Who is the most over rated cyclist???

[Angliru]

He's focused on the Tour and in his last trial he came fourth after major improvements. Why is he overrated?

He rides the Giro as prep and the others he takes part in, doesn't do the Vuelta. Again, why if the Tour de France is his benchmark which he now sets out to be judged by, is he overrated?

What Tour de France contender sets out with the Dauphine or Pais Vasco, Ruta Del Sol, Paris- Nice, TdSuisse or Vuelta as there objective?

Wiggins stated that he would race the first half of the Giro all out and and the rest for training. He also added that if he found himself in close contention for the race leadership he would be torn as to what decision he would make. Of course his overall Giro performance speaks for itself.

 

[Angliru]

Sorry to be pedantic old boy, but if you read your previous post you say 'everyone thinks he's going to win the Tour'.

Why not just wait 'til next month and judge him rather than slag him off now?

Why not respond to the points that you have chosen to ignore? As I and several others have posted in response to you, Wiggins has that Tour 4th place and virtually nothing else to show. If you come up with a reasonable argument to refute the fact that he has produced no impressive results since last year's Tour when all of his competitors for his targeted event are quite visible in the major races in 2010 (with the exception of Menchov who had bronchitis and Vandevelde who crashed out of the Giro), then you might get someone to respect your point of view.

 

[Angliru]

It is not ridiculous to say Wiggins or Millar is over-rated. Wigans is a strong candidate for short time trials, Millar a strong candidate for most ITTs and a threat for a stage win in a break. That is the quality they have shown.

However if you read the daily thread for the Giro stages for the first two weeks Millar and Wiggans are consistently included in posts of overall GC position along with the serious GC candidates. The inclusion of their names over and over again as gc contenders, is what gives the status of over-rated.

I think Ginger is going to regret that "Here. Here." he posted in response to what he mistakenly thought was a voice of support from you.

 

[Angliru]

another person reading too much bull**** I'm sure Mosquera is a great rider so good luck to him but he needs to win stages to get recognised.

but anyway who says the team is built around Wiggins?
They have Lovqvuist, Hagen, Flecha. Wiggins is the go-to rider for the TDF GC this time up but that dosnt mean he will win the tour but more like getting top ten or a podium spot. He might crash and burn but other riders in the team can step up.

You wouldn't happen to be just a little biased being from the UK? There is more to cycling than just the Tour and what one does there. Using your logic a rider needs to win to get recognized but for Wiggins, other than events that are his previous specialty-prologues and ITT's-what has he done this year to garner the recognition in road racing that he gets?

 

[Kazistuta]

Isn't Rojas primarily a sprinter?

I've heard several places that he was supposed to be Valverdes heir... A punchy hillclimber with potential in mountains as well - and a lethal finish. I don't think he has showed any of these abilities....

But based on the lack of responses to his name I'd guess noone else has heard the Rojas-toutings...

 

[issoisso]

Rojas is a sprinter who can climb better than any other sprinter.

He wasn't overrated when he was 19. He was amazingly good for a 19 year old and looked like a superstar in the making. The problem being that he's now 25 and still the exact same rider he was back then.

 

[Bala Verde]

this is not the clinic

What he said.

Next doping reference will be sanctioned

 

[Anonymous]

This looks like the one big race Wigans might win this year...

 

[William H]

Surely someone who 48% of respondents think is the most over rated can't be the most over rated because so many people don't rate him?

Wiggins obviously gets a disproportionate amount of coverage considering his results as a road rider, but I don't think people rate him as particularly better a rider than he is.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

I think that's a good point.

It kind of reminds me of Tommy D. Some impressive results at sporadic times, followed by a lot of attention and hype that he couldn't live up to. That doesn't mean he stinks, just that expectations for him were way overdone. So far that seems to be the case with Brad.

 

[easytiger]

The new Chris Boardman?

marketed being the important word. Wiggins is the big name for sky, because as a new british sponsored team and a team planning to have a strong british contingent, after last years performance Wiggins was the flagship rider that Sky needed to get the British fans on side. A "british" team without the guy who finished fourth in the tour last year would have no credibility. But he is being "marketed" as a tour contender.

There are a lot of british cycling "fans" who only watch the tour, who beleive the marketing and think Brad can win the tour de france. There are also many knowledgable cycling fans in britain who know it is very unlikely.

Brad is overrated if what you base it on is the drivel poured out by the british press. Brad is not overrated if you listen to the rest, in fact, with most people completely writing off any chance he has, that would make him surely underrated.

IMO, armstrong, contador shouldnt be on that list cos they have won loads, Wiggins shouldnt be on the list because i think by most people he is underrated, Kloden shouldnt be on the list because he never was particularly rated. In fact, to be honest, i think the list is a bit silly. A more interesting overrated list would be the likes of Phinney and Bobridge, Kennaugh, Cancellara, Boonen, Sagan, Hoogerland people where the opinion may not be born out by results..

The fact that 40 people say armstrong is overrated just proves how stupid this poll is. He is a rider who targets purely the tour de france. Hes won seven of the damn things.. how can he be overrated. maybe as a person, but not as a tour de france rider.

As others said you need to differentiate between hype and being overrated - Wigans scores on both accounts. Having a rather lacklustre palmares outside of TT wins, and then a miraculous result in the Le Tour - everybody is backing him to be the saviour of British road cycling. Look what that did for Chris Boardman. I have nothing but praise for both those guys on the track - but a man's gotta know his limitations. I think the exact reason the British press/public slag him IS that he is overrrated. If he hadn't had done so well in the Le Tour, then he wouldn't be so hyped, maybe he wouldn't be at Sky, and maybe he wouldn't be considered the next messiah. Face it he looked pretty ordinary at the Giro (even for a Tour contender), and he won't get to Paris if he can't stay upright.

In terms of Sky - it will be Sutton and Henderson et al doing all the graft to pay Wigans' huge pay packet. One can only speculate if he will be worth the hype come the end of July?

... and another thing Dim lay off the 20 year olds Phinney and Jacky Bobby. They have more talent than probably everybody on this forum combined, so give them time and room to develop, and they might even surprise you.

 

[Anonymous]

... and another thing Dim lay off the 20 year olds Phinney and Jacky Bobby. They have more talent than probably everybody on this forum combined, so give them time and room to develop, and they might even surprise you.

When have i ever said anything against Jack Bobridge? I said it might be better to ask if guys like him are overrated as we are all claiming them as the "next messiah" with no real show of form against top level pro's, the same with Phinney (who although he may be a promising rider i dont rate the company he keeps), I also included Kennaugh in the are they overrated list, widely touted as a future grand tour winner, but what do we honestly have to back that up except speculation.

As for wiggins, 90% of the hype is from a few people on here, the other 10% is te british press.. I actually think Brad is underrated and doesnt get the credit he deserves for his 4th place. All he gets for it is critism, why shouldnt he enjoy the limelight, he deserves it. You will be hard pushed to find quotes where people say he will win the tour. Not even sky have said that.

 

[easytiger]

When have i ever said anything against Jack Bobridge? I said it might be better to ask if guys like him are overrated as we are all claiming them as the "next messiah" with no real show of form against top level pro's, the same with Phinney (who although he may be a promising rider i dont rate the company he keeps), I also included Kennaugh in the are they overrated list, widely touted as a future grand tour winner, but what do we honestly have to back that up except speculation.

As for wiggins, 90% of the hype is from a few people on here, the other 10% is te british press.. I actually think Brad is underrated and doesnt get the credit he deserves for his 4th place. All he gets for it is critism, why shouldnt he enjoy the limelight, he deserves it.

Firstly, if you were to ask those young guys what kind of rider they want to be - they would say successful! But what form that takes GT, GC for short stage races, stage wins, one day races, they won't know at this point in time. I think it is the pressure they are put under from the public and press, and maybe from their teams raises the expectation too far. Phinney and Bobridge have to a certain extent been spoilt by their early success, and makes other people dream of what they might become. No-one can expected to perform under such weight of expectation. That is what I meant by getting off their back and give them space.

Similarly Wiggins has come from a stellar career on the track, and everybody thinks that will translate to the road. I think he has been spoiled by last year's success, and I am all for having a new face in the list of GC contenders. But do you think that his move from Garmin to Sky hasn't precipitated antagonism towards him, and a larger contingent of the populace wishing for his imminent downfall because of the shady negotiations. So mixed up with the hype is a bit of hate, and to an extent he has brought it upon himself?

Sky have bought themselves a GC contender or have they? One result does not maketh the man - and he is going to have to do a bit more in July (than he has in May) to warrant your adulation.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

When have i ever said anything against Jack Bobridge? I said it might be better to ask if guys like him are overrated as we are all claiming them as the "next messiah" with no real show of form against top level pro's, the same with Phinney (who although he may be a promising rider i dont rate the company he keeps), I also included Kennaugh in the are they overrated list, widely touted as a future grand tour winner, but what do we honestly have to back that up except speculation.

If speculation is all we have, then they've not got a chance of living up to the hype because Ángel Madrazo will win every Grand Tour from 2011 to 2021!

 

[Mambo95]

It's worth noting that only two riders in history have been a World Champion on the track and been top 5 at the Tour - Bradley Wiggins and Fausto Coppi. The only other WC to make the top 10 was Moser.

 

[Anonymous]

Sky have bought themselves a GC contender or have they? One result does not maketh the man - and he is going to have to do a bit more in July (than he has in May) to warrant your adulation.

No, sky bought themselves a bit of credibility with the british public, because a british team without the 4th place finisher in last years tour would be a bit blah.. thats all.. Brad doesnt have my adulation, that fourth has been zapped from my memory, and now i see him as a top 20, maybe even top 10 contender. He isnt going to win the tour, Id be amazed if he podiumed, a podium would be as good as winning the thing to be honest.

feel kinda sorry for the guy though.. finishes fourth and gets nothing but critisism for it.

 

[JA.Tri]

By the general public and slightly informed spectator: LA.

As stated earlier by better informed than I: Over rated relates to performance versus expectation. And then it depends on the audience. So truly informed spectators (us?) are never going to overrate anybody .

Respectfully (again repeating) a better title "Greatest disappointments".

 

[Thee_chisa]

Kloden

2nd Tour de France x 2

Overall Victories-

Tirreno Adriatico
Paris Nice
Tour de Romandie
Vuelta pais Vasco

Wiggans (on the Road)

Stage - Giro

Discuss.

yeah, but he never concentrated on the road before. when he focused on the track he was world champ, olympic champ,multiple times, and with ease. he didn't like road racing especially what happened with cofidis in the tour when the team got thrown out. he only seriously trained for road after he joined garmin.

 

[pedaling squares]

I voted for Wigans but I don't really think this poll is fair to him. The options are all established GT riders so I looked at the poll in terms of who should be rated highly as a GT rider and who doesn't deserve that title. Granted, a GT rider is what Wigans is supposed to be these days, but he's only just become a GT man a mere ten months ago. Everyone else on the list has either won one or more GT's or has consistently been a serious challenger in more than one GT. We're a little early to put Bradley on this list, but what the hell, there he sits so he gets my vote. One fourth place in le tour is impressive in its own right, but pales in comparison to what the others have accomplished.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

No, sky bought themselves a bit of credibility with the british public, because a british team without the 4th place finisher in last years tour would be a bit blah.. thats all.. Brad doesnt have my adulation, that fourth has been zapped from my memory, and now i see him as a top 20, maybe even top 10 contender. He isnt going to win the tour, Id be amazed if he podiumed, a podium would be as good as winning the thing to be honest.

feel kinda sorry for the guy though.. finishes fourth and gets nothing but critisism for it.

Even finishing 4th he was still overshadowed by Frodo and his stage wins.

The problem is that the farcical way in which Sky performed in the first few stages with the crashes made him them look silly, and has given him a lot of credibility problems. The attack in the mountains, calling back Cummings and then getting passed didn't help either. Everyone can now point to the Giro and say 'see how bad Wiggins is'.

Its normally bandwagon jumping happens when a rider is good, this time its jumping on the bandwagon to give a rider a good kicking.

 

[Boeing]

wiggo in a landslide bwaaahahahahaha

strong tour 09 and he thinks he is a rock star. goes home gets and 'Oasis' hair cut, throws bike at worlds; leaves jv and co for uncle fester and co; expects knighthood in home land. game over

 

[Boeing]

Even finishing 4th he was still overshadowed by Frodo and his stage wins.

The problem is that the farcical way in which Sky performed in the first few stages with the crashes made him them look silly, and has given him a lot of credibility problems. The attack in the mountains, calling back Cummings and then getting passed didn't help either. Everyone can now point to the Giro and say 'see how bad Wiggins is'.

Its normally bandwagon jumping happens when a rider is good, this time its jumping on the bandwagon to give a rider a good kicking.

I took the wheel of the bus at worlds after the sissy fit bike throw and mechanic excuses. Fail to finish because it didn't go the way I wanted.....whaaaaaa! would have had a good placing regardless

Memo to Wiggo: the tires are the things on your bike that make contact with the road.

The bike is the thing on the road that takes you back to your abode.

 

[easytiger]

No, sky bought themselves a bit of credibility with the british public, because a british team without the 4th place finisher in last years tour would be a bit blah.. thats all.. Brad doesnt have my adulation, that fourth has been zapped from my memory, and now i see him as a top 20, maybe even top 10 contender. He isnt going to win the tour, Id be amazed if he podiumed, a podium would be as good as winning the thing to be honest.

feel kinda sorry for the guy though.. finishes fourth and gets nothing but critisism for it.

I think that him fcuking Garmin sideways has not helped himself in the popularity stakes. The major problem with Wiggo is that everybody thinks he believes his own hype, and there is nothing worse than that if you can't back it up. Remember no-one gave him a chance last year as a GC contender, and he had an incredible Tour. Sky would have bought some credibility if Wiggo had performed this year with Garmin, and that credibility will plummet if he craps out this year.

I am all for Wiggo doing well in Le Tour, anything to stop a LA-like procession by Dertie Bertie, but he needs to show less attitude and more aptitude.

 

[auscyclefan94]

this is not the clinic

awww, did bro bag your wiggo?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

awww, did bro bag your wiggo?

ACF, master of irony