Valverde, Movistar and Spain top final WorldTour rankings

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Alejandro Valverde and his Movistar team both sealed victory in the final WorldTour standings, as the curtain fell on the series at the Tour of Beijing. It was a clean sweep for Spain, who also wrapped up the national rankings, more than 700 points clear of Italy. Movistar has hailed it as their most successful season, after taking 34 victories throughout the year – including Nairo Quintana’s Giro d’Italia success.

“Winning both WorldTour classifications makes us immensely happy. It's a reward to our sponsors' big efforts to keep us alive, as well as all our collaborators,” said team manager Eusebio Unzué. “It's the icing on top of the cake, the best way to end our season, a top mark for a great year, and something that should be more appreciated than it really is. I don't know if this is the right moment to defend it, but honestly, I think these are the true world championships in our sport.”

The team competition went down to the wire in 2013, with Movistar stealing the overall lead from Team Sky in Beijing. However, they dominated the competition this season, finishing more than 200 points ahead of their nearest competitor BMC Racing. The American squad jumped to second above Tinkoff-Saxo after Philippe Gilbert’s overall victory at the Tour of Beijing.

Former winners of the competition Sky were nudged down to ninth position, as Giant-Shimano moved up, while Astana scraped into the top 10 ahead of Garmin-Sharp. AG2R La Mondiale’s success at the Tour de France has put the team in the top 10 for the first time since the inception of the WorldTour, as they slot into sixth.

Valverde has contributed to almost a third of the Movistar victory tally, with 11 in total. His consistent podiums in races such as Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Il Lombardia and the Vuelta a España means that he finishes the season with a 66-point advantage over compatriot Alberto Contador. Among Valverde’s victories were the three one-day races Roma Maxima, Fleche Wallonne and Clásica San Sebastián. He also finished on the podium at the World Championships, but that result does not contribute to the standings.

With Contador’s performance at the Vuelta a España launching him into the top spot, the competition was set to come down to the final race in Beijing. Contador arrived at the penultimate round of the WorldTour, Il Lombardia, with a slim 14-point advantage but a crash in the final corner forced him to call an end to his season. Neither rider raced in Beijing.

“Alejandro had one of his best seasons ever,” said Unzué. “Nairo doesn't stop growing as a cyclist and already conquered his first Grand Tour, many youngsters have taken a step forward... All of that makes us face the future with hope and confidence, but we're really conscious about how difficult is to improve what we got in 2014. You just have to look at the other teams' rosters to realize that one day, it might be our time not to fulfil our goals.”

In the end, the Tour of Beijing didn’t have a huge impact on the final standings, although Dan Martin’s performance sees him make a late entry at 8th. The Garmin-Sharp rider was languishing down in 39th two weeks ago, but his victory at Il Lombardia, and second overall and stage victory in Beijing means that he has jumped 31 places in the rankings. Rui Costa was unable to knock Simon Gerrans out of third, while Tour de France champion Vincenzo Nibali ends the season in fifth. Last year’s winner Joaquim Rodríguez finished 12th overall.

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