Originally Posted by TheRCF
However, this person trying to drag him back would not be a threat for the overall win.
If that is the case, why would someone care if another rider got behind them if it either had no effect or if a person behind can actually help the person in front a little?
You're right, it's not so simple if the riders are not evenly matched. Like say Jan Ullrich attacks, and Armstrong sends his weakest teammate out to cover the move. Ullrich wouldn't care and would just keep going to try to gain time.
But, the trend in bike racing is to have more than one team leader on your team. T-Mobile showed up this year with Ullrich, Vinokourov, and Kloden -- three guys you can't ignore if one of them is glued to your back wheel.
Even still, let's say Ullrich attacks and Armstrong sends his weakest rider after him. Weak rider sits on Ullrich's wheel and can wait for Armstrong to chase them both down, and then when he does he has a teammate already there - it's two Discovery riders against Ullrich. So, teammates can "drag back" stronger opponents just by letting them know that they are likely to be outnumbered if they continue.
That's how Mapei dominated the Spring Classics in the 90's - a ton of strong teammates who covered every move, then chased themselves down. It would appear foolish, teammates chasing and catching each other, until the end when they had the numerical advantage.