Netflix and spin? Movistar hits the big screen in 2020
From motorpacing to movie stars: six-part series goes inside rollercoaster 2019 season
Moviestar’s wild 2019 Grand Tour season is the subject of a new, six-part Netflix series, set to be released in 2020.
The streaming series was announced at the 2020 team launch in Spain in December. Details are still sparse, but you can watch a four minute trailer for the series below.
2019 was a big year for the squad. Alejandro Valverde was racing in the rainbow stripes of world champion. It was also the long-running squads 40th year in the pro peloton.
Movistar’s efforts at each of the three Grand Tours in 2019 will be the focus of the series. Given the rollercoaster season the team had, it should make for interesting viewing.
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The team started off on a high, with Richard Carapaz’ surprise win at the Giro d’Italia. That was followed by confusion and thinly-veiled inter-squad conflict at the Tour de France and Movistars home race, Vuelta a Espana. At both races, the decision to start the race with multiple team leaders backfired on Movistar. Valverde, Mikel Landa and Nairo Quintana all fell short of expectations. How this will be covered in the series should be interesting.
As of yet, there is no set release date for the series, or news on whether it will be available in Canada. The series appears to be titled, or tag lines “El DÃa Menos Pensado.” If you’re Spanish is sharper than mine, you can watch Movistar’s full hour-long team presentation below to try glean more information. If not, you can just watch the four minute trailer for the series, which is also in Spanish, but has nice moving pictures.
Movistar isn’t the first WorldTour team to bring cameras into the team car for an inside look at cycling. Several teams have tried the tactic, with varying levels of success. At their worst, these efforts reveal little about what actually goes on in the team. At their best, they can be a fascinating look at how team politics play out on the road, and how crucial decisions are made in the heat of racing. Some have even been good enough to make Canadian Cycling Magazine’s list of the top cycling films of the decade.
The four-minute trailer for Movistar’s Netflix show starts at minute 15 of the 2020 team presentation:
