2018

Tour of Turkey: Stage 6: Bursa- Istanbul

October 13, 2018


The Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and an all-or-nothing decision forced at the climb at Selcuk. Although, all or nothing? The top 12 is seperated by only 10 seconds, and a tough city circuit is all that is needed to shake up the order completely!  Let's go! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Tour of Turkey, Stage 5: Selcuk - Manisa

October 12, 2018



The Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and an all-or-nothing decision forced at the climb at Selcuk. Although, all or nothing? The top 12 is seperated by only 10 seconds, with two stages to go!  Let's go! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Tour of Turkey, stage 4: the Queen Stage

October 11, 2018



The day is finally there to show that climbers have more jobs to do in Autumn than just the Italian classics: It's time for Queen Stage of the Tour of Turkey! The Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and an all-or-nothing decision forced at the climb at Selcuk. Can the up-and-coming pro-continental climbers take the battle to Diego Ulissi and Alexey Lutsenko? Let's go! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Tour of Turkey, Stage 3: Fethiye- Marmaris

October 10, 2018



As the cycling world is focussed on Italy, we turn our attention to the other side of the mediterranean: The Tour of Turkey! The Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and pro-contintal climbers taking the fight to a World Tour podium on the almost iconic climb at Selcuk. Today was another battle between the best sprinter versus the best train, and this time the sprinter won. How it happened?  Let's see! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Tour of Turkey, Stage 2: Alanya - Antalya

October 09, 2018


C@ Brian Hodes/VeloImages

While the admittedly fantastic autumn classics are drawing most of the attention of the cycling world, we've got time for one more (well, two actually) world tour stage race: The Tour of Turkey! The Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and pro-contintal climbers taking the fight to a World Tour podium on the almost iconic climb at Selcuk. Today we´ve had the first stage, which finished not quite according to script, which proved a great predictive succes for our first stage preview! Let´s get ready for stage two, another one for the sprinters.

Let's go! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Tour of Turkey, Stage 1: Konya - Konya

October 08, 2018



While the admittedly fantastic autumn classics are drawing most of the attention of the cycling world, we've got time for one more (well, two actually) world tour stage race: The Tour of Turkey! This week I've sat down with some recordings of last year's race and I'll admit, I really enjoyed it. The Tour of Turkey is not a race that tries to be the Dauphinée on the Anatolian peninsula, or the Binq Bank Tour of the eastern Mediterranean: the Tour of Turkey is unabashedly itself, and that means wide open highways, gradual climbs, chaotic sprints and pro-contintal climbers taking the fight to a World Tour podium on the almost iconic climb at Selcuk. Let's go! Or, as they say in Turkey: 

Başla!

2018

Espainiako Itzulia: Stage 6 Recap, Stage 7 Preview

August 30, 2018



Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

So, let me paint you a picture: we've got a stage with Omar Fraile and M.A. Lopez in the top 10 and a time gap of almost two minutes between the main GC contenders. Are you picturing it? Must be a really bumpy stage, right? Wrong! It's stage six of the Vuelta á Espagna, a grand tour which might lack the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!


Espainiako Itzulia: Stage 4 recap / Stage 5 preview

August 28, 2018



Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

It's stage four of the Vuelta á Espagna, a grand tour which might lack the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!


Espainiako Itzulia Stage 3 recap & stage 4 preview

August 28, 2018

Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

It's stage three of the Vuelta á Espagna, a grand tour which might lack the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!


2018

Espainiako Itzulia: stage 3

August 26, 2018



Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

It's stage three of the Vuelta á Espagna, a grand tour which might lack the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!


2018

Espainiako Itzulia: Stage 2

August 25, 2018



Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

It's stage two of the Vuelta á Espagna, a grand tour which might lack the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!


2018

Espainiako Itzulia: Stage 1, ITT

August 24, 2018

Kaixo, lagunak!
Welcome, friends!

It's time for the third triplet of grand tours, the final three week outing on the highest level of cycling: the Vuelta a Espagna. It might not have the history of the Tour de France nor the tifosi of the Giro d'Italia, but there's one thing the Queen of the Indian summer has over the others: the Basques. That's why Badger Baroudeur presents to you a daily stage preview with a special focus on the Cycling Carrots, regardless of which team they ride for. Let's get to it!

2018

Mathieu van der Poel's World Tour Home

August 12, 2018

© NOS

Did everyone enjoy the Europeans this week? Matteo Trentin, himself a former cyclocross rider, outsprinted the two biggest talents in cyclocross on a wet and slippery Glasgow course. In his wake, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel. Van Aert coloured part of the early season classics this year, obtaining wildcards and results with his pro-continental level team. His transformation to a road cyclist seems iminent, and the Belgian has a signed World Tour contract with Lotto-Jumbo. He was pipped on the line though by his arch-nemesis, Van der Poel. Initially letting road cycling be, the rider went on to collect the Dutch national jersey in cyclocross, mountainbike and road racing this year. Fuelled by his success on the road, Corendon-Circus is rumoured to apply for pro-continental status in order to stake a claim at wildcards in 2019. But why gamble on wild cards? If Mathieu van der Poel wants to ride the classics, what World Tour team would be a natural fit? A tongue-in-cheek top 10!

10. Movistar 

Pro: Mathieu van der Poel is pretty happy with his current bike, and Canyon seems stoked to have him as figurehead in the field and on the mountainbike. The only worldtour team currently sponsored by Canyon is Movistar, but this doesn't seem like a match made in heaven.
Con: the Spanish telephone company has no interest at all in the Dutch market, nor is the team itself particularly concerned with the classics. 

Likelyhood: 0/10

09. Team Sky 

Pro: Team Sky can built a climbing robot out of anyone, so why not out of this young talent? Reportedly the team has shown interest in Wout van Aert, so it appears they're willing to work their magic on a cyclocrosser. Remember what they've done with Egan Bernal, Michael Kwiatkowski or Edvald Boasson-Hagen. 
Con: Pinarello doesn't have much of a history in cyclocross or mountainbike. Also, remember what they've done to Edvald Boasson-Hagen?

Likelyhood: 0/10

08. Dimension Data 

Pro: Speaking of Edvald Boasson Hagen, what about Dimension Data? The South-African outfit is currently buying classics riders by the dozens, and the free-wheeling stagehunting style of the team might well suit the attack-prone Van der Poel. I'd imagine Van der Poel would also quite fancy the idea of riding for a higher purpose with the Qhubeka charity, and the teams homebase is ideal for participation in mountainbiking's most epic multiday race, the Cape Epic.
Con: We don't really know what bike the team will be riding in 2019, but the most persistent rumour is BMC. Although BMC produces decent mountainbikes, they haven't got a history in cyclocross.

Likelyhood: 1/10

07. (Lotto-)Jumbo 

Pro: Lotto-Jumbo is Mathieu's home-team, being the only Dutch World Tour formation. It seems obvious they would be interested in the current Dutch champion, and they've got the perfect combination of ambition in the classics with a lack of riders to achieve that ambition. They currently ride Bianchi Bikes, which are active -albeit on the fringes- of all disciplines of cycling.
Con: I don't think Mathieu is the type of rider that needs to be with a Dutch-speaking squad, and would quite easily find his way abroad. Lotto-Jumbo has just signed Van der Poel's arch-rival Wout van Aert, and I just don't see the two riders in the same team.

Likelyhood: 2/10

Could Sagan or Lampaert loom over Van der Poel's future?
(©  Telegraaf)

06. Quickstep or Bora Hansgrohe 

Pro: One of the most important factors in MvP's future has to be the bike, and in bikes there's just no getting around Specialized. They build about the best bikes on any terrain and any discipline, and it's not one of the most used bikes in the World Tour without reason. This season brings us to Quickstep and Bora, both teams with a healthy interest in the classics that will suit Mathieu's riding. Will he follow in Zdenek Stybar's footsteps?
Con: How would you like being the 17th best classics rider in your team? No? Okay then. At Quickstep, Mathieu would be way down the pecking order behind legends of the classic's season, which wouldn't suit the Dutch rider that much. At Bora, there will be fewer above him but Sagan's grip on the captaincy won't be any less. 

Likelyhood: 3/10

05. CCC or Sunweb 

Pro: This entry should really read "Giant". Giant have shown themselves a bike sponsor with a healthy interest in cyclocross, sponsoring Lars van der Haar, Van der Poel's main competitor at Dutch nationals, for years. On the road, the brand will be associated with either Sunweb or the new-ish CCC team. Both carry the advantage that they have experienced classic's riders to mentor the young Dutchman, but not enough to stifle his personal opportunities.
Con: None really, except for a bit of meh?

Likelyhood: 3/10


04. Mitchelton-Scott

Pro: With the dissapearance of Ewan and his whole train, the retirement of Mathew Hayman, and Luke Durbridge not being able to replicate his 2016 success, the squad seems a little light in the classic's department. A rider like Van der Poel would be a great addition for the team. Van der Poel seemed to get along quite well with the team's leader in the classics, Trentin, the Italian who outsprinted him to gold in Glasgow this weekend. Co-sponsor Scott is a big name in mountain biking, and when MvP took the Dutch national jersey last month, he took the tricot off the shoulders of a current Scott-Sram rider, Michiel van der Heijden.
Con: Although their jerseys match almost completely, there's very little organisational overlap between Mitchelton-Scott and Scott-Sram. Nino Schurter rode a couple of races for the Greenedge project in 2014 (Thanks @Jonowee!), but this is actually a disadvantage: with the king of XCO-mountainbike on the payroll, why would Scott want to sign some upstart challenger? For the road team, it's even more dire: with both the sprint core and several mountain domestiques leaving the team, management will have other priorities than the already secondary classic's squad.

Likelyhood: 3/10

Scott-Sram MTB team, including World Champion Schurter and former Dutch champion Van der Heijden
( © Tread Magazine)

03.  FDJ

Pro: Van der Poel is fluent in French, partly thanks to his French mother and grandfather, the famour Poulidor. Could Mathieu become a second Pou-Pou? Bike manufacturer LaPierre won't pose a problem, as they've been sighted in cyclocross before!
Con: Although Van der Poel has always been quick to dismiss Belgian or Dutch attempts to claim him as their own to bolster their chauvinism, the French outfit might be a bit too far out of left field even for this headstrong rider.

Likelyhood: 5/10

02. Trek Segafredo 

Pro:  Like CCC and Sunweb, Trek Segafredo is a team with experienced riders Mathieu can learn from, but without big names that will stifle his growth. Trek Bikes is one of the most all-round bike brands in the peloton, with a big finger in the pies of cyclocross and mountainbike. Trek is fond of the Dutch market, as signified by it's connection to Bauke Mollema.
Con: After an expectedly disappointing 2018, the team is determined to get a GC team for the 2019 season, and this shows in the young riders they´ve already signed.

Likelyhood: 5/10

01. Lotto-Soudal

Pro: A match made in heaven! With Greipel and the hard men of his era being replaced by Ewan and his train, the team could use some strong riders for the spring classics, and Mathieu van der Poel could be just the one. The team's bike sponsor, Ridley, is one of the biggest sponsors in cyclocross, so will be quite happy to sign one of the sport's biggest names. Besides, wouldn't it be the greatest of clapback if, after Wout van Aert signing for a Dutch team, the best Dutch cyclocrosser would sign for a Belgian squad?
Con: Well, just the one....

Likelyhood: 6/10 

Let's face it, Mathieu van der Poel has just signed an extra contract with Corendon-Circus, and he really enjoys doing his own thing in all three disciplines. His current squad gives him freedom in a way a World Tour team would never be able to. Despite his comparative success on the road versus the mountain bike, we won't see Mathieu focus fully on the road at least until after the 2020 Olympics. But if he did..... Wouldn't that be exciting?

© Cyclocross.com

2018

In Pictures: Amstel Gold Race 2018

April 26, 2018



I shared the pictures of the Amstel Gold Race Ladies 2018 with you earlier this week, it's now time to share my gallery of the men's race. Most of these pictures were taken at the start and finish, at Cauberg or at the Geulhemmerberg, the final climb of the race where the race exploded into chaos and pre-race favourites were dropped. Enjoy!

2018

In pictures: Amstel Gold Race Ladies 2018

April 24, 2018



A week and a bit ago, I was at the start of the Amstel Gold Race Ladies in Maastricht, before quickly moving on to the decisive Cauberg to take pictures of the day's action as it unfolded, and what an action it was! Halfway through the race, a strong group broke away. A crumbling peloton with the pre-race favourites was unable to catch up despite the scorching pace, and Chantal Blaak managed to win the race before Lucinda Brand, Amanda Spratt and Alexis Ryan. 

Amstel Gold Race Ladies 2018

April 15, 2018


One of the biggest classics that is dwarfed by being smack in the middle of the three northern monuments, the Amstel Gold Race arrives on our doorstep this weekend. Starting from the historical town of Maastricht -which is almost more Walloon in character than Dutch- the race snakes through the hills of southern Limburg, making the Amstel the opening battle in the Ardennes Classics. And, after a few experimental editions in the early 2000s, last year finally saw the introduction of Women's World Tour edition of the ride.


2018

Oro y Paz: a race in two halves

February 06, 2018


A new race graces the calendar, and this might well be a very special one: the UCI 2.1 Colombia Oro y Paz, the Gold and Peace race of Colombia. Initially, the announcement of this race was received with some sniggering comments about the somewhat lacklustre organisation of the existing Vuelta a Colombia, but these last weeks the derision has slowly made way for a modest but steady amount of hype, and rightfully so: the inaugural Oro y Paz can boast an impressive line-up and a beautiful route. It's a route split evenly in half to satisfy Colombia's two most impressive export products: three stages for the sprinters, three for the climbers. Let's take a closer look.

2018

Women's Herald Sun Tour (Preview)

January 28, 2018



Starting next Wednesday, the women's peloton will have their go at a short rematch of the recently finished Tour Down Under: it's time for the inaugurate Women's Herald Sun Tour. Officially a stage race, but it's a very compact one at that: on Wednesday, the riders will tackle a tough, hilly road race, and on Thursday they will finish up with a mega-short individual time trial. The fastest rider on both of these will be crowned the overall winner of the Women's Herald Sun Tour.

2018

Santos Women's Tour Down Under

January 10, 2018


It's January, we've waited long enough: it's time for the season's start! Now, the exact start of the season is a source of disagreement for cycling fans, but for me it can't start early enough, and that means: the Australian Summer. Our first stop is the Santos Women's Tour Down Under. Unlike the men's equivalent, this race isn't a World Tour race. Nevertheless, it draws a strong crowd of riders who are all eager to prove themselves in the first big race of the year.

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