Belgian rider holds a commanding lead and will likely win...but doesn't really care
Once again, a top rider has underlined his total disregard for a classification that seems like it should hold at least some prestige - the World Tour overall rankings.
Philippe Gilbert sits high atop the standings, over one hundred points clear of Fabian Cancellara: 356 to 236.
With an even moderate remainder of the season, it seems highly unlikely that anyone will be able to topple the raging Belgian, and yet, Gilbert can't be bothered.
"I have a good head start over Cancellara now, so maybe I can win, but it is not very important to me," said Gilbert to Danish website, feltet.dk.
In 2010, Katusha's Joaquim Rodriguez took the overall honors with 551 points, whilst Alberto Contador followed in second with 482 - Gilbert finished with 437 points.
For Gilbert, only one thing matters - race wins, and preferably big ones.
"I'd rather win Classics than the World Tour."
It certainly makes sense - Gilbert's place in history will be marked by his wins in Monuments, not his World Tour victories.
If he continues winning Classics, he'll no doubt run into the World Tour top spot whether it's important or not, and in a year where his contract is running out with Omega Pharma-Lotto, an extra accolade as the world's best rider certainly wouldn't hurt his marketability.
For the World Tour, its lack of a strong historical foundation no doubt hinders it. The ever changing platform to classify the world's best rider has left the ranking sans respect from the world's best, and in this case, the unquestioned world's best rider couldn't care less.