First of all this story basically was dead as bbl posted 3 years ago.
Thanks to tsmoha and his new initiative of remember when and his DFL story catch, I thought about searching for my Garmin save again.
Unfortunately all the screenshots are no longer on imageshack/photobucket. But as the Giro just started and it was always one of the most thrilling races in the first 3 seasons of this career with the hunt for glory of Dan Martin, I thought I would at least try to finish this Giro and afterwards let`s see.
I won`t be able to make very long reports as this is too time consuming. Also some stages I have already played 3 years ago won`t have screenshots due to deleting them or the invivisible riders replay bug. Though I hope you still enjoy this story.
As small note the TTT needed to be replayed as well from a weekly save and it saw some second differences obviously.
As a small reminder here the route, start list and team presentation:
Giro d'Italia 2013
With a sponsor goal to win this Giro, Dan Martin has nice support by Stetina, who himself aims for a top15 in this race. Duggan and Butler will be the main mountain support, while the other half of the team will support Tyler Farrar: Dao, Rowe, Murphy, Bobridge.
The first sprinter stage already saw the best sprinters to fight for the win. Unfortunately there were no TV coverage of the Giro this day...()...so the people at home weren`t able to watch our first of hopefully many wins here. Indeed Tyler Farrar won in a close fight against Mark Cavendish.
But also Napolitano and Boasson Hagen showed to have a good form.
Those four clearly were one level above the rest today.
1
Tyler Farrar
Team Garmin - Cervélo
4h53'38
2
Mark Cavendish
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
3
Danilo Napolitano
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
4
Edvald Boasson Hagen
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
5
William Bonnet
FDJ
s.t.
6
Andrea Guardini
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
7
Fabio Sabatini
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
8
Lloyd Mondory
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
9
Tom Leezer
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
10
Francisco José Ventoso
Team RadioShack
s.t.
Spoiler
11
Alessandro Petacchi
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
12
Mark Renshaw
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
13
Sacha Modolo
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
14
Francesco Chicchi
Katusha Team
s.t.
15
Oscar Gatto
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
16
Davide Appollonio
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
17
Tomas Vaitkus
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
18
Nacer Bouhanni
FDJ
s.t.
19
Francesco Gavazzi
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
20
Assan Bazayev
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
21
Enrico Gasparotto
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
22
Daniel Oss
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
23
Manuel Belletti
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
24
Robert Hunter
Team RadioShack
s.t.
25
Mirco Lorenzetto
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
26
Paul Martens
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
27
Marco Marcato
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
28
Martin Mortensen
Leopard Trek
s.t.
29
Geoffroy Lequatre
Team RadioShack
s.t.
30
Anthony Geslin
FDJ
s.t.
31
Riccardo Riccò
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
32
Lucas Sebastián Haedo
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
33
Robbie McEwen
Team RadioShack
s.t.
34
Dennis Van Winden
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
35
Michael Matthews
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
36
Leonardo Bertagnolli
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
37
Michał Kwiatkowski
Team RadioShack
s.t.
38
Elia Viviani
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
39
Rubén Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
40
Anthony Roux
FDJ
s.t.
41
Danilo Di Luca
Katusha Team
s.t.
42
Maxime Vantomme
Katusha Team
s.t.
43
Marcel Wyss
Geox - TMC
s.t.
44
Greg Henderson
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
45
Blel Kadri
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
46
Dominic Klemme
Leopard Trek
s.t.
47
Federico Canuti
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
48
Marco Bandiera
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
49
Valerio Agnoli
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
50
Baris Dao
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
51
Fabian Wegmann
Leopard Trek
s.t.
52
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
53
Wesley Sulzberger
FDJ
s.t.
54
Javier Francisco Aramendia
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
55
Alberto Ongarato
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
56
Andrey Amador
Movistar Team
s.t.
57
Rafaâ Chtioui
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
58
Pierpaolo De Negri
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
59
Marco Corti
Geox - TMC
s.t.
60
Matteo Tosatto
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
61
Enrique Sanz
Movistar Team
s.t.
62
Stefano Garzelli
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
63
Mickaël Delage
FDJ
s.t.
64
Thomas De Gendt
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
65
John Murphy
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
66
Marco Frapporti
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
67
Luca Mazzanti
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
68
Davide Cimolai
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
69
Coen Vermeltfoort
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
70
Alessandro Proni
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
71
Michele Scarponi
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
72
Johnny Hoogerland
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
73
Kevin Van Impe
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
74
Laurent Didier
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
75
Guillaume Bonnafond
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
76
Ian Stannard
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
77
Fabio Duarte
Geox - TMC
s.t.
78
John Gadret
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
79
Marcello Pavarin
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
80
Mauro Finetto
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
81
Mirko Selvaggi
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
82
Matteo Montaguti
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
83
Kristof Vandewalle
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
84
Matthew Brammeier
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
85
Emanuele Vona
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
86
Marc De Maar
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
87
Rinaldo Nocentini
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
88
Stijn Vandenbergh
Katusha Team
s.t.
89
Davide Malacarne
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
90
Emanuele Sella
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
91
Christophe Le Mével
Movistar Team
s.t.
92
Mauricio Alberto Ardila
Geox - TMC
s.t.
93
Santo Anza
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
94
Tanel Kangert
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
95
Sven Vandousselaere
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
96
Brent Rowe
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
97
Vladimir Isaychev
Katusha Team
s.t.
98
Michael Albasini
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
99
Pierrick Fédrigo
FDJ
s.t.
100
David Le Lay
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
101
Hayden Roulston
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
102
Hubert Dupont
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
103
Eduard Vorganov
Katusha Team
s.t.
104
Dario Cataldo
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
105
Leonardo Giordani
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
106
Ángel Madrazo
Movistar Team
s.t.
107
Damiano Cunego
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
108
Daniele Righi
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
109
Sergey Lagutin
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
110
Matteo Carrara
Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team
s.t.
111
Vladimir Gusev
Katusha Team
s.t.
112
Igor Antón
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
113
Lars Petter Nordhaug
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
114
Arthur Vichot
FDJ
s.t.
115
Juan José Oroz
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
116
Francesco Reda
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
117
Daniel Martin
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
118
Tejay Van Garderen
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
119
José Vicente García Acosta
Movistar Team
s.t.
120
Jack Bobridge
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
121
Jonathan Castroviejo
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
122
Anders Lund
Leopard Trek
s.t.
123
Jens Debusschere
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
124
Carlos Betancourt
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
125
Adriano Malori
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
126
Alan Pérez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
127
Chris Anker Sørensen
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
128
Mads Christensen
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
129
Bram Tankink
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
130
Omar Lombardi
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
131
Juraj Sagan
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
132
Juan Mauricio Soler
Movistar Team
s.t.
133
Francesco Masciarelli
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
134
Christophe Riblon
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
135
Daniel Lloyd
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
136
Daniel Moreno
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
137
Brian Vandborg
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
138
Juan Manuel Gárate
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
139
Jarosław Marycz
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
140
Gatis Smukulis
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
141
Stefan Denifl
Leopard Trek
s.t.
142
Kanstantsin Siutsou
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
143
Pello Bilbao
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
144
Sebastian Lang
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
145
Rasmus Guldhammer
Leopard Trek
s.t.
146
Manuele Mori
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
147
Giampaolo Cheula
Geox - TMC
s.t.
148
Alex Dowsett
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
149
Peter Kennaugh
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
150
Tiago Machado
Team RadioShack
s.t.
151
Jürgen Van de Walle
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
152
Jussi Veikkanen
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
153
Maxim Gourov
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
154
Marco Pinotti
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
155
Domenico Pozzovivo
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
156
Bauke Mollema
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
157
Oliver Zaugg
Leopard Trek
s.t.
158
Balint Szeghalmi
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
159
Alessandro Bisolti
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
160
Adam Hansen
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
161
Manuel Cardoso
Team RadioShack
s.t.
162
Joost Posthuma
Leopard Trek
s.t.
163
Iván Velasco
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
164
Daniele Colli
Geox - TMC
s.t.
165
Miguel Mínguez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
s.t.
166
Vincenzo Nibali
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
167
David Gutiérrez Gutiérrez
Geox - TMC
s.t.
168
Davide Ricci Bitti
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
169
Fumiyuki Beppu
Team RadioShack
s.t.
170
Dimitry Kozontchuk
Geox - TMC
s.t.
171
Timothy Duggan
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
172
Ivan Rovny
Team RadioShack
s.t.
173
Cayetano Sarmiento
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
174
Giampaolo Caruso
Katusha Team
s.t.
175
Massimo Codol
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
176
Sergey Renev
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
177
Andrea Noè
Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
s.t.
178
Pieter Weening
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
179
David Arroyo
Movistar Team
s.t.
180
Vladimir Karpets
Katusha Team
s.t.
181
Thomas Rohregger
Leopard Trek
s.t.
182
Alexsandr Dyachenko
Pro Team Astana
s.t.
183
Alfredo Balloni
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
184
José Rujano
Geox - TMC
s.t.
185
Kevin De Weert
Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
186
Dario Cioni
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
187
Beñat Intxausti
Movistar Team
s.t.
188
Peter Stetina
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
189
Stef Clement
Rabobank Cycling Team
s.t.
190
Robert Kiserlovski
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
191
Vladimir Miholjevic
Acqua & Sapone
s.t.
192
Rubén Plaza
Movistar Team
s.t.
193
Jelle Vanendert
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
194
Olivier Bonnaire
FDJ
s.t.
195
Christopher Butler
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
196
Gianluca Brambilla
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
197
Simone Stortoni
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
198
Rafal Majka
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
Maglia Rosa: Martin Mortensen
Giro d'Italia - Stage 3
The 3rd stage was another opportunity for the sprinters. It is some kind of mini Milan San Remo with a long but not very hard climb and then some steeper bumps close to the finish line.
After yesterdays performance we surely had hopes for another strong result and so we decided to go all in for Tyler Farrar.
Though a big breakaway of 14 riders gave the working teams a big fight. Most notable names in there Roulston, Van Impe, Lorenzetto, Klemme or Debusschere.
And while it was a 3min gap with 40km to go the peloton still had a lot to do.
Unfortunately one of the most recent Giro legends has crashed in the long descent and is set to lose time today. His team surely hopes to avoid an injury: Michele Scarponi (1st 2012; 2nd 2011; 5th 2010).
Also unfortunately, this time for us and the other sprinter teams, that the last two hills proved to be too hard for the peloton while the stronger breakaway riders attacked their companions and go for the stage and also the new Maglia Rosa.
One big reason for this surely the appearance of Dominic Klemme in the break, team mate of the Maglia Rosa. So it was one team less to work behind.
Good news for Leopard though that the jersey stays in their squad as Klemme proved to be the strongest celebrating a big win.
Farrar again was strongest in the peloton sprinting to 15th place. Not a lot you can get for this today. 2'34 was still the gap in the end. So those riders in the break today have good chances to keep the jersey for a while.
Next to Scarponi, who lost ~5min to the favourites today, a couple of more GC riders proved to be in difficulties. Was it low concentration or bad form, which would be awful that early in the Giro?
Cunego, winner of 2010, lost ~2min just like Mollema, co-leader of Colnago. Nibali and Pozzovivo surely with a good chance for leading their teams now.
Also Arroyo surprisingly lost 5'30 and finished as one of the last.
Great to see another story coming back. Will definitely try to follow. Not sure if it's just my mobile, but I can't see those images for the stage recaps.
The 4th stage is the next for Tyler Farrar. A late hill might make things a bit complicate but he proved in the past to be able to pass those climbs easily.
5 riders (Ventoso, Stannard, Vandenbergh, Malori and Mortensen) will try to disturb the peloton`s plans.
Due to the hard work by all sprinter teams, they had no chance though. It must be mentioned that the Leopard - Trek team is not making good friends here as they again went into the breakaway instead of working for the Maglia Rosa.
Well. This was not planned. Vladimir Gusev did attack on the hill and then had a too strong engine on the last kilometers. He arrived a bit ahead of the peloton, where Tyler Farrar sprinted on a decent 5th place. Cavendish won the peloton sprint ahead of Boasson Hagen and Modolo, who were stronger today.
While Dan Martin finished savely in the big group, some riders lost contact on the hill and lose more than 4min in the end.
Unfortunately one of those were our co-leader Peter Stetina. Other riders are Scarponi (+1'32), Cunego, Le Mevel, Masciarelli, Nibali, Karpets, Arroyo, Rujano (all +4'10).
So quite a disaster for Lampre today.
Today we will have the hardest stage so far. A short but not to underestimate uphill finish could surely see some gaps.
It`s a day for Dan Martin to prove his form.
A couple of riders in the breakaway. Nice to see our former rider Robbie Hunter showing himself. Apparently he is going the breakaway way in his RadioShack days. Other notable names are Finetto or Gavazzi.
He even was the strongest in the group which proves his great fitness.
The course today was on the Strade Bianchi gravel roads and led to some selection. A closer look if favourites were dropped will come later in the finish.
Though alone against a fast peloton is nearly impossible and so it`s no surprise to see him caught on the final climb.
Two stage hunters did attack early: Nocentini and Vorganov. As both don`t really belong to top10 GC threats, they were allowed to get some meters.
Going onto the steepest part, Dan Martin shows his GC ambitions and accelerates.
And while he passed Vorganov easily and also was just behind Nocentini in the end, it was a bit too late. The Italian riding for Ag2R would take todays stage due to his attack while Martin can live with 2nd as best GC contender.
18s later Vorganov completes the podium while the peloton lost 38s. This is 38s gained for Dan Martin and good for our team.
Also great that Peter Stetina showed some nice climbing today by sprinting to 5th with Duggan also being part of this peloton.
But some riders have lost contact on the white roads as heard in race radio. Those are Cunego (again), Masciarelli and Rujano. All 3 seem to be in a bad form to attack the Giro GC.
Also other riders like Nibali and Modolo were in troubles today and got lucky to be within the same time as the peloton as some smaller gaps surely have opened.
At the moment the strongest impression next to Dan Martin comes definitely by the HTC duo Ricco/Van Garderen as also Euskaltel`s Igor Anton.
Indeed. I won`t complain. Martin is like the tied 4th best climber here. And with Nibali struggling a bit, one better is not 100% in form it seems.
Then there are Ricco/Anton/Soler/Van Garderen for sure at least equal or better. All in form I guess.
Scarponi, Rujano, Cunego a bit weaker and all lost time so far.
Below those a nice amount of 2nd tier riders, who can surprise with great form or just fail.
Giro d'Italia - Stage 6
Another hilly stage and after yesterdays strong performance, Dan Martin wants to show himself once again.
Though the slopes aren`t too steep and the final is after a descent. So not easy to create big gaps.
A couple of breakaway specialists today. Most notable Belletti, Oss, Vandenbergh, Vanendert or Vaitkus.
None of them would stand a chance though as the pace behind was high.
Though all GC attacks by Cunego, Ricco, Cataldo, Anton, Hoogerland and a couple more did fail due to a high pace by mainly Movistar for the top climber Soler and a bit of help by our team, where Butler showed his class as power horse at the front.
So it came down to a sprint finish of strong puncheurs. Surprisingly Cunego still was the strongest despite his earlier attack. Also his sign of form until today wasn`t really impressive. Might be celebrate a GC comeback? Being more than 14min down is surely a tough task.
2nd today for Van Garderen, who continues the results of a strong HTC squad as also Ricco was strong as 4th. In between those German puncheur Martens.
Dan Martin again with a good result as 6th just behind Boasson Hagen and ahead of Geslin/Moreno, while Stetina as 9th also promising.
Only top climber losing time today is once more Jose Rujano, who really isn`t looking good at all. Other notable riders losing a bit are Kiserlovski, Bonnafond or Duarte.
A stage of only 100km and still 2 long mountains including the final climb. It`s the first real test for the GC riders and even though the slopes aren`t very high, it`s likely to show the strength of the riders.
For us it is about helping Dan to arrive with the best. Therefore Duggan and Butler will control the pace in case of attacks while Stetina as last helper is going to support them if needed. Otherwise he has some kind of free role today.
(Unfortunately this stage saw the invisible replay bug, so there unfortunately isn`t any screenshots...)
The stage was controlled nicely and on the final climb all breakaway riders were caught again. Teams like HTC, Movistar, Euskaltel, Garmin were all interested in a high pace. In especially the Spaniards have high ambitions in this Giro it seems and perform a lot better than the Italians at Lampre.
The pace wasn`t high enough or better the slopes not difficult enough to create big gaps. So all GC riders and good climbers were in the first group of ~30 riders. One who wasn`t though was race leader Dominic Klemme. The German of the Leopard - Trek team lost the Maglia Rosa today unsurprisingly as he is no climber at all.
This obviously was a nice scenario for us as Dan Martin had great chances to get this jersey as 2nd in the GC.
While the favourites did not really attack a lot and not very strong it was a chance for some outsiders today. Old veteran Stefano Garzelli might no longer be a GC threat but as shown in past seasons he still has it in some stages, where he aims for the stage glory. Same today as he attacked half way up the climb and was able to keep a gap until the finish. Great stage win for him.
On the final kilometer Dan Martin also made his move and as he looked pretty fresh he opened a gap to the next. Only a few seconds, but it was a nice statement what to expect of him in the upcoming stages. For sure he got the race lead and has 2 more weeks to defend the jersey.
Surprisingly riders like Rujano had no problems today to follow. Apparently he needed just a few days into the Giro to fully get his form.
And some more 2nd/3rd tier stage racers showed themselves with good form today. The following surely want a top10 in this Giro and so far were looking good: Zaugg, Garate, Kiserlovski, Amador, Hoogerland, Karpets.
Also notable that Movistar seems the by far strongest team in the mountains. 5 riders of them finished inside the first group, while most others only had ~2.
(Tomorrow again with screenshots then as it`s new played stages then)
Indeed having no autobus is nice. That said 30 in first group not ideal neither.
Giro d'Italia - Stage 8
First day in the Maglia Rosa for Dan Martin and on todays stage he should be able to defend it. It`s actually one for Tyler despite the late hill, which could see sprinters struggling.
Not being sure if Tyler makes it over the late climb, we decided to send Butler into the group today. I know, not the best way when having the lead.
9 riders in total in the breakaway including more prominent names such as Garcia Acosta, Matthews, Roux or Marcato.
A mix of Sky (Boasson Hagen) and Liquigas (Cavendish) are at the front keeping a high pace. This way the attempt clearly failed and the peloton would decide over the winner.
We take over full control again and despite seeing the hill ahead of us, we form a train for Tyler. Bobridge-Dao-Farrar.
With Jack in front making a fantastic job and Baris definitely being one of the sprinters, that climb okay, it is a perfect situation for our sprint leader. He passes the climb well enough to have some energy for the flat part afterwards.
Though once more Cavendish proves to be the faster sprinter. The Brit passed Tyler a few meters in front of the line to take a big win. Farrar as 2nd still with a notable result ahead of Modolo, Ventoso, Gavazzi and Boasson Hagen. Daniel Martin who also sprinted today seeing that some gaps did open, on a great 7th with Dao as 10th today, while Bobridge still managed a 12th after his leadout on the uphill stuff.
And as said, some gaps opened. Martin obviously in the first group, where also Ricco finished.
Then 37s later the next group including Stetina, who unfortunately lost time. In that group also Mollema, Van Garderen, Garate, Anton, Kiserlovski, Pozzovivo, Zaugg, Cunego or Garzelli.
Then even later in the 3rd peloton iwth 1'18 Nibali, Karpets, Bonnafond, Scarponi, Rujano and also Soler, who did lose big time today.
While Dan Martin is leading the Giro d'Italia another big event starts in our home country. The Amgen Tour of California is always a huge race for our sponsor and while we weren`t able to send some of the very best US riders such as Farrar or Stetina due to the Giro clash, we still bring a strong squad.
Result in 2011
1
Damiano Cunego
Lampre-Farnese Vini
2
Samuel Sánchez
Euskaltel - Euskadi
3
Roman Kreuziger
Liquigas-Doimo
4
Andrey Kashechkin
Lampre-Farnese Vini
5
Janez Brajkovic
Team RadioShack
6
Andy Schleck
Team Saxo Bank
7
Fränk Schleck
Team Saxo Bank
8
Giovanni Visconti
ISD - Neri
9
Fabian Cancellara
Team Saxo Bank
10
David Zabriskie
Garmin - Transitions
Result in 2012
1
Alberto Contador
Astana
2
Robert Gesink
Leopard Trek
3
Fränk Schleck
Astana
4
Christian Knees
Astana
5
Levi Leipheimer
Team RadioShack
6
Fader Ardila Cano
Café de Colombia - Colombia es Pasión
7
Richard Porte
Leopard Trek
8
Yaroslav Popovych
Farnese Vini - Neri
9
Luis León Sánchez Gil
Garmin - Cervelo
10
Joaquím Rodríguez Oliver
Team Katusha
It`s surely not the biggest surprise that 10th and 9th in last two seasons weren`t what our sponsors wanted. So we surely aim for a top5 in 2013!
The Route
Quite a few opportunities for Matthew Goss here. And also 3 stages for the puncheurs. Though the GC riders are concentrating the most on the other 2 stages. The long mountain top finish on the 7th day and the medium time trial on the day before.
Garmin squad 2013:
The first hard stage will define our clear leader. While Hesjedal is normally a great rider for this terrain, he lacks the fitness at the moment. Jakob Fuglsang might be a step further already and could be our potential top5 rider. Also the time trial suits him a lot more, whereas Kessiakoff gets outside chances of a free role as his form is definitely the best.
For the sprints we hope for good results or even a win by Matthew Goss. Though he lacks the needed support as only Taylor Phinney could help him a bit. But his clear goal is the time trial, where he likes to win in his US champion jersey.
An Post
191. D.Hollanders
192. G.Bagdonas
193. B.Brems
194. M.Cassidy
195. N.Eeckhout
196. A.Fenn
197. P.Lavery
198. R.McLaughlin
Favourites
Mo
Hi
TT
Andy Schleck
Leopard
82
83
72
Bradley Wiggins
Sky
80
75
79
Richie Porte
Saxo Bank
79
75
77
Ivan Basso
Lampre
78
77
71
Ryder Hesjedal
Garmin
78
78
70
Jakob Fuglsang
Garmin
78
75
75
Samuel Sánchez
RadioShack
77
77
73
Janez Brajkovič
RadioShack
77
79
79
Steven Kruijswijk
Saxo Bank
75
72
72
Christophe Kern
Europcar
75
74
73
José Herrada
Caja Rural
75
73
67
Linus Gerdemann
Leopard
75
77
76
Simon Spilak
Lampre
74
77
70
Tom Danielson
HTC
74
74
71
Cyril Gautier
Europcar
74
77
66
Rigoberto Urán
Sky
74
77
70
Rory Sutherland
United Healthcare
74
73
74
Levi Leipheimer
BMC
74
68
78
Fredrik Kessiakoff
Garmin
74
76
71
Sprinters
Fl
Sp
Hi
André Greipel
RadioShack
79
82
66
Daniele Bennati
Sky
76
81
72
Gerald Ciolek
Skil Shimano
74
81
71
Matthew Goss
Garmin
76
80
72
Theo Bos
HTC
73
80
64
Kenny Van Hummel
Skil Shimano
75
79
65
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas
69
78
67
Peter Sagan
HTC
75
77
80
Grega Bole
Lampre
72
77
72
Alex Rasmussen
Lampre
72
77
60
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis
68
76
70
Kevin Lacombe
Spidertech
74
76
66
John Degenkolb
HTC
72
76
70
Goals
Looking at the startlist it will be tough to beat in especially Andy Schleck and Bradley Wiggins and also riders like Porte or with his TT advantage Brajkovic are hard to beat. That all said, Fuglsang/Hesjedal are still one of the best stage racers here and had some solid results in 2013 so far. We aim for the top5 clearly.
In the sprints it will be as difficult as we face some top sprinters here such as Greipel, Bennati or the PCT division dominator Ciolek. Also Peter Sagan musn`t be underestimated. In especially as his HTC team is by far the strongest squad for the sprint finishes here even though the team might also go for Theo Bos on the easier stages.
The opener in California immediately waits with some difficulties for the riders. While most of the stage doesn`t look too hard, it`s that final hill ahead of the finish, that might lead to some selection.
Matthew Goss surely a sprinter, who can go over some hills on a good day. Though this one looks too much for him and we might go saver to concentrate on the GC riders. As said none of them has a peaking form here and it`s no time to get some rythm.
6 riders in todays break. Obviously they see a good chance in case the peloton waits for the sprinters in the final reducing the pace a bit.
Most prominent names in there surely the Dane power horse Bak (HTC) and one rider we try to sign for several seasons now: Talansky (BMC). Unfortunately so far we weren`t successful.
RadioShack, Leopard and Lampre were doing a fast pace for a long time today. Seeing that top climber Basso and puncheur Pozzato were working for Lampre, it`s clear that they go for Spilak as leader here. The other two teams have more than one option in the peloton.
With 40km to go a first split happened with two surprises being dropped. Sky`s Uran surely not in form. But also HTC`s Sagan is behind. He was one of the top favourites for finishes like this.
And with 10km to go the breakaway is nearly caught now as well.
A couple of riders (Gerdemann, Spilak, Brajkovic) did attack on the climb and while other teams were accelerating to close the gap successfully a lot of riders got dropped. Unfortunately Hesjedal was one of them as his form clearly is not good enough. Also Matthew Goss lost contact with him as also Ivan Basso, who had to work though.
This means in the reduced favourite group we still have two riders in Fuglsang and Kessiakoff, who was even stronger at times. His form surely worked out here.
26 riders made it together over the top and decided the stage today. Gerdemann after his attack still was fresh enough to win the sprint. The German alrounder surely with a great form here. Spilak in 2nd also with an impressive performance while Callegarin was a bit of a surprise as 3rd.
Except for the mentioned Hesjedal, Sagan, Uran and Basso all GC riders made it into this first group including Kessiakoff (9th) and Fuglsang (17th). So not the worst start for our team. Though none of them would have been able to follow the attack today, which is a bit worrying.
1
Linus Gerdemann
Leopard Trek
4h49'37
2
Simon Spilak
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
3
Daniele Callegarin
Team Type 1
s.t.
4
Cyril Gautier
Team Europcar
s.t.
5
Andy Schleck
Leopard Trek
s.t.
6
Janez Brajkovič
Team RadioShack
s.t.
7
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
8
Samuel Sánchez
Team RadioShack
s.t.
9
Fredrik Kessiakoff
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
10
Simon Gerrans
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
Spoiler
11
Fabian Cancellara
Leopard Trek
s.t.
12
Matti Breschel
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
13
Yaroslav Popovych
Team RadioShack
s.t.
14
Sylwester Szmyd
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
15
Koen De Kort
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
16
Thomas Voeckler
Team Europcar
s.t.
17
Jakob Fuglsang
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
18
Marco Marzano
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
19
Christophe Kern
Team Europcar
s.t.
20
Íñigo Cuesta
Caja Rural
s.t.
21
Rubens Bertogliati
Team Type 1
s.t.
22
Kristjan Koren
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
23
Tom Danielson
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
24
Matthew Busche
Team RadioShack
s.t.
25
José Herrada
Caja Rural
s.t.
26
Bradley Wiggins
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
27
Davide Rebellin
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 34
28
Gerald Ciolek
Skil - Shimano
+ 45
29
Martin Pedersen
Leopard Trek
s.t.
30
Grega Bole
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
31
Tom Veelers
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
32
Jonas Aaen Jørgensen
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
33
Sebastian Langeveld
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
34
Julián Sánchez Pimienta
Caja Rural
s.t.
35
Danilo Hondo
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
36
Brice Feillu
Leopard Trek
s.t.
37
Michele Gaia
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
38
Richie Porte
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
39
Maciej Paterski
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
40
Matthew Goss
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
41
Yann Huguet
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
42
Karl Menzies
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
43
David Moncoutié
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
44
Ryder Hesjedal
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
45
Andrew Talansky
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
46
Lars Ytting Bak
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
47
Steven Kruijswijk
Saxo Bank SunGard
+ 2'15
48
Will Routley
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
49
Jure Kocjan
Team Type 1
s.t.
50
Stephen Cummings
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
51
Rory Sutherland
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
52
Ryan Anderson
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
53
Christopher Sutton
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
54
Grégory Rast
Team RadioShack
s.t.
55
Damien Monier
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
56
Ivan Basso
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
57
Iker Camaño
Endura Racing
s.t.
58
Jesse Sergent
Team RadioShack
s.t.
59
Chris Barton
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
60
Philip Lavery
An Post - Sean Kelly
+ 3'00
61
Michael Mørkøv
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
62
Julien El Fares
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
63
Filippo Pozzato
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
64
Peter Sagan
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
65
Stuart O'Grady
Leopard Trek
s.t.
66
Cristiano Salerno
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
67
Vitali Kondrut
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
68
Davide Frattini
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
69
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
70
James Moss
Endura Racing
s.t.
71
Kenny Van Hummel
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
72
Alexander Wetterhall
Endura Racing
s.t.
73
Taylor Phinney
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
74
Ronan Van Zandbeek
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
75
Manuel Quinziato
BMC Racing Team
+ 3'46
76
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
s.t.
77
Kevyn Ista
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
78
Franck Bouyer
Team Europcar
s.t.
79
Rigoberto Urán
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
80
Daniele Bennati
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
81
Geraint Thomas
Sky ProCycling
+ 4'44
82
Guillaume Boivin
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
83
Chad Beyer
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
84
Nick Nuyens
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
85
Krzysztof Szczawinski
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
86
John Degenkolb
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
87
Sławomir Kohut
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
88
Brent Bookwalter
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
89
Mark Cassidy
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
90
Chris Horner
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
91
Roger Kluge
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
92
Rémy Cusin
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
93
Alexandre Pichot
Team Europcar
s.t.
94
Jean-Eudes Demaret
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
95
Manuele Boaro
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
96
Alessandro Bazzana
Team Type 1
s.t.
97
Levi Leipheimer
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
98
Higinio Fernández
Caja Rural
s.t.
99
Tom Stamsnijder
Leopard Trek
s.t.
100
Igor Romero
Caja Rural
s.t.
101
Amaël Moinard
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
102
Filippo Savini
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
103
Andrew Fenn
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
104
Dimitriy Muravyev
Team RadioShack
s.t.
105
André Greipel
Team RadioShack
s.t.
106
Garikoitz Bravo
Caja Rural
s.t.
107
David Tanner
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
108
Brett Lancaster
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
109
Alex Rasmussen
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
110
Paolo Locatelli
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
111
Yann Souchon
Team Garmin - Cervélo
+ 6'02
112
Boy Van Poppel
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
+ 6'13
113
Sébastien Chavanel
Team Europcar
s.t.
114
Bernhard Eisel
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
115
Giacomo Nizzolo
Leopard Trek
s.t.
116
Volodymyr Zagorodny
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
117
David Boily
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
118
Scott Thwaites
Endura Racing
+ 6'47
119
Kevin Lacombe
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 7'07
120
Theo Bos
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
121
Bjorn Brems
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
122
Saïd Haddou
Team Europcar
s.t.
123
Jacopo Guarnieri
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
124
Jonathan Patrick McCarty
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
125
Nico Eeckhout
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
126
Alex Bowden
Team Type 1
s.t.
127
Aldo Ino Ilesic
Team Type 1
s.t.
128
Rubén Reig
Caja Rural
s.t.
129
Manuele Caddeo
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
130
Scott Stewart
Team Type 1
+ 7'59
131
Edward King
Liquigas - Cannondale
+ 8'13
132
Romain Zingle
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 8'36
133
Danilo Wyss
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
134
Gianluca Randazzo
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
135
Jack Anderson
Endura Racing
s.t.
136
Max Jenkins
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
137
Simon Zahner
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
138
Dries Hollanders
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
139
Leigh Howard
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
140
Bruno Langlois
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
+ 10'23
141
Gediminas Bagdonas
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
142
Andrea Pasqualon
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
143
Alberto Contoli
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
144
Callum Wilkinson
Endura Racing
s.t.
145
Giuseppe Di Salvo
Miche - Guerciotti
s.t.
146
Angelo Pagani
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
147
Ronan McLaughlin
An Post - Sean Kelly
s.t.
148
Andrea Piechele
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
149
Fabio Calabria
Team Type 1
s.t.
150
Stefano Pirazzi
Colnago - CSF Inox
s.t.
151
Cristiano Fumagalli
Miche - Guerciotti
+ 13'49
152
Matthew Hayman
Sky ProCycling
+ 15'08
153
Hilton Clarke
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
154
David Veilleux
Team Europcar
s.t.
155
Jake Keough
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
156
Zachary Bell
Team SpiderTech powered by C10
s.t.
157
Cheng Ji
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
158
Bradley White
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling
s.t.
Giro d'Italia - Stage 9
After the Tour of California, the riders in Italy also started today and it`s the Mt Etna stage with 2 huge ascents onto the volcano.
Dan Martin has the race lead and surely wants to defend it. It`s another good test of the individual`s form.
11 riders form a break quickly. Good old Petacchi (Lotto) or Di Luca (Katusha) the most popular names for sure. But while Petacchi at least is still a half decent sprinter, Di Luca is no longer the big rider he once was. De Weert, Dyachenko or Mori other riders in there.
It was a long day for our helpers. Baris Dao was the first rider chasing. He went up the first Etna pass. This climb saw a crash by Dario Cataldo. Surely not Quickstep`s Giro so far with a crash now from both GC riders. As 9th in the GC he is well placed but looks injured when he goes back onto his bike.
Also this first climb saw some attacks by co-leaders such as Arroyo, Masciarelli, Nocentini or Sella.
67 riders only reached the top in the peloton, where Butler is working now as Dao lost contact just like our other non climbers. Martin, Stetina and Duggan still in there while Cataldo and also Cunego are a group behind.
While Butler was still doing fine, we luckily got some support in the valley, where Euskaltel with a couple of guys and also HTC with Van Garderen was supporting us. HTC seems to go all-in for Ricco as the US rider as 3rd is well placed himself.
With 15km to go the biggest attack so far. It`s the peloton`s best climber Soler going for it together with Zaugg. Also Pozzovivo and a couple of others follow immediately. Only Arroyo is left of the former break 1min ahead. This is perfect tactic for Movistar now of course as Soler gets his own relay station.
A high pace by several teams and more attacks though bring everything together again including Arroyo. Up and Down rider so far Rujano then with the next attack followed by Anton as more dangerous rider saw another selection. Tejay Van Garderen after his work one of the victims here and he seems a bit pissed about the management. Possibly we should try something this offseason to improve our US riders a bit then.
Also Bonnafond, Mollema, Duggan, Garate, Garzelli, Karpets and Duarte dropped. So a huge selection process today.
With 2km Dan Martin accelerated and only a couple of riders were able to follow: Soler, Anton, Ricco, Nibali, Rujano, Zaugg.
This means, Stetina got dropped here together with Pozzovivo, Scarponi etc.
What a day. Dan Martin surely felt great and had the perfect (+5) legs. But we didn`t expect this today. He comes over the line as first and even has a small gap to the next, Ricco, who seems to stay his biggest opponent. Soler as 3rd, Nibali 4th and Anton as 5th though with climbing form it seems.
Stetina as 8th lost 52s in the end which is still a great performance.
While the first stage already reduced the number of favourites, the 2nd stage is most likely one for the sprinters. With Goss we have a strong option though the competition is huge.
Early today Simone Ponzi (one of the 2nd tier sprinters) and our young French talent Souchon crashed. Both were able to join the peloton quickly.
Then a group of 9 riders including Eisel and Hayman attacked. With those two power horses the peloton had to work a lot. With RadioShack and Skil the two best sprinter teams here were doing so.
They might be a PCT team only, but in the sprints, they surely are the strongest here. So it`s not a surprise that Skil - Shimano is forming the only train. Ciolek belongs to the very best and did already celebrate a lot of wins this season.
Just behind him Matthew Goss has found the perfect wheel ahead of Greipel and Bennati.
Biggest names missing are the HTC riders Bos and Sagan. First is 3-4 bike lengths behind though.
No one was able to challenge Ciolek as much as needed. So the German takes the 2nd stage. Greipel seems to have a good form as well as he came very close. So was Leonardo Duque. The Cofidis alrounder with a surprisingly fast finish moving him onto 3rd. With better positioning he could have won this stage. Strong performance. Behind Bennati, Goss finished on a decent 5th, while yesterdays winner and the leader jersey of Gerdemann is jsut behind him proving his superior form once again.
All our riders but Bookwalter and Souchon, who might have a small injury finished savely in the pack today.
1
Gerald Ciolek
Skil - Shimano
4h54'55
2
André Greipel
Team RadioShack
s.t.
3
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
4
Daniele Bennati
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
5
Matthew Goss
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
6
Linus Gerdemann
Leopard Trek
s.t.
7
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
s.t.
8
Jonas Aaen Jørgensen
Saxo Bank SunGard
s.t.
9
Simon Spilak
Lampre - ISD
s.t.
10
Kenny Van Hummel
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
Giro d'Italia - Stage 10
Todays stage looks a bit weird. One for the sprinter you would think but the final 25km are slightly uphill. Not very steep but the riders surely will notice.
Many teams today don`t trust their sprinters to 100% it seems as 12 teams send a rider into the break including Stannard, team mate of Boasson Hagen, who shouldn`t have problems here.
Also Chris Butler is in there as Farrar told the team this morning to not miss this break in case of an exhausting finish. With Lorenzetto, Malori, Roulston or Guldhammer a couple of more very strong riders in the break.
But Acqua Sapone had other plans. As only team they were working all day and delivered a sprint finish for Napolitano. Or at least it looks like it as the break is nearly caught with 12km to go.
This also means that we start to form a train for Farrar, who still feels strong. Murphy, Bobridge, Dao, Farrar it is.
But the last meters were too hard for him. Cavendish takes the stage, which is a small surprise. Behind him a couple of sprinters with a better kick on the hills like Modolo, Napolitano, Ventoso or Boasson Hagen. Farrar on the 6th today with Dan Martin staying in the GC lead due to no gaps.
3rd stage and another one for the sprinters. So it`s Matthew Goss we are riding for today. Yesterday`s 5th was okay but we hope to be closer to the podium this time. Though Ciolek and Greipel proved great form as also Leonardo Duque.
Frattini, Wyss, Boivin, Haddou and Moss form todays breakaway.
Though Cofidis have realized how strong Duque was yesterday and are chasing today to make it a sprint finish.
This was obviously also good news for Skil-Shimano as they have a a less exhausted sprint train for Ciolek. Can he make it another win? Once more Goss with the perfect wheel behind him and ahead of Greipel, Bennati, Bos with Duque and Ponzi having a small gap to them.
Ciolek struggled in the end in this high speed finish and it`s the other German sprinter today. Andre Greipel dominated the sprint having the biggest engine in the end to celebrate a nice stage win. Ciolek still 2nd ahead of once more Duque, who was again fastest but from too far behind.
Bennati and Bos next, which means, that the 6th from Goss is another okay result but not closer to the podium unfortunately.
The next stage will lead into the hillier area again where the GC fight will be continued with Fuglsang and Kessiakoff in a good position.
1
André Greipel
Team RadioShack
4h20'59
2
Gerald Ciolek
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
3
Leonardo Duque
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
4
Daniele Bennati
Sky ProCycling
s.t.
5
Theo Bos
HTC - Highroad
s.t.
6
Matthew Goss
Team Garmin - Cervélo
s.t.
7
Simone Ponzi
Liquigas - Cannondale
s.t.
8
Aitor Galdos
Caja Rural
s.t.
9
Sébastien Chavanel
Team Europcar
s.t.
10
Linus Gerdemann
Leopard Trek
s.t.
Giro d'Italia - Stage 11
A hilly stage at half time. Not the hardest but possibly hard enough for some damage.
13 riders in the breakaway today including Albasini, Wegmann, Marcato and veterans Hunter or Petacchi once more.
With no danger from the break we decided to make it easier and allowing them this stage. Only Lampre and Euskaltel at times were chasing them hoping for a stage win with Cunego or Anton.
Anton actually attacked with 8km to go as only big GC rider. Though the pace behind was fast enough to not give him many meters. He was always just ahead.
And with a bit less than 2km to go Dan Martin attacked the 70 rider peloton to close the gap to the Basque himself. A couple of breakaway riders though are still ahead and surely will take the win today.
And once more it`s a Leopard Trek rider in Fabian Wegmann celebrating. A great race for them so far with stage wins and a decent GC position for Zaugg.
He comes in solo with a 30s gap to Marcato, Vandewalle and Van Winden after attacking in the final ascent.
Another 17s later Roux as last breakaway rider ahead of the peloton where Cunego passed Anton and Martin to take 6th today. But all GC riders within the same time then.
Well all but one. Jose Rujano had a up and down Giro so far with strong mountain stages and weak hilly/flat performances. And today he also crashed badly breaking his arm, which means he will be out of competition for a couple of weeks. Bad luck for the small climber.
Dan Martin still leading the GC and should so at least another day as tomorrows sprint finish is one for Tyler Farrar again.
Due to a bit longer reports I split the California/Giro posts to 2 this time and depending on length in future as well.
Amgen Tour California - Stage 4
It`s a GC stage again and with Hesjedal having lost time already it`s more important for Fuglsang/Kessiakoff to avoid a big time loss today. Both have used the flat stages to improve their race form, though in especially Fuglsang is more aiming the time trial and longer mountain stage.
5 riders in the break and it`s a bit unlucky that we were not able to send a relay station for later into it. Souchon tried but the pace in the beginning was too fast to make it. Not surprising when seeing that such strong rider as Sagan is in there. As one of the best puncheurs this might be surprising but as 66th and more than 3min behind in the GC he has lost quite a bit in the opening stage. The others are Horner, Savini, Fenn and Romero.
Allowing Sagan into the group though might have been a mistake. Already on the long downhill late on todays stage and with only 20km to go the gap is still at 6min. The HTC rider really going for it today. Leopard, RadioShack and also Barton for our team are chasing them.
5km banner for Sagan. None of the others were able to follow him and actually only Horner is still in between him and the peloton.
The descent didn`t really reduce the gap. So the final uphill climb will have to do so. Sagan has spent a lot of energy already, so the peloton should have an advantage but this means huge pace up the climb and neither Fuglsang nor Kessiakoff are really the strongest puncheurs, which is not ideal for us.
The peloton has also reached the 5km banner and it`s a huge ride by Chris Barton today who is still leading the group. Right behind him Kessiakoff, Fuglsang and Hesjedal. The pace surely could be higher but it`s the best pace for our leaders in especially as they don`t have the legs today. The gap slowly melts but too slow.
Not a surprise with such gap that Sagan would take the stage. But the time will be important. Can he steal the leader jersey with this excellent solo today? The pace behind surely went up now.
As soon as Barton wasn`t able to keep the high pace, the GC riders all attacked. Schleck and Brajkovic as first. This shows that Leopard is not fully trusting Gerdemann despite his leader jersey and impressive form. Though he is just behind them with Wiggins, Spilak and Gautier also in the move.
Then with a gap our riders alongside Samuel Sanchez, the always impressive Duque, Callegarin, Kern, Moncoutie, Busche or former rider Danielson.
Those last kilometers today were crucial. Huge gaps appeared due to the high pace.
Fuglsang finished together with Sanchez while Kessiakoff comes in next ahead of the other mentioned.
But more important the gaps to the better placed riders today.
First, Brajkovic, the strongest of the GC riders today, he finished 2'30 behind Sagan, which just shows how fast the last 5km were. This also means we have a new GC leader. Not Sagan though. He is beaten by 16s. It`s RadioShack with Brajkovic taking the lead!
Schleck and Spilak finished next today ahead of Gerdemann and Wiggins. The German will drop to 3rd in the GC but still ahead of his team mate. With the roles being close though the long mountain stage should suit Schleck a lot more.
As Gautier also finished ahead of our duo, this means Fuglsang and Kessiakoff complete the top10 in the GC behind Sanchez. The time trial and mountain stage will need to decide then.
One day off for the GC riders and time for the sprinters again. Tyler Farrar looked good so far but couldn`t beat Cavendish in the last couple of stages since his stage win in the beginning of the Giro.
With 14 riders in the breakaway some teams must expect a real chance for them to succeed. Not our plan to be honest and neither Liquigas or Acqua e Sapone hope so.
Guldhammer, Lorenzetto, Roux, Stannard, Hansen, Debusschere or Pinotti to just name the most popular.
What Barton was doing in California today, Butler is doing in the Giro. Leading the peloton for a long time chasing the breakaway.
He is supported by Rowe at times.
With 10km to go all riders are caught with Roux being the final one and the 3 sprint trains are formed. No surprise it`s Garmin, Liquigas and Acqua Sapone.
Unfortunately Bobridge/Murphy weren`t able to challenge the other trains today. So they gave everything to move Farrar right behind Cavendish with Leezer behind him.
Other sprinters such as Modolo, Boasson Hagen and Vaitkus aim for Napolitano`s wheel.
Cavendish was definitely the perfect wheel in the end. Unfortunately the Brit was (once more) too strong and did not allow Farrar to move around him. Possibly he could have gone a bit earlier though. Anyway, 2nd in a GT stage is everything but bad. Boasson Hagen completes the podium.
Tomorrow then is a huge mountain in Austria on the Großglockner. So stay tuned.
