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Giro d'Italia - Discussion
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| roturn |
Posted on 15-01-2021 18:43
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Now Gazelle becoming a bit annoying... Having the GC lead and still sending one of their stronger riders to the break for additional stage points.
Meanwhile my team still going for Boom... And as new next option Van der Poel, who should have gone on the last 4-5 stages.
With five climbers they finally should pick riders that suit the stage profile as otherwise it's close to a 0 pointer so far despite being very very active.
Point wise it can only become better from here on. |
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| ember |
Posted on 15-01-2021 22:35
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The reports are just incredible. Thank you for also keeping the posting and quality up, Fabianski!
That's a huge opportunity missed for Taaramäe, which also gives only four mountain top finishes left to make the big differences regarding the GC and Malecki. I'm not confident Taaramäe can do it, eventhough I still hold him as the favourite. That would be a first for a MG GT, if Malecki can run away with the title. Very impressive defense on that stage, that's for sure. Congratulations, DD!
What's a bigger problem for us as a team, is that we completely miss out on valuable GC points during the race compared to what I hoped for and also expected. Sitting in the top three, especially leading, in the GC from early on adds up during a GT and gives huge points in the end. Seeing how little all our riders except Kwiatkowski and Taaramäe have contributed so far this season, I'm afraid we need a huge result here to stay safe from relegation fears. We're not looking likely to get that as it stands now, which makes for a very "interesting" second half of the season  At least it will be very, very exciting!  |
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| matt17br |
Posted on 16-01-2021 07:01
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Maybe there will be a stage the break doesn't win, but not just yet. Hate to be complaining about the AI but this absolutely doesn't take away from the job you're doing Fabianski!
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| ryant |
Posted on 16-01-2021 15:52
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Must agree with the dodgy AI I have to admit but if it thinks that we are one of the favs on the hill stages then I admit the peloton will struggle since it more of an EXP/Breaks team with McCarthy added on.
Munoz seems to have an eye for a break but it seems he's overmatched despite following all the right moves tbf... Only 2 real opportunities for McCarthy is left as well so time is running out for us here, with only Kennaugh via break sometime in the 3rd week being one of the only shots left for us in Italy... 
 John St Ledger in Team Bunzl-Centrica and Team U25Red Bull Driver in RFactor
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| SotD |
Posted on 16-01-2021 16:21
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Why dont we attack on these stages instead of working at the front? It’s so frustrating :-(
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 16-01-2021 16:30
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We didn't play our cards well today yet. Hopefully Roman can still pull it off!
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| cio93 |
Posted on 16-01-2021 16:44
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cio93 wrote:
This will be my last comment of this race except for stage wins.
I consider this a stage win, so I return to say
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| knockout |
Posted on 16-01-2021 17:11
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I would like to speed to the moron that decided that Budenieks has to work in the peloton on a day like this for no reason whatsoever. Nearly lost his 2nd place in GC because of that and is now in huge danger to drop it before the TT. Good effort to keep working afterwards.
We really should have been in this break though...
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters!
And To All Who Organize Something On Daily As Well!
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 27-02-2021 15:35
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 16-01-2021 17:15
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We did not play it well.
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| roturn |
Posted on 16-01-2021 17:35
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Good podium there. First thought the stage would be too hard for VdP and in parts likely was as well but still very decent. But the next though stage would then be taken from the climbers instead.
Gazelle in the GC lead with a non favourite really a problem here as it ruins the AI heavily with other teams not working or acting as they should... Hopefully this quickly changes. |
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| matt17br |
Posted on 16-01-2021 18:30
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matt17br wrote:
Maybe there will be a stage the break doesn't win, but not just yet. Hate to be complaining about the AI but this absolutely doesn't take away from the job you're doing Fabianski!
Well at least we got a piece of the pie today
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 16-01-2021 19:29
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At least this time Boswell joined the breakaway in the right type of stage for him. Too bad he doesn't seem to be strong enough to contest the top spot even from a breakaway.
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 16-01-2021 22:01
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Starting to get worried Malecki is going to win this Giro.
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| tastasol |
Posted on 16-01-2021 23:40
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Very happy with Nesset so far. Really hope he can keep that level up.
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| ember |
Posted on 17-01-2021 08:40
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Just like valverde, I'm starting to really believe in Malecki's chances here. That was another tough stage, and looking at what's left of week 2, I'm thinking the only "time loss" stage left for him, is the long TT.
Well done by Taaramäe to be among the very strongest in the peloton another day. He can only keep it up, and hopefully the four mountain top finishes there will give bigger gaps and stage wins to fight for in week 3. |
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| DubbelDekker |
Posted on 17-01-2021 13:20
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Malecki is still punching far above his weight. The guy has 71 MO and even only looking at my own team he routinely outclimbs riders like Sosnitskiy (78 MO, 77 RES), Vervaeke (76 MO, 77 RES), Hart (76 MO) and three 75 climbers. The only Gazelle doing a better job than him is Karnulin (78 MO).
The fact that Malecki lost only approximately 1:30 in stage 8 and 9 is crazy and it's caused by a combination of abovementioned overperformance and the fact that the favourites are not going full throttle on the final climbs.
I have a very double feeling about Malecki's Giro so far, because on the one hand it's an amazing story and great for the team, but on the other hand it seems to be caused by buggy game behavior, which I don't like.
I can see why some of you are starting to worry he could take it all the way if hard stages continue playing out like this. But I find it hard to imagine that the favourites are going to continue this behaviour in the final week. And Malecki's 70 REC will probably come into play as well.
This Giro is already a success for Gazelle so from now on I mainly hope we'll get realistic stages in terms of AI.
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 17-01-2021 14:24
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Interesting to see people getting worried Malecki might actually win this. I don't think that will happen since the favorites will eventually go full gas which will result in bigger gaps on the climbs. Also, I expect the recovery to be an important factor in the third week. Malecki has been hanging on for his dear life in the first half of the race and I just don't see him being able to keep it up and crack quite hard in the final week.
I think being in pink might give Malecki quite an important boost in the daily form bonus and bring him just above the riders DD mentioned in the post. Also, his high flat stat compared to usual climbers definitely helps him recover a lot of energy between climbs.
I know people aren't a big fan of this since it doesn't really follow the pattern we've been used to in the MG where the big riders would dominate the race, but it definitely makes for a more entertaining race. And since this seems to be the direction the PCM games seem to be following, the best we can do is adapt and get used to different types of racing.
The only major problem that still rises are the sprints. Even there we can find explanations for most odd-stuff compared to what we were used to in the past, but some sprints are still just plain weird.
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 17-01-2021 15:10
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I don't think the story of a breakaway guy holding the jersey longer than he should is necessarily an issue at all. It happens occasionally in GT's, and I think it has the potential to make the race quite exciting. It's only really an issue because the breakaway is winning every single day.
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 17-01-2021 15:53
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You're right about that.
I think it's either the way MG teams are built or the route or a combination of both that causes this. Because last year we had a good balance of this in the Tour and Giro from my point of view, with a rather odd Vuelta. Now, we seem to be on the Vuelta path.
I think a closer look at these 4 Grand Tours on the two aspects I mentioned will give us a better idea why the balance between breakaways and favorites wins is not what we'd expect, because I doubt it's random.
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| tsmoha |
Posted on 17-01-2021 16:50
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Missing out on another breakaway.. I don't like. At least Bayly tries.
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