Talossan Cycling Association Tour Season 4 Leg 1: Dürres -> Roma

[Glüc]

Esqipă Velocostă wins the first leg of TCAT 2025!

[Glüc]

So minmaxing is a valid strategy, it would seem...

Not this time apparently😅

[Sir Lüc]

Stage 21 Roma -> Roma

TCAT and Giro came to a close on Sunday, and while the latter was all but decided and just gearing up for a celebratory ride around Rome, TCAT was still open, with EVC holding a slim lead of barely 100pts over VFL, with the Florencian team having reversed its End of Tour deficit thanks to Simon Yates now being the leader and ultimate winner of Giro.

All came down to whether Olav Kooij (EVC/MCB/REX) would deliver for the Belacostans, and so he did, for a second individual stagewin (fourth podium) during this edition. Kaden Groves (ATX/GHS) was second, Mads Pedersen (BDC/CHX/CJO/CFA/GHS) fourth, Filippo Baroncini (MCB) seventh and Kim Heiduk (CJO) seventeenth.

As such, the Cabana Boys claim the final daily stage win (thanks to Kooij and Baroncini) and Velocostă expanded its lead over Velociposse to roughly 300 points before End of Tour points are applied, as no rider scored stage points for the latter.

Standings after stage 21 and before End of Tour points

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Esqipă Velocostă (EVC)	7305	+301
2nd	(+1)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	7023	+375
3rd	(-1)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	6994	+119
4th	(+1)		Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	6731	+414
5th	(-1)		Els Talossaes Rexhitais (REX)	6707	+301
6th	(=)		Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	6491	+219
7th	(=)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	6118	+199
8th	(=)		BdC Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	6066	+192
9th	(=)		Els Averatxeirs (ATX)	6007	+239
10th	(=)		Dirnalaiset Mortescu (DED)	5673	+279
11th	(=)		Kinetic (KIN)	5453	+107
12th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	5018	+195
13th	(=)		Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	4708	+44
14th	(=)		The Manilows (MAN)	4024	+36

Will that be enough to keep Velocostă in front after End of Tour points are applied?

[Sir Lüc]

FINAL STANDINGS

(± is wrt standings after stage 21 without End of Tour points applied)

Pos	±		Team	Points	EoT bonus
1st	(=)		Esqipă Velocostă (EVC)	8615	+1310
2nd	(+1)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	8404	+1410
3rd	(+2)		Els Talossaes Rexhitais (REX)	8027	+1320
4th	(-2)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	7508	+485
5th	(-1)		Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	7391	+660
6th	(=)		Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	7091	+600
7th	(+2)		Els Averatxeirs (ATX)	7087	+1080
8th	(=)		BdC Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	6726	+660
9th	(+2)		Kinetic (KIN)	6663	+1210
10th	(-3)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	6568	+450
11th	(-1)		Dirnalaiset Mortescu (DED)	6163	+490
12th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	5348	+330
13th	(=)		Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	5028	+320
14th	(=)		The Manilows (MAN)	4274	+250

Of course we spoiled the answer already: yes, it was enough. Congratulations to @Mic'haglh Autófil, O.Be for winning TCAT Italy 2025! A maiden win in Velocostă's first participation, just like Cyclohexane in Italy 2023. That was a tight affair too - still the tightest winning margin - but this race was also well-fought, with just 211 points separating the top two pair, coincidentally the same as in the previous leg, Spain 2024.

In second, Velociposse returns to a TCAT leg podium for the first time since Italy 2023, and in third, els Talossaes Rexhitais get a first podium and the best result in four participations considering their previous incarnation, Cantzelerïă Aþletici.

[Sir Lüc]

SIDE CLASSIFICATIONS...

...are a sweep for GHST, but it's not the first time either GHST sweeps the side classifications (that happened in Spain 2022 too), nor the first time a team sweeps the side classifications while not even making the podium in the general classification (it happened with the Cabana Boys in Spain 2023, who somehow only placed fifth). This, I think, puts GHST on 7 side classification wins, one shy of BdC which still is the team with the most side classification wins (8).

Either way the wins in the Sprinters and Climbers are not surprising (because of Pedersen + Groves in the former and Fortunato in the latter); Combativity is a little more unpredictable but here again Fortunato contributed half of the breakaway points in his hunt for the King of Mountains jersey.

SPRINTERS'S CLASSIFICATION - second win by GHST after Spain 2022
(intermediate sprint points + daily points' classification points)
Gordon Hiatus Support Team 612
Port Maxhestic AC 535
Cézembre Fieschā 513
Cyclohexane 488
BdC Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs 487
Maricopa Cabana Boys 347
Esqipă Velocostă (EVC) 336
Els Talossaes Rexhitais 336
Dirnalaiset Mortescu 310
Velociposse Florencia 255
Kinetic 254
The Manilows 249
Els Averatxeirs 76
Naziun Cjovani 28


CLIMBERS'S CLASSIFICATION - third win by GHST after Spain 2022 and Italy 2024
(summit points + daily KOM points)
Gordon Hiatus Support Team 568
Esqipă Velocostă 252
Dirnalaiset Mortescu 236
Els Talossaes Rexhitais 232
Naziun Cjovani 170
BdC Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs 167
The Manilows 161
Maricopa Cabana Boys 143
Port Maxhestic AC 134
Velociposse Florencia 133
Els Averatxeirs 133
Cézembre Fieschā 109
Cyclohexane 34
Kinetic 24


COMBATIVITY CLASSIFICATION - second win by GHST after Spain 2022
(20 pts per breakaway rider)
Gordon Hiatus Support Team 160
Port Maxhestic AC 140
Esqipă Velocostă 120
Velociposse Florencia 120
Els Talossaes Rexhitais 120
Maricopa Cabana Boys 100
Kinetic 100
Naziun Cjovani 100
The Manilows 100
Els Averatxeirs 80
Dirnalaiset Mortescu 80
Cézembre Fieschā 80
BdC Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs 60
Cyclohexane 20

[Sir Lüc]

That's basically it for the results! Some commentary is probably in order but for now, hope everyone had fun and we'll see you in a month for the second leg of TCAT 2025, mirroring Tour de France.

[King Txec]

I am very surprised to have made the podium considering at one point my team was in last place! Congrats to the top finishers and I look forward to the next TCAT!

-Txec R

[Marcel Eðo Pairescu Tafial, UrGP]

I'm glad that my team finished in a thematically appropriate way, namely 7th out of 14.

[King Txec]

I'm glad that my team finished in a thematically appropriate way, namely 7th out of 14.

That's funny actually!

-Txec R

[Mic’haglh Autófil, O.Be]

I'm glad that my team finished in a thematically appropriate way, namely 7th out of 14.

Hey what are tomorrow's Powerball numbers?

Asking for a friend.


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