I’ve said it before – I think Levi made his peace with his career trajectory when he followed Bert and Johan to Astana. (I’ve always throught the Basso move was low on JB’s part but Levi went to Astana with his eyes fully open.) I give him credit for evaluating the options and making a good choice.

If he was from any other top nation in cycling he could could go to Johan and say: “make me captain in the Giro/Vuelta (his choice) and I’ll have a very strong chance to win that, then I’ll ride fenomenal support in the TdF”. He knows that winning the Tour might just be out of his reach by now but he’d stand an exellent chance to crown his career with a GT-win.
Unfortunately because he’s american, and America only cares about TdF-wins,that option is not open to him.

but I can’t say that “twice bitten” can be applied to Levi’s experiences w/ Rabo or Gerol. Both teams allowed him to focus 100% on a single race. Both teams made him their captain when he was healthy. He got the chance to compete and did his best with those opportunities.

He now understands that Johan is his master because no one else really puts such an exclusive focus on the grand tours. Riding without the exclusive support of an entire team, Levi is a top 10 stage racer. Riding for a GC focused team, he’s a threat to win. Currently Astana is really the only GC focused team. Levi is a natural fit for them, but they also are a magnet for other top GC riders, so inter-team competition is the price to be paid for that degree of specialization. Levi seems to be a smart dude who has done the math and realizes where his bread is buttered.

Also, Levi never would be where he is today if he hadn’t left Postal. I don’t think he’d have the chance to prove what he’s worth there. Now that he’s made his case, Johan’s team is where he belongs.

Look – only one guy can win any grand Tour.

And his last couple of years have been huge regardless of not winning a grand Tour. What is wrong with being content at being hugely successful and very well paid?

I also like the bizarre scenario as follows:

1. Contador leaves Astana

2. Levi leads the support of Lance

3. Lance cracks

4. Levi wins Tour surrounded by a superior Astana support team

A longshot yes …. but possibly levi’s best shot

instead of the old “He’s not aggressive enough, he’s short and bald and his wife is Odessa Gunn.” opinion I hear from many people. Even though we like to think we can read riders’ minds and know why they do what they do, we can’t.

Look at all of the U.S. riders who never make it to the pros and never finish in the top 20 in a GT. He did it. He is living that dream that so many riders dream about.

Levi is also an excellent role model for the young riders. He works hard. He is a activist for the prevention of cruelty to animals. You don’t read about him getting DUI’s, testing positive for anything, throwing tantrums or dating 15 year olds. He’s a good guy who is one of the top cyclists in the world. He is riding his bike and making a lucrative career out of it.

He isn’t flashy but he’s solid. I’ll take that over the bad boys who give the sport a black eye on a regular basis.

I suppose it takes both kinds to make cycling the great sport it is. The bad boys have their place but it doesn’t diminish the value of the hard working guys like Levi and George.

He is coming back. Vuelta, Doping and love will do the trick.. Who is or 5th(?!) come backer?

Wesemann also retires. The only German I could appreciate. Not always in the picture but most of the time there. Beautifull cyclist.

I was a very outspoken critic of his move to Astana, and felt he should have been outright leader elsewhere. In retrospect, the very reason he has done so well in his last few GTs is largely due to his second fiddle status. For some guys the pressure of team leadership just does strange things to their psyche, and Levi is the most obvious example.

I’m still not a fan. He get lots of accolades for his ’07 Tour performance, but in my book he should have won that race. Obviously, Levi has a different view, and is content with climbing the lower steps of the podium.

Seems to me this interview was done jointly or even as a press conference. If so, is it right for the authors to spin it like they have an exclusive the way both of them did?

. . . . just turned 34 years old and statistically is coming to the end of his potential ability to improve.
Conversely, Contador will turn 26 in December and so he still has a significant amount of potential to improve.
These are the cold hard facts people.
Could he win a GT? Maybe.
What if he goes to another team as their captain and gets second, or if something happens and he doesn’t even make the podium? That surly team will toss him for some young kid who climbs like a goat.
What may happen if he stays at Astana?
Oh, and this is purl speculation but I would foresee a position in DS, or some other managerial position at the end of his career.

Now remember, Levi is typically a conservative racer.
So, do you take a stable potentially long term career move, or do you risk it all by going to some other team and hope the GT roulette wheel comes up on your number?

Think about it .

but the the giro has too many vicious sharp climbs he admits he does not do well on. He will be third in line on his own team at the tour.

The vuelta – with the exception of this years Angry Lou – has climbs more suited to his style. And without contador he should be the fave – BUT you have to think the Olympics took something out of the tour guys in Vuelta this year.

He will have to change his focus and either not do the tour or regulate himself to helper monkey – something he didn’t show too much of in the Giro before he got dropped and the Vuelta, as we all know.