caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 The highlight of the cycling year gets underway today for the 99th time with 3,500km of hard racing to be done over the next three weeks. Barring accidents, it should be a straight shootout between reigning champ Cadel Evans and Britain's Bradley Wiggins. Wigggins has been in the form of his life this season and has a very strong team behind him going into this attempt to become the first ever UK winner. Outsiders to consider are Jurgen Van den Broeck and Vincenzo Nibali.Prologue - Time Trial - LiegeA 6.4km time trial to get things underway. Four-time world champion in this specialised discipline, Fabian Cancellara, is the one to beat, but he has been in poor form recently and Wiggins or Tony Martin will be there or thereabouts at the finish. Evans will be hoping to limit the time losses with Wiggins in the General Classification. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan 23 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 IMO if Wiggins stays healthy he wins this. Got outside bets on Schleck, Sanchez and Hesjedal. Odds were too good to refuse! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 IMO if Wiggins stays healthy he wins this. Got outside bets on Schleck, Sanchez and Hesjedal. Odds were too good to refuse!I love Sammy Sanchez as a rider and he'll be flying when he gets to the Pyrenees. Bruyneel staying away may see a resurgence in Schleck's appetite for the sport, but Hesjedal is prone to having an off-day. Wiggins for me too, mate. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mongolikecandy 418 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Hope Wiggins can do it Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 Boasson Hagen gets Team Sky off to a great start. Still plenty left to come. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 Wiggo takes a narrow lead after an amazing second half of the route. For how long? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 Cancellara takes the lead by an enormous 7 seconds. Unbeatable. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 1. Fabian Cancellara.2. Bradley Wiggins. 3. Sylvain Chavanel.Good rides by Cadel Evans, Denis Menchov and Ryder Hesjedal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan 23 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Amazing prologue from Cancellara. Wiggins also did a very good job! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mongolikecandy 418 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 I love this event Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsa 3,906 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Would be great to see a British winner, fair play to Sky for the investment in the team. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mingledtrout 7 Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nibali for me,He has szymd,basso and sagan all riding for him,i think it may be his year.I can see wiggans cracking and being isolated in the mountains,Uran had a tough giro so he will prob have to rely of froome,whos untested at the tour. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted June 30, 2012 Author Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nibali for me,He has szymd,basso and sagan all riding for him,i think it may be his year.I can see wiggans cracking and being isolated in the mountains,Uran had a tough giro so he will prob have to rely of froome,whos untested at the tour.Uran isn't riding here, mate. Along with Froome, Wiggins will have Rogers, Siutsou and Boassan Hagen to help him through the mountain stages. He certainly won't lose it solely because his team aren't good enough. Liquigas look strong and Nibali's TT today shows that he's in good enough shape to attack in the mountains as he has promised. Should be great fun! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mingledtrout 7 Posted July 1, 2012 Share Posted July 1, 2012 Sorry, i thought uran was riding.Explains why he wasnt in the chart for the white jersey i was looking at!Both have strong teams,i just fancy nibali over wiggins. I cannot wait for the mountains! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Sorry, i thought uran was riding.Explains why he wasnt in the chart for the white jersey i was looking at!Both have strong teams,i just fancy nibali over wiggins. I cannot wait for the mountains!Stages 16 & 17 in the Pyrenees will be absolute killers. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Stage1 - Intermediate - Liege to SeraingThis 198km mixed stage will see some action from those targetting the various jerseys. Radioshack will want to keep Cancellara in Yellow for as long as possible and will be leading the peleton in pulling back any breaks.With five 4th category climbs to be negotiated along the way, the King of the Mountains polka-dot jersey will be see some breakaways in order to pick up the few points on offer.There is also an intermediate sprint just after half-way for those looking to accumulate some points in the chase for the green jersey.The finish to the stage is at the end of a short, steep climb which will not favour many of the big sprinters. Peter Sagan will be the favourite for many, but he could be challenged by, among others, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Tony Martin, Alejandro Valverde or local boy, Phillipe Gilbert who was the reason for the sharp, uphill finish being put in as it suits his style.Should be an interesting day. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mingledtrout 7 Posted July 1, 2012 Share Posted July 1, 2012 Stages 16 & 17 in the Pyrenees will be absolute killers.Im offshore untill fri,be home in time for the 2nd and 3rd week,ill have to catch the highlights on itv4 untill then. Be interesting to see how ryder gets on in the mountains. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Stage1 - Result1. P. Sagan2. F. Cancellara - 0"3. E. Boasson Hagen - 0"4. P. Gilbert - 0"5. B. Mollema - 0"General Classification1. F. Cancellara2. B. Wiggins - 7"3. S. Chavanel - 7"4. T. Van Garderen - 10"5. E. Boasson Hagen - 11"The Yellow/Green jerseys stay with Cancellara after a late dash sees him just fall short, while the Green jersey will be worn by Sagan with that fantastic stage win putting him second in the points tally in his first ride in Le Tour.Dane, Michael Morkov, of Team Saxo Tinkoff Bank, will wear the polka-dot, King of the Mountains jersey for stage 2 after winning three of the five climbs in today's stage. A great start to his TdF career too. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboy 71 Posted July 1, 2012 Share Posted July 1, 2012 Peter Sagan - talented lad from Slovakia Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Peter Sagan - talented lad from Slovakia Superb win, especially for a Tour debutant.Shit chicken dance though! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboy 71 Posted July 1, 2012 Share Posted July 1, 2012 Superb win, especially for a Tour debutant.Shit chicken dance though! He is still just a kid He mentioned , he will try to win first part, his team mates are good on mountain parts. His team is in all 3 - TdF, Italian one and VueltaWe have twin Velits brothers as well, but Sagan is really talent ... Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 He is still just a kid He mentioned , he will try to win first part, his team mates are good on mountain parts. His team is in all 3 - TdF, Italian one and VueltaWe have twin Velits brothers as well, but Sagan is really talent ...A lot was expected from Peter Velits, but his start doesn't bode well for what's to come. Sagan could go on to challenge for top spot in one of the big ones. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 2, 2012 Author Share Posted July 2, 2012 Stage 2 - Sprint - Vise~TournaiThe final day in Belgium sees 207 km of relatively flat terrain, only one 4th category climb to contend with, and should see the first real test for the pure sprinters in the field. There is also an intermediate sprint 50 km from the finish line, so the various teams will be looking to lead out their big men in the pursuit of the Green jersey. Britain's Mark Cavendish dominated in 2011 but is concentrating more on the Olympics this year. He'll be thereabouts, but may lack the raw power to contend with some stiff competition. Yesterday's victor, Peter Sagan, will be hoping for a quick double, while the likes of Matt Goss, Marcel Kittel and the out of form Tyler Farrar will all be hoping to stake a claim.I'm going for Team Lotto-Belisol's Andre Greipel who has had a host of wins this season and has a strong group of riders to lead him out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 2, 2012 Author Share Posted July 2, 2012 CAV WINS! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseyjones 3,009 Posted July 2, 2012 Author Share Posted July 2, 2012 Stage 2 - Result1. M. Cavendish2. A. Greipel3. M. Goss Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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