He came across quite arrogant........I know he is probably the future of sprinters in the pro peloton, but I'm used to seeing more humility in interviews.

I think he is cute, and optimistic instead of arrogant is a good way to look at it.

What's a sprinter without a little arrogance? Isn't that a job requirement?

I think he is cute, and optimistic instead of arrogant is a good way to look at it.

use your illusion.

What's a sprinter without a little arrogance? Isn't that a job requirement?

erik zabel.

erik zabel.


What do you older guys think of his legacy though? I'm impressed with his low-key style in interviews but, the EPO stuff back in the '90's kind of mucks his image up for me.

Great rider anyways.

Zabel will retire and remain a legend. 200+ career wins and maybe the best sprinter ever. I personally don't care if riders dope.

Cavendish is a rocket for sure and a tool. Still, being a rocket-tool seemed to work out OK for McEwen - but then he pops wheelies at the end of mountain stages so all is forgiven. Freire is the man in my book.

Are we talking about the interview on Versus during Stage 3? He was questioned about his supposed prior arrogance, but he didn't seem all that arrogant to me during this interview. He simply opined that a sprinter needs to exude confidence in order to get the space he needs. Sounds like strategy to me.

Cav had targeted the stage and was not happy having missed out, he's passionate, wants to win and gets annoyed when he targets something and misses that target. He speaks his mind, and I don't have a problem with that, :lol:from where I'm siting it was quite entertaining. He's a character and it's about time we had a few characters (bumps up the viewing figures, gets people talking about the sport) :thumb::thumb:

use your illusion.



erik zabel.

I don't think you can become a great sprinter without a healthy bit of self-pride/arrogance. I've read somewhere (procycling, I think) that Zabel is unliked in the peloton. I wonder what that's all about.

so what's wrong with that? If he backs it up, then fine, fair play to him.

people said the same thing about Ritchey Rich in the Giro. It's just young guys who are really competitive talking after a race. That just isn't always the recipie for the "aw shucks" sort of interview.

Well I know ZERO domestic/euro pros so you got me there buddy. BUT the magazine did mention that he has alienated some teammates and others. I don't have it in front of me but i think it was in the bad boy/rivalry issue a few months back. They must have had some reason to mention zabel.

I didn`t really find him arrogant.
If anything he came across as not having much experience on camera but confident in his abilities.
meh, just my .02

i think it takes quite a bit of self-confidence and self-assurance to be willing to go elbow-to-elbow at sprint speeds at the end of a race. i also think it's a fine line between sounding like you're matter-of-factly analyzing what happened in a race or sounding like you're a whiner. he's still a young man. he's loud. he's passionate. he's trying to muscle his way up from being a young pup to finding his place as one of the big dogs. cut him a little slack. as maturity catches up, i think you'll see him tone it down a bit. he won't need to yell any more. today may make a large difference. he's now a TdF stage winner. maybe he'll realize that proves his right to be in the highest group. maybe he'll start realizing the others feel he's legit, so he actually will look bad about whining from now on. it's not how stage winners act

so I assume by that post he won today?

so I assume by that post he won today?

oops. sorry. my bad

arrogant - he rides for an "american" team so maybe he thinks it is expected of him.

Without riders like Cavendish, we'd ***** that there are no 'personalities' in the pro peloton. While the kid does come across as arrogant - at least it gives us fodder for discussion. Same goes for Ricco...I think he's a punk, but glad he's there. There's only so much I can discuss about riders like Evans, Levi, etc.

He knows he comes off as arrogant, but he said that isn't his goal. Either way, it's still arrogance.

I like it.

dude is hott! and when you win a tdf stage you can be as ****ing arrogant as you wanna. yesh.

What I liked when I saw the replay was first, his reaction crossing the line. Grabbing his helmet then putting his arms out. There are great expressions in a lot of sports but cycling really has more than its fair share! These guys, especially in the sprints, go from grinding it out to a chaotic finish and only then do the know they've won. I think you catch a glimpse of the real person for just a few seconds when they hit the finish. The other thing I liked was the riders on each side of him, Zabel was on his left and someone else on his right, both reached out and gave him a quick pat on the back, and just before the camera left him you saw him look to the left and then to the right to acknowledge their congratulations. So often I see the winning sprinter continue to with the celebration and ignore the guys they beat. Maybe they see them later but it nice to see him get his emotions under control so quickly (or maybe he just wanted to see who he beat!).

Finally...I'm seeing things this year that I've never seen before (first year with Versus). It was fun pausing the DVR as the sprint began and seeing each step of the lead out as it took place.

He appeared to come across as fairly humble today. Praises to his team dominated the interview imo.

i just saw his post-race interview. he gave a lot of credit to the ride his team did and to kirchen sacrificing his green jersey for the win. and he mentioned how he learned something from thor hushovd while trying to catch the guys off the front. he spent the time talking about others, not himself. i thought he came across well

Most of the hot **** sprinters have had egos to match. Abdu, Cipo, Peta, McEwen, etc.