Lipowitz‘s Surprise Attack on Col de la Loze Upends Bora-Hansgrohe Tactics, Puts GC Podium in Reach
In a dramatic turn of events during the recent cycling race, an unplanned attack by rider Lipowitz on the Col de la Loze significantly altered the race dynamics, leaving his team’s sports director, Matteo Gasparotto, reflecting on the day’s strategy.While the team acknowledges a “good fk-up” that cost them dearly in the final kilometers, the audacious move by lipowitz has unexpectedly placed him in contention for a higher overall standing.
gasparotto admitted that, with the benefit of hindsight, the team’s tactics for stage 18 would have been diffrent. He stated, “Obviously knowing how it went, yes. That’s an easy answer. I review all the stage of yesterday 100 times last night.” Despite his usual confidence in tactical execution,Gasparotto conceded,”But yesterday was a good fk-up on that,we cannot say no because we lost a lot on the final three kilometers.”
The critical moment occurred at the top of the Col de la madeleine.At that point, the team had a 2 minute 30 second advantage over rider Onley, with Lipowitz positioned far behind Primoลพ Rogliฤ and Rogliฤ himself in the first group. However, a slowdown in pace during the descent proved to be a pivotal miscalculation.
Gasparotto explained the intended strategy: “If they don’t slow down, Primoลพ goes with the yellow jersey to the finish, maybe he finishes third on the [GC] podium and Lipo gets back with Onley, stays on his wheel and is still fourth with the white jersey.”
The situation unraveled when Lipowitz launched an attack that was “never planned.” This sudden surge allowed him to gain significant time, creating a gap of 2 minutes on the yellow jersey and 4 minutes 30 seconds to Onley within a mere 30 seconds. At one point, the team held a 3-minute lead over the yellow jersey and a 5-minute lead over Onley. Gasparotto noted the impossibility of stopping such a move: “What do you do? You cannot stop him.”