Monday 18 July 2016 22:10, UK
The opening two weeks of the Tour de France have gone far better than expected for some riders but is turning into a nightmare for others.
Here, we rate the leading overall contenders and sprinters out of 10…
Chris Froome (1st overall)
The race leader has not just ridden flawlessly so far but has also entertained along the way. From his daring descent on stage eight to his attack in crosswinds on stage 11 and, unforgettably, running up Mont Ventoux, Froome has been one of the best stories of the Tour as well as being comfortably the best of the pre-race favourites. It feels slightly incongruous that his lead is not greater 1min 47sec.
Rating: 9.5/10
Bauke Mollema (2nd overall, +1min 47sec)
The reason Froome is still on some sort of leash is testament to the outstanding form of Mollema. The Dutchman has three top-10 overall finishes at the Tour to his name already so has plenty of pedigree, but seems to be in the form of his life and a place on the podium right now looks a near-certainty. Chasing down Froome's attack on Mont Ventoux and then losing only 51 seconds to the Briton on the time trial the following day were particularly impressive displays.
Rating: 8.5/10
Adam Yates (3rd overall, +2min 45sec)
Few people expected Yates to be on the podium by the first rest day and even fewer anticipated he would still be there by the second. He wasn't able to follow Froome on Mont Ventoux or match him in the time trial, but otherwise, Yates has ridden brilliantly. Even if his challenge collapses in the final week and he drops down the general classifcation, this Tour will still be a resounding success for the 23-year-old Briton.
Rating: 9/10
Nairo Quintana (4th overall, +2min 59sec)
Quintana was supposed to be Froome's biggest rival for overall victory, if not be the man to beat him, but on evidence so far, the yellow jersey looks a distant dream and a place on the podium isn't certain either. Quintana has now lost time to Froome on four separate stages and is still to launch a telling attack in what has been a very underwhelming performance.
Rating: 3/10
Romain Bardet (6th overall, +4min 04sec)
Bardet is riding just about to par so far. He has been there or thereabouts in the final group on mountain stages and threw in an attack on a mountainous 15th stage on Sunday, albeit to no avail. He doesn't look likely to threaten a place on the podium, but by the same token, he looks decent value for a top-six finish.
Rating: 6/10
Richie Porte (7th overall, +4min 27sec)
Porte had been riding brilliantly up until the moment he crashed into the back of a motorbike on stage 12. Although a horribly timed puncture on stage two had effectively ended his chances of overall victory, he looked in great form and had little trouble in following Froome when the race leader attacked on Mont Ventoux. However, the crash that followed seemed to take something out of Porte, as much mentally and physically, and his performance in the next day's time trial was so poor he lost 2min 5sec to Froome. That said, a place on the podium is still not out of the question.
Rating: 6.5/10
Fabio Aru (10th overall, +5min 16sec)
The same can't really be said for Aru, who sits almost a minute further back than Porte and will need an almighty resurgence in the final week to break into the top three. The problem for the Italian is that he simply hasn't had the legs so far in the Tour, which was no better exemplified than his short-lived attack on stage 15.
Rating: 5/10
Mark Cavendish (four wins)
Cavendish has been emphatically back to his best at this Tour, which is now his most successful since 2011 after adding a win on stage 14 to his hat-trick in the opening week. His speed has been unmatched, his tactical nous has been flawless and such has been his dominance over his rivals, it would not be a surprise if he made it five wins on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday.
Rating: 9.5/10
Marcel Kittel (one win)
While Cavendish's Tour has been a resounding success, Kittel's has so far been somewhat of a flop. He did manage to bag a win on stage four, but otherwise, he has been comfortably beaten by Cavendish on four occasions and his claim to being the No 1 sprinter in the world has slipped.
Rating: 6/10
Peter Sagan (three wins)
Sagan is enjoying the best Tour of his career so far. He hasn't yet been able overcome Cavendish and Kittel in the flat sprints at the Tour but won two of the hilly sprints and claimed another victory on a windy 11th stage. Of the 16 stages so far, he has finished in the top three in seven of them and in the top 10 in nine. He also has victory in the points classification all but sewn up already.
Rating: 9/10
The Tour resumes on Wednesday with a 184.5km 17th stage ending with a summit finish at Finhaut-Emosson. Find out more about the route in our race guide and follow the stage with our live blog from 12pm BST.
