Stage 16: Evans Looks Good

I've made no secret I've been rooting against Cadel Evans. but it really felt like he won the Tour de France today. OK, this could look real stupid by the time the riders crest Alpe d'Huez tomorrow, but Evans put time in to two riders today: the two guys who had a shot at beating him in a time trial. This was a huge day. Evans doesn't need to blow Sastre or Kohl off the road, he just has to beat them in the ITT, which he is likely to do. The two guys he had to worry about were Menchov and Vande Velde. Both lost time today.

So all Cadel has to do is do what he's best at: hang with the group tomorrow, don't attack, manage the attacks that do happen, and then win this on a time trial. It really has all gone according to plan. I don't like the plan, but it has been effective. And the name of the game isn't style, it's winning. Or else we'd just give the Yellow Jersey to Jens Voigt.

When Evans was weak, his rivals couldn't put him away. When he crashed so badly, he gave the reporters his dented helmet, he didn't lose any significant time. When he struggled on Stage 15, he minimized his time losses. And now, after looking like the weakest guy in the top group, he is sitting as pretty as anyone can be in a race that is within a minute. Give the guy credit, he has earned this advantage. As much as it hurts me to say, I think he is riding a tough, gritty race.