Boonen hot at Qatar

Tom Boonen is starting 2006 off with a bang by winning the first two stages at the Tour of Qatar. Wearing the rainbow jersey in stage one Boonen edged Erik Zabel for victory, but in stage two with the leader's jersey Boonen led the charge ahead of Paride Grillo in second and Zabel in third. Not a bad way to start off the season, but then again we should expect this from Boonen.

Between Boonen and Alessandro Petacchi there are nothing but scraps left for the sprinters. Now that Zabel is on the same team as Petacchi I think Zabel will bring the leadership needed for Team Milram to develop into a solid sprint leadout.

In the past we've been accustomed to seeing Cipollini led teams provide precise leadouts to the line, but the last few years most sprints turn into chaos the last kilometer. Fassa Bartolo was good at chasing down breaks, but in the last 1.5k they would almost disintegrate. The last 500m Petacchi would have to use his raw power and speed to blow past everyone.

With more strength and organization Petacchi and Zabel may not be first runner-up much. Boonen is a masterful tactician at a young age, but he'll need more help against those two. If you're a fan of sprints it's going to be fun watching those three in 2006.