Crystal Ball: Who will be the next DH Winner? Nerd Alert.

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UCI Mountain Bike World Cup
conomad
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conomad 1/3/2018 1:43pm
1/3/2018 1:43pm
russthedog wrote:
Vergier has to win one very soon surely! Jack Moir is probably a good bet too. As somewhat of an outside chance I think we could...
Vergier has to win one very soon surely! Jack Moir is probably a good bet too.

As somewhat of an outside chance I think we could see Florent Payet win one, he has been so close so many times, undoubtedly has the speed and is on a bike that fits him finally. He would be a good candidate for a 29er DH bike too right?

More outside chances - the two Charlies - Hatton and Harrison. Both had some dangerous form and are young enough that a good off season could see them come out firing.
As a tall rider I was thinking about Payet too... he always looks like he is riding a bmx bike... could maybe see the kind of improvement out of him that came out of Minnar when SC finally built him a proper sized V10. To clarify I'm referring to the xxl not the 29, although he has obviously benefitted from that too. If anyone on the circuit needs a 29er it's Payet...
AdamO
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AdamO 1/3/2018 5:19pm
1/3/2018 5:19pm
ck85 wrote:
Can't believe Blenki's win is 10 years ago.
Me too... im getting old ;p
OneManArmy 1/3/2018 5:38pm
1/3/2018 5:38pm
adrennan wrote:
finn was off the elite times by not very much as a junior. the kid is only getting bigger and stronger.
I don't see him getting a win next year.

I think he's 2 years off. But I wouldn't be surprised to see some podiums in those first 2 years.


Neko looked good last year.

But I think it'll be Shaw or Vergier.
Roots_rider
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Roots_rider 1/4/2018 9:19am
1/4/2018 9:19am
Loris or Laurie I think. Moir is a good bet also. I'm personally rooting for Connor. Been soooo insanely close and still not had it.
wmv7766
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wmv7766 1/4/2018 9:33am
1/4/2018 9:33am
While my vote is for Greenland, the thing that really sticks out to me is these riders are still a noticeable level below the top riders. Greenland, Gutierrez, Shaw, Vergier, Atwill... They're all so talented but (imo) they're missing that little extra something that makes guys like Gwin, Minnaar, Bruni, Brosnan and Hart special.

Like UCI explained when it cut the junior field from 30 to 20 and like we see with some youngsters such as Loic Bruni and probably Finn Iles: You either have it, or you don't.
fun house 1/4/2018 7:37pm
1/4/2018 7:37pm
bikerfilmerboy wrote:
Lots of good options for a rookie WC winner. I like Finn but from 2017 races, he's a bit off the winner's times. I did a...
Lots of good options for a rookie WC winner. I like Finn but from 2017 races, he's a bit off the winner's times. I did a little research... (I know they're not in order)

France: Finn's time: 2:56, winning Elite Men's time: 2:52 (Wet)
Switzerland: Finn's time: 3:09, winning Elite Men's time: 2:57
Ft. Bill: Finn's time: 4:55, winning Elite Men's time: 4:40
Andora: Finn's time: 4:12, winning Elite Men's time: 4:06
Leogang: Finn's time: 3:15, winning Elite Men's time: 3:06
MSA: Finn's time: 4:18, winning Elite Men's time: 4:18 (WET)
Val Di Sol: Finn's time: 3:40, winning Elite Men's time: 3:32
Thanks for putting these times together! Interesting to see where he was most competitive. Not going to expect a big result from him in Croatia, looks like he flies his best colours on the rowdy tracks.
fun house 1/4/2018 7:46pm
1/4/2018 7:46pm
wmv7766 wrote:
While my vote is for Greenland, the thing that really sticks out to me is these riders are still a noticeable level below the top riders...
While my vote is for Greenland, the thing that really sticks out to me is these riders are still a noticeable level below the top riders. Greenland, Gutierrez, Shaw, Vergier, Atwill... They're all so talented but (imo) they're missing that little extra something that makes guys like Gwin, Minnaar, Bruni, Brosnan and Hart special.

Like UCI explained when it cut the junior field from 30 to 20 and like we see with some youngsters such as Loic Bruni and probably Finn Iles: You either have it, or you don't.
Fair point, and the data supports this. Maybe she's born with it, maybe it's [extensive factory support].

So then to shift discussion slightly, who aside from Minnaar/Gwin will win this year? Wouldn't be surprised to see Danny do it again if he gets accustomed to his new bike quickly enough. Bruni has only won in Cairns but undoubtedly has what it takes to win on nearly any other track. I'm thinking back to Andorra last year and seeing Hart and Bruni net nearly identical times, but Bruni didn't even appear to pushing it (at least compared to the wildness of Hart's run). Pushing it too far in the past has led to crashes and injuries; perhaps he's about to find that goldilocks zone.
MattPatt
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MattPatt 1/5/2018 1:24pm
1/5/2018 1:24pm
Other: Brannigan! Remember, he's been a bridesmaid (2nd to Stevie at Hafjell in '12) Add him to the list I reckon.
fun house 1/5/2018 1:29pm
1/5/2018 1:29pm
I'd like to hear who he's riding for and who his teammates will be first. If the rumours of Mondraker are true, he'll be riding with his good pal Laurie and I'd expect some magic results.
fun house 4/23/2018 3:57pm
4/23/2018 3:57pm
Post race discussion:

I had picked Vergier and Moir as some of my top picks, but their teammates (Luca Shaw and Dean Lucas) came closer to it this weekend than they did! I bet Vergier and Shaw spent the drive home talking about what it is like to come second to Gwin. Again, I love thinking back to Gwin getting intimidated in the start hut by Vergier's first corner in Leogang awhile back (not that it was enough).

Also as Dakotah Norton was in the hot seat long and longer, I couldn't help but wonder if we were all wrong!

Super fun race to watch, loved the track and the full coverage.
fun house 6/4/2018 12:44am
6/4/2018 12:44am Edited Date/Time 6/4/2018 12:45am
sspomer wrote:
ooh, this is rad. i'll go w/ loris or amaury pierron. moir too : ) it's crazy how short the list of actual race winners is.
Spomer you win some cake for this post. You guessed the 1-2 punch for the first race with a new winner all the way back in January!

Similar to your more recent poll, only about 2% (45 votes) in this poll picked Amaury as their top choice. Huge congrats to him.
sspomer
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sspomer 6/4/2018 7:52am
6/4/2018 7:52am
sspomer wrote:
ooh, this is rad. i'll go w/ loris or amaury pierron. moir too : ) it's crazy how short the list of actual race winners is.
fun house wrote:
Spomer you win some cake for this post. You guessed the 1-2 punch for the first race with a new winner all the way back in...
Spomer you win some cake for this post. You guessed the 1-2 punch for the first race with a new winner all the way back in January!

Similar to your more recent poll, only about 2% (45 votes) in this poll picked Amaury as their top choice. Huge congrats to him.
hahaha, #lucky

so stoked for amaury. he's NASTY!
evolixsurf 6/4/2018 6:47pm
6/4/2018 6:47pm
When does the next poll go up?

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