La Vuelta 2026 ***Spoilers***

[No Ta Doctor]

Amazing number of posts on "why Pog chased down Wout" when no-one on here really knows do they? It's all just supposition

The post you're replying to isn't actually promoting one view or another, it's asking how the view that Pog chased him down as punishment for Visma misdemeanours fits with the view that Pog's a great bloke, does a lot of work for charity etc.


For me the question isn't why he chased him down, it's why he didn't do a turn when he got there. Would he have pulled if it had been MvdP?

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Does his track background include riding with 100 others thru road furniture?

Easy for us to criticise when a rider is less skilled in one area than the others - much harder to fix that. Why not tell Pederson Mads to be better on HC climbs while you're at it?

To be fair, Mads is bloody incredible on HC climbs for a sprinter/classics guy. He attacked on the Col de la Croix de Fer FFS!

It's not uncommon for track guys to be uncomfortable in the peloton at first, but that's usually pursuiters. Hayter rode the chaos races of Omnium, Points and Madison as well. In the one discipline it's a traffic island, in the other it's a Kazakhstani Maddison rider swinging off...

 

[misforturob]

For me the question isn't why he chased him down, it's why he didn't do a turn when he got there. Would he have pulled if it had been MvdP?

He has already answered this question: https://www.domestiquecycling.com/e...by-van-aert-attack-but-keeps-red-in-manosque/

 

[DeadCalm]

Interested in how you square these two opinions. I mean, I can believe he'd deliberately scupper Wout - widely regarded as one of the nicest blokes in the peloton - with no real benefit to himself, but I wouldn't go round saying what a fantastic guy he was after, and I wouldn't think giving his glasses to Wout's kid after the race was a lovely touch if I thought that.

Imagine if LA had given his glasses to Simeoni's kid after that stage 😱
“First off, I did not chase Simeoni down, I was simply following his wheel. That is the truth of the matter."

Are you seriously comparing LA chasing Simeoni down to Pogacar chasing down WVA? Really?

 

[Pross]

Does his track background include riding with 100 others thru road furniture?

Easy for us to criticise when a rider is less skilled in one area than the others - much harder to fix that. Why not tell Pederson Mads to be better on HC climbs while you're at it?

You'll have a lot of crashes if you ride a bunch race on the track without that skillset considering there's often nowhere to go and you've got no means of braking. I don't think criticising the lack of a basic skill is the same as criticising someone because their physiology isn't suitable to riding up mountains. It's more like criticising those GT contenders who lose time in TTs but don't work at improving their TT capability - no-one expects them to beat Ganna or Remco but it's reasonable to expect them to maximise their ability. Ultimately not being prepared / able to fight for position cost him a chance to wear the leaders jersey in a GT having put in a big physical effort to gain that opportunity. Chances are he'll never have another opportunity.

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Are you seriously comparing LA chasing Simeoni down to Pogacar chasing down WVA? Really?

It wasn't me suggesting that Pog had chased Wout down as punishment. If he did then it's a valid comparison. I'm asking specifically how Dorset can hold both these ideas in his head at the same time: that it was punishment and that Pog is a lovely guy.

 

[DeadCalm]

It wasn't me suggesting that Pog had chased Wout down as punishment. If he did then it's a valid comparison. I'm asking specifically how Dorset can hold both these ideas in his head at the same time: that it was punishment and that Pog is a lovely guy.

It's not remotely valid. Armstrong chased Simeoni down because of Simeoni's revelations about doping. If Pogacar had chased down Wout as a punishment (which we now know he didn't), it would have been because Wout was one of the prime enforcers of the odious Grischa Niermann's plan to rough Pogacar up during the 2025 TDF. That's not remotely comparable.

 

[No Ta Doctor]

It's not remotely valid. Armstrong chased Simeoni down because of Simeoni's revelations about doping. If Pogacar had chased down Wout as a punishment (which we now know he didn't), it would have been because Wout was one of the prime enforcers of the odious Grischa Niermann's plan to rough Pogacar up during the 2025 TDF. That's not remotely comparable.

We know he didn't chase him down as punishment because he said he didn't? Fine.

OK, I can see you've absolutely bought into the Visma are evil story, but you've always had a thing against Vingegaard for some reason anyway. Bet you can't provide one single piece of evidence of Wout being a bastard of some sort there. Just post a clip or something.

 

[matticus]

You'll have a lot of crashes if you ride a bunch race on the track without that skillset considering there's often nowhere to go and you've got no means of braking.

With respect, they are very different situations (and it's not just the skill, it's confidence/fear). I have (limited) experience of riding both. I've watched a lot of both.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree! Hayter ain't gonna change in a hurry, and he (most likely) won't have another chance to grab a GT Leader Jersey on a road stage, so it's all a bit moot.

(I do think we all like to criticise athletes for some "obvious" tactical failing, when we know darn well (inside) that we don't have any of their other abilities! See also: international footy players missing a pen ... )

 

[matticus]

We know he didn't chase him down as punishment because he said he didn't? Fine.

OK, I can see you've absolutely bought into the Visma are evil story, but you've always had a thing against Vingegaard for some reason anyway.

Does Cyclechat now have more beef than the Pro Peloton?!? Calm down lads ❤️

 

[DeadCalm]

We know he didn't chase him down as punishment because he said he didn't? Fine.

OK, I can see you've absolutely bought into the Visma are evil story, but you've always had a thing against Vingegaard for some reason anyway. Bet you can't provide one single piece of evidence of Wout being a bastard of some sort there. Just post a clip or something.

Reply deleted. I think neither of us are going to change our views on this.

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Reply deleted. I think neither of us are going to change our views on this.

Fair. Happy to call a truce

 

[Dogtrousers]

Does Cyclechat now have more beef than the Pro Peloton?!? Calm down lads ❤️

Spoilsport. I was enjoying that.

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Spoilsport. I was enjoying that.

We've agreed to do it by PM on pay per view. Rob Hatch say's it's going to be "One for the ages" so worth buying your ticket quick at the early bird rate of €9.99, or for extra exclusive content and an add-free experience the €19.99 package is what you're looking for. I think the latter will be worth it, because nobody really wants to see a load of ads featuring sad skinny donkeys, life insurance, making a will or expensive watches shown on people posing with bikes where some component looks to be on backwards

 

[wakemalcolm]

One thing that's clearly lacking is a decent nickname for Brennan. Anyone got one yet? Here's some starters for 10:

• Darlington dragster, on account of his speed
• Darlington express to tie it into the town's railway heritage
• Dearth-quaker, tying the old town name of Dearthington to its Quaker roots.

Any more thoughts?