Cycling’s sleeping giant Nairo Quintana set to awaken at Tour de France
BEWARE the sleeping giant — even if he is only 58kg and 167cm tall. Many pundits in professional cycling are predicting a new Tour de France champion this year in Nairo Quintana, reports Reece Homfray.
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BEWARE the sleeping giant — even if he is only 58kg and 167cm tall.
Many pundits in professional cycling are predicting a new Tour de France champion this year and if he wins Nairo Quintana will become the first Colombian to do so.
After twice finishing runner up — both times to Chris Froome in 2013 and 2015 — Quintana’s time may be about to arrive.
In the past five years the Tour de France has had its first British and Australian winner and the growing emergence of Colombian climbers in the WorldTour mean they look set to follow suit.
While a Quintana victory would not surprise anyone this year, particularly given the route favours a pure climber, he goes into the race as somewhat of a sleeping giant because his form is largely unknown.
Unlike the other leading contenders Froome, Alberto Contador, Richie Porte and Tejay van Garderen, Quintana skipped the Tour’s traditional lead-up races the Tour de Suisse and Criterium du Dauphine.
Instead he has opted for a much more low-key build up which has included just five race days from the past 62 on the calendar.
Quintana’s last race before the Tour was the Route du Sud in the Pyrenees from June 16-19, which he won overall along with the individual time trial.
In May he also won the Tour of Romandie which in the past has been a solid form guide for the Tour de France.
In three of the past five years the winner of Romandie went on to win the Tour — Cadel Evans, Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome.
“You ask me about the myth about winning Romandie and going on to win the Tour — I hope that legend is true so we can make the ‘yellow dream’ become real,” Quintana said at the time.
“The Romandie win gives us confidence and calmness, and the whole group is strong, so no matter who we bring to the Tour, we’ll be well protected.”
Unlike last year when his Movistar team had co-leaders, Quintana will this time have the full support of teammate Alejandro Valverde who targeted the Giro d’Italia in May instead.
The 26-year-old already has one Grand Tour to his name, the 2014 Giro d’Italia, and could very well have won last year's Tour de France had he made his move a bit sooner.
He put 30 seconds into Froome on Stage 19 and another 1min 38secs into him on Stage 20 when Froome had a bad day and had to be towed up Alpe d’Huez by teammate Richie Porte.
It was all in the timing so don’t be surprised if Quintana attacks earlier in the final week of this year’s race.
There was only one individual time trial last year — the opening stage — and Quintana was 57th and Froome 39th but it had no bearing on the general classification and only three seconds separated their squads in the team time trial.
This year’s Tour includes two individual time trials totalling 54km which Quintana must negotiate so not to concede too much time to Froome who is a time trial weapon.
As for Australia’s great hope in Porte, he leads BMC with van Garderen in a two-pronged attack they hope will deliver at least one of them to the podium and possibly the top step.
“To know that Tejay and I will be supported by such a strong group of guys is really motivating,” Porte said.
“I’ve already raced with these seven riders a lot this season and I’m confident we are going into the Tour de France in a really good position.
“My form is good, my legs are good and after another week of fine-tuning, I’m definitely ready to race. It’s an exciting time.”
Australia’s own team, Orica-BikeExchange, won’t have a contender for the yellow jersey with Colombian climber Esteban Chaves riding the Giro d’Italia, where he was second in May, and Vuelta a Espana in August, instead.
But they will be targeting stage wins with the likes of Simon Gerrans, Michael Matthews and Adam Yates with aggressive racing.
“Our objective is to target stage wins and we will be approaching every day like it’s a Classic,” OBE director Matt White said.
“We have a robust, versatile roster that can cope with the big effort required to compete and win in the Tour de France.”
FIVE BURNING QUESTIONS
1. Can Richie Porte finish on the podium?
Richie Porte can climb and time trial with the best in the business and we’ve seen that at the Tour de France more than once. But can he package it together for three weeks?
For the first time he heads to the Tour as a team leader — albeit as dual leader along with American Tejay van Garderen.
Porte’s only previous crack at GC in a Grand Tour was in last year’s Giro d’Italia with Sky where he suffered a series of unfortunate incidents including a crash and time penalty for the wheel-swap with Simon Clarke.
He knows what it takes to win the Tour, having been a key part of Chris Froome’s victories (2013 and 2015) and Bradley Wiggins (2012) but having left their shadow he is now the man.
More pressure, more expectation and more responsibility. But that’s where BMC’s dual leadership could prove a masterstroke.
Neither Porte or van Garderen are pre-race favourites but the team has two cards to play and both are more than capable of standing on the podium in three weeks’ time.
2. Can Orica-BikeExchange function properly with Simon Gerrans and Michael Matthews on the same team?
It’s no secret these two aren’t the best of friends, but can they function together as teammates in the biggest race of the year?
Team director Matt White says yes and insists there will be no confusion as to race day tactics and who is to do what.
Gerrans and Matthews are among the classiest bike riders in the world but they are also very similar meaning they are often targeting similar results.
With OBE again targeting individual stage wins instead of the yellow jersey White will need to give both riders their opportunities.
Mathews is expected to leave the team next year and a stage win at the Tour will help him drive up his price.
Gerrans is quite simply a winner who when he takes aim at something, he usually delivers.
3. Has France’s time arrived?
A Frenchman has not won the Tour de France since Bernard Hinault in 1985 but finally after years of development there are at least three Frenchman who could push for the podium this month.
Thibaut Pinot, who rides for FDJ, is the leading candidate after he finished third overall behind Vincenzo Nibali in 2014.
At 26, Pinot is entering his best years and his formline this season includes fifth at Tirreno-Adriatico, fourth at Pais Vasco and second at Tour de Romandie.
Another contender is Romain Bardet who rides for AG2R La Mondiale. The 25-year-old has gone top-10 at Paris-Nice, Catalunya, Giro del Trentino and Criterium du Dauphine this season.
At last year’s Tour de France, Bardet won Stage 18 to St Jean-de-Maurienne which confirmed his Grand Tour credentials.
The man he beat that day is another Frenchman capable of podiuming this year — Pierre Rolland of Cannondale.
Rolland hasn’t done anything outstanding this season but will be expecting a big Tour. He’s won stages in both 2011 and 2012 and at 29 has experience on his side.
4. Who is the world’s best sprinter?
What was once so clear cut is no longer easy to predict particularly given Mark Cavendish’s dual focus on the Rio Olympics where he will race on the track. With 26 individual stage victories Cavendish is undoubtedly the greatest sprinter of his generation but in 2016 is he still the fastest?
This year Cav’s won in Qatar, Croatia and California. Kittel has won at Dubai, Volta Algarve, De Panne, Scheldeprijs, Romandie — and took two stages at the Giro d’Italia.
Greipel has won in Spain, Turkey, Luxembourg and took three stages of the Giro.
This month we get to see them all go head-to-head. Throw in Peter Sagan and it should explode.
5. Has Alberto Contador still got it?
This was supposed to be Contador’s final year in the professional peloton and his Tour de France swansong but he now looks certain to continue in 2017. The great unknown is at the age of 33 does he have another Grand Tour victory left in him?
Certainly he will have the support of his Tinkoff team, which will also ride for Peter Sagan on the flat, but Contador will be without his loyal lieutenant, Australian Michael Rogers, who has retired.
The Spaniard has been solid this year — second at Paris-Nice and Catalunya, won Pais Vasco and tried desperately to attack the leaders at the Dauphine last month and eventually finished fifth.
But having pulled out of the Spanish national championships due to illness last weekend there is a slight question mark whether he will be at his best from tonight.
If he is, Contador is definitely in the hunt for a third yellow jersey. But has he got the punch and turn of speed when Froome and Quintana launch their vicious attacks that everyone knows are coming but not everyone is able to respond to.
reece.homfray@news.com.au
Originally published as Cycling’s sleeping giant Nairo Quintana set to awaken at Tour de France
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