09-29-2024, 07:25 PM
Pogacar attacking with 100kms to go is absolutely nuts! What's your thoughts on the recently concluded UCI Road World Championships?
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(09-29-2024, 07:25 PM)meamoantonio Wrote: Pogacar attacking with 100kms to go is absolutely nuts! What's your thoughts on the recently concluded UCI Road World Championships?
(10-02-2024, 02:12 AM)Jesper Wrote:(09-29-2024, 07:25 PM)meamoantonio Wrote: Pogacar attacking with 100kms to go is absolutely nuts! What's your thoughts on the recently concluded UCI Road World Championships?
Because of his strength and ability there should be no reason that he does not push harder and earlier in a race while avoiding exhaustion and injury; especially in a one day.event.
He is obviously well suited to the sport and has grown up with using technology that at this point will probably only advance very little over the next 5 to 10 years; as well as UCI rules which will keep things in racing fairly stable. Given that Pogacar has won 3 GCs and over 15 TdF stages in the last 5 years, he will probably easily beat the Cavendish stage win record, and GC wins in the next 5 to 10 years barring injury or retirement (or PED issues).
I was bored with the TdF after 5 stages when he had a decent lead and did not push the field. He would have tired out many, but he and his team did nothing except hang around waiting for specific stages later in the event instead of putting it completely out of reach for other riders in the first half of stages. I think he easily could have taken one of the early flat stages that his team balked at (he won 6; record 8). Team racing on stage events has turned (decades now) into a bit of a joke when there are a large mass of riders sprinting at the very end, cutting each other off, pushing, and/or crashing. If the pace of a stage is properly set and pushed by the best riders then only the smaller break away groups will be sprinting at the end of a stage just like you normally see when stages end with climbs.
At the TdF when Cavendish won his record breaking stage win with a sprint to win (technically he did it illegally by not holding his line). I doubt he would have had a chance if the strongest riders pushed harder and wore him and other sprinters down, but stage/team racing has turned into a "chill out" on certain stages and just ensure you stay in the peloton with the closest competitors and let others take easy stage wins even though they won't come close to an overall GC podium finish. The WC is usually a better race (loved the Sagan races); with TTs, CX, and track pursuit being more enjoyable because your cannot take it easy and no team to help in general. I also prefer the triathlon rules of no drafting which puts the onus upon the individual more than standard bike races