Now that this tour is over, what about next year?

spockroyaltea

Ullrich still looks pretty powerful, it looks like Vino will be leading a team of his own next year, and Basso keeps getting faster. Not to mention Valverde, Popovych, Landis, Leipheimer, Evans and Mancebo.
There are a lot of strong riders who have been waiting for Armstrong to go back to texas, who will take the yellow next year?

oh and another quick question: if Ullrich does indeed finally win again next year, will that be the longest gap between tour wins for a rider in tour history? it would be 9 years...

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mareblu

Next year's favorite will be Ivan Basso

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nonameboy

i think its going to be between ullrich and basso.

Dead Star

Philippe Gilbert!!!

(or Valverde/Basso/Ullrich/Dopecapie).

limerickman

Gino Bartali won the 1938 TDF and the 1948 TDF : I think that is the biggest gap between wins.



In thinking about the 2006 TDF, I will watch it with renewed interest.
it will be interesting to see if the overall times and speeds decrease.

In respect of who will do what : it's a bit early to know.

spockroyaltea

agreed, the only helpful speculation will come next spring.
that being said, i think i'll be pulling for Ullrich next year. Vino and Basso are both great riders, but it seems that Vino is too wild to lead a tour and Basso too tame to take the lead. Ullrich has shown year after year that he can lead when he needs to and attack when the moment is right. If Ullrich doesn't gain a ton of weight in the winter or crash through more windows, i can't see anyone beating him...but i guess this we'll get a better idea of how people are riding next spring.

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tinks

It'll depend on the course I think. Two time trials and it's Jan's to lose. A lot of steep climbs and mountain top finishes, it's Basso's to lose.

We'll see.

dasnootz

Don't be suprised if Vino turns some heads, or Popo for that matter. Without knowing the course, I'd put my money on Basso, and hoping for Ulrich to be another bridesmaid.

JohnO

That's what I was thinking - if Vino lands on a team that will actually back him up. Otherwise, it looks like a battle royal between Jan and Ivan, with the course selection playing a major factor. And let's not completely count the 'other' US riders out. Levi did quite well, Floyd wasn't so bad, neither was Bobby, and the unquotable Dave Z may take a stage or two, if he can stay on the bike.

rejobako

Maybe, but I agree with what Lance bluntly stated in an interview aired yesterday on CBS: he doesn't see an American heir-apparent on the horizon that is a serious challenger as a TdF GC winner. I tend to agree. Levi, Floyd, and the rest are all very good riders, but I don't see any of them as having that "something extra" that's needed to win it all. Of course, my opinion is subject to change as we see the results from other races over the course of the next year, but right now I think you'd have to put Basso and Ullrich down as the big favorites, in that order. (Basso's rapid improvement in the TT discipline shows me that he has the ability and work-ethic to maximize his talent, and he should be even stronger next year with more experience and especially if he skips the Giro. The big question I have is, how well will he bear the burden of being "the marked man"?

My heart will be with Jan, but as a betting man, I'd go with Basso. Third place -- Vino is the obvious choice, but I'll go out on a limb with Valverde, perhaps, maybe even Popo.

gntlmn

The pundits said that Ullrich was beginning a new domination in the Tour with his first win in 1997. They said it was just like Indurain all over again. As I've seen him surging stronger during the last half of every Tour he's in, I'd say they were right (almost). He probably has the physical tools to do it. He doesn't have the psychological tools though. Otherwise, he'd show up in better shape at the start of the Tour. That's the big obstacle. He knows he's been like this every year, and he's made no change in it. Can he change next year? Well, maybe he can, but I doubt that he will.

Basso improved his time relative to Armstrong this year by more than a minute. I think he'll win next year, and maybe even the next. Then it will be a new longer term champion--perhaps Popovych, maybe Valverde, maybe Cunego.

rejobako

LOL! Very well-played retort. Bonus points for that one, although you should know by now that IVs are hopelessly passe. You know that nervous twitch Armstrong has on timetrials, the one where he looks like he's pulling his cycling shorts tighter to his thigh? There's a subcutaneous syringe implanted there, and he's just upping the dosage when he comes in a few seconds late on a time check.

No, really, it's true.

Mtventoux

Flyer....You are an A-hole!!! Why don't you follow another sport, if you are so dam.n cynical about this one? I am so sick of your drivel!

Where is the button to ignore this poster permenantly????