Fabio Sabatini has escorted many sprinters in his career. And all the best… and if a Fabio Jacobsen he claims to be the fastest man alive the thing can't fall to the ground.
We bring you the phrase of the sprinter of Soudal-Quick Step. "Do I think I'm the fastest man in the world? If I look at the top speed Not many people can pass me when I start. That's what I train for, and that's why I can say you're right.. On the other hand, maybe I'm not the strongest sprinter in the world, given that I always have to fight against the maximum timeIt works like this: if you want to be the fastest, you have to suffer on the climbs. And at the Tour, everyone is so at their best that everything is amplified. But that's just how I am and I don't want to change. Not for now, at least…».
Fabio, is it true that Jakobsen is the fastest man on the planet?
Yes, it could be true, it could be true. But it's also true that he was defeated. On paper, clearly, he is one of the strongest sprinters and currently I believe also the purest. He competes with Groenewegen.
So you also agree when he says he is the purest currently?
Yes, if there's a little climb, if he doesn't break away, he risks arriving at the sprint with "one leg up and one leg down" and can be beaten.
And for you who have seen and escorted many, who was the fastest and the purest?
Marcel Kittel – Sabatini replies without hesitation – I was with him at Quick Step for two years and he was really fast.
We were thinking more of an old McEwen, an Ewan, the "little" sprinter who passes you in the last 30 meters. They say they have the fastest peaks...
It's one thing to exit at the last second and another to be the fastest. A sprinter like Jakobsen who sprints for 200-210 meters and wins with a bike-length advantage is the strongest for me. If he starts like this and gets passed in the final because there's a headwind, it's possible that someone like Ewan can skip it in the last few meters, but that doesn't mean it's faster.
In short, the sprint speed doesn't increase until the end and those who jump do so because those in front have "slumped"...
In a sprint there are so many factors to evaluate, so many things at stake… And it's impossible to give a single judgment. What's certain is that after what happened to him, for me Jakobsen, who has returned to his level, is even stronger.
You have escorted many champions: Viviani, Cavendish, Kittel, Gaviria...
I went through with Petaks, but perhaps we are going too far back in time. It was Kittel who definitively launched me into my role as trailblazer. However, I think Cav is the strongest, especially after what he did at the 2021 Tour, winning four stages and the green jersey. If he had a train like he had at Quick Step I'm sure he would win again. But he would need the train…
And Viviani?
He's probably more of a Caleb Ewan, if you have someone like him on your wheel it's a problem because he has a track rider's peak and in fact 70% of the sprints in which I escorted him I had him "really short" (near the finish line, ed.). Because if he started long, whoever was on his wheel could jump him, as his peak would then decrease. If I left a Kittel at 210-220 meters, I left Viviani at 170-150.
Let's play a fantasy cycling game. Take all the sprinters you've ever met in your career and assume they're all at the peak of their careers. Who's the strongest?
Eh – Sabatini thinks about it a bit – If I had to rank, I'd put Peta first! Alessandro was impressive when he started and had a really long sprint. He might not have had the highest peak, but he could do 1.500 watts for 30-40 seconds. And with these values, you make a huge difference. I don't think I've ever left him behind for less than 200 meters. He and Kittel are among those sprinters who, once you leave them and you're already at full speed, increase their speed even further. Then I'd put Cavendish and Viviani on par. People like that are really dangerous against a train!
Given the demands of current courses (with more elevation gain), do you think they limit the potential of sprinters, especially in the sprints?
Of course they limit them and you can also see it from the teams that are now being put together for the Grand Tours. It is unlikely that a WorldTour rider, unless they are a “rookie”, will bring a sprinter or a sprinter’s train. At most, they put one or two men close to him. Also, what guarantees can a sprinter give? Today, there's always a little climb before the finish line. And if he overcomes it, he arrives tired in the sprint. But this also depends on the scores of theUCI.
Go ahead…
Until they change completely – I know they've been tweaked, thankfully – it will always be like this. Better to get a tenth in the general classification than to win several stages. Let's look at the This year's Vuelta. But would you take a sprinter? The first stage is a team time trial, the second has a short climb at the end, and the third stage already reaches the 2.000-meter mark in Andorra. Many times the sprinter needs the first stages to get going, so he risks finishing outside the maximum time limit.
Let's get back to us. merlier Does he have the potential to challenge Jakobsen? Ultimately, he's a new recruit arriving in the team where everyone is improving...
I was in that group for six years and the philosophy is that "whoever goes fastest" goes forward. Lefevere he doesn't look anyone in the face. I completely agree with what you wrote that the Tour team will be decided a few weeks before the race. It's absolutely true, I can assure you. And if Merlier were to win races during that period and Jakobsen were to lose some, you can be sure that they would take Merlier to France. If Jakobsen wants to stay at Soudal-Quick Step, he should know that Lefevere will always have at least two sprinters. In short, he'll always have a "problem."
In that ranking of sprinters above, where would you place Jakobsen?
Between Petacchi and Kittel. Fabio is really powerful. In a regular sprint, when Morkov moves, it's difficult for anyone to pass him. When it happened, it was because there were particular dynamics.
