Tirreno-Adriatico

Why Have So Many Stars Gone to Tirreno-Adriatico?

Wednesday, 11 March 2015Tuesday, 10 March 2015

It had all been looking so good for Tirreno-Adriatico. The “fantastic four” of Alberto Contador, Chris Froome, Vincenzo Nibali and Nairo Quintana were supposed to clash for the first time together in a stage race only for Froome to fall ill, while we were promised a sprint royale between Marcel Kittel and Mark Cavendish but the German’s got a virus. Still even in the absence of Froome and Kittel the Italian stage race has a stellar startlist that trumps Paris-Nice by a variety of metrics, whether sheer anticipation or the cold logic of UCI points. Why?

Tirreno-Adriatico Preview

Friday, 14 March 2014Wednesday, 12 March 2014

It’s mild in Italy and France right now and the two clashing stages races each share dreamy labels that conjur up the summer, with la course au soleil in France and now la corsa dei due mari, the race of the two seas, hence the giant Neptune trident as the trophy.

Starting today this race offers an exciting week with some wild stage finishes. As well as the immediate action it should offer some instructive moments as we see some big name riders clash. A lot of the focus is on the uphill finishes and who will win overall but the sprints will see Mark Cavendish, Marcel Kittel and André Greipel go elbow to elbow too.

Was The Sant’ Elpidio Climb Too Hard?

Tuesday, 12 March 2013Tuesday, 12 March 2013

The Tirreno-Adriatico race concludes today with a time trial and there will be some sore legs from the previous day’s racing. Stage 6 included a climb that with a modest average that hid some sections at 27%. This had riders stalling with many having to walk up and some got a push. A sizeable number of riders quit and after a 130km solo effort BMC Racing’s Taylor Phinney crossed the line but was eliminated after missing the time cut.

It created a post-stage polemic with many riders taking to the airwaves, Twitter or their blogs to say the stage was too much. Race director Michele Acquarone was moved to say sorry. Was the climb too much?

Tirreno-Adriatico: Stage 7 Preview

Monday, 11 March 2013

For the fourth day in a row, we will have a new rider in the blue leader’s jersey. Vincenzo Nibali attacked exactly where everybody expected him to do so, but still no one – except for Purito and Sagan – could keep up with him. Nibali now leads overall with 34 seconds down to Chris Froome and I will be very surprised if he doesn’t win Tirreno-Adriatico for the second time in a row.

This time trial is the same as last year and I doubt even Chris Froome can take back more than half a minute on Vincenzo Nibali in just 9.2 km. Nibali has been working very hard on improving his time trial skills and with a new bike and new skinsuit he could even end up surprising quite a few on this stage.

Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 5 Preview

Sunday, 10 March 2013Saturday, 9 March 2013

Tirreno Adriatico Chieti climb

Team Sky are in a league of their own. Especially with a strong head wind on the climbs. They seem unbeatable this year on mountain top finishes, so if you want to get them, you need a powerful kick and some steep percentages. Luckily for the spectators, that is exactly what we will see on this stage. The steep finish in Chieti has quickly turned into a classic Tirreno finish and it will be difficult for Team Sky to control the pack with gradients up to 19%.

Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 4 Preview

Friday, 8 March 2013

Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 4

Peter Sagan won stage 3 as predicted and just like the last time Sagan won in Tirreno, the following stage will end on Prati di Tivo. Last year Peter Sagan’s teammate Vincenzo Nibali soloed away on the final kilometers, but I seriously doubt Nibali will be able to repeat that victory this year.

Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 3 Preview

Thursday, 7 March 2013

Mark Cavendish complained about his teammates after the second stage. He had the kick, but no help. Andre Greipel had a brilliant team, but didn’t have the legs despite being in a perfect position in the final. The big showdown between Cavendish and Greipel never came and I’m not sure we will see it on this stage either.

Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 2 Preview

Wednesday, 6 March 2013

Omega Pharma Quickstep got the best possible start when they won the opening team time trial and placed Mark Cavendish in the blue leader’s jersey. Now it’s time for the season’s first showdown between Cavendish and Andre Greipel.