Cycling: The first races have been completed. Where do tour specialists Quintana, Contador, Froome, Nibali and Co. stand? Velomotion analyzes the start of the season for the stars.
The Giro d'Italia starts in five and a half weeks, and the Tour de France begins in less than 100 days. The favorites like Nairo Quintana (Movistar), Alberto Contador (Tinkoff), Chris Froome (Sky) as well as Vincenzo Nibali and Fabio Aru (both Astana) have been in preparation for a long time. Their paths have crossed several times. Who has the best early form, who stumbles during preparation?
The good news first: according to the current status, cycling fans can look forward to an exciting tour summer. Many racing drivers from the narrower and wider circle of favorites for the three-week tours have already proven with their first victories of the season that they are to be reckoned with.
Currently, Colombian Nairo Quintana is making the best impression . Last year's Tour de France runner-up began his season at the end of January with a more than solid performance at the Tour de San Luis in Argentina. There, he helped his younger brother Dayer to his first stage race victory and finished third himself. After a training period in Colombia, Quintana achieved fourth place in the road race at the national championships. He then made a spectacular debut in Europe in March: At the Volta a Catalunya, part of the World Tour, Quintana prevailed against a strong peloton and celebrated his first victory of 2016 after seven exciting stages. Among others, he distanced renowned stage racers such as Alberto Contador, Chris Froome, Fabio Aru, Richie Porte (BMC), and Romain Bardet (AG2R). This victory is likely to boost Quintana's confidence and further fuel his "sueño amarillo," his dream of wearing the yellow jersey. The strong performance of Quintana's Movistar team also sent a message to the competition.
Chris Froome, on the other hand, failed to impress in his first European race. While he finished eighth in the Volta a Catalunya, he couldn't keep pace on the decisive two mountain stages. His Team Sky had worked hard, particularly on the third stage to La Molina, paving the way for an attack from their captain. But when it mattered most, it was Quintana, Contador, and Porte, as well as Daniel Martin (etixx-Quick Step), Tejay van Garderen (BMC), and Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha), who demonstrated their strength, while Froome was dropped. It wasn't a dramatic result, especially since Froome had already celebrated his first victory of the season at the Herald Sun Tour in Australia and showed fighting spirit with attacks on the final day of the Volta a Catalunya. However, in their head-to-head encounters, the first lap went to the competition. It will be interesting to see what conclusions last year's Tour de France winner draws from this experience.
Alberto Contador, meanwhile, is showing good form . He secured his first victory of the season in February at a mountain finish in the Volta ao Algarve, which he also finished third overall. At Paris-Nice and the Volta a Catalunya, he was narrowly beaten, finishing second by just a few seconds. Contador was a force to be reckoned with, dominating the races with his aggressive riding style and underlining his improving form with his top finishes. The Madrid native – as was clear – is highly motivated and wants to make a strong statement in what is likely his final season.
While the three riders mentioned so far have declared the Tour de France their season goal, Vincenzo Nibali is aiming for victory at the Giro d'Italia. He certainly seems to be on track: In February, he won the queen stage and the overall classification of the Tour of Oman, finished a respectable 15th in the challenging one-day race Strade Bianche, and showed his attacking intent at Milan-San Remo. At the Tirreno Adriatico stage race, he finished sixth overall and bitterly complained that the queen stage was canceled due to unpredictable weather. Nibali's form is therefore trending upwards, as is his confidence. He will be a force to be reckoned with at the Giro d'Italia.
Teammate Fabio Aru – last year's Giro d'Italia runner-up and Vuelta a España winner – seems to be struggling to find his form. He was nowhere to be seen in the decisive phases of the mountain stages at the Volta ao Catalunya, only making his presence felt as a breakaway rider on the final stage in Barcelona. However, Aru, who is making his Tour de France debut this year as Astana's team captain and is expected to be supported by Nibali, shouldn't be written off. While he is the only one of the top stage race riders not yet to win a stage in 2016, he has already shown promise, for example, finishing second on stage behind Contador at the Volta ao Algarve (9th overall) and fourth on the tough Xorret del Catí finish at the Vuelta a Valencia (6th overall). Furthermore, things weren't entirely smooth for Aru last year either, leading up to the Giro d'Italia. But when it came down to it, the form was there.
Besides the stars who have dominated the Grand Tours in recent years, the second tier is also showing promising early-season form. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), aiming for the Giro d'Italia, has already achieved some strong results, winning a stage and the overall classification of the Ruta del Sol. This past weekend, Thibaut Pinot (FdJ) won the Criterium International, securing two stage victories (in the time trial and a mountain stage). Romain Bardet (AG2R) finished in the top ten overall at the Tour of Oman, Paris-Nice, and the Volta ao Catalunya. Froome's teammate, Geraint Thomas (Sky), has won two stage races this year – the Vuelta a Algarve and Paris-Nice – and could even become a second ace up the sleeve for Sky team principal Sir David Brailsford as they head towards the Tour de France.
From a German perspective, it's encouraging that Dominik Nerz and Emanuel Buchmann (Bora Argon 18) are also already in good form. Nerz finished seventh in both the queen stage and the overall classification at the Criterium International, while German champion Buchmann came in thirteenth. Similar performances at the Tour de France would be desirable; Bora Argon 18 has already secured its invitation to the Grande Boucle.
Even if a lot can still happen before the start of the big tours: The early form of many protagonists means that one or the other cycling spectacle can be expected.