Dauphiné ITT: Gorka good, Samu bad

It was another day of contrasting performances in the Dauphiné for Euskaltel. Gorka, just like in the prologue, displayed great form by taking a highly respective 15th over the 49 kilometres, while the man who's form is supposed to be on the up with less than four weeks to go until the Tour, Samu, failed badly by placing 48th, 4:14 down. Of course, we've seen it all before: GC candidates being way off the pace in the lead-up to the Tour and then all of a sudden being right in the mix when July comes around. Let's hope this is the case with Samu. He's usually a master when it comes to preparing for races and peaking at the right time, so I'm not going to get overly worried just yet. As for the other guys, Romain did okay to finish 42nd, 3:53 back, while Egoi was 69th at 4:53, Jorge 95th at 5:51, Iñaki 110th at 6:19, Iván 131st at 7:11 and finally Alan 145th at 7:50. With the form Gorka is in at the moment he's surely a dead cert for a ride in the Tour. So too is JJ who's been in good shape all year and have been taking part in recon rides on the pavés and in the Pyrenees. Samu is the captain obviously, so he'll be there, and so too will Egoi, Iñaki and Amets. I reckon Rubén, with his performances of late and his Tour pedigree, should be a shoo-in as well, so that leaves two places up for grabs. I'd love to see Koldo go, but I'm not sure Igor is keen on sending a sprinter. Iván, if he recaptures his form pre-injury, would be a great addition, and so too would Alan. So there you go, Euskaltel for the Tour for you!