Stephen Roche
Alejandro Valverde and Joaquim Rodriguez aren't getting any younger but I can't see them slowing down
Last Updated: 05/02/15 11:01am
The Dubai Tour got under way yesterday and, on paper, it looks like a shootout between Alejandro Valverde and Joaquim Rodriguez for overall victory.
They are two of the most exciting riders of the current generation, but they are both now in the twilight of their careers and it’s going to be interesting to see whether they can stay at the top of the sport over the course of the coming season. I’m confident both will.
Years ago, you could say a guy of 34 or 35 years of age is on the decline and there are more good days behind him than ahead, but now riders in their mid-30s are still very much at their peak. Look at Cadel Evans, who won the Tour de France at the age of 34, or Simon Gerrans, who is still picking up big wins at 34.
OK, Rodriguez, 35, didn’t have a great season last year by his own standards and, at times, you couldn’t help but wonder if he was past his best, but you have to remember that he suffered a lot of bad luck.
He crashed heavily at the Amstel Gold Race in April and then crashed out of the Giro d’Italia a few weeks later, sustaining injuries that he just never seemed to fully recover from. His subdued form wasn’t always without justification.
Fit and healthy going into this season, I expect him to be back to his best. He has always had a great appetite for success and that is unlikely to have faded, but even more importantly in 2015, he has the motivation of the Tour de France.
Traditionally, the Tour has never really suited Rodriguez, but this year it looks tailor-made for his climbing style given that there is so little time-trialling in it.
Time-trialling has been a crippling weakness of his throughout his career and he would probably have won a grand tour by now had it not been for that. But this year the emphasis at the Tour is almost entirely on climbing, which plays into his hands perfectly.
He will see that as a really good opportunity to challenge for the podium and it could raise his performances for the rest of the year.
With the likes of Chris Froome and Alberto Contador also racing, winning the Tour may well be beyond him, but I still think we will get the old Rodriguez back in 2015.
I also think Valverde, 34, will be as impressive as ever. Last year he finished the season as the world’s No 1-ranked rider and while it will be hard for him to match the sheer consistency he showed in 2014, even if his level drops slightly, he is still in for a strong season.
One thing that has surprised me about him already this year is how early he is on form. He won one of the races at the Challenge Mallorca last week and while you can’t read too much into an event like that, the fact he won it by a country mile was eye-catching. It wasn’t a case of attacking on the final climb - he is in such good shape already that he took off with a long, long way to go and never looked back.
It’s just a shame with Valverde that his reputation has not always been squeaky clean. His suspension a few years ago was one thing, but he also has a habit of not collaborating in groups – he is known for that a little bit.
He tends to sit at the back of groups, not contribute and then take off at the end to snatch the win. Someone of that ability should be able to contribute at the front of a group and it’s always a shame when he doesn’t do that. It damages his name.
But that said, I will look forward to watching both him and Rodriguez racing as much as ever over the coming season. They are two of the stars of the sport and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
