who are the most overrated riders in the peloton in your opinion?

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Devolder, Evans, Gesink, Sastre, Wiggins, Hushovd...

I don't see how you can say Tom Boonen is overrated if you look at his palmares. Just because he is over his top, doesn't mean he didn't deserve the respect and hype we all know him for/from. I haven't seen Eddy Merckx win anything lately. Doesn't mean he's overrated.

 

[Parrulo]

I didnt realise Nibali was rated

thats not what some people cough D_T cough say

Devolder, Evans, Gesink, Sastre, Wiggins, Hushovd...

I don't see how you can say Tom Boonen is overrated if you look at his palmares. Just because he is over his top, doesn't mean he didn't deserve the respect and hype we all know him for/from. I haven't seen Eddy Merckx win anything lately. Doesn't mean he's overrated.

boonen isn't overrated. the expectations for him are just too high. a year without a monument for boonen is considered a disappointment.

 

[Bike Boy]

Devolder, Evans, Gesink, Sastre, Wiggins, Hushovd...

I don't see how you can say Tom Boonen is overrated if you look at his palmares. Just because he is over his top, doesn't mean he didn't deserve the respect and hype we all know him for/from. I haven't seen Eddy Merckx win anything lately. Doesn't mean he's overrated.

It's relative my friend. for instance I don't think devolder is overrated. He has actually done okay for a rider we don't wanna waste our time talking about.

 

[Bike Boy]

thats not what some people cough D_T cough say



boonen isn't overrated. the expectations for him are just too high. a year without a monument for boonen is considered a disappointment.

Okay he's not overrated by us geeks in here, but he's by the masses.

 

[Bondii]

Hushovd...

I don't see how you can say Tom Boonen is overrated if you look at his palmares. Just because he is over his top, doesn't mean he didn't deserve the respect and hype we all know him for/from. I haven't seen Eddy Merckx win anything lately. Doesn't mean he's overrated.

I totally can't understand your logic
Hushovd won 8 stages in Tour, 3 stages in Vuelta and 1 stage at Giro
Boonen won 6 stages in Tour, 2 stages in Vuelta
Hushovd had 2 green jersey, Boonen had 1

They both won WC

 

[ferryman]

He is the youngest or one of the youngest of the Tour contenders so I don't think it's a stretch to anticipate improvement in his results. If riders can continue to improve well into their mid 30's then it is reasonable to expect the same or more of a young rider that has shown the potential that Gesink has.

A podium contender at best this year but I agree with your logic. You will of course be lending the same grace to young Schleck who is less than a year older

 

[enrecul]

Tyler Farrar....he never wins jack
Greipel for sure
Steegmans

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Evans and Gesink as far as GTs are concerned.




Many seem to believe that he's the strongest candidate for a podium spot in this year's TDF, outside of Contador and Schleck.

Fact: he barely held onto 6th last year and the field is stronger now.

Most of the World Tour team DS' and cyclists seem to think Gesink is 2nd strongest candidate for the 3rd podium spot behind Evans according to the article in L'Equipe today


But I bet they now **** about it too

 

[La Vie Claire]

Wigans. For someone that didn't make top 20 at the Tour last year (and i predict this year as well), he sure gets a lot of press. I believe he peaked early this year to get some results in. It sure beats putting all your eggs in one basket and going home with nothing (see Schlock and Evans).

 

[Parrulo]

I totally can't understand your logic
Hushovd won 8 stages in Tour, 3 stages in Vuelta and 1 stage at Giro
Boonen won 6 stages in Tour, 2 stages in Vuelta
Hushovd had 2 green jersey, Boonen had 1

They both won WC

are you seriously comparing hushovd too boonen?

boonen has 3 paris roubaix and 2 rondes. either of those is more important then pretty much any amount of GT stages and green jerseys.

compared to boonen's palmares hushovd's palmares is a joke.

also boonen is almost 3 years younger . . . .

oh and boonen tries to win races not just sucking the hell out of some1 else's wheel and out sprinting him in the last 100 meters. that is enough to make boonen 10 times the rider hushovd is.

 

[Eric8-A]

Tony Martin

 

[gibbells]

For me it has to be wiggins. He wins the dauphine and the british media automatically think he can go toe to toe with the schlecks and contador in the mountains with regards to the overall. Also i have been a bit disappointed with dan martin. He might of won the tour of poland and people say he is a very capable climber but i think he flatters to deceive particularly with his performance in the mountains in the vuelta 09 and giro 10.

 

[The Hitch]

Most of the World Tour team DS' and cyclists seem to think Gesink is 2nd strongest candidate for the 3rd podium spot behind Evans according to the article in L'Equipe today


But I bet they now **** about it too

come on man you are better than that.

Argument for authority.

Some of the ds's know **** all and there are some pretty dumb ones in there. And even if they were geniuses, it doesnt mean hes all they claim him to be.

Besides you asked for proof of posters saying Gesink would win the Tour and I gave you a thread where a substantial number of people voted that he would (more than any none al and andy contender).

Anything to say to that?

 

[benpounder]

I havent seen much talk this year, but I always felt LL Sanchez was overhyped.

And Mollema,

and Rujano...

And I think Jurgen Van Den Broeck isn't going to be nearly as strong as everyone expects (and neither will Wiggins).

 

[orbis_25]

are you seriously comparing hushovd too boonen?

boonen has 3 paris roubaix and 2 rondes. either of those is more important then pretty much any amount of GT stages and green jerseys.

compared to boonen's palmares hushovd's palmares is a joke.

also boonen is almost 3 years younger . . . .

oh and boonen tries to win races not just sucking the hell out of some1 else's wheel and out sprinting him in the last 100 meters. that is enough to make boonen 10 times the rider hushovd is.

But you're just presenting arguments for which rider is better. This thread is about which riders are overrated. There's a difference. Hushovd can't be seen as overrated. His palmares is rather good. It's not the best, but he has some big wins and solid podiums. For a rider to be overrated, they must fail to live up to the hype by doing little to distinguish themselves. Hushovd doesn't fall into this category. He may not be better than Boonen, but he's not overrated because of it.

 

[simo1733]

Tom Danielson.It's not his fault though.He is part penguin and tends to store fat.

 

[ergmonkey]

For a rider to be overrated, they must fail to live up to the hype by doing little to distinguish themselves. Hushovd doesn't fall into this category.

Boonen always does a lot "to distinguish himself;" Hushovd doesn't.

Boonen attacks hard to break races open; Boonen podiums in Classics he doesn't win.

Hushovd has found a way to make a giant white shirt with rainbow bands seem invisible.

"Distinguished":

Boo-Hoo Not-so-distinguished:

 

[ergmonkey]

Tom Danielson.It's not his fault though.He is part penguin and tends to store fat.

And he suffers unfairly from race organizers being unwilling to consistently take races above 4,000m altitude. It's persecution, plain and simple. Our race is destined to loathe and fear the high-altitude mutant.

 

[ergmonkey]

Evaluating him coldly, he's the world's best lead out man, which is what most people rate him as.

I go back and forth on Renshaw. Still, I'm inclined to think the "world's best leadout man" title is given to him a bit too easily simply because he's most often the one leading out the world's best sprinter.

If Renshaw were leading out Farrar, I think Renshaw would probably just be "the world's most frustrated leadout man."

 

[Publicus]

Andy Schleck, because you can't be called the second best stage racer in the world and have never won a stage race in your professional career. You can't coast on hype and potential forever. At some point you have to actually win a stage race to earn that title.

EDIT: And this isn't an indictment of his talent (which is clearly immense), but his lack of actual results that justify that title.

 

[benpounder]

Boonen always does a lot "to distinguish himself;" Hushovd doesn't.

For the casual observer, it seems you are as concerned with knocking Hushovd down as you are boosting Boonen.

I've been to too many places where someone proclaims, "isn't my date the most beautiful woman here?"

 

[gregrowlerson]

Phil and Paul certainly overate "Big George" Hincapie!

 

[krismtb]

Frank Schleck.

 

[ergmonkey]

For the casual observer, it seems you are as concerned with knocking Hushovd down as you are boosting Boonen.

I've been to too many places where someone proclaims, "isn't my date the most beautiful woman here?"

No, you're reading too much into it. I think one poster's Boonen-Hushovd comparison was way off base by focusing on the extent to which one rider finds ways to distinguish himself.

I don't actually think very many posters here overstimate Hushovd so much. Most realize that he belongs in the category of Pozzato, Flecha, Ballan instead of the super-elite Gilbert, Boonen, Cancellara Classics group. Impressive company, nonetheless.

I even like Hushovd--mostly because I root for all of the Scandinavians. But still, arguing that he is the one who "distinguishes" himself is a massive stretch that I couldn't let go. Outside of the TdF, Thor's pretty quiet in recent years. At least at Credit Agricole he claimed a lot of scalps in French Cup races.

Today, his m.o. seems to be wait, wheelsuck, hope that an opportunity presents itself.

 

[18-Valve. (pithy)]

Most of the World Tour team DS' and cyclists seem to think Gesink is 2nd strongest candidate for the 3rd podium spot behind Evans according to the article in L'Equipe today


But I bet they now **** about it too

That was one of the reasons why I picked Evans and Gesink, actually. Talk about overrated.