Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Basque Breakthrough and a Bigger Bust
Sammy Sanchez ended Euskadi’s dubious distinction as the only ProTour team without a win this season in dramatic fashion. Sanchex bridged up to the leaders on the final climb, and attacked with panache on the descent, holding off the Valverde-led pack for the stage honors and the overall lead. In front of the home crowd at “their” race, it provided the long-delayed kick-off to Euskadi’s campaign that they desperately needed.
Although the day belonged to Euskadi, Alejandro Valverde had to be happy as well with his ride – similar to the Basque team, Valverde’s slow early season had raised some concern about his future, but he now seems set to confirm the promise shown last July. Indeed, the Basque country Tour is serving as a re-introduction to the men who will be looking to stamp their authority on Le Tour: in addition to Valverde, Alberto Contador, Cadel Evans, Miguel Martin Perdiguero represent the cream of the young crop of riders, while the long-tooth crowd is represented by Michael Boogerd, Davide Rebellin, and Aitor Osa at the top of the overall standings.
In stark contrast stands the man who would be (once again) king: Jan Ullrich. With the latest setback because of a knee flare-up, the Tour of Romandie is contemplated as the Kaiser’s introduction to competitive racing in 2006. Although Jan has shown in the past remarkable form with far less than ideal preparations for the Tour, this is freakin’ ridiculous. Riders like Thomas Dekker, Iban Mayo, and Danilo DiLuca – who each lost significant time in today’s stage – can still all be reasonably said to not only have more advanced preparations for any possible assault on the Tour, but Jan’s incredible natural talent notwithstanding, ALL must be considered greater favorites than the German at this point. All these riders will assemble more racing miles – at a competitive level, no less – in the Basque Tour, than Jan is likely to complete in total before the Tour.
Certainly Jan’s position as the “number one favorite” was always something as a default position. But increasingly, his chances of ending up in Paris on top of the podium are looking to be about the same as Hincapie’s...
Although the day belonged to Euskadi, Alejandro Valverde had to be happy as well with his ride – similar to the Basque team, Valverde’s slow early season had raised some concern about his future, but he now seems set to confirm the promise shown last July. Indeed, the Basque country Tour is serving as a re-introduction to the men who will be looking to stamp their authority on Le Tour: in addition to Valverde, Alberto Contador, Cadel Evans, Miguel Martin Perdiguero represent the cream of the young crop of riders, while the long-tooth crowd is represented by Michael Boogerd, Davide Rebellin, and Aitor Osa at the top of the overall standings.
In stark contrast stands the man who would be (once again) king: Jan Ullrich. With the latest setback because of a knee flare-up, the Tour of Romandie is contemplated as the Kaiser’s introduction to competitive racing in 2006. Although Jan has shown in the past remarkable form with far less than ideal preparations for the Tour, this is freakin’ ridiculous. Riders like Thomas Dekker, Iban Mayo, and Danilo DiLuca – who each lost significant time in today’s stage – can still all be reasonably said to not only have more advanced preparations for any possible assault on the Tour, but Jan’s incredible natural talent notwithstanding, ALL must be considered greater favorites than the German at this point. All these riders will assemble more racing miles – at a competitive level, no less – in the Basque Tour, than Jan is likely to complete in total before the Tour.
Certainly Jan’s position as the “number one favorite” was always something as a default position. But increasingly, his chances of ending up in Paris on top of the podium are looking to be about the same as Hincapie’s...
