Vélo d'Or 2015

[Mr.White]

Re:

Purito's 2012 season was better then Valverde's 2015 season.

Well they're pretty close. The difference is Purito had one season like that and Valverde had five!

 

[roundabout]

Re:

No one this year has had an exceptional season. Valverde has been exceptionally consistent, but only really has 3 big wins (not including Catalunya stages, Spanish RR or points jersey). It was very good but not exceptional. Degenkolb has 2 monuments, a stage win at a GT. Some would argue that his is better (not me) and it is easy to see where they're coming from. Degenkolb in one year has managed more diversity on monument wins than Valverde in 10. However, I do believe Valverde had the best year, but claims of 'best season in 30 years' are so very wrong.

While a win is a win, the Spanish RR was a race where

Valverde was riding for the only Spanish WT team

There is only 1 Spanish pro-conti team

He had the most teammates in the race

It was a flat race with an uphill last km

A rider capable of competing against him on that kind of finish (Lobato) was injured

But I suppose let's hail him for beating Barbero in the sprint.

 

[jaylew]

Re:

Purito's 2012 season was better then Valverde's 2015 season.

You could certainly argue that but I don't agree.

Monuments/Worlds
Valverde: 1st Liège, 4th Lombardia, 5th Worlds
Purito: 1st Lombardia
Solid edge to Bala

GT GC results
Purito: 2nd Giro, 3rd Vuelta
Valverde: 3rd Tour, 7th Vuelta
Close one here. Giro-Vuelta is a much easier double but you could realistically go either way here depending on your philosophy. I'll give a slight edge to Purito

GT stages
Purito 5 stage wins
Bala 1 stage win
Big edge to Purito

Other major one day top placings
Valverde: 1st Flèche, 2nd Amstel, 3rd San Sebastian, 3rd Strade Bianche
Purito: 1st Flèche, 4th Milano-Torino, 9th San Sebastian
Big edge to Bala

Other stage races top placings
Valverde: 4th Dubai, 3rd Oman, 2nd Catalunya, 9th Dauphiné, 7th Abu Dhabi
Purito: 2nd Pais Vasco, 7th Oman, 6th Tirreno
Edge to Bala

Other wins
Valverde: Trofeo Serra, 3 stages of Catalunya, Spanish road race championship
Purito: 1 stage Tirreno, 2 stages Pais Vasco
Edge to Bala

Frankly, you could argue Valverde's 2014 was better than both overall but it's lacking the monument win. His last 2-3 years have just been insanely consistent.

Still, as I mentioned earlier my vote for rider of the year is Kristoff. Not really a fan of the guy but he was an easy choice for me.

 

[LaFlorecita]

@jaylew
Could you do a similar comparison of Kristoff's 2015 season and Valverde's 2015 season? I'm fairly sure Piti would come out on top

 

[jaylew]

Re:

@jaylew
Could you do a similar comparison of Kristoff's 2015 season and Valverde's 2015 season? I'm fairly sure Piti would come out on top

Harder since they're completely different kinds of riders. Who knows, I could possibly be talked into Bala. I voted for AK because he was just so, so dominant in the spring. 18 wins in the first half of the season, top 10 in 3 monuments including two podiums, and even picked up a stage race GC. 2nd part was solid as well with a win at Plouay, 3rd at Québec, 2nd at Vattenfall, and 4th at Worlds.

I was ready to give it to Bala as I'm a huge fan but he couldn't quite make the podium at the Vuelta, Worlds, and Lombardia. Bala was definitely the most consistent rider overall but I really felt like he needed one more big win to be rider of the year, if that makes any sense.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Many of Kristoff's wins were in small races with no opposition (Norwegian races, Driedaagse De Panne)

 

[staubsauger]

Greipel ain't no competition!?

 

[jaylew]

Re:

Greipel ain't no competition!?

And Ewan and EBH were in Norway. Not to mention he finished 3rd in the De Panne TT to win GC, beating Durbridge, Devolder, and Sergent and it wasn't even a prologue.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Greips was only in the mix once, that says enough. Ewan and EBH are no competition for Kristoff. The fact that he didn't win any stage at the TDF speaks against him IMO.
He was strong this season for sure but he lacks some more big wins. If he had won Worlds he would be the best for sure, but now he has 1 Monument, some top 10s in important races and a shitload of stages in meaningless races.

 

[Mr.White]

Kristoff was insanely strong this year, but just not good enough for Bala. These two were comfortably two best riders of the year

 

[Arredondo]

Re: Re:

Purito's 2012 season was better then Valverde's 2015 season.

You could certainly argue that but I don't agree.

Monuments/Worlds
Valverde: 1st Liège, 4th Lombardia, 5th Worlds
Purito: 1st Lombardia
Solid edge to Bala

GT GC results
Purito: 2nd Giro, 3rd Vuelta
Valverde: 3rd Tour, 7th Vuelta
Close one here. Giro-Vuelta is a much easier double but you could realistically go either way here depending on your philosophy. I'll give a slight edge to Purito

GT stages
Purito 5 stage wins
Bala 1 stage win
Big edge to Purito

Other major one day top placings
Valverde: 1st Flèche, 2nd Amstel, 3rd San Sebastian, 3rd Strade Bianche
Purito: 1st Flèche, 4th Milano-Torino, 9th San Sebastian
Big edge to Bala

Other stage races top placings
Valverde: 4th Dubai, 3rd Oman, 2nd Catalunya, 9th Dauphiné, 7th Abu Dhabi
Purito: 2nd Pais Vasco, 7th Oman, 6th Tirreno
Edge to Bala

Other wins
Valverde: Trofeo Serra, 3 stages of Catalunya, Spanish road race championship
Purito: 1 stage Tirreno, 2 stages Pais Vasco
Edge to Bala

Frankly, you could argue Valverde's 2014 was better than both overall but it's lacking the monument win. His last 2-3 years have just been insanely consistent.

Still, as I mentioned earlier my vote for rider of the year is Kristoff. Not really a fan of the guy but he was an easy choice for me.

But that's the biggest problem on this forum. Minor places doesn't make you best cyclist of the year.

Purito got 12 victories in 2012 comparing 9 for Bala this year.

Purito won a monument + classic, Bala won a monument + classic.

Purito won 5 stages in GT's, Bala only 1

Both did won a points jersey in a GT

Purito got 2 podiums in GTs, Bala one (although it was in the biggest of them all)

Purito even got more points on the WT in 2012 comparing Bala this year.

We all know Bala is the king of consistency. But Purito's 2012 season was better in terms of winning, which is what counts for me if you're talking about that level of professional sport.

 

[Arredondo]

Re: Re:

Won two classics and podium of the Tour might be a long time, but 2 classics and podium of both Giro and Vuelta; or a monument, 2nd in another, 2nd in the Worlds, 3rd Tour and 4th Vuelta are average years for Purito

Doing well at hilly classics and GTs isn't that rare for Valverde and Purito.

But that is the point I'm making. It is easier to do well at the Giro and the Vuelta in addition to the classics because you are generally up against either second tier GC riders at their peak, or first tier GC riders who are not at their peak.

The Tour de France, the classics and the worlds are generally the only races which the top riders will aim to peak for. To do well in both the classics and the TdF in the same season means that you are up against the best riders from each field at their peak. That's not the case with the other GTs.

Also Purito has only won three classic races in his whole career - so it's hardly an average year for him.

But Purito rode podium in le Tour and won Lombardia in 2013. Plus he was 2nd in Liege with an injury and 2nd in the worlds. So i don't get the point. It's not that surprising what Valverde did. Great season, but nothing super special. Purito did it in 2013 for example.

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

 

[DFA123]

Re: Re:

But that's the biggest problem on this forum. Minor places doesn't make you best cyclist of the year.

Purito got 12 victories in 2012 comparing 9 for Bala this year.

Purito won a monument + classic, Bala won a monument + classic.

Purito won 5 stages in GT's, Bala only 1

Both did won a points jersey in a GT

Purito got 2 podiums in GTs, Bala one (although it was in the biggest of them all)

Purito even got more points on the WT in 2012 comparing Bala this year.

We all know Bala is the king of consistency. But Purito's 2012 season was better in terms of winning, which is what counts for me if you're talking about that level of professional sport.

There's not really a set of rules for this, so not sure that you can say minor places don't count. They certainly count for the World Tour and PCS rankings. If you don't look at minor placings then you would have to say, for example, that Sacha Modolo has had a better season than Van Avermaet. Which of course is nonsense.

I personally attach a lot of weight to minor places, if they are achieved consistently. A win in an important race against a quality field is obviously the most significant thing - but lots of top 5 finishes across a range of different types of races is often what marks out the best rider for me.

 

[Arredondo]

Re: Re:

But that's the biggest problem on this forum. Minor places doesn't make you best cyclist of the year.

Purito got 12 victories in 2012 comparing 9 for Bala this year.

Purito won a monument + classic, Bala won a monument + classic.

Purito won 5 stages in GT's, Bala only 1

Both did won a points jersey in a GT

Purito got 2 podiums in GTs, Bala one (although it was in the biggest of them all)

Purito even got more points on the WT in 2012 comparing Bala this year.

We all know Bala is the king of consistency. But Purito's 2012 season was better in terms of winning, which is what counts for me if you're talking about that level of professional sport.

There's not really a set of rules for this, so not sure that you can say minor places don't count. They certainly count for the World Tour and PCS rankings. If you don't look at minor placings then you would have to say, for example, that Sacha Modolo has had a better season than Van Avermaet. Which of course is nonsense.

I personally attach a lot of weight to minor places, if they are achieved consistently. A win in an important race against a quality field is obviously the most significant thing - but lots of top 5 finishes across a range of different types of races is often what marks out the best rider for me.

Sure, but all the victories of Purito in 2012 were WT, against the best riders in the world. While Bala won some smaller races, like Trofeo Serra and Spanish Championship (against a really weak field). So he has 6 victories of good quality this year. That's why i think Purito's 2012 season is better with 10 WT victories + points jersey Giro + WT ranking.

But if you're talking about this year, you can make points for Kristoff, Bala, Froome or maybe Degenkolb (although his 2nd part of the season was bad).

 

[Mr.White]

Re: Re:

Won two classics and podium of the Tour might be a long time, but 2 classics and podium of both Giro and Vuelta; or a monument, 2nd in another, 2nd in the Worlds, 3rd Tour and 4th Vuelta are average years for Purito

Doing well at hilly classics and GTs isn't that rare for Valverde and Purito.

But that is the point I'm making. It is easier to do well at the Giro and the Vuelta in addition to the classics because you are generally up against either second tier GC riders at their peak, or first tier GC riders who are not at their peak.

The Tour de France, the classics and the worlds are generally the only races which the top riders will aim to peak for. To do well in both the classics and the TdF in the same season means that you are up against the best riders from each field at their peak. That's not the case with the other GTs.

Also Purito has only won three classic races in his whole career - so it's hardly an average year for him.

But Purito rode podium in le Tour and won Lombardia in 2013. Plus he was 2nd in Liege with an injury and 2nd in the worlds. So i don't get the point. It's not that surprising what Valverde did. Great season, but nothing super special. Purito did it in 2013 for example.

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

First of all, Purito's 2013 season is nowhere near Valverde's 2015. Valverde has 5 better seasons than that. His 2012 was, maybe even better, but 2013 no way.
Second, of all those mentioned, only Jalabert 1995, Boonen 2005 and Gilbert 2011 I rate higher than Valverde 2015.

 

[Escarabajo]

Valverde by far. The sprinters in my book are not even close. Valverde can do it all.

 

[Mr.White]

Re: Re:

But that's the biggest problem on this forum. Minor places doesn't make you best cyclist of the year.

Purito got 12 victories in 2012 comparing 9 for Bala this year.

Purito won a monument + classic, Bala won a monument + classic.

Purito won 5 stages in GT's, Bala only 1

Both did won a points jersey in a GT

Purito got 2 podiums in GTs, Bala one (although it was in the biggest of them all)

Purito even got more points on the WT in 2012 comparing Bala this year.

We all know Bala is the king of consistency. But Purito's 2012 season was better in terms of winning, which is what counts for me if you're talking about that level of professional sport.

There's not really a set of rules for this, so not sure that you can say minor places don't count. They certainly count for the World Tour and PCS rankings. If you don't look at minor placings then you would have to say, for example, that Sacha Modolo has had a better season than Van Avermaet. Which of course is nonsense.

I personally attach a lot of weight to minor places, if they are achieved consistently. A win in an important race against a quality field is obviously the most significant thing - but lots of top 5 finishes across a range of different types of races is often what marks out the best rider for me.

Sure, but all the victories of Purito in 2012 were WT, against the best riders in the world. While Bala won some smaller races, like Trofeo Serra and Spanish Championship (against a really weak field). So he has 6 victories of good quality this year. That's why i think Purito's 2012 season is better with 10 WT victories + points jersey Giro + WT ranking.

But if you're talking about this year, you can make points for Kristoff, Bala, Froome or maybe Degenkolb (although his 2nd part of the season was bad).

Purito 2012 had 692 WT points, Bala had 675 in 2015, so it's pretty close in terms of WT. In CQ points it's 3118 vs 2976 in Purito's favor. Pretty close again. Maybe Purito is slightly ahead, but I guess it's just matter of personal view. Bala from 2014 had more CQ and WT points (3152, 686) but for me his 2015 campaign was better.

As for this year, nobody except Kristoff has any real case.

 

[PremierAndrew]

Re:

Many of Kristoff's wins were in small races with no opposition (Norwegian races, Driedaagse De Panne)

What about only losing 18 seconds to Wiggins over a 14km ITT, when Wiggins was supposed to be nearing top form just like AK? Kristoff could do it all in spring. Incredible sprinter and amazing endurance too

 

[Arredondo]

Re: Re:

Won two classics and podium of the Tour might be a long time, but 2 classics and podium of both Giro and Vuelta; or a monument, 2nd in another, 2nd in the Worlds, 3rd Tour and 4th Vuelta are average years for Purito

Doing well at hilly classics and GTs isn't that rare for Valverde and Purito.

But that is the point I'm making. It is easier to do well at the Giro and the Vuelta in addition to the classics because you are generally up against either second tier GC riders at their peak, or first tier GC riders who are not at their peak.

The Tour de France, the classics and the worlds are generally the only races which the top riders will aim to peak for. To do well in both the classics and the TdF in the same season means that you are up against the best riders from each field at their peak. That's not the case with the other GTs.

Also Purito has only won three classic races in his whole career - so it's hardly an average year for him.

But Purito rode podium in le Tour and won Lombardia in 2013. Plus he was 2nd in Liege with an injury and 2nd in the worlds. So i don't get the point. It's not that surprising what Valverde did. Great season, but nothing super special. Purito did it in 2013 for example.

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

First of all, Purito's 2013 season is nowhere near Valverde's 2015. Valverde has 5 better seasons than that. His 2012 was, maybe even better, but 2013 no way.
Second, of all those mentioned, only Jalabert 1995, Boonen 2005 and Gilbert 2011 I rate higher than Valverde 2015.

I'm not saying Purito's 2013 season is as good as Valverde's 2015 season. I only said Purito showed in 2013 that winning classics and podium in the Tour is not a rare feat.

Jalabert 1997 won Lombardia, Fleche, Paris-Nice and World champion TT, plus some 15 wins. Fondriest won 3 classics (1 monument), Tirreno, World Cup and 20 wins! Better seasons by objective standards.

 

[roundabout]

Re: Re:

Won two classics and podium of the Tour might be a long time, but 2 classics and podium of both Giro and Vuelta; or a monument, 2nd in another, 2nd in the Worlds, 3rd Tour and 4th Vuelta are average years for Purito

Doing well at hilly classics and GTs isn't that rare for Valverde and Purito.

But that is the point I'm making. It is easier to do well at the Giro and the Vuelta in addition to the classics because you are generally up against either second tier GC riders at their peak, or first tier GC riders who are not at their peak.

The Tour de France, the classics and the worlds are generally the only races which the top riders will aim to peak for. To do well in both the classics and the TdF in the same season means that you are up against the best riders from each field at their peak. That's not the case with the other GTs.

Also Purito has only won three classic races in his whole career - so it's hardly an average year for him.

But Purito rode podium in le Tour and won Lombardia in 2013. Plus he was 2nd in Liege with an injury and 2nd in the worlds. So i don't get the point. It's not that surprising what Valverde did. Great season, but nothing super special. Purito did it in 2013 for example.

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

First of all, Purito's 2013 season is nowhere near Valverde's 2015. Valverde has 5 better seasons than that. His 2012 was, maybe even better, but 2013 no way.
Second, of all those mentioned, only Jalabert 1995, Boonen 2005 and Gilbert 2011 I rate higher than Valverde 2015.

I'm not saying Purito's 2013 season is as good as Valverde's 2015 season. I only said Purito showed in 2013 that winning classics and podium in the Tour is not a rare feat.

Jalabert 1997 won Lombardia, Fleche, Paris-Nice and World champion TT, plus some 15 wins. Fondriest won 3 classics (1 monument), Tirreno, World Cup and 20 wins! Better seasons by objective standards.

Don't forget the Vuelta points jersey in 1997 as well since apparently it's a big deal when Valverde wins it.

 

[DFA123]

Re: Re:

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

They were all great seasons, Purtio in 2012 as well, but I think Valverde's achievements this year are in the same bracket. It's difficult to compare with the cobbled classics riders, or even Gilbert, because competing for the GC in one, let alone two, grand tours is physically so much more demanding. If Valverde wasn't going for the GC in the TdF, I think he probably could have come away with three or four stages given the route and the form he had. Likewise, if he wasn't going all out in the Vuelta, he could have done a serious peak for Lombardia and the Worlds. He certainly would have had more wins if he was just stage hunting and going all out for the one day races, but for me that would be worth less than the diversity and amazing consistency that he showed by finishing third in the TdF.

Gilbert, Boonen and Fondriest basically only had to peak for about 10 race days in the whole season. Valverde had to be at his peak for about 30 - given his goals in the grand tours. Of course trying to hold a peak for so long inevitable results in slightly sub-optimum performances at times - which makes his consistency and results even more impressive.

 

[King Boonen]

Re: Re:

I'm failing to understand how Kristoff and Sagan are getting votes. Sagan's season was basically a bust until the WCRR. One good race doesn't make a whole season. Kristoff was good but his only real win of note was Flanders.

Really I think it's between Degenkolb and Valverde. Degenkolb takes it for me with those two monuments, but Valverde had a fantastic season and it's purely my bias to the monuments that gave it to Degenkolb...

Kristoff was 2nd in MSR and top 10 in PR too along with his win at RVV. He also had 20 wins overall, which was the most in the peloton this season. Not to mention Degenkolb hardly did anything in spring except his two monuments, unlike Kristoff who seemed unbeatable at one point. Not criticising Degenkolb for not showing his hand in the smaller races, but Kristoff was the better rider in spring this year. Are you still failing to understand how Kristoff is getting votes?

And for what it's worth, I dislike Kristoff, but he had one hell of a successful season

Yes, I am. I voted for Degenkolb because I hold the Monuments in higher regard than any other. To me, he performed when it mattered and when everyone was trying. Kristoff only managed that once. If you look at overall performance across every race I don't see how anyone could vote for anyone other than Valverde, the guy was immense.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re: Re:

Many of Kristoff's wins were in small races with no opposition (Norwegian races, Driedaagse De Panne)

What about only losing 18 seconds to Wiggins over a 14km ITT, when Wiggins was supposed to be nearing top form just like AK? Kristoff could do it all in spring. Incredible sprinter and amazing endurance too

I never said he wasn't extremely strong. In fact I would rate him 2nd best rider this year (as I posted in the 3rd post of this topic). My point is that, results-wise, Valverde had a better year in my opinion. Multiple 1-day race wins, a monument, many top-5's in important races, a GT stage win *and* a podium place at the Tour. Kristoff's results are standard for a very strong classics rider/sprinter type (a couple wins in 1-day races, a monument and many stages) Valverde's results just have something extra. He is so extremely allround. (And I don't even like him ) It really isn't such a strange opinion, as you can see in the poll, many people agree with me.

Valverde:
1-day races
1st LBL, 1st Fleche Wallonne, 2nd AGR, 3rd Strade Bianche, 3rd San Sebastian, 4th Lombardia, 5th Worlds RR

1st Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana, 2nd Trofeo Andratx - Mirador d'Es Colomer, 5th GP Indurain, 6th Vuelta a la Rioja
(1st Spanish Championships)

Stage races
3 stages Volta a Catalunya, 1 stage Vuelta
3rd Tour de France, 7th Vuelta a España, 2nd Volta a Catalunya, 9th Criterium du Dauphiné, 3rd Tour of Oman, 4th Dubai Tour, 7th Abu Dhabi Tour

Kristoff:
1-day races
1st RVV, 1st GP Plouay, 2nd MSR, 2nd KBK, 2nd Vattenfal, 3rd Quebec, 4th Worlds RR, 4th E3, 10th Paris-Roubaix

1st Scheldeprijs, 1st GP Aargau, 9th G-W, 11th Omloop
(10th Norwegian Championships)

Stage races
3 stages Qatar, 1 stage Oman, 1 stage P-N, 3 stages Driedaagse de Panne, 2 stages Tour of Norway, 3 stages Tour des Fjords, 1 stage Tour de Suisse, 1 stage Arctic Race of Norway
1st Driedaagse De Panne, 3rd Qatar, 8th Tour of Norway, 9th Tour des Fjords

 

[Mr.White]

Arredondo: I'm not saying Purito's 2013 season is as good as Valverde's 2015 season. I only said Purito showed in 2013 that winning classics and podium in the Tour is not a rare feat.
Jalabert 1997 won Lombardia, Fleche, Paris-Nice and World champion TT, plus some 15 wins. Fondriest won 3 classics (1 monument), Tirreno, World Cup and 20 wins! Better seasons by objective standards


Yes but Jalabert 1997 was nowhere to be seen in GT's (in terms of GC), and Fondriest 1993 was not even the best rider that year, Indurain was. Better season by YOUR objective standards, by mine they aren't!

 

[Arredondo]

Re: Re:

Valverde's 2015 season nowhere was a

- Jalabart 1995 season
- Jalabart 1997 season
- Fondriest 1993 season
- Gilbert 2011 season
- Boonen 2005 season

You could even argue if it's really better then a Di Luca 2007 season, Berzin 1994 season, Cancellara 2010 season etc...

They were all great seasons, Purtio in 2012 as well, but I think Valverde's achievements this year are in the same bracket. It's difficult to compare with the cobbled classics riders, or even Gilbert, because competing for the GC in one, let alone two, grand tours is physically so much more demanding. If Valverde wasn't going for the GC in the TdF, I think he probably could have come away with three or four stages given the route and the form he had. Likewise, if he wasn't going all out in the Vuelta, he could have done a serious peak for Lombardia and the Worlds. He certainly would have had more wins if he was just stage hunting and going all out for the one day races, but for me that would be worth less than the diversity and amazing consistency that he showed by finishing third in the TdF.

Gilbert, Boonen and Fondriest basically only had to peak for about 10 race days in the whole season. Valverde had to be at his peak for about 30 - given his goals in the grand tours. Of course trying to hold a peak for so long inevitable results in slightly sub-optimum performances at times - which makes his consistency and results even more impressive.

But that's not true, because Fondriest also won stage races like Tirreno, Trentino and Midi Libre. He already won in Ruta del Sol, and won races on a regular basis till Giro/Catalunya (i don't know exactly when the last race was calendar wise). Then he had a break, but won Zurich and Emilia in the autumn. I think that's pretty similar with the form peak of Bala. Even Valverde had a break from Liege till Tour (he was only 9th in Dauphine).

Gilbert not only won Strade, stage in Tirreno and Ardennes classics, but also Quebec and Clasica in august. And he won a stage race like Belgium. It's not like he only had to be in (top) shape for 10 days. He already won almost 20 races. And not only in 2/3 months of the season, like guys like Vanmarcke and Terpstra. No, from februari till august. And more important, he won way more races. 5 classics + 2 one day races, stage in Tour + yellow. More impressive then Bala's season to me.

For sure Bala's season was highly impressive. But finishing 7th at La Vuelta and 4th in Lombardia is not that impressive for a guy Valverde, because even at 85/90%, he can finish in the top-10 in every race. His first months of the year were really impressive, but to have a trully remarkable season, his last months had to be of the same level imo.