Stephano Garzelli and Saxo Bank. Another Riis rabbit?

//Stephano Garzelli and Saxo Bank. Another Riis rabbit?

Stephano Garzelli and Saxo Bank. Another Riis rabbit?

Garzelli: What?

Bjarne Riis is no Mauro Gianetti but he does hustle. Gianetti earned our “hardest working man in cycling show business” as he attempted to keep his Ex-Geox squad alive — he flew to Venezuela, he hustled US pro continental teams, he looked under every rock in Europe for a sponsor.

However. second place must go to Riis and Saxo Bank in his continuing hunt for a little climber to help Alberto Contador in the Tour de France. That’s if the Spaniard’s legal help gets him off the clenbuterol charge with the Court for Glacial Arbitration in SPort (CGAS)

News today is that Riis is trying to pry the aging Stefano Garzelli out of Acqua & Sapone in time for him to ride the Giro for Saxo, then shepherd Alberto in Le Tour. According to Wednesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport, a deal is close but Garzelli’s brother and agent are calling the news nothing but rumor. They did admit the little bald climber almost signed with Saxo Bank back in August.

So Riis is still attempting to honor the desperate request of his superstar rider for a little help in the high mountains. The Spaniard looks over at Schleck’s RadioShack-Nissan Trek squad and gets that sinking feeling.

We also learned that Riis worked hard to convince Jakob Fuglsang to return to the fold when the merger of Leopard and Radio Shack was underway. The Dane decided to stick with Bruyneel’s juggernaut but perhaps now wishes he’d come back to Riis, given his recent comments about not fitting in.

It’s been a mystery why Riis, who is one of the sharpest men in pro cycling, hasn’t secured a plan B in case Alberto Contador is banned. Geox’s Juan Jose Cobo was begging for a ride but Riis didn’t pull the trigger, citing a lack of funds. At age 38, Garzelli is a bandaid, not a real solution.

Riis has always managed to resurrect careers, push riders to new levels of performance and pull rabbits out of a hat. After the Brothers Schleck hijacked his team and took it to Luxembourg, the leftovers at Saxo still put together a successful season.

However, depending on the CGAS verdict in late January, Riis may wish he’s gone the full Gianetti Max-Hustle route and locked down a viable Plan B.

By |2019-02-03T16:11:22-08:00January 18th, 2012|Uncategorized|3 Comments

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3 Comments

  1. Alex January 18, 2012 at 11:20 am - Reply

    Stefano Garzelli is a classy rider. While his age may be limiting him, he is a gutsy opportunist, frequently riding near the front of the pelton, regardless of terrain (he is not a pure climber) looking for a chance to go. He fights on sprint finishes, he tries to just ride away on his own, and when the best climbers go, Garzelli will go with them (or die trying).

    In the 2009 Giro, on one of the hardest climbing stages, Basso, a probably doped up Pellizotti (who won the KOM in the TdF later that year), Di Luca (desperately trying to gap Menchov) and Menchov (glued to Di Luca's back wheel) got away from the rest of the climbers. And Stefan Garzelli dug deep and hung with the best climbers and then outsprinted Di Luca and Menchov at the finish.

    I would rather watch Garzelli race for Saxo Bank than Contador. Garzelli cannot win the Tour and almost certainly cannot win the Giro any more, but it won't be from lack of courage, or lack of trying.

    Maybe the Italian version of Jens Voight?

    • TwistedSpoke January 18, 2012 at 3:48 pm - Reply

      Yup, I like Garzelli and he's a fun rider to watch. I'd like to see what Riis could do with him even it it's just for half the season. He deserves to ride the Giro and it would be great to give him one last ride in Le Tour. Matt

  2. Lyndon January 19, 2012 at 4:29 am - Reply

    At this moment, I can't really think of a potential 'plan B' rider who isn't sitting comfortably with a big money contract. Basso maybe?? That would be an interesting development…..

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