5 Quick Elements: Trek Segafredo

And right here’s the place I attempt to discover thrilling issues to speak about relating to unexciting groups! Properly, groups that haven’t been all that thrilling of late anyway. Perhaps 2023 might be a bit extra memorable for Trek-Segafredo, the marginally Italian, even much less American, squad that traces its timeline again to the Leopard days simply over a decade in the past. That was a star-studded period for the group and so they gained monuments and grand excursions alike, and as just lately as 2021 that they had Jasper Stuyven’s MSR win to rejoice and spent the earlier 12 months (2020, blerg) defending the rainbow jersey. However 2022 was a licensed dud. And they’re just a few years out from having the likes of Porte and Nibali giving them a reputable contender in a grand tour. The group has gotten fairly younger recently, and they will have to see some outcomes earlier than too lengthy.

Anyway… stick round for the equipment evaluations!

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1. Mad About Mads?

When do you determine to name a man a celebrity? That’s a query for Mads Pedersen, who took over the Vuelta a España factors chase by simply bulldozing the competitors, and appeared primed for extra, solely to finish his season earlier than chasing a world title the place he would have been a favourite. If that seems like a criticism, it had been a really lengthy season — he completed the Tour de France too — and a visit to Australia wouldn’t have been nothing. All for a shot at a jersey he’d spent a 12 months in already… I’m positive it was the best choice for him or he wouldn’t have made it.

Aside from a world title in 2019, Pedersen has wins in Gent-Wevelgem, Tour and Vuelta phases, KBK, a close to miss in Flanders, and excessive quantity manufacturing for a not-so-pure sprinter, 27 victories to his skilled identify. So is he a celebrity? I’m going with no, not but, however it is a massive 12 months for the Dane. He’s firmly in his prime (27) so it’s not like now or by no means, however he has beforehand proven that he’s a possible power within the Cobbled Classics and coming off a robust efficiency final 12 months, it looks as if this might be a golden alternative for him to burnish his resume in a giant approach.

2. Will any of the children develop up?

In numerous sports activities, having an excellent younger roster tends to generate extra smoke than fireplace. Dreaming on the potential of the following nice younger rider is a trademark of the game now greater than ever, however that’s our downside. Trek’s job is to truly exit and win. And younger rosters have a monitor report of not panning out immediately. Till they’re one thing extra, these youngsters are lottery tickets.

Trek have a LOT of lottery tickets, and if we’ve got discovered something about lotteries, it’s that for those who purchase sufficient tickets you’re positive to win! That’s excellent news for Trek!

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Mattias Skjelmose Jensen is an efficient wager to attain factors in stage races, because of his time trialling, and he flashed some punchy goodness that would flip into classics outcomes fairly quickly whereas he builds towards grand tour stuff. Antonio Tiberi and Filippo Baroncini have some one-day expertise. Quinn Simmons is America’s hottest cobbles expertise, and is speaking up his motivations for the approaching season, his fourth, although his twenty second birthday is just a few months off. Natnael Tesfatsion comes aboard this 12 months so as to add one other climber. Even Thibau Nys is right here, able to see if his expertise interprets massive time on the street.

That’s a listing of names and notes about how proficient they’re. Each winter we make these lists after which wait to see if the precise people referenced right here can remodel their younger careers. I do like Trek taking a number of possibilities right here, a number of of them might properly lead them into their subsequent iteration. However there aren’t any ensures.

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3. Is all of it simply stage wins on the grand excursions? Like, ceaselessly?

Contemplating the group was based to provide the Schleck brothers a Riis-free pathway to glory, Trek’s lack of grand tour GC avenues is fairly conspicuous. I don’t blame them for parting methods with Vincenzo Nibali or Richie Porte after they did — Trek don’t have the form of funds the place they will pay for previous efficiency. However that leaves them with Bauke Mollema and Giulio Ciccone someplace within the neighborhood of the highest 25 on GC. In different phrases, nowhere.

Skjelmose Jensen most likely represents their greatest hope at turning issues round. Tesfatsion is likely to be extra of a pure climber than an actual GC menace, relying on whether or not his ITT can develop. I don’t know if there’s anybody else who matches that invoice, however between these two possibly they get one thing going this 12 months? If not, properly, Pedersen within the maillot vert isn’t the worst factor.

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4. Which Jasper Stuyven can we anticipate?

Good query. I’m attempting to decipher some correlation between his high scoring years and one or different program or peak. He’s topped 1000 factors 5 occasions since 2017, coming off a pair down years, and with comparatively quiet campaigns in 2020 and 2022. He’s run fairly related applications yearly, together with going to the Tour, which hasn’t prevented him from having actually sturdy fall campaigns. So which years inform us what to imagine? When he begins sturdy or finishes massive?

The reply is generally that he simply is who he’s, and that’s a man extra doubtless than to not crack the 1000-point barrier once more. Since actually setting in at Trek his solely actual down years had been in 2020, which was clearly a large number, and 2022, when he obtained in poor health round Milano-Sanremo, a nasty time for a cobbles man to must cease what he’s doing and get better. Stuyven turns 32 in April, and there’s been sufficient reporting about how shut he and Pedersen are as teammates. Add in Toms Skuujins, Simmons, and Edward Theuns, and you’ve got a stable cobbles squad. I don’t assume it’s loopy to imagine in these guys, if their preparation goes properly. Sure, the Van Aert-van der Poel stranglehold might be there, as will Pogacar, however a robust group nonetheless has a task to play, and after the 2 massive stars, this is likely to be the following strongest group. There is no such thing as a Fast Step juggernaut in the intervening time to worry. Step up, lads.

5. Equipment Rating Time!

OK, we’ve got 12 years of entries and a common theme that (post-Leopard) includes pink, white and black. Over that point they’ve rearranged the colours nearly each doable approach, however the outcomes don’t ever really feel all that totally different.

2023: Is {that a} design factor???

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Their latest entry is definitely their first to make use of one thing in addition to giant stable sq. fields of colour. It’s like they’ve found the idea of aptitude. Simply now!

2022: White sufficient for ya?

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Like I stated, they’ve tried all of the combos. This was the 12 months they gave up on emphasizing pink and black.

2021: Black Sleeves

Picture by Stuart Franklin/Getty Photos

Is that this their “traditional” look? I form of consider it that approach. Maybe as a result of it was their largest classics marketing campaign, the place Jasper gained the Omloop and Mads Gent-Wevelgem.

2019: Not fairly all pink

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In all probability their most placing effort earlier than this 12 months. Later in 2019 they went to their first almost-all-white, which is principally the identical as 2022.

2018: What pink is that anyway?

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It’s a tad … vibrant.

2017: Purple shoulders, vertical stripes

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The Cancellara years featured some vertical striping. I assume that was an early try at aptitude? This wasn’t my least favourite.

2016: White shoulders, vertical stripes

Picture credit score ought to learn DAVID STOCKMAN/AFP through Getty Photos

This was my least favourite.

2014: Trek Black-tory Racing

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Seems like each group has gone all black in some unspecified time in the future, no? Fast Step and INEOS for positive, Garmin (pre-EF) too. Israel Premier Tech, not but, however they’ve gotten progressively darker, so possibly that’s subsequent 12 months. Within the desert although??

2011 Wayback Time… with Leopards!

Picture credit score ought to learn JOSE JORDAN/AFP through Getty Photos

I believe numerous you guys may have a sentimental attachment right here. I don’t — it’s only a powder blue stripe, however hey, it is a democracy.

Talking of which…