Top 5 GT Riders: Order & Discussion

[Arredondo]

Definitely:

1. AC, because he has 6(7) GT wins + really impressive results this year.
2. CF, because he's the only one, who can beat AC.
3. NQ, because he's the best climber all over the world right now.
4. VN, because he's a true warrior and sometimes he's lucky.
5. RUU, because he's got a real chance to win a GT next year.

RUU wants to do the Tour next year, so he won't win a GT in 2015.

What's all the buzz around him actually? 2nd in the Giro = 5th best GC rider at the moment?

 

[ILovecycling]

I got the impression that rather than Uran matching him, Quintana wanted to finish that final mountain top stage together with Uran, for the symbolism of 2 Colombians finishing 1-2 in the gc at the Giro. I think he could've dropped Uran had he chose to.

This.

Today Mountain stages dont get balanced by ITT s. A rider like Indurian would today have very little chance to win a GT.

I think lot of people (including me) would agree that this is the good thing.

 

[Erythropoietin]

1. Froome
2. Contador
3. Quintana
4. Nibali
5. Vino

 

[ILovecycling]

As I can see,there is a overall agreement about Rigo.
For me he is not the 5th one cuz he is not dangerous for those four riders with anything. As I said in OP I thought about the rider winning a GT.
Purito is very dangerous to those riders with his puncheur abilities,he can take seconds there thats without doubt (only at vuelta and a bit at giro).Rigo imo is 'mediocre' in all abilities.He is better tt,but imo he is worse puncher,climber and has smaller balls.

Of course we are talking riders in their top form.(whatever year it was)

 

[ILovecycling]

RUU wants to do the Tour next year, so he won't win a GT in 2015.

What's all the buzz around him actually? 2nd in the Giro = 5th best GC rider at the moment?

yeah,im wondering too

 

[Pricey_sky]

As it stands:

1. Froome - can climb with the best and would take a lot of time over the others in the TT.
2. Contador - Can match Froome on the climbs but would fall short due to his poorer TT.
3. Quintana - possibly the only rider who could out climb the top 2 but would lose a lot of time over flat TT's.
4. Nibali - possibly the best 'all rounder' of the top GC guys but I don't think he could live with the 3 above on the climbs. His skills on descents/cobbles ect would keep him in the race though.

Quite a long gap to the rest after these 4 riders.

 

[ILovecycling]

As it stands:

1. Froome - can climb with the best and would take a lot of time over the others in the TT.
2. Contador - Can match Froome on the climbs but would fall short due to his poorer TT.
3. Quintana - possibly the only rider who could out climb the top 2 but would lose a lot of time over flat TT's.
4. Nibali - possibly the best 'all rounder' of the top GC guys but I don't think he could live with the 3 above on the climbs. His skills on descents/cobbles ect would keep him in the race though.

Quite a long gap to the rest after these 4 riders.

Who do you think is the best after them,the 5th guy?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Mirsamad Pourseyedi

 

[retzko]

I don't know where the premise comes from that Quintana is the best climber in the world... one TDF? Where froome had a hunger knock ( or how do you all it in english) and contador was at his worst?

For me if at their best

1) Froome 2) Contador 3) Nibali and then you have Quintana.... and not that much further Rodriguez..

I still believe that Contador is the most naturally talented but after the froome transformation a full alien froome reminds me of the mountainsprinting rasmussen vs contador....not normal.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Who do you think is the best after them,the 5th guy?

I'm not sure, I suppose it's all down to personal preference, I suppose my contenders for the 5th guy would fall down to the experience of Purito against the youth of Aru, Pinot ect. There are also guys like Uran and Valverde who are capable of being on the podium too. It depends on the parcours of course, but the top 4 are a long way clear of these.

 

[Carols]

1-Contador 5 (7) GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
2-Nibali 3 GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
3-Froome 1 GT win
4-Quintana 1 GT win but Giro not Tour so lower than Froome

The Rest

 

[pigoonse]

1-Contador 5 (7) GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
2-Nibali 3 GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
3-Froome 1 GT win
4-Quintana 1 GT win but Giro not Tour so lower than Froome

The Rest

Agree with you, Carols.

Froome's gt win is meh because he got lucky up against a weak Contador in 2013. Also Froome can't win a GT unless it is heavily weighted to ITT km's, the weather is sunny, depends on the parcours too much. He is a very shaky 3rd. I might put Quintana ahead....we will see who is better in the coming Vuelta

 

[karlboss]

On form right now the order I'd expect to see would be Froome, Contador, Nibali, Quintana. I'd expect over the 3 weeks of most GTs there would be enough flat TT kms for Nibali to make up the small amount he is behind Quintana on MTFs, and enough opportunities for Nibali to isolate Quintana without a team on the flat. The fifth guy...all unreliable Rodriguez, Valverde have become consistent but unspectacular, Wiggins if he ever bothered to try again, Horner beat an inform Nibali last year, Aru matched Quintana uphill, Uran beat Aru. Porte flashes of brilliance makes me believe it's possible.
2012 was horrible and not a great argument against TT kilometres. As noted Rasmussen was well on his way to a Tour win, blood manipulation was said to favour bigger TT based riders, like Armstrong and Indurain, but Pantani still won a Tour, 117km flat TT. He lost 7:39 to Ullrich across all TTs.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Agree with you, Carols.

Froome's gt win is meh because he got lucky up against a weak Contador in 2013. Also Froome can't win a GT unless it is heavily weighted to ITT km's, the weather is sunny, depends on the parcours too much. He is a very shaky 3rd. I might put Quintana ahead....we will see who is better in the coming Vuelta

It's not about Froome and ITT its about being good at most things, Froome won last years Tour also because of his performances on Ax-3 and Ventoux not just the TT. If anything I could argue Froome is unlucky as if he hadn't have had to babysit Wiggo he would have won Vuelta 11 and Tour 12 too, all if's and but's of course.

Talking of luck would you say Nibali was lucky because his rival's dropped out this year? or maybe he got lucky with his Giro last year as that field was even worse than the Tour. These aren't my opinions of Nibali by the way, but just counter balancing an argument.

 

[RiccoDinko]

1. Chris Horner

 

[Fight.The.Power]

Great idea for a thread ILC

well froome and contador and nibali just leaves two.

Errm Quintana

And

Aru !!

EDIT:

In order, and I hate saying this

CF, AC, VN, NQ, FA

 

[pigoonse]

It's not about Froome and ITT its about being good at most things, Froome won last years Tour also because of his performances on Ax-3 and Ventoux not just the TT. If anything I could argue Froome is unlucky as if he hadn't have had to babysit Wiggo he would have won Vuelta 11 and Tour 12 too, all if's and but's of course.

Talking of luck would you say Nibali was lucky because his rival's dropped out this year? or maybe he got lucky with his Giro last year as that field was even worse than the Tour. These aren't my opinions of Nibali by the way, but just counter balancing an argument.

Imo, Froome is as over-rated on this forum as Nibali is under-rated. Froome won one GT. His palmares is inferior to Contador's and to Nibali's. Plus that, his one GT win might be a fluke - it remains to be seen. I don't get all the frenzy over Froome. I consider Wiggins above Froome as a GT rider. We just have not seen enough of Froome to know. He had an inexperienced Quintana and a weak Contador as his competition in 2013 TdF.

The Giro 2013 is discredited because of lack of competition and the alterations made due to severe weather; but I remember the excitement prior to that race was about Wiggins winning it and the question was by how many minutes, due to the ITT km's. Imo, the 2013 Giro was, if anything, more difficult than the 2013 Tour. Nibali's accomplishments to date out-shine Froome's. Ofc Nibali got lucky in all of his GT wins, however, he creates his own luck by his confident bike handling in adverse conditions.

But I can be wrong...let's see if Froome can handle wet parcours, cobbles, and beat an on form Contador in a GT or even come close to AC. Let's see if Froome can win a GT that isn't such a fair-weather one. He should be able to win another GT if he is so superior as many think. (Can't believe all the fans here that put him above Contador)

 

[Jspear]

Imo, Froome is as over-rated on this forum as Nibali is under-rated. Froome won one GT. His palmares is inferior to Contador's and to Nibali's. Plus that, his one GT win might be a fluke - it remains to be seen. I don't get all the frenzy over Froome. I consider Wiggins above Froome as a GT rider. We just have not seen enough of Froome to know. He had an inexperienced Quintana and a weak Contador as his competition in 2013 TdF.

The Giro 2013 is discredited because of lack of competition and the alterations made due to severe weather; but I remember the excitement prior to that race was about Wiggins winning it and the question was by how many minutes, due to the ITT km's. Imo, the 2013 Giro was, if anything, more difficult than the 2013 Tour. Nibali's accomplishments to date out-shine Froome's. Ofc Nibali got lucky in all of his GT wins, however, he creates his own luck by his confident bike handling in adverse conditions.

But I can be wrong...let's see if Froome can handle wet parcours, cobbles, and beat an on form Contador in a GT or even come close to AC. Let's see if Froome can win a GT that isn't such a fair-weather one. He should be able to win another GT if he is so superior as many think. (Can't believe all the fans here that put him above Contador)

With all due respect, this is an absurd comment. What exactly makes you say this since clearly, based on their performances, Froome is a WAY better GT rider.

 

[Escarabajo]

1-Contador 5 (7) GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
2-Nibali 3 GT wins - Winner of all 3 GTs
3-Froome 1 GT win
4-Quintana 1 GT win but Giro not Tour so lower than Froome

The Rest

Are we including history????

What's the purpose of the poll. We would not need it. We would just look at the palmares and that's it.

Somebody please call Andy!

 

[42x16ss]

Tough to call. If we are going purely on Palmares then it is:

Contador
Nibali
Evans
Wigans
Froome



But we all know that isn't the case. This is a hard topic IMO because all four haven't raced a GT together and when three have ridden at least one hasn't truly been on form. My thoughts based entirely on this season:

Contador
Nibali
Quintana
Froome


Everyone else.

If all of these guys were to race a GT together, in 95%+ form, they would put so much time into the rest of the field it would be hilarious. Three of them have true racing instinct and the other has been transformed into an absolute freak. The attacks would be coming thick and fast, in all kinds of terrain, with Froome being targeted on descents and all four going berserk whenever an opening presented itself. Hopefully we get it at next years TdF with a similar parcours to this year.

The race for 5th would be happening so far back that it would be almost entirely irrelevant but my instinct is going with Purito for now, with Pinot and Talansky long term bets to crash the party.

 

[ILovecycling]

Imo, Froome is as over-rated on this forum as Nibali is under-rated. Froome won one GT. His palmares is inferior to Contador's and to Nibali's. Plus that, his one GT win might be a fluke - it remains to be seen. I don't get all the frenzy over Froome. I consider Wiggins above Froome as a GT rider. We just have not seen enough of Froome to know. He had an inexperienced Quintana and a weak Contador as his competition in 2013 TdF.

The Giro 2013 is discredited because of lack of competition and the alterations made due to severe weather; but I remember the excitement prior to that race was about Wiggins winning it and the question was by how many minutes, due to the ITT km's. Imo, the 2013 Giro was, if anything, more difficult than the 2013 Tour. Nibali's accomplishments to date out-shine Froome's. Ofc Nibali got lucky in all of his GT wins, however, he creates his own luck by his confident bike handling in adverse conditions.

But I can be wrong...let's see if Froome can handle wet parcours, cobbles, and beat an on form Contador in a GT or even come close to AC. Let's see if Froome can win a GT that isn't such a fair-weather one. He should be able to win another GT if he is so superior as many think. (Can't believe all the fans here that put him above Contador)

I dont think froome is overrated.He is a great climber, imo almost on ac top level and great tt.Nibali is great in everything except those 2 things,but these are the most important at GT.
And like someone said few posts up,he could have won 3 gt's not one.

 

[ILovecycling]

Im interested in this question. Why so many of you rank Quintana in climbing above contador and froome?
Im of course his huge fan,but I wouldnt say it with such a confidence.Of course I hope he proves you right at la vuelta,after his illness giro.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

If the matter of the subject is "list the top 5 best GC riders", then:

1. Froome
2. Contador
3. Nibali
4. Quintana
5. Valverde

If the matter of the subject is "list the GC riders with the most chance of winning a(nother) GT in his career", then:

1. Quintana
2. Froome
3. Contador
4. Nibali
5. Aru

 

[Pricey_sky]

Imo, Froome is as over-rated on this forum as Nibali is under-rated. Froome won one GT. His palmares is inferior to Contador's and to Nibali's. Plus that, his one GT win might be a fluke - it remains to be seen. I don't get all the frenzy over Froome. I consider Wiggins above Froome as a GT rider. We just have not seen enough of Froome to know. He had an inexperienced Quintana and a weak Contador as his competition in 2013 TdF.

The Giro 2013 is discredited because of lack of competition and the alterations made due to severe weather; but I remember the excitement prior to that race was about Wiggins winning it and the question was by how many minutes, due to the ITT km's. Imo, the 2013 Giro was, if anything, more difficult than the 2013 Tour. Nibali's accomplishments to date out-shine Froome's. Ofc Nibali got lucky in all of his GT wins, however, he creates his own luck by his confident bike handling in adverse conditions.

But I can be wrong...let's see if Froome can handle wet parcours, cobbles, and beat an on form Contador in a GT or even come close to AC. Let's see if Froome can win a GT that isn't such a fair-weather one. He should be able to win another GT if he is so superior as many think. (Can't believe all the fans here that put him above Contador)

I honestly don't know how you can call Wiggins a better GT rider than Froome? Froome lost the Vuelta in 2011 because of Wiggins and team orders, Froome also had to wait for wiggins in the Tour 2012.

Unfortunately we were robbed of the Contador v Froome comparison, in my opinion it's Froome who has shown the best form In the last 18 months so isn't it Contador who must prove he can beat Froome not the other way around? That's no disrespect on Contador and his past achievements either.

 

[ILovecycling]

If the matter of the subject is "list the top 5 best GC riders", then:

1. Froome
2. Contador
3. Nibali
4. Quintana
5. Valverde

If the matter of the subject is "list the GC riders with the most chance of winning a(nother) GT in his career", then:

1. Quintana
2. Froome
3. Contador
4. Nibali
5. Aru

Its interesting you put Nibali behind Contador.You think he has less chance than
Contador?