Armstrong vs. Contador

Intra-team politics are best left behind in cycling buses and three-star French hotel rooms. But sometimes, they are so large and menacing that they rupture into the mainstream and into our banal lives.

Pre Twitter and Post WWII there have been two other incidents of intra team rivalry. Stephen Roche and Visentini split their team in the Giro in 1987.

In 1986 Greg LeMond and Bernard Hinault travelled down the same rosy route.

The cycling world has never been the same since.

Analysis of these fallouts leads me to find some commonalities:

1. The biggest rift occur when cyclists are from different nationalities
2. Each must be a star in their own right (ego)
3. One always has an underdog mentality (or is a quieter type), the other seems almost regal in their right to reign supreme (they also generally have home advantage)
4. The underdog is the young pup
5. The underdog wins – this is when the rumpus occurs (Rule #1 never outshine the master)
6. Team management (including the directeur sportif) want the top dog to win
7. The team is split down the middle – very few riders sit on the fence (same applies to the fans)
8. The top dog never wins the same race again