Could Filippo Ganna be the solution to INEOS' leadout worries? "The problem is whether Caleb Ewan will have to lead the sprint for him!"
Cycling
Caleb Ewan recently completed a sensational move to the INEOS Grenadiers ahead of the 2025 season. Whilst the Aussie is a proven, race winning sprinter when at his best though, given the last-minute nature of the signing, INEOS don't really have any obvious riders to support Ewan in the leadout for sprints. Could the man to fix this problem be Italian powerhouse Filippo Ganna?
"There are several names in the running for this one including Ganna and Joshua Tarling. But be careful: the right pacesetter also depends on the type of sprint and who will sprint," explains long-time INEOS sports director Dario David Cioni, in conversation with Bici.Pro. "Let's not forget that Pippo has done sprints and has shown he is competitive. So the roles could also be reversed. Sure, Pippo could be an excellent pacesetter, the problem is whether Caleb will have to lead the sprint for him! But let's not forget that very often Ewan has exploited other trains and is very explosive."
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As mentioned, given the last-minute nature of Ewan's INEOS arrival, the team aren't exactly well prepared for the Aussie. "I don't know exactly what brought him to us," Cioni explains. "I can think that maybe it was an opportunity, an opportunity that came up at the right time. Without Elia Viviani, we had a gap: the management took advantage of it. But I can guarantee that up until that moment the team's plans had been made without him."
Nevertheless, Cioni is quietly confident that Ewan can prove to be a success for the INEOS Grenaiders over the course of the 2025 season. "What do I like about Caleb and what should he improve? I like his speed, while he can improve the consistency of his results when he is in form , that is, winning more races in a short period of time," concludes the sports director.
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- Funny that they shorten women’s races but have no qualms about letting U23 do the same distances.Jumpyjohn23-03-2025
- Why is that relevant when discussing speed?Mistermaumau23-03-2025
- But he wasn’t the only one ;-)Mistermaumau23-03-2025
- Obviously the questions are more important to some here than to them or the team so I suggest looking for answers instead of asking questions between ourselves. We’ll probably get them unless someone actually goes to ask the protagonists themselves. Here are some starters : They like riding together; they have their own rivalry that helps bring out the best in both; they might get more points helping each other compared to racing separate races. In any case, unless we hear MJ complaining about it, I don’t think it’s going to change, it’s the Sepp Kuss syndrome all over again, fans lobbying against the will of the rider.Mistermaumau23-03-2025
- Mine goes to MVDP for entertaining us all year round :-) Stellar race, Ganna impressive in his own way as many predicted after some oddly lacklustre times.Mistermaumau23-03-2025
- i remember when not too long ago mathieu was regarded as a real tactical knucklehead. i’m not sure that was ever quite accurate, but it’s certainly the case that over the years he has become a real master tactician. in the biggest races, van der poel rarely makes choices that don’t fully optimize every specific advantage he has.OCexile23-03-2025
- Whatever the result, I believe the strategy by UAE to launch Pogacar was absolutely the right one. Unfortunately, they just were not able to execute it the way they must have planned, being all over the place at the start of the Cipressa.Cooldude23-03-2025
- They are without doubt not just the best two classics riders of this generation, but amongst the best of all time. MvdP is more suited to MSR and PR (which Pog has yet to race), while Pog is now almost untouchable at LBL and Lombardia. RVV is the only one where both basically have an equal chance to win.Cooldude23-03-2025
- bravissima!
maria2024202423-03-2025 - According to Tadej's Strava upload, he went up the Cipressa at an average speed of 37.6kph. Rocket ship! He did the 5.63km verified 'Cipressa' Strava segment in 8:59 minutes, which has a 4.3% average grade and total elevation gain of 229m. Naturally, he got the Strava KOM.Pogboom23-03-2025