Contador a winner, but never a champion
 

What a cowardly move to take advantage of mechanical problems to run away from your competition. Contador will always be remembered for such self-centered moves. Who would want to win by beating someone's chain?

He might win, but he'll never be a champion.

I'm not a contador fan, but you are a troll.

He's not going to win....AS will put time on him Thursday

he wasn't going to let menchov and sanchez up the road. schleck would have done the same. it's racing...andy already got a gift on stage 2

I disagree with the Op. What was he supposed to do, stop and wait while Menchov and Sanchez flew away?

So do you think the same thing about them?

Game on.

It is not that black and white. He did sit up for a moment when he realized what had happened but then Sanchez and Menchov decided to use the opportunity to attack. Had Alberto waited he could have lost too much time to those two riders which are too dangerous in GC and the final ITT. AC cannot afford to let Menchov get within 1 minute of him. The other GC guys are riding too strong and too close.

Incorrect....AC attacked not SS or DM.

Wow, most excitement I've seen in a long time.

French Tv say that said that Contrador was in the right to make the move, chains falling and flats are bike racing.

Personally I think Contrador should of waited, then won the tour on cycling merit like I know he can.

I do not believe it was a clear cut issue of AC attacking the mechanical. He did need to mark Sanchez and Menchov. Also, AC was chasing Schleck's move at the time the mechanical. The real problem was not getting the chain back on in a timely manner. Those extra seconds were the difference between Schleck catching back up or not.

I can't wait for the Spoiler Police.

I can understand going after Menchov and Sanchez, but then he started driving on the pace himself, clearly deciding to take advantage

1 CONTADOR Alberto (ASTANA
2 SCHLECK Andy (TEAM SAXO BANK) + 00' 08"
3 SANCHEZ Samuel (EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI) + 02' 00"
4 MENCHOV Denis (RABOBANK) + 02' 13"

What the hey do the French know?

Whatever.... He was always going to win the tour barring bad luck. He hasn't had any. Schleck did. Armstrong did also even though he as never going to be a contender. The sad part is that there is no drama left in the tour, we can't even fantasize about somebody else winning.

Well, there was that Iraq deal....remember when they didn't go?

And when he realized it was a mechanical sat on the wheels of those 2 who drove the pace to the top.

SS and DM were putting valuable time into their competitors and AC couldnt ask them to give that back because AS had a mech.

oh great....

P and R in 3,2,1....

It's entirely possible that Schleck will put a big dent in Contador tomorrow and thursday, Contador probably wouldn't have done this if he was feeling super confident and now Andy is anger-boosted to boot.

Could be nothing but drama (here's hoping)

At first that's what he did, but then he went back to the front and kept driving all the way to the finish

THIS.

Schleck made the move which forced everyone else to counter - at that point it's "game on". Unfortunate mishap but too bad. What's fair and sportsmanlike with 50km to go is not the same as what's fair and sportsmanlike with 10km to go.

Conta probably didn't realize what had happened, or how much of an effect it would have until he already had 30 seconds on Schleck. Looked like a simple botched shift or something at first. (Actually my first thought was broken crankarm.)

BTW, I love that commercial where Andy and Alberto are riding trainers and trying to outdo each other with their wattage numbers, climb times, animal wrestling etc. First time I saw it was this morning.

Schleck was launching an attack that appeared to be opening a gap on Contador. Attacking when he drops his chain under those circumstances is definitely not sporting. If it had occurred behind, oh well. But when the yellow jersey is showing strength and aggression, to attack a mechanical is without honor,.

All three riders (Contador, Menchov, and Sanchez) should be ashamed of themselves. It wasn't sporting, and it would not have happened if any single one of them sat up and said to wait.

You need to look at the video again. The rider that was quickly closing on AS's attack was -Vino- NOT AC. AC, Sanchez & Menchov were all about 6-7 bike lengths behind (slowly countering AS's move). Vino was about 2-3 bike lengths behind when AS's rear wheel jumped & he immediately slowed (cadence and speed). Vino immediately sat up. AC then dropped the hammer from a few bike lengths back & blew by everyone and kept the attack up until the summit. IMO it was extremely clear that he saw the mechanical and -initiated- the counter attack (standing & attacking hard, not just sitting and pedaling by).

here's a 2003 new york times article that explains it best. definitely not cool. the mj is afforded certain considerations in this race. contador had the weight to stop menchov and sanchez and should have told them to ride tempo until schleck was back.

"But when Lance Armstrong caught his handlebars on a fan's tote bag and crashed to the pavement last month during the 15th stage of the Tour de France -- a crucial climb to the Pyrenees ski village of Luz-Ardiden -- Armstrong's rivals slowed down and waited for him to recover, forsaking the chance to leave him behind.
At the time, race fans heard much about cycling's first unwritten rule: Thou shalt not ride away from the race leader when he is on the ground, stopping to relieve himself, or at other unsporting moments. Commentators agreed after the race that all of Armstrong's closest rivals appeared to heed the rule, including Jan Ullrich, who at the time trailed Armstrong in the overall standing by a mere 15 seconds.
But by doing so, Ullrich and the others not only allowed Armstrong to catch up. They also gave him a chance to win the stage -- and arguably the Tour itself, both of which he did. Ullrich finished second, for the fifth time over all and the third time to Armstrong"

don't understand. why was this person a troll for bringing up ac's attack when the maillot jeune's chain came off? it's a very relevant topic. there's a reason contador was booed by the crowd when he was on the podium getting the mj.