The biggest event on cycling’s calendar, the Tour de France, rolls around next week, so it’s time to take a look at who will take home cycling’s most prestigious prize, the Maillot Jaune.
This year’s Tour is one of the most highly contested Grand Tours of recent memory, with nearly half the teams boasting a rider with general classification ambitions.
While much of the build up around this year centred around the big four favourites of Alberto Contador, Vincenzo Nibali, Chris Froome and Nairo Quintana there are a bevy of riders all with the skills, form and experience to upset the favourites and make quite a race for the top 10 placings.
Anything can happen in Grand Tour riding so below are the 10 outsiders who will be looking to spoil the Tour for the sport’s biggest names.
Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha)
‘El Purito’ is very much the nearly man of the peloton, he has seven top-five finishes in Grand Tours and even came second in the 2013 World Championships. The point being that he has come in good, but not good enough more times than most riders could take.
The 2015 Tour is undoubtedly one of his final chances at taking out a Grand Tour and the mountainous, time trial-light course will actually suit his pure climbing ability.
Of all the outsiders here he is probably the best mix of experience and ability but at 36 that long sought-after victory could just be a bridge too far for.
Richie Porte (Team Sky)
Let’s get this straight, Porte is riding for Sky teammate Chris Froome, they are close friends and the Tasmanian is perhaps the best super-domestique in the peloton. However, Porte has more reasons than normal to try and shake up the standings.
Porte’s GC aspirations are on the ropes after an extremely disappointing withdrawal from the 2015 Giro d’Italia, a race he hoped to win, and now his 2016 contract negotiations are stalling.
While he won’t go rogue on his team he has a number of big wins under his belt this year and will harbour ambitions of repeating the 2012 Tour where little-known Sky support rider Froome took second behind race winner Bradley Wiggins.
Alejandro Valverde (Movistar)
Like Porte, Valverde comes into the race as an outsider in his team, unlike Porte he has given his team leader Quintana a little more reason to question his allegiance, refusing to publicly state he will put his team leader as top priority.
The Spaniard knows how to win, he has previously taken out the Vuelta Espana and a swag of prestigious Spring classics over the years, but even a podium place in the Tour has eluded him and at 35 he won’t have many more opportunities to finally take out cycling’s biggest prize.
He isn’t used to riding second fiddle and if he has a good first week, his relationship with his more fancied teammate could be one of the stories of the Tour.
Tejay van Garderen (BMC)
A heartbreaking final-stage loss to Froome at the Critérium du Dauphiné showed Van Garderen is really starting to fulfil the promise he showed when he placed fifth in the 2012 Tour.
BMC are going all in with their support for Van Garderen but it may just be the wrong year for the American.
There will be no long time trial for him and while he is no slouch in the mountains he lacks the top-level acceleration of other climbers when it comes to the pointy end of a mountain stage.
Jean-Christophe Peraud (AG2R-La Mondiale)
Second at last year’s Tour, Peraud will be dying to show the surprise French renaissance at the 2014 Tour was not a flash in the pan.
A former national cross-country and time trial champion, Peraud can descend like a mad man and will be one of the few favourites looking forward to Stage 4’s cobbled sections.
Will also benefit from the help of teammate and rising star Romain Bardet when it comes to the mountain stages.
Romain Bardet (AG2R-La Mondiale)
The 24-year-old Frenchman launched himself into the spotlight at last year’s Tour riding into sixth position and has since backed up the hype he generated with a scintillating solo summit victory at Stage 5 of the Dauphiné.
Long-deprived French fans have high hopes for Bardet in the years to come and this year will be a big test for the young man as he now has to shoulder the expectations of his team, fans and the media.
Can climb with the best of them but will now have to learn how to lead.
Thibaut Pinot
The third man of 2014’s French renaissance, Pinot proved many doubters wrong when he took out third overall and the young rider classification at last year’s Tour.
He has built himself up well this year taking a stage win and holding the race lead at the Tour de Suisse. While Pinot’s climbing skills have never been in question he seemed to lose his nerve going downhill after a huge crash in 2013.
Dan Martin (Cannondale-Garmin)
The unlucky Irishman has often shaped up as a Grand Tour contender only to fall sick (2013 Tour) or crash (2014 Giro) right at the wrong moment.
Knows how to win individual stages and shorter races, and stuck with a number of Tour contenders at this year’s Dauphine, but can he keep it together for three straight weeks?
Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Garmin)
A bit of a forgotten man in the peloton, Talansky will be riding with Martin as co-captain of his Cannondale-Garmin team.
He outfoxed both Froome and Contador to win the 2014 Dauphine, something very few in the peloton can count as an achievement. For that alone the American cannot be counted out.
Bauke Mollema (Trek Factory Racing)
Mollema has been the quiet achiever of previous Tours with two top 10 finishes which could have been higher if not let down by poor time trials.
He has shown the climbing ability to win a Grand Tour, is entering the prime of his career, and with a new team giving him full support this year it could finally be the race where things click for the Dutchman.
That rounds our look at the outsiders who could spoil the 2015 Tour de France, but what do you think? Did we miss anyone? Let us know in the comments.
Also be sure to join us again next week as we move on to the big four favourites.
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