david gaudu It was one of the nice surprises of the past season. On other occasions we would have spoken of a real revelation, but with a pogacar who wins the Tour at 21, with Hidley who nearly took the Giro away from 24, here is the Frenchman with "only" two stages to go Return fades into the background.
It is no coincidence that his team Groupama-Fdj He signed him until 2023. The boy is serious. Never a word out of place, his teammates like him, and above all, he has great potential. He's part of the new guard of terrible kids.
King of the Future
But let's take a small step back and "discover" who Gaudu is. The Breton, born in 1996, won the 2016 Tour de l'Avenir. On that occasion he preceded ours by 24" Edward Ravasi, but he was 2'46 behind Egan Bernal, over three minutes Jay Hindley and more than four Tao Geoghegan Hart…And he did it by coming back and attacking. In short, he had clear ideas from the very beginning!
Although he doesn't come from a land of great climbs like Brittany, which is almost in the westernmost corner of the country, Landivisiau, Gaudu thrives on climbs. He's one of those riders who still hasn't left his hometown and often goes out on his bike, even in the snow. A typically French character.
The team manager of Groupama-Fdj, Marc Madiot He's helped him grow gradually, placing increasingly greater pressure on him, but also making him compete in the Tour in his second year as a pro and giving him the captain's rank at this year's Vuelta. And it seems like it's not over yet.
"David," Madiot told a French broadcaster, "deserved the captaincy. I'm proud of him. After an unlucky Tour, the 2020 Vuelta was his revenge."
Pinot on the sidelines?
Gaudu, the young man on the launch pad, Thibaut Pinot, the expert who doesn't take off due to misfortune and "demerits" (He can't handle the pressure.) In this context, the French team's management seems to have changed its hierarchy.
«I am proud of David Gaudu's progress – the sporting director had already said Philippe Mauduit – but I don't know if he'll be able to be captain at the Tour this summer. I can say that in Spain, in the last Vuelta, seeing him in the shoes of a leader was a great discovery. He motivated the group every day and executed the race plan perfectly." And he did it so well that he ended up finishing eighth overall, despite losing almost 2'30" already in the first leg.
Meanwhile there is the Paris-Nice
Madiot, on the other hand, seems to have, the conditional is a must, other plans for Gaudu. The manager is certainly thinking about seeing him as a leader at the Tour. Of course, it wouldn't put the pressure on him as the overall leader, but it would put him in the running for the overall standings, sharing the team's responsibilities with the sprinter. In fact, Madiot's thoughts are to see demare and Gaudu in France and to bring Pinot at the Giro.
And what does Gaudu say?
«I would like to keep the momentum of the Vuelta – he revealed to Cyclisme'Actu – But in the meantime the first objective of the season will be the Paris-NiceI'll try to avoid getting "trapped" in the first stages, then there will be the mountains. Paris-Nice will be one of my top goals of the season. I'll go for the overall. I can't wait to be there!
Before Paris-Nice (March 7-14), the 24-year-old Groupama rider will race the Tour du Var (February 19-21), the Drome Classic (February 27), and the Ardèche (February 28). And in a few days, he'll be flying to Teide.
