Bradley Wiggins’ superb victory in the Critérium du Dauphiné may have moved him to pole position among the contenders for the Tour de France, but he remains fifth on the IG Markets Pro Cycling Index.
The rolling ranking system records that the Team Sky leader merely replicated his race winning performance from 2011. Similarly, Cadel Evans (BMC Racing), runner up at the 2011 Dauphine, drops only a few points from his tally in the Index by finishing third this year, and remains sixth.
The Tour de France, however, represents an opportunity for Wiggins to amass some serious points on the Index. After crashing out on stage eight last year, he has just 25 points to defend. Should he deliver a performance as strong as many now anticipate, he could leapfrog the riders above him on the Index who have a greater points tally to defend from the 2011 Tour.
With five stage victories from last year’s La Grande Boucle, Mark Cavendish (Team Sky) would need an equally impressive strike rate next month merely to avoid dropping points on the Index and slipping from the fourth place he currently occupies.
Similarly, BMC Racing’s Philippe Gilbert, third on the Index, and winner of the opening stage of last year’s Tour, will drop points if he fails to replicate his performance in this year’s race.
Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) has displaced Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) in the top 10. Martin owes his ascendancy to better stage results than his French rival during last week’s events in south east France. Both men failed to match their achievements in last year’s Dauphiné.
Daniel Moreno (Katusha) has climbed to 17th on the Index as a result of victories on stages two and seven of the Dauphiné.
Team Sky were undoubtedly the team of the Dauphiné, and the strong performances of those who rode in service of Wiggins have helped them climb the Index. Michael Rogers, winner of Bayen-Rundfahrt, and second at the Dauphiné, has climbed from 50th to 29th. Britain’s Chris Froome, second in last year’s Vuelta a Espana and third in the 2011 Tour of Beijing, has climbed to 40th on the Index after finishing fourth at the Dauphiné. Richie Porte, ninth overall at the Dauphiné, has now cracked the top 50.
Arthur Vichot (FDJ-Big Mat) becomes the highest new entry in the top 200, taking 185th place following his stage five victory at the Dauphiné.
About the IG Pro Cycling Index
The IG Pro Cycling Index is a rolling, 12-month ranking system, produced in collaboration with Opta, experts in sports data. Its purpose is simple: to answer the question, “Who is the best cyclist in the world?” Results are sourced from 120 major international races; a competitive programme selected by a panel of experts and chosen for their prestige, and importance to those who follow and love the sport. The races are placed in four tiers within three different categories.
A number of features make the IG Pro Cycling Index unique. The classification of races into tiers is based on their history, importance, and the quality of the field, and not simply the class allocated by the UCI governing body. Consequently, victory in the Tour of Beijing will not achieve the same points tally as victory in Paris-Nice or the Dauphine. Victories attract greater rewards than placings. Multiple victories in significant stage races, multiple Classics victories, and victories on the most prestigious stages of the Grand Tours attract bonus points.
