Someone, somewhere once said that Peter Sagan wasn’t a pure sprinter.
Like lambs to the slaughter every journalist, fan and cycling hanger-on took up the chorus until the exclamation was blaring loudly over every classic, stage race or run of the mill pedal fest that he entered.
“Peter Sagan is not a pure sprinter!”
Well, if Peter Sagan is not a pure sprinter, then he is damn close.
No, he hasn’t won a stage at this year’s Tour de France, and no, he didn’t win one last year either, but it is taking the very, very best of the genuine fast men to beat him.
At this year’s Tour only Andre Greipel and Mark Cavendish have beaten Sagan in bunch sprints. And only by a tyre width each time.
In Stage 2 he was second to Greipel, but ahead of Cavendish. This was repeated in Stage 5. In Stage 7 he was third behind Cavendish and Greipel. It is exulted company to keep and he has been the only rider to threaten the two ‘pure’ sprinters.
Last year he had the ‘misfortune’ of twice finishing second to a rampant Marcel Kittel. No shame in that considering the German superstar was in career best form.
Bunch sprints are the domain of the pure sprinter. It is where they earn their bread and butter. And yet, more often than not Sagan is up there battling it out, keeping the sprinting elite honest. If he gets his timing right he’ll start beating them too.
What must also be remembered is that this year his team, Tinkoff-Saxo, is dedicated to the general classification hopes of Alberto Contador, while his main protagonists on the flat lands have squads geared towards leading out their fast men
It has been a superb effort from Sagan and perhaps we need to reassess the way we classify him.
Indeed, could the fact that he has failed to achieve what was expected of him at the spring classics over the past couple of seasons indicate that we have classified him incorrectly?
There is no doubt that he has more strings to his bow than being just a sprinter. His general classification victory at the recent Tour of California proves that he is a more rounded cyclist than Greipel, Cavendish or Kittel.
But should that exclude him from being spoken about in the same breath as the other sprinters?
I don’t think so.
Yes, more difficult finishes or stages should suit him better than his sprinting rivals, but that also leaves him vulnerable to the more tactically astute. Tony Martin and John Degenkolb outpointed him on the cobbled Stage 4 (although it must be said that his first priority that day was looking after Contador), while Zdenek Stybar got away from him on the uphill finish at Le Havre on Stage 6.
His other top five finish this Tour was on the Mur-de-Bretagne, a steeper, longer end to a race where he will always be vulnerable to more accomplished climbers. That day he was gapped by Alexis Vuillermoz, and the experienced pair of Dan Martin and Alejandro Valverde.
Sagan will always put himself in the mix when it comes to the classics or races that have lumpier terrain than a dead flat sprinter’s paradise, but, as we have seen time and again, he is no surer chance to win those than he is a bunch sprint.
For mine he is closer to being a pure sprinter than anything else. When you get so close to the likes of Grepiel and Cavendish, how can you be thought of as anything else?
Freycinet1803
Roar Rookie
He's in the top 40 of the Tour de France GC this year ... not somewhere you'd expect to see him.
Brian
Guest
Yes you could argue he is better than a pure sprinter - if he won more races. A few kg off his weight could well see him a gc contender.
Scott
Roar Rookie
He is almost as good as any pure sprinter, Kittel, Cavendish, Griepel and that is normally without the big trains they have. And this is in a team which is more focused on supporting Contador. And he can win on the slightly hilly stages where they can't. So the answer is no, he is not a pure sprinter, he is better than a pure sprinter. The question I have is can he take the next step and become a GC contender ? he won the recent Tour of California (8 days). so not totally out of the question.
Brian
Guest
You have done a great job of explaining why he isn't a pure sprinter. He doesn't win bunch sprints on the flat - like pure sprinters do. He wins when there is a bit of work to do at the finish - like pure sprinters don't. He climbs when he needs to. Like in the tour of california. He is a hard finishing rouleur not a pure sprinter.
Sean Lee
Expert
Thanks for the comments folks. I think we all agree that he is immensely talented and you all make some great points. Bryan is right in that he becomes a marked man in the races or stages that are hillier. What he has to do is learn how to combat that the way that Tom Boonen and Fabian Cancellara have managed to do over the years. Justin, you are also right when you say he doesn't win many bunch sprints, but at the moment he doesn't win many other types of finishes either. Having said that, he is usual only beaten by the highest caliber of rider whether in sprints or classics. Each year we expect him to win at the classics and now that Boonen and Cancellara are fading you would expect him to excell in those races. But this year we saw Degenkolb and Kristoff leap frog ahead of him on the pecking order. Hutchoman you are also right. We must remember that Sagan is still eligible for the young riders jersey classification despite the fact that he seems to have been about for years. He is still so young and the cycling world still lays at his feet. Time will tell, but the potential is still there for him to become something very special. Let's hope that he does fulfill that potential.
Hutchoman
Roar Pro
I hear what you are saying Justin, but equally he's picked up three green jerseys all before turning 25, all of which with a pretty big margin. I've not gone and looked at the stages in detail from here, but he's got a big show at number four (and indeed is favourite in betting markets as I write), despite the fact the points system has changed this year in a way that will only serve to blunt his chances. That said, I agree he needs to get a couple of classics on his palmares, if not to cement himself at the very top of the sport, then to put that issue to bed.
Justin Curran
Roar Rookie
I think you make some good points Bryan. I find Sagan frustrating in a way. He obviously has a lot of talent but hasn't been able to convert that onto the score sheet in the last two years. Watching him in the classics is eternally frustrating. He has a bad habit of attacking way too far from the finish and then being caught and running out of legs. I know what you are saying Sean about his sprinting prowess, but he seems to win very few bunch sprints.
bryan
Guest
Sagan's biggest issue to taking stages now is that he is too good a sprinter, and not quite good enough at the same time. He has an unique skill set that is now very well known. Anyway, on a completely flat proper sprinter's stage, he either doesn't quite have enough in the tank yet, or the right leadership in his team to learn to time his sprints. On a slightly more hilly stage, where his real skill set is, he is just too good. Unfortunately, this means everyone knows they cannot out-sprint him, so they attack from further out. And no-one helps chasing because they know if they chase, Sagan wins. So he gets left watching 1-2 riders float into the distance, without a team to help him chase em down. He can't chase all the attacks down, or risk having no energy left. I suspect in the future, there will be a few more riders like Sagan. But, now he is a well marked man, I don't think he will win many without changing to a devoted team.
Sean Lee
Expert
Yes, it does come down to perception. What annoys me is when people say he is not a 'pure' sprinter the insinuation is that he can't hold his own against the fast men. The fact is, he can! No matter which way you look at it though, he is a super rider.
Brendon Vella
Roar Guru
Really hard to judge because people perceptions of a pure sprinter are different. As you said, he can climb very well, but then can stay with the top sprinters. Personally, if you can climb the way he did, more times than not l will not class these riders as pure sprinters.