They let Sivtsov go while I was a threat

“I remain cool. I think that the riders who were in the breakaway today will pay the price in the next stages. The group got away after 55km of racing and it was impossible to cover all the attacks. I also tried to get into a breakaway with the Spanish rider Arroyo but they wouldn’t let us,” Roman said. “Sivtsov didn’t pose a threat for the leaders even though he has made it back to the top ten eventually. I still believe that Saturday´s and Sunday´s stages will prove decisive,” he added.The riders had to cope with two climbs today; Passo del Tonale and Aprico. “The pace wasn’t so high on the first climb but we were doing 30-40km/h on the way up to Aprica. We rode with the tailwinds and we were trying to position well before the following downhill. I had a hunch that Nibali was up to something so we kept riding up to the front,” described the owner of the white jersey.Roman´s domestique Masciarelli abandoned the Giro after yesterday´s stage. He pulled out of the race due to a muscle injury that he sustained during the stage on Grossglockner after a collision with a car. “He was in pain for two days. It is better for him to return home and recover from the injury. It won´t affect the consistency of our team. Tiralongo is doing a great job in the mountains and I´m sure he will help me out.”Stage 17 (Feltre–Tirano, 230 km): 1st Ulissi (Ita/Lampre) 5:31:51, 2nd Lastras (Spa/Movistar), 3rd Visconti (Ita/Farnese Vini), 4th Bakelandts (Bel/Lotto) +4, 5th Taborre (Ita/Acqua e Sapone), 6th Vorganov (Rus/Katusha)+8, … 24th Roman Kreuziger (Cze/Astana) +2:59.Overall Standings: 1st Contador (Spa/Saxo Bank) 68:18:27, 2nd Scarponi (Ita/Lampre) +4:58, 3rd Nibali (Ita/Liquigas) +5:45, 4th Gadret (Fra/AG2R) +7:35, 5th Sivcov (Bel/HTC) +9:12, 6th Rujano (Ven/Androni) +9:18, 7th Nieve (Spa/Euskaltel) +9:22, 8th Menchov (Ruse/Geox) +9:38, 9th Roman Kreuziger +9:47, 10th Rodriguez (Spa/Katusha) +10:25.