Froome moves to fourth in WorldTour standings after Dauphiné win

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Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack Leopard) remains in top spot in the individual rankings of the UCI WorldTour, but Sunday’s victory for Chris Froome (Sky) in the Critérium du Dauphiné has seen the Briton move up from ninth to fourth overall.

Froome’s teammate Richie Porte’s second place overall in the Dauphiné, meanwhile, has gained the 2013 Paris-Nice winner two spots in the WorldTour rankings, moving the Australian into fifth. Thus while the top three spots remain completely unchanged, with Cancellara at 351 points, Giro d’Italia winner Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) at 322 and Peter Sagan (Cannondale) with 312, Froome is now just one point behind Sagan, with 311, while Porte's total is 305.

Froome’s resurgence in the WorldTour standings is a just reflection of the 28-year-old Briton’s impressive domination in the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he took third in the mid-week time trial, moved into the lead 24 hours later at Valmorel, the race’s first major summit finish, and then concluded Sunday’s final mountain test, at Risoul, in second place on the stage.

Overall, Froome completes what is both a hugely prestigious win in itself and a key dress rehearsal for the Briton’s bid for victory in the Tour de France in July with a 58-second advantage over teammate Porte, while Spain’s Dani Moreno (Katusha) is third, at 2:12.

It is Froome’s ninth win this season, following outright victories in the Tour of Oman, Critérium International and the Tour de Romandie, as well as a second place and a stage win in Tirreno-Adriatico. Should he meet with further success in the Tour de France, the overall top spot in the WorldTour rankings looks well within his reach at the end of July.

In the nations classification, Spain regained control of the lead from Colombia, briefly heading the rankings after their strong collective performance in the Giro d’Italia. With five riders in the top 10 overall, Spain jumped from third to first and now leads by 49 points on Colombia. Neither Colombia nor Italy, with 766 and 720 points respectively, scored any points in the Dauphiné.

The other major mover in the nations classification is Great Britain. Even though the country remains in fourth place, thanks to the Critérium du Dauphiné it has now added 112 points for a total of 622 points, solidifying their advantage over Australia, who remains in fifth spot.

Unsurprisingly, given Porte’s and Froome’s performances, Sky remains in the top spot of the WorldTour team rankings, but considerably reinforced that position. Already 184 points ahead of Katusha after the Giro d’Italia, Sky now has an advantage of 310 points on the Russian squad, while Movistar Team remains in third at 633 points.