Top single seasons of all time

[DanielSong39]

Obviously the world of cycling has changed over the decades, and what was possible 50 years ago simply isn't now due to increased competition and specialization. Still, the following seasons come to mind:

2011, Philippe Gilbert - the most dominating season in the UCI Pro Tour/UCI World Tour/UCI World Ranking era. Won 18 races, including Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Strade Bianche, Brabantse Pijl, Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne, Clásica de San Sebastián, National TT, and National RR.

1987, Stephen Roche - Won the Tour, Giro, World Road Race, Tour de Romandie, Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.

1972, Eddy Merckx - Take your pick, but the Giro/Tour double, 3 monuments, and the hour record is a season that may never be topped

Feel free to chime in with your picks!

 

[Red Rick]

Probably a Merckx season. Can't for the life of me understand why Gilbert would be in the conversation.

 

[Jspear]

Cavendish 2009

 

[Cance > TheRest]

A season with only 1 monument win is not worthy in this discussion, so you can remove Gilbert from the list.

 

[Juan Pelota]

By PCS points, Merckx 72 season is untouchable as far as I've seen.

He had 6259 points, and five other seasons above 5,000 points. I haven't found anyone else who had a season > 5,000 points.

Other great years from other riders..

Sean Kelly 86' - 4687 pts
Sean Kelly 85' -- 4900 points
Sean Kelly 84' - 4899 points

Jalabert 95' - 4768

Hinault 79 - 4193
Moser 78 - 4460
Roger De Vlaemink 75' - 4417

 

[rghysens]

Coppi 49: giro, tour, San Remo, Lombardia.

 

[AnatoleNovak]

Maertens 1976: worlds, amstel, GW, Zurich, GP Nations, Brabantse Pijl, 8 stages in TdF, 6(!) stages in PN, Het Volk

 

[Red Rick]

I think cycling records shoudl go something like the North Korean Guiness book of World Records where they basically say they aren't really records but instead they're just the attempts that came closest to Kim-Il Sung.

Same should happen with Merckx really

 

[Pantani_lives]

1949 Fausto Coppi: Giro, Tour, Milano-Sanremo, Giro di Lombardia and a bunch of other wins.

1972 Eddy Merckx: Giro, Tour, Milano-Sanremo, LBL, Giro di Lombardia and so on.

1977 Freddy Maertens: Vuelta + 12 stages, 7 Giro stages, 6 Paris-Nice stages, Tour of Catalunya + 5 stages, Settimana Catalunya + 4 stages, Dunkirk, more stages in Switzerland and Netherlands, Omloop Het Volk, Trofeo Laiguelia...

1981 Bernard Hinault: Tour + 5 stages, Dauphiné + 4 stages, Critérium International + 3 stages, Paris-Roubaix, Amstel Gold Race...

1984 Sean Kelly: Paris-Roubaix, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Paris-Tours, Paris-Bourges, GP Plouay, Paris-Nice + 2 stages, Critérium International + 3 stages, Bask Country + 3 stages, Catalunya + 4 stages...

1987 Stephen Roche: Giro, Tour, World's, Tour of Romandia, Tour of Valencia.

 

[Parker]

Neither are the greatest ever, but two from 2012 deserve a mention

Wiggins: Paris-Nice, Romandie, Dauphine, Le Tour, Olympic Gold

And Boonen sweeping the cobbles: Gent-Wevelgem, E3, De Ronde and Roubaix (also Qatar, Paris- Brussels, WC TTT)

Although Boonen 2005 tops that: World Champion, Roubaix, De Ronde, E3, Tour of Belgium

Van Vleuten's on one at the moment

 

[DanielSong39]

Sagan 2016:
Gent–Wevelgem, Tour of Flanders, Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec, European Championship, World Road Race
Points Classification in Tour de France, 3 stage wins

Anquetil 1963:
Tour, Vuelta, Paris-Nice, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Critérium National de la Route

Cipollini 2002:
World Road Race, Milan San-Remo, 6 stages in Giro d'Italia, 3 stages in Vuelta a Espana
Points classification in Giro d'Italia

 

[MJR]

Time to write Pogačar's '24 season in here: Strade Bianche, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Volta_a_Catalunya (overall and four stages), Giro (overall and six stages), and the Tour (overall and six stages).

And with plenty of the year left!

 

[rallybanana]

Do we even need a Velo d’Or thread this year?

 

[Berniece]

Do we even need a Velo d’Or thread this year?

For cycling fans, no, but since it’s voted by journalists, we might. They might give it to Vingegaard for the struggle he overcame

 

[will-10]

For cycling fans, no, but since it’s voted by journalists, we might. They might give it to Vingegaard for the struggle he overcame

based on today's robbery of Abrahamsen they might give it Carapaz

 

[tobydawq]

For cycling fans, no, but since it’s voted by journalists, we might. They might give it to Vingegaard for the struggle he overcame

No they mightn't.

 

[scribers]

For cycling fans, no, but since it’s voted by journalists, we might. They might give it to Vingegaard for the struggle he overcame

No telling what hair-brained idea Phillipa York will have this year. Maybe give to Cav for finishing in the time cuts.

 

[Squire]

For cycling fans, no, but since it’s voted by journalists, we might. They might give it to Vingegaard for the struggle he overcame

Considering Alaphilippe got it in 2019, you never know!

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Achievements-wise, this is the best season since Roche's 1987. In terms of dominance in races it's the best since Marckx's 1972, probably. All in all, easily the best season in modern era.

 

[KZD]

Achievements-wise, this is the best season since Roche's 1987. In terms of dominance in races it's the best since Marckx's 1972, probably. All in all, easily the best season in modern era.

By the end of the season I am sure Pogačar will have overtaken Roche 1987 and could even beat Merckx 1972 if he wins Worlds and Lombardia for instance. A season for the ages.

 

[velaso montador]

In a few years we gonne talk about this Pogacar 24 version as mythical figure harda to believe he can even be better but the funny part most of us think he will, one year in with the new coach and only 25 years old...Crazy

This 24 version is something else though.

 

[SafeBet]

Time to write Pogačar's '24 season in here: Strade Bianche, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Volta_a_Catalunya (overall and four stages), Giro (overall and six stages), and the Tour (overall and six stages).

And with plenty of the year left!

So let's say Pog wins both the WC road race and Lombardia. Where does his season stand compared to Merckx's 1972?

 

[Berniece]

So let's say Pog wins both the WC road race and Lombardia. Where does his season stand compared to Merckx's 1972?

It seems close, but at the same time it isn't. They both have 2 GT's, 2 monuments + WC (Pogacar) or 3 monuments (Merckx). But the total amount of victories that season and amount of podium places is much higher for Merckx.

 

[rghysens]

So let's say Pog wins both the WC road race and Lombardia. Where does his season stand compared to Merckx's 1972?

Considering big wins, they are more or less the same.

 

[proffate]

It seems close, but at the same time it isn't. They both have 2 GT's, 2 monuments + WC (Pogacar) or 3 monuments (Merckx). But the total amount of victories that season and amount of podium places is much higher for Merckx.

Cycling is a lot more global now. How many of those Merckx victories were essentially nations cup races?