Sagan announces 2023 season will be his last on the road

[Elefantino]

Sort of. Full-time, at least. He'll focus on mountain bikes with an eye toward the 2024 Paris Olympics. Or so he says.

Cycling Weekly called him "cycling's rock and roll frontman."

He'll be missed, by most, at least.

[batman1425]

IMO, a good move for him. He's lost a bit of the magic (or others have caught up?) that put him at the front of affairs for so long but his skill and acumen on the road keep him in the hunt. Being able to carefully choose your "exit strategy" is a luxury.

Will miss his presence in the pro peloton for sure.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Elefantino

Sort of. Full-time, at least. He'll focus on mountain bikes with an eye toward the 2024 Paris Olympics. Or so he says.

Cycling Weekly called him "cycling's rock and roll frontman."

He'll be missed, by most, at least.

Love him or not, he brought a lot of 'life' to the pro pelOton...which sometimes took the moisture right out of your mouth with some of these 'robots'.

He's set, he won't have any problem landing on his feet....I suspect he WILL compete in Paris in 2024..and everybody will know it.

[GregL]

A friend is a big fan of Sagan. She attended the Canadian World Tour races just to see him in action. At the Montreal race a few years back, she bumped into Sagan while he was reconning the course. He was very polite and pleasant to her, posing for pictures and exchanging small talk for a few minutes. Just the fact that he appreciates and respects his fans earned my respect.

Greg

[saab2000]

He’s not the rider he was a decade ago but I still hope he gets a big one. I’d like to see him win M-SR or another world title. Neither is likely but hardly beyond possible either.

[KonaSS]

As a fan of mtb XC - I am hoping he makes a splash and is at least competitive. Will hopefully bring in some new fans.

XC has really found its way as a spectator sport the last few years. Great coverage, shorter race times, exciting racing. If you like watching cross, XC is just a slightly longer, rowdier format. It is already growing and ready to blossom. Hopefully this is what it needs to really jump.

[bigbill]

Make mountain biking fun again. Sagan is a man of immense talent that never took himself too seriously, just what the sport needs.

[EB]

Narrator voice: He did not make mountain biking fun again.

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/r...t-start-276795

[Nizzle]

Originally Posted by Eli Bingham

Narrator voice: He did not make mountain biking fun again.

lol. https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/pet...-e-mtb-worlds/


But really, I’m also a big fan of XC MTB and am psyched to see him out there more regularly! Nino needs some more competition.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by Nizzle

lol. https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/pet...-e-mtb-worlds/


But really, I’m also a big fan of XC MTB and am psyched to see him out there more regularly! Nino needs some more competition.

Is Sagan light enough to really mix it at the front end of XCO races? Some of those guys are quite lean and fly up the climbs. He might see more success in the short track races where there is less climbing.

[veloduffer]

I thought Sagan brought some fun to the pro road scene. Super talented, fun videos, etc. Although he won a lot of races, I always thought he could have won so many more if he had that one extra gear to dial up the speed with Greipel, Cavendish, Ewan, etc. Maybe my recollection is off but similar to Laurent Jalabert when he was still sprinting (before the big TdF crash). Always in the mix but didn't have the top gear.

Whatever, best of luck to him in mtb.

[nooneline]

Originally Posted by veloduffer

I thought Sagan brought some fun to the pro road scene. Super talented, fun videos, etc. Although he won a lot of races, I always thought he could have won so many more if he had that one extra gear to dial up the speed with Greipel, Cavendish, Ewan, etc. Maybe my recollection is off but similar to Laurent Jalabert when he was still sprinting (before the big TdF crash). Always in the mix but didn't have the top gear.

Whatever, best of luck to him in mtb.

Yeah he was really clearly trying to ride two horses: field sprinter and classics specialist. There aren't a lot of riders like him - though WVA of course comes to mind - but with guys like those, you can really see when they focus more on one, the other suffers a bit.

As far as his retirement - it's probably for the best. He hasn't looked like anything close to his top self for a number of years, and it's always better when champions step away before they become too much of a cautionary tale.

[GregL]

My three favorite Sagan races:

1) 2016 TdF Stage 11. Froome and Sagan blow the field apart before sprinting for the win. Green beats yellow to the line. The sheer audacity of that move made for great viewing.

2) 2016 World Championships in Doha. On the top of the podium with Cav and Boonen. All three had previously won the road world championships, the TdF green jersey, and at least one monument. What a podium!

3) 2018 Paris-Roubaix. Sagan attacks the pack containing the favorites and bridges up to the escape. He then drives the break to the finish while tightening his stem with a hex wrench. A great combination of strength, panache, and tactics.

As for transitioning to XC MTB, I think it will be hard. Not sure if Pidcock and MvdP will be sticking around, but there's still lots of talent in the XC ranks. I hope it works out for him, but he could do well just riding grand fondos like his former rival Cancellara.

Greg

[nooneline]

Originally Posted by GregL

My three favorite Sagan races:

1) 2011 TdF Stage 16. Froome and Sagan blow the field apart before sprinting for the win. Green beats yellow to the line. The sheer audacity of that move made for great viewing.

2) 2016 World Championships in Doha. On the top of the podium with Cav and Boonen. All three had previously won the road world championships, the TdF green jersey, and at least one monument. What a podium!

3) 2018 Paris-Roubaix. Sagan attacks the pack containing the favorites and bridges up to the escape. He then drives the break to the finish while tightening his stem with a hex wrench. A great combination of strength, panache, and tactics.

As for transitioning to XC MTB, I think it will be hard. Not sure if Pidcock and MvdP will be sticking around, but there's still lots of talent in the XC ranks. I hope it works out for him, but he could do well just riding grand fondos like his former rival Cancellara.

Greg

One of my favs is Stage 6 of the 2013 Tirreno Adriatico. Super steep climbs, terrible weather, and Sagan gets away with Nibali and J Rodriguez.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by GregL

My three favorite Sagan races:

1) 2011 TdF Stage 16. Froome and Sagan blow the field apart before sprinting for the win. Green beats yellow to the line. The sheer audacity of that move made for great viewing.

That's 2016, stage 11 for anyone looking for the video.