AFP PHOTO / FRANCK FIFE
Erik Zabel must be high on spilling the beans. After his painful admission to using EPO in the 90s, Zabel now admits to causing the crash in stage 2 that took out all but 25 racers going into the finish. The dicey crash through a narrow road cut off most of the peloton and looked worse that it actually was. The only casualty from the race was Discovery Channel’s Tomas Vaitkus who needed thumb surgery. The pictures of racers limping home holding their arms was striking. But once everyone was cleaned up and bandaged no one was that badly off.
Zabel must want a totally free conscience and seems ready to give up information on just about anything. Zabel admitted to shifting quickly into the path of Liquigas racer Manual Quinzato. The touch of wheels cause the mass pile up.
In the team dinner last night Zabel also admitted to eating the last baguette and not offering it to anyone before chomping on it. Roommate Andrey Grivko confronted Zabel on the empty roll of toilet paper in the bathroom to which Zabel quickly spilled the beans and admitted he forgot to change it before he left.
Erik Zabel has been on a bad streak of second place finishes for a long time. Today he finally broke out of the slump and showed flashes of classic Erik Zabel. The typicaly sprint finish stage saw THOR Hishovd finish second and keep his overall lead.
Zabel is obviously happy with the result:
“Today I am very happy because the whole team worked for me and it’s good to see the train is working better and better,” said Zabel after notching just his second win of the season. “I am very happy with this victory.”
Velonews.com
Eurosport.com: Vintage Zabel
Paolo Bettini won the first stage and the leader’s jersey in Tirreno Adriatico. The Quick Step Olympic Champion beat out Erik Zabel and Thor Hushovd. This is the seventh second place finish by Erik Zabel this year.
http://www.gazzetta.it/Ciclismo/
Yesterday’s Giro di Lucca produced another Ale-Jet victory. This is no surprise as Petacchi has shown great form this year and is on an early hot streak. The difference yesterday was that Erik Zabel was racing with Petacchi and acted as leadout man for the Italian. This is a newer development for the German-Italian team which before yesterday had Petacchi and Zabel racing separately.
“In the race I was really nervous because after 12 years as a leader this was the first time to give a real lead-out to a teammate,” said Zabel via Bici Race
Zabel despite having the junior version of the Milram leadout train was not able to get anything better than second place in several races. The Zabel contingent was only able to get a victory with Elia Rigotto who slipped off the front at the Tour Méditerranéen back in February.
Zabel’s new role may be a tough pill for the experienced German to swallow, but he is the ultimate professional. Having a top-of-the-line leadout man such as Zabel will prove invaluable for Petacchi in races such as Milan San Remo where the Treno Blu of Quick Step will be working hard for the World Champ Boonen to take a win.
The switch from Marco Velo to Erik Zabel as the final leadout man is probably for preparation for Milan San Remo. There would be less pressure for a rider as large as Velo to make it in the final group in San Remo.
Petacchi is hinting at taking t easy at Tirreno Adriatico this week. Perhaps he is trying to save his energy for Milan San Remo, but too many on-form cyclist have been downplaying their ambitions and form. So I look for Petacchi to win every sprint stage possible.
Bici Race
Alessandro Petacchi is pumped from is 2-1 edge over World Champion Tom Boonen in the recent Rute del Sol. AleJet’s eary season form is showing that the team is gelling to his liking. Erik Zabel’s string of second place victories is showing that the once formidable sprinter just doesn’t have the extra snap needed to get the win. Therefore, the Milram totem pole is set and Petacchi is placed squarely at the top meaning that for the big races, he will have the team’s full support.
The early success has prompted Petacchi to plan big for 2006.
After the early success I am convinced that I should race the Giro, Tour and Vuelta with the goal of winning at least one stage in each race. –Petacchi
The first victories in February at Donoratico and in the two stages of the Ruta del Sol inf ront of the Rainbow clad Boonen confirms to me that my form is good. In Milan San Remo Erik Zabel will be ready to help me repeat the success of last year. The Tour of Flanders and Gent Wevelgem are my main objectives for April. Then of course in May I will try for a victory in the Corsa Rosa.
The Giro is not easy with a very difficult parcours. This is the same case for the Tour and Vuelta. To repeat what I did in 2003 when I won stages in all three Grand Tours will be a great challenge for me yet again.
TuttoBici
Elia Rigotto is the Milram leadout man who got a chance for his own win at the Tour of Med. Rigotto won the last stage of the Tour of Med on a day where he was hoping to deliver team captain Erik Zabel to another second place. Instead the properly tattooed Italian took the stage win for himself when a gap opened up between him and his captain.
“Win one kilometer to go, I went to the head of the peloton. Leading the group, I entered a tunnel with lots of speed and Zabel on my wheel but when we exited the tunnel I saw that I had a gap on the field which is when I decided to go for the win.”
The 23 year old leadout man seems destined for more wins since his star tattooes placed on his triceps are the perfect enhancement to a win.
