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Every men’s UCI WorldTour race ranked: From the Tour de France to the Tour Down Under
The UCI WorldTour is the top tier of professional cycling. In the men’s calendar, there are 35 races on the UCI WorldTour level as of 2024. For the women’s, there are 27. These vary from the Tour de France all the way down to the Tour of Guangxi in China. The men’s WorldTour race line-up has changed a lot through the years (we miss you, Tour of California). However, the WorldTour is the closest cycling comes to having its own Premier League – at least until Saudi Arabia takes over.
As fans of cycling, we enjoy a bit of competition. Why not take this to an extreme and pit the competitions themselves against one another?
Ranking WorldTour races is like comparing apples and pears. Every men’s WorldTour race has its own vibe, of course, and these will play into the ranking on this list. On top of this, the route, prestige and recent race results will also influence the outcome of this highly subjective (and illustrious) classification. Above all, it’s all just a bit of fun and not meant to be taken too seriously.
The Lower Rankings
34. Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
I don’t believe in the mentality of ‘build it and they will come’.
33. Tour of Guangxi
Have you ever watched a stage of this race? I dare you to name any GC winner.
32. Tour Down Under
As a European, I am not nocturnal enough to watch this.
31. Eschborn Frankfurt
It’s nice that Germany has a WorldTour race, but let’s try and do better.
30. BEMER Cyclassics
See above.
29. Tour de Suisse
Hold a race concurrently with the Dauphiné at your own peril.
28. Volta Ciclista a Catalunya
March has better stage races.
27. UAE Tour
Pros: Jebel Hafeet. Cons: hours of sandy helicopter shots, excessive sprint stages and a host nation with a poor human rights record. Wait, maybe I should revise this ranking.
26. Classic Brugge De Panne
I miss the old 3 days we used to get. Now it’s just a flash in De Panne.
25. Itzulia Basque Country
It’s hard to stand out during the meaty Classics week. This race tries, but it doesn’t have enough bite to it.
24. La Flèche Wallonne
The Mur de Huy is decent, I guess.
23. Gent-Wevelgem
A glorified sprinter’s Classic under the guise of a cobbled affair? No, thank you.
22. Tour de Romandie
No one is going to take you seriously if Ethan Hayter is poaching bunch sprints year-on-year.
21. Vuelta a España
This Grand Tour is an afterthought. As much as I admire Primož Roglič, that’s not enough to salvage some places on the list.
20. Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa
The ‘ol Tony Gallopin exhibition race. The Klasikoa serves up some much-needed one-day action in the summertime.
19. Giro di Lombardia
Yikes, the ‘race of the falling leaves’ is a chore to get through. It’s only in the top 20 because of its Monument status.
18. Liège-Bastogne-Liège
By this point in the year, I’m tired of spending my Sunday afternoons watching Benelux countryside.
17. Tirreno-Adriatico
The only race where the trophy is a big barbecue fork. A solid week-long stage race with plenty of spice. Tirreno should end with a time-trial though.
16. E3 Saxo Classic
Homophobic tweets and sexist posters aside, E3 is usually a good race. However, it feels all too much like a bootleg Tour of Flanders. The race also finishes on a new-build housing estate, which takes away from the oomph of the Classics magic.
15. Dwaars door Vlaanderen
The forgotten child of the Flemish Classics, Dwaars door Vlaanderen – which literally translates to ‘All Around Flanders’ (terrible name) – feels like a tray of Flemish canapés. Serving wind, cobbles, bad weather and grinta in spades, this one-day race is the bohemian alternative to the Ronde.
14. Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
Oh boy, this one is a humdinger. The real start to the Classics.
13. Critérium du Dauphiné
If you like the Alps, you’re going to love the Dauphiné. Slotted right before the Tour, the Dauphiné is the last chance for the yellow jersey contenders to shine and narrow their odds of Tour glory. I’ll be honest, however, the Dauphiné is more often than not an omen of domination to come.
12. Paris-Nice
The mini Tour de France, Paris-Nice oozes class. Serving as the real season opener, Paris-Nice is a stage race that offers it all. The final stage around Nice promises nothing but action all the way to the finish.
11. Bretagne Classic – Ouest-France
I will fight tooth and nail for this race’s WorldTour status. Expect the unexpected in Brittany. The rolling profile makes for a fierce race that only a primary school paper fortune teller could predict.
10. Milan-San Remo
Now we’re talking. Milan-San Remo guarantees, and I mean guarantees, the wildest 20 minutes of cycling you’ll watch on the calendar. The relentless, and sometimes desperate, attacks both on and off the Poggio make for fascinating racing as everyone tries to win the toughest race to predict on the cycling calendar. Whether you’re a sprinter, Grand Tour champion or punchy wildcard, you have a chance of taking La Classicissima.
9. Amstel Gold Race
Oh Amstel, how we love you so dearly. Overshadowed by its Monument brothers and sisters, Amstel Gold is a precious day in the cycling calendar. Looking past the obvious 2019 case study, Amstel has dished up some stellar editions over the years, from the epic Van Aert-Pidcock-Schachmann skirmish to Gasparotto’s throwback in 2016, Amstel Gold is the GOAT of the Ardennes.
8. Tour de Pologne
Controversial, I know, but the Tour of Poland is a cult classic. The Polish race is an underdog sandwiched between Grand Tour titans. The sun-drenched golden hour broadcasts during the long August afternoons may hold a special place in my heart, but this race is overlooked for no good reason. With rolling profiles and sprints galore, the Tour of Poland is a rogue race to predict, filled with twists and turns.
I would also like to take this opportunity to shun the appropriation of the French language for races that do not take part in France, and most likely never will.
7. Grands Prixs Cycliste de Québec*
Broadcast at night in Europe, the Québec races are the perfect build-up to the World Championships. They also make for great tea-time viewing and could be considered the only race socially acceptable to have a beer while watching on TV. Hills, sprints, whatever – these Canadian classics are worthy of the name. Plus, they are the only North American racing we get nowadays at the WorldTour level. Beggars can’t be choosers.
*The Montréal and Québec races have been grouped into one position. They are the same, and you can’t tell me otherwise.
6. Tour de France
I mean, I can’t place this outside of the top ten in all reality. The Tour de France is cycling. We get all the narratives, protagonists and attention that we could possibly want from the sport. In recent years, the compelling battle between Vingegaard and Pogačar has made for a spellbinding spectacle. Turn the clock back to the 2010s and the Tour de France was more of a chore.
5. Paris-Roubaix
This was always destined to make it into the top five. Plainly, it would be disrespectful to commit treason against the Queen of the Classics’ name. You already know her well, there’s no need to elaborate any further.
4. Giro d’Italia
Let’s conveniently forget the underwhelming Giri of the 2020s and remember the golden era of this Grand Tour. The Giro is [usually] a fabulous feast of all the things we crave from a Grand Tour. Set against the backdrop of Italy’s sociocultural and geographical mosaic, the Corsa Rosa guarantees three weeks of unparalleled joy. Besides, the pink jersey is a wonderfully unique leader’s jersey. You could even say that the maglia rosa has been fighting toxic masculinity since 1931.
3. Renewi Tour
Calm down, calm down – let me explain this. The Renewi Tour is an underappreciated force within the WorldTour calendar. I dare to call it the Aston Villa of the WorldTour. Taking place in the cultural heartland of cycling, the Eneco…BinckBank…no, I mean, Renewi Tour holds a special place in all our hearts. The race is a week-long Classic. Ardennes, cobbles, time-trials and sprints, it’s the Grand Tour for those scared of heights. The summertime schedule also means that we get to see cycling in Belgium under clear bright skies (or so we think). Bonus points are also levied by the innovative ‘golden kilometre’. If you don’t know what that is, Google it.
2. Strade Bianche
Gravel is a fad, but Strade Bianche is a lifestyle. This race is a phenomenon and unrivalled in the cycling calendar. Standing out as a gravel one-day race through beautiful Tuscany, Strade Bianche has become one of modern cycling’s great races. The final climb into Siena only adds to its legend, with the biblical gradients, otherworldly sprints and historic photographs captured on the iconic Via Santa Catarina.
The prodigé of the cycling calendar, Strade Bianche has become a headline act in the cycling zeitgeist within a decade. Bravo!
1. Tour of Flanders
Taking the top spot, it’s the old reliable Tour of Flanders. The Ronde van Vlaanderen – to give it its birth name – is the real queen of the Classics. Screw it, it’s the supreme leader, dictator, American president of the Classics. Cobble kickers, beer tents, rabid fans and passion, the Tour of Flanders is a spectacle in its own right.
The snooze button is rarely touched during the race. It promises fireworks, whether that be on the Kapelmuur or the Paterberg. Sprinkle in the mystique of having the pros walk up the hardest climbs and you have a mythical race on your hands. This is the big cheese – or should I say big kaas – of the Classics calendar. Paris-Roubaix is your frail Granny you have to love unconditionally, whereas Flanders is the fun Grandpa who took you out on his boat.
Stay tuned for the Women’s WorldTour ranking next week.
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