Velogames Preview – VELOGAME XXIV

Oh boy oh boy! The Tour de France is here and it could be a race like no other and make for a really unique fantasy experience. Apologies this guide is a little later than planned. I was building notes and awaiting the final team announcements, but my neighbour had an emergency this morning that took precedence. Anyway! That’s sorted now and writing this has my undivided attention. I might decide to include some extra information about various race scenarios I can see unfolding as once again, there are four very fancied riders and it’s a balancing act to fit as many of them in to your teams without losing out on points elsewhere. So what else could happen? Can you put together a team without stacking it with the favourites? I believe you can and there are multiple bargain options across the board that look appealing. Let’s get right into it shall we!

The Route

The route this year is a bit linear in places and open in others with six summit finishes; seven flatter stages with an expected five or six bunch sprints; two individual time trials; and five medium and high mountain stages. So not much for the pure sprinters to write home about, but plenty for the general classification (GC) riders to get stuck into, and a myriad of good looking breakaway stages. There’s even the curve ball of a cobbled stage in the first week to add to the stress of early grand tour jitters and potential crosswinds. Here are the stages to keep an eye on as the 2022 Grande Boucle is decided.

Stage 1: 13.2km individual time trial around Copenhagen in potentially wet conditions. Hopefully everyone gets through unscathed, but there could be some time losses and there will be tricky decisions about when to send riders out to have the best chance of an opening yellow jersey.
Stage 2: The final 20km of this flat stage cross The Great Belt Bridge. If the wind blows, it could be very nervy.
Stage 5: 11 cobbled sections have to be safely negotiated by the GC men and there are many cobbled specialists here who’ll be licking their lips for a famous stage win.
Stage 6: This could be a really fun stage as the puncheurs fight it out over a lumpy final 20km.
Stage 7: The first summit finish of the race atop La Super Planche des Belles Filles. Last used in 2019 as the stage went to the breakaway and there were some gaps amongst the GC contenders on the final steep sections.
Stage 9: The first foray into the high mountains with a stage through the Swiss Alps. Could we see our first GC raids on these long slopes?
Stage 11: This year’s Souvenir Henri Desgrange comes on the Col du Galibier before a summit finish on the Col du Granon.
Stage 12: Back over the Galibier and the Col de la Croix de Fer before the famous Alpe d’Huez finish.
Stage 17: The race hits the Pyrenees proper after four more transitional stages that could suit the breakaway.
Stage 18: The last big day in the mountains with a finish up the Hautacam climb.
Stage 20: A monstrous 40.7km individual time trial will decide the Tour.
Stage 21: The classic sprint royale on the Champs-Élysées.

Velogames Category Guide

The main race favourites are confined to the all rounder category this year with the climbers presenting some real value and the sprinters category is dominated by the one and only Wout Van Aert. The perennial Mathieu van der Poel problem has seen him remain in the unclassed section, but with a slightly inflated price tag. Will that be enough to see his ownership from the Giro drop? Maybe with the three main race favourites being so expensive, Van Aert as well, then fewer players will be able to squeeze him in. I reckon his popularity will still see him selected by many. Does that leave the door open for teams without him to score an easy win? You never know with van der Poel, but as I learned from the Giro, he’s always worth it.

All Rounders

Diving straight in to the deep end with the trickiest category to work out. The three main race favourites are here along with four or five other top 10 contenders. There are some compelling cheaper options for those wanting a bargain to compliment one of the big guns, but is that too costly a strategy? Here are the riders present:

Tadej Pogačar, 26 Credits: Going for his hattrick and his price has increased to 26, the first rider we’ve had at this price since Froome. Still in imperious form with fairly easy GC wins in the UAE Tour and Tirreno-Adriatico complete with six stage wins and a bonus win at Strade Bianche. Even came 4th at the Tour of Flanders so is quite at home on the cobbles as well.
Primož Roglič, 22 Credits: The only thing that prevented a showdown at last year’s race was a woman trying to say hello to her grand parents at the worst possible time in the worst possible way. Also has two world tour GC titles under his belt this season with the Critérium du Dauphiné and Paris-Nice. He hasn’t raced Pogačar in anger this year so we have no head-to-head form comparison to go off.
Jonas Vingegaard, 18 Credits: Runner up last year and arguably the best climber in the peloton this year. He and Roglič represent a two-pronged attack that they’ll use to try and isolate Pogačar, which they have used to good effect in the past.
Aleksandr Vlasov, 14 Credits: Aiming for the podium and willing to get there with aggressive racing. He was having a really successful year until he tested positive for Covid-19 at the Tour de Suisse. How has his recovery been I wonder? The team has faith he’s ready.
Geraint Thomas, 14 Credits: Part of a trident of INEOS GC leaders and took advantage of the Suisse chaos to earn his first overall win at the race. He’d be a slightly sentimental pick for me, but he still has the legs and you never know what he’s capable of.
Enric Mas, 12 Credits: He’s had a very patchy year with no outstanding results and a crash at Tirreno-Adriatico. He’s been a safe pair of legs in the grand tours recently though.
Jakub Fuglsang, 10 Credits: Stage hunting for Israel-PremierTech this year and is on some good form. Has the potential for a good race, but may not be worth huge points.

Below this there are 12 riders for eight or six credits made up of a mixture of domestiques and team leaders. EF (yet to announce their team at time of writing) have Urán and Powless, the latter recording 4th at the illness disrupted Tour de Suisse. Also here is Cattaneo for six credits and Quick-Step’s man for the mountains. His time trial is good and he was 12th last year, but he did show better form going into the 2021 Tour de France. Is he worth a punt though? I think so. Ion Izagirre is one of the leaders for Cofidis, but has slowed down since an impressive start to the year.

Climbers

With all the expensive GC riders occupying the all rounder category, the highest price you’ll find here for a rider is 14 credits. This represents multiple options to compliment a team with the expensive all rounders with some very viable strategies. Here are the best of the 28 riders to choose from here.

Daniel Felipe Martínez, 14 Credits: Another one of the INEOS leaders who built into form nicely at the Tour de Suisse supporting Thomas and managed to dodge Covid at the same time. Victory at Itzulia and 3rd in Paris-Nice show he’s in cracking form this year. I reckon he’s due a breakout grand tour performance and this might be his chance.
Ben O’Connor, 12 Credits: Backed up last year’s 4th place with a string of impressive performances this year. He’s turned into one of the most consistent GC riders in the current peloton.
Adam Yates, 12 Credits: He’s looked okay this year, but nowhere near his 2021 form. Catching Covid in the Tour de Suisse will not have helped his preparation. On his day though, he’s a very useful rider for INEOS. They’re just bringing two other riders who don’t have that cloud hanging over them.
Jack Haig, 10 Credits: Bahrain are aiming for the podium with him or through Damiano Caruso, 8 credits. Both are very accomplished riders and have good form this year. They’re grand tour records aren’t exactly bad either. So a very interesting pairing.

Here’s where I’ll make a departure from the norm and instead of continuing the list, I’ll mention the riders here who have stated some clear objectives. The other GC contenders in the climber category are Nairo Quintana and Guillaume Martin. These are the only other guys who’ve specifically stated they’re after a good GC placing at this year’s Tour de France, maybe include Louis Meintjes in that discussion as well. The competition is possibly too fierce for this trio to have much of an impact, but I do hope we see more of the human GC yo-yo (Martin) trying to grab time in breakaways only to lose it failing to hang on to the bunch the next day. A lot of the other riders here are stage hunters and king of the mountains (KOM) hopefuls including the Groupama-FDJ trio of Thibaut Pinot, David Gaudu, and Michael Storer. None of them are going for GC, but Pinot wants some freedom to go for the KOM jersey and Gaudu is a some decent form. Maybe not massive points from these guys, but they’re interesting options. Lennard Kämna is back after his incredible Giro and you can expect to see him in the breaks once again. Guerreiro, Woods, Barguil, Rolland, Ciccone, Mollema, and Simmons are the other riders with big ambitions here. They might not be massive points, but you can certainly pick your favourite to go with a more fancied option, especially if you’re trying to save budget for the big guys.

After a complete failure to mention him the first time around, Romain Bardet can have his own paragraph. Coming in at 10 credits, he spearheads a youthful and attacking looking DSM roster who only have one goal in mind, stage wins. He hasn’t raced since falling ill in the Giro, but he was one of the best riders there up until that point. You’d like to think he’d be back to his best here and we’ll probably see him in the break for the many opportunities in the mountains. Who knows, he may be one of the favourites for the polka-dot jersey!

Sprinters

As I mentioned in the brief route guide, the opportunities for the pure sprinters are limited and unless there’s an out-and-out favourite, it might be wise to take someone who can handle some climbing. Luckily, I have just the man for you!

Wout Van Aert, 18 Credits: Only a two credit increase for six time stage winner and superstar who has stated that he’s finally going for the green jersey. On this parcours, if he keeps out of trouble, he’ll walk to the top of the points classification. 1824 points last year with three stage wins. Just think what he can manage if he competes in every sprint.
Jasper Philipsen, 14 Credits: Should be one of the fastest guys here, but I still have my doubts spending 14 credits for potentially so little return. He’ll probably score well! Just not enough for 14 credits. That’s my personal opinion.
Fabio Jakobsen, 14 Credits: Same story with Jakobsen. Insanely fast on his day, but with green potentially off the menu, he’ll pick and choose the best stages for the win.
Caleb Ewan, 12 Credits: Lotto Soudal are really counting on him to perform after his unfortunate Giro. I don’t really see it happening though, he has the speed, but not the consistency.
Peter Sagan, 12 Credits: Don’t expect a massive return from Sagan, he’ll fight for everything he can and a recent stage win at the Tour de Suisse was encouraging. This parcours offers him several opportunities and I can see him enjoying his racing.
Dylan Groenewegen and Michael Matthews, 10 Credits: A dual strategy for BikeExchange with Groenewegen for the fast sprints and Matthews for the hilly stuff. The team are desperate for good results here and with no other objective, these guys are their main hopes. However, the presence of the pair of them means neither will score huge points. So it’s good for the race, bad for fantasy.
Alexander Kristoff, 8 Credits: Has had a better time this year with his new team and looks to be enjoying his racing again.
Mads Pedersen, 8 Credits: One of the more attractive looking fantasy options for 10 credits cheaper than Van Aert. He’s looking to get off to a good start in Copenhagen and give himself a chance to grab yellow in the opening stages and on the cobbles.
Danny Van Poppel, 6 Credits: With Bora leaving a slightly misfiring Bennett at home, Van Poppel should get his own opportunities in the sprints and he’s had a good year so far. Cracking value and a good gamble if you’re feeling risky and want to stack your team with GC riders.
Bryan Coquard, 6 Credits: The other super bargain in this category. Lacked a bit of consistency this year, but he’s another good option if you’re saving the pennies.

Unclassed

Two riders occupy positions above eight credits in this category and they are the aforementioned Mathieu van der Poel at 14 credits, and Filippo Ganna at 10. Ganna has scored really well before and he’s almost guaranteed points from the time trials, but not the kind that make him a good pick for 10 credits. Van der Poel is different, expect him to breakaway in every type of stage and have the time of his life doing it. If you can spare the budget, then he’s almost a must have, can you spare the budget though? Here are the other riders I’ve spotted:

8 Credits
Matej Mohorič: First rate stage hunter.
Magnus Cort: Still unsure as to EF’s strategy, but we all love this guy.
Thomas Pidcock: Will have somewhat of a free role in his Tour debut, after recovering from Covid.
Tim Wellens: Represents another hope for Lotto Soudal and is looking fairly strong this year.
Andrea Bagioli: Good shout for Quick-Step in the hilly stages.
Andreas Leknessund: Would be an enticing prospect at 6 credits I feel, but just isn’t guaranteed enough points for an eight crediter.

6 Credits
Benoît Cosnefroy: Might just be helping O’Connor, but an exciting rider nonetheless.
Fred Wright: Could do a bit of sprinting for Bahrain, but first job is a domestique.
Victor Lafay: Really exciting rider for Cofidis with some great results this year.
Nils Politt: Aiming for more breakaway success if given the chance.
Alberto Bettiol: Was looking good until a positive Covid test in the Tour de Suisse, how well has he recovered?
Stefan Bissegger: Will be hoping to go well in the opening time trial and may get other opportunities down the line.
Stefan Küng: One of the best looking 6 credit riders on great form and if FDJ go full stage hunting, then he has the time trials and multiple stages to have some fun.
Taco van der Hoorn: Breakaway specialist for Intermarché.
Andreas Kron: Will look to build into the race and be Lotto’s man for the 2nd and 3rd week mountains.
Matteo Jorgenson: Could be valuable help for Enric Mas, but will he also be able to have a go himself?
Kasper Asgreen: Also caught out in the Tour de Suisse, but for him it was a bad crash and road rash.
Florian Sénéchal: Recently crowned French champion who should prove valuable for Quick-Step.
Matis Louvel: A bit of a wildcard for Arkéa Samsic, but has had some encouraging results this year.
Mathieu Burgaudeau: Crashed hard at the French nationals, but he’s a top fighter.
Jasper Stuyven: Will be useful for Pedersen, but will also get his own opportunities.
Carlos Verona: Forgot to mention him originally, but will be a very useful mountain breakaway rider for Movistar. His recent stage win in Dauphiné shows he’s in good form.

4 Credits
Sebastian Schönberger: Was in two huge breaks at the Critérium du Dauphiné and he could do the same here.
Benjamin Thomas: Hillier sprinter type with a decent time trial on him.
Jonas Rutsch: This is a guy who would just be fun to cheer for.
Kobe Goossens: Might be mainly helping Meintjes, but could go for himself as well.
Florian Vermeersch: Another of Lotto’s wildcards.
Kevin Vermaerke: Part of DSM’s stage hunting team and this guy is young and exciting.

Well that was an insanely long list! Hope you’re still with us. Lot’s to ponder before Friday and many strategies to consider. I sit on a lot of Velogames stats in order to write these and I might look to write something else about which riders turn out to be the most valuable and where the consistency lies. It’s not always about that though. It’s often about just picking your favourite riders and willing them on during the race. However you want to play I hope there’s been something here for you. And don’t forget to join the mini-league with this code 230268331 and best of luck to all fantasy directors!