Americans Riders Brought Their A-Game to the Tour de France This Year
The 2022 Tour de France was one of the most exciting editions in recent years, and the Americans in the race often took center stage over the entire three weeks. If they weren’t at the front working for their team leader in the yellow jersey, they were off the front going for the stage win. It was truly an American tour de force!
“It was impressive. All of them performed. It was really a good show all the way around,” Chris Horner, NBC Sports Tour de France analyst and Vuelta a España winner, told Bicycling, about the American riders at this year’s race.
Sepp Kuss and Brandon McNulty
Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) and Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) were riding the Tour as “gregarios” or “domestiques.” Their job was to look after their team leaders, Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar, respectively, who just happened to finish first and second overall.
“It’s pretty impressive when you look at the pressure put on Sepp and Brandon McNulty, and they both performed,” said Horner. “Sepp was great, and Brandon was great, too. And they both had their days when they were beyond great. They never really had a bad day, either one.”
Kuss reflects on his stellar ride: “I was happy with my Tour this year. I felt much stronger and confident compared to 2021, and was able to be there in the mountain stages. After getting COVID before the race, I was surprised I felt as good as I did!”
“At every important moment [Kuss] is there in the race,” said Horner. “Even when you look at Stage 11, he’s back in [the lead group] before the [Col du] Granon starts. He’s just behind Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard, his teammates, when they were attacking on the [Col du] Galibier. That is an insurance card for your race leader. If they blow up, they know they have a teammate back there who can help.”
Can either Kuss or McNulty step into the team leader role? “McNulty is ideal for week-long races right now with his ability to time trial and his ability to climb,” remarked Horner. “And then you look at his age, 24, and bump another year or two on, and who knows if he turns into a big three-week GC guy or not.”
“Sepp could already be there if you are talking about Spain [La Vuelta] or Italy [Giro] where the time trials are shorter. He’s got to be in a Vuelta-type scenario like me, with less time trials and more climbing,” Horner continued.
Quinn Simmons
Colorado’s Quinn Simmons was the youngest rider in the 2022 Tour de France, at 21 years of age, and it was his first Tour. But that didn’t stop the Trek-Segafredo rider from riding super aggressively and getting into breakaways almost everyday.
“I felt that I had a pretty solid performance at the Tour this year,” noted Simmons. “Although I came in dreaming of a stage win, I think my days spent in the breakaway and the moments helping my teammates were just as valuable, if not more… By the last week, my goal had changed from simply making it through the race to seeing how exhausted I could make myself at the end. With this in mind, I took a lot of opportunities to push myself with the best riders in the world at the front of the race, even if the moves seemed risky or hopeless. After this Tour, I feel confident saying I can hang with some of the best, and I expect big things from myself down the road.”
Horner is bullish on Simmons. “I think he can win a stage at the Tour de France. Quinn put on a show and—this is big—when [his teammate] Mads Pedersen won Stage 13, it was Quinn Simmons which made that possible with him just pulling at 100 percent. They held the whole field at two minutes.”
Matteo Jorgenson
23-year-old Movistar Team rider Matteo Jorgenson was also in his first Tour de France, but you wouldn’t know it by how aggressively he rode. Securing fourth place in two stages and fifth place in one stage, he seemed to be going off the front every day.
“I would rate it as positive and a step in the right direction, but not what I dreamed of,” said Jorgenson. “Winning a stage was my objective and what I trained hard for all spring, so to miss out on that was very disappointing. Having the ability to make three winning breakaways and having the form to win but then not reaching the podium on any day was really hard honestly. After some reflection, all I can say is I’m more motivated than ever to continue this season and seek out that first win.”
Horner, however, was very pleased with how Jorgenson performed. “He was climbing really well, so that bodes well for his future. He’s a big time player and big time shows in the Tour de France. Matteo Jorgenson and Quinn Simmons, those two guys made those breaks. They didn’t just get in the break, they are actually pulling the break, they are the diesel engines pulling. They have big power, so when they get in the break with the right guys, they can pull.”
Neilson Powless
EF Education-EasyPost rider Neilson Powless came very close to having a dream Tour. The 25-year-old Californian was oh-so-close to taking the yellow jersey on Stage 5 after a brilliant ride on the Tour’s eventful cobbled stage. He remained aggressive throughout the three weeks and ultimately finished 13th overall.
“I would give my performance level a rating of 7,” said Powless. “I was a 10/10 in the first week, then struggled with gastro distress, and then later developed a cold. I was fighting every day to get a stage win or to make moves in GC. I never gave myself a day to rest. I was proud of what I achieved, but I think I’m capable of more than what I got in the end.”
“He’s money, the way he performed at the Tour de France," said Horner. “Whatever they are paying him, he’s worth it! He had a great run at the Tour de France.” Horner went on to note that if Powless’s teammate Alberto Bettiol hadn’t attacked off the front on Stage 5, spurring Tadej Pogacar and other GC contenders to follow, Powless likely would’ve taken the yellow jersey. “What more do you need? [He’s] a young kid on an American team. His Tour de France was 100 percent successful, punching above his weight,” he said.
Kevin Vermaerke
Kevin Vermaerke was the second youngest rider in the Tour at 21 years of age. The Team DSM racer was in his first Tour de France but broke his collarbone in a crash and had to retire. “He was the only one who had some real bad luck,” remarked Horner. “He got caught in that crash early on Stage 8. But he had already gone down once before that, so he was a trooper to still be riding.”
Joe Dombrowski
At 31 years old, Joe Dombrowski was the oldest of the seven Americans at the Tour. But the former “Baby Giro” (the amateur edition of the Giro d’Italia) winner still managed to get off the front on several stages. “It’s harder to find the feel-good story for Joe just because his team just wasn’t there, and he wasn’t able to make the right breaks. But you look at when he won Stage 4 at the Giro last year, and you know he can win stages at the grand tours. Sometimes, the luck falls your way and you catch the right breaks,” said Horner.
The Americans offered some very exciting moments for Tour de France fans, and with such a young group of motivated and aggressive riders, things are looking good for the future.
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