T
Tony
Guest
If Gilberto Simoni can be taken at his word and actually attacks Armstrong on the mountain stages, I
can see a few possible scenarios playing out.
The first- Simoni sticks in some big attacks on the high profile mountain stages that Armstrong's
ego won't let him ignore and the continued efforts to prove himself against Simoni fatigue him,
while Ullrich does the climbs at his own pace, knowing he can't match all the accelerations, but
keeping time losses and time in the red zone to a minimum. One day, all this catches with Armstrong
and Ullrich is still feeling within his limits and puts the hurt on Armstrong
The second- Simoni's swashbuckling climbing style drags Armstrong up a notch and the two have some
classic duels, leaving Jan to fend for himself as the best of the others, losing time each day to
Armstrong, but solidifying his 2nd place. I think Simoni quits after he bags some stage wins.
The third- Depending on where he is in the GC, Armstrong lets Simoni have his days in the mountains,
containing any big time losses and just grins and bears all the ensuing Simoni and press comments
about "world's greatest climber" with an eye towards the bigger prize.
I wonder which way it will turn out? And by the way, in my opinion, you can forget about any Spanish
coalition. Every year we hear the same predictions and see the same results- defensive riding. My
guess is that the last thing the Spanish teams will want is for a rival Spanish team to profit from
their work.
can see a few possible scenarios playing out.
The first- Simoni sticks in some big attacks on the high profile mountain stages that Armstrong's
ego won't let him ignore and the continued efforts to prove himself against Simoni fatigue him,
while Ullrich does the climbs at his own pace, knowing he can't match all the accelerations, but
keeping time losses and time in the red zone to a minimum. One day, all this catches with Armstrong
and Ullrich is still feeling within his limits and puts the hurt on Armstrong
The second- Simoni's swashbuckling climbing style drags Armstrong up a notch and the two have some
classic duels, leaving Jan to fend for himself as the best of the others, losing time each day to
Armstrong, but solidifying his 2nd place. I think Simoni quits after he bags some stage wins.
The third- Depending on where he is in the GC, Armstrong lets Simoni have his days in the mountains,
containing any big time losses and just grins and bears all the ensuing Simoni and press comments
about "world's greatest climber" with an eye towards the bigger prize.
I wonder which way it will turn out? And by the way, in my opinion, you can forget about any Spanish
coalition. Every year we hear the same predictions and see the same results- defensive riding. My
guess is that the last thing the Spanish teams will want is for a rival Spanish team to profit from
their work.