OrionKhan

+1...Still have a 22% to go

rogwilco

Here's the attack, I don't think Evans is coming back. But still long to go, the last km took forever.

OrionKhan

goodbye, cadel

OrionKhan

So much for the issue of who the leader of Liquigas was, Nibali or Basso...

Tsuru

Jeeezus.

geist

Is that the sound of snapping elastic?

OrionKhan

one word...pain. you gotta wonder if evans and scarponi are thinking "is this worth it? so much easier to just give in".

Tsuru

Evans isn't conceding-conceding, but yeah, looks like Basso's may get this (unless he absolutely blows up, doubtful by now).

Tsuru

Wish they'd time check Pink.

Tsuru

There we go... 3:14" on pink for basso.

OrionKhan

That was an epic finishing scene.

rogwilco

Great win for Basso - very, very impressive.

OrionKhan

Great rides by Evans and Scarponi too.

rogwilco

Could this be Sastre in pink?
eta: I guess not, I thought Arroyo was farther behind.

OrionKhan

Sastre kinda surprised me finishing in 6th or 7th? He looked like he wasn't looking very good at the bottom.

rogwilco

Yes, he was only 2:44 behind, obviously that's not great for him but alright I think.

Tsuru

What an amazing stage to watch!!! =D Props to Sastre, thought he was down & out by the way the commentors were talking but he wasn't too far back. Evans was wonderful to watch, but I'd have to think all that time out of the saddle HAD to hurt, right? And Basso, just on autopilot, was amazing.

Edit - oh, and Vino hung in there too!

WSKB

Sastre is so weird, he doesn't bother getting on the leader's wheel at the bottom, and then has a much harder time climber because he losses time at the bottom, and then munches through the rest of the climb, that's 2 days in a row he's screwed up the bottom and it's cost him both times!

ALANB58

This is going to ruin Basso fans day. Basso has had a pretty strong team surrounding him this whole race. Evans has nearly always been up at the front, without any teammates, attacking, sometimes with his fists! Yesterday Basso sat in all day on Evans and a couple other riders and then took the sprint at the end. That had to have helped him today, he did not even look tired.

Ariostea

A fantastic stage, great to see Basso back and how amazing was the crowd at the top in that natural amphitheater?!?!?! Had to have been 100k fans in the last 1k of the race.

OrionKhan

Yeah. Sastre is just weird. There is no predicting the guy. He looked shot at the bottom. Then he comes rolling in at 6th. I still would not be surprised to him win one of these mountain stages. Thing about Sastre, he's sitting 4th overall and less than a minute behind Basso. There are still some serious mountain stages to go. One bad day from any of the contenders will be disastrous. Ask Wiggins about it.

I wish there were more motorcycle cameras. Its hard to figure out who was passing who and when on a climb like that. Its hard when guys are strung out all up and down the mountain.

Evans looks like he wants to just will his way to victory. He's pretty much had no help the whole tour. Plus, he's had bad luck. He ain't pretty watch climb, but he's getting the job done.

Basso looked very smooth. With a rest day tomorrow, he looks like a good pick for the TT on tuesday.

For all the talk about Vino not handling the big steep climbs well, he didn't look to bad today.

Farrar, McEwen, Goss DNF'd

Tsuru

Read the velo or cyclingnews write up on the stage... didn't realize how far back Wiggins made it up. Like 104th place.... oof. Not his giro.

lotek 

Wiggins never claimed to be riding for the GC, I thought he was using this Giro as a warm up
for his TdF campaign.

Marty

Tsuru

Possibly, but he was in the mix for a bit and then after the crazy breakaway day, got some more time, I have a hard time imaging anyone not wanting it.

But either way.. for a GC contender for the Tour, I'm surprised he fell so far back yesterday.

OrionKhan

I agree. It may not have been his primary goal at the beginning. But as things got going and considering his position, I find it hard to believe he didn't think about winning it all. Why else would have launched that attack the day before? Could be he realized he didn't have much after that attack and threw in the towel.