Ewan finished just outside the top10.
Not the greatest start for this season, but considering the route, we had little chances to do anything today
Nikias Arndt Tom Dumoulin Caleb Ewan Damien Howson Gianni Moscon Luis Leon Sanchez Michael Valgren
This year's route is the real 2016 route. Starting with a sprint, followed by a uphill sprint and a stage with a climb 10 km to go. In the forth stage we have another sprint, before the Willunga Hill stage. Two times will be climb that hill, where the overall winner of the 2016 Tour Down Under should be decided before another expected sprint in Adelaide.
This year's starlist is incredible. In GC contenders we have Contador, Chaves, Gilbert, Barguil, Bardet and Dumoulin. For the sprints, we have Greipel, Sagan, Cavendish, Bouhanni, Modolo, Viviani, Demare, Nizzoo and Ewan.
The goal for this race will be to score the first WT points in the season, better if they come with a stage win
Tour de San Luis Preview
19/1/16 to 25/1/16 (7 stages)
HTC-HighRoad riders
Ian Boswell Jonathan Castroviejo Owain Doull Joe Dombrowski Shih Hsin Hsiao Juan Jose Lobato Taylor Phinney
As in Down Under, this year's is the same as real 2016 season. We'll start with a TTT, where we should have a great chance to win it, having brought Castroviejo and Phinney. Then, a sprint, before a stage with a climb close to the finish, which might see the first real difference between GC contenders.
In the forth stage, we have the first of two mountain finishes, in Cerro del Amago. After a flat stage, we'll have the second mountain finish. In the final stage, another posible sprint.
The guys who will fight for GC should be Valverde, Landa, Majka, Meintjes and A.Yates. In the sprints, Kittel is the only great sprinter here, so Lobato is likely to have to fight for second places in sprints.
Our goal is to win a stage, and to finish inside the top10 with Dombrowski or Castroviejo
First stage of 2016 Tour de San Luis. First TTT of 2016 season. We are considered as 3-star favourites for this stage, together with Movistar and Sky.
And we have the first win for HTC-HighRoad since our comeback!!
We have won by 9 seconds on Movistar, who has Valverde, and by 21 on Sky, who has Landa.
Taylor Phinney was the first to cross the line, and he will wear the leader jersey in tomorrow’s stage.
Rank
Team
Time
1
HTC-HighRoad
23'04
2
Movistar Team
+ 9
3
Team Sky
+ 21
4
Orica-GreenEDGE
s.t.
5
Astana Pro Team
+ 39
Tour de San Luis Stage 2
Sprint stage ending in Villa Mercedes. Marcel Kittel is the only favourite for this stage, as with this field, in 99 out 100 he would go onto winning the stage. We will try to secure a top3 finish with Lobato, and by the way, securing one more day the race leadership
Kittel doesn’t disappoint and takes the win in Villa Mercedes, his first with Etixx. Lobato is only able to finish in forth place. Is not what I expected, but it’s not a bad result
As Lobato is the first finisher of my team, he has become new race leader
In the first stage, we start in Prospect and finish, after a flat stage, in Lyndoch. One of the mentioned sprinters should go onto winning the stage, and subsequently, taking the leader’s jersey.
In our team, all is for Ewan in this stage, trying to help him until he has to sprint.
In the final kms, he lose some places, so he decide to sprint earlier to try to surprise. But it doesn’t work, as when the other sprinters start to sprint, he’s already fading out. Same happens to Sagan lately, who was in the lead until final 150 metres, when he was surpassed by Bouhanni, who has done an impressive sprint, close to the fence (and without making crash anyone) to win by the first time in Australian’s soil
Greipel and Modolo take some bonus time, by finishing second and third. Ewan only managed to finish 13th, and all our team come safely in the bunch
First stage for the GC guys, who will face a uphill sprint in Stirling, where Gilbert and Sagan should be the main favourites.
Nothing important happens before last ascent to Stirling, where Gilbert launched his attack, being Sagan the only who could follow him
At the end, Sagan couldn’t keep with Gilbert’s rhythm and had to drop off. The 2012 World Champion wins the stage and takes the leader's jersey with it
Behind him, Valgren outsprinted Felline, and passed Sagan in the line to finish in second place
Fun fact: Gilbert’s first pro win was in 2004 Tour Down Under, his only previous win in this race
