Analysis

Discounted by many, Ryder Hesjedal is in the driver's seat in Italy and the GC contenders know it

Ten years after the last HP Women's Challenge, the Olympic champ returns to Boise to fight for UCI points, $100,000 prize purse

In our daily Giro d'Italia roundup, Peter Stetina laments his cold-weather bonk on Sunday, Christian Meier enjoys his Orica ride through Italy and snow is in the forecast for the final days in the Dolomites

Michael Barry and Daniel Lloyd give their insight into the Passo Giau and examine descending aerodynamics and the deliberate bonk

The race for pink is wide open as the final week begins and the Dolomites loom

Andrew Hood and Gregor Brown look back on the Giro's second week and ahead to what they expect in the Dolomites for Basso, Kreuziger and Hesjedal

The best — and arguably worst — of the roadside Italian fans in the first two weeks of the Giro d'Italia

Rabottini thought it was over when Purito passed him but had worked too hard to let go of the dream of victory

Amador scores for the Ticos; Schleck still suffering; Cavendish vows to stay in the Giro

Daniel Lloyd provides insight into the route for stage 15 and what it takes to win in the mountains at the Giro d'Italia

Dave Zabriskie enters Saturday's queen stage in California in pole position, but the 15-percent ramps on Mount Baldy will determine who holds yellow on Sunday

Peter Velits and Robert Gesink may just be the most dangerous men on the GC ahead of Mount Baldy

TrainingPeaks co-founder Dirk Friel reviews the power data from UHC rider Philip Deignan for the fourth stage of the Amgen Tour

The cast of characters vying for the Amgen Tour of California overall changed Thursday, and a new story waits to be written

Giro notebook stage 12: NetApp getting closer; Bak nabs first grand-tour win; Purito gets help to stay in pink

TrainingPeaks co-founder Dirk Friel reviews the power data from UHC rider Marc de Maar for the second and third stages of the Amgen Tour

In his daily Giro wrap-up, Andrew Hood recaps the awkward Cavendish/Cipollini moment after stage 11 and Giuseppe Martinelli’s thoughts on Ryder Hesjedal

Rodríguez, Katusha confident; others not so convinced

American squad is pressing the race in the opening stages of the Amgen Tour of Calfornia

Chris Horner and company are laying their cards on the table and waiting for someone to call

Gregor Brown asks how Cav's rivals can top him and comes up with few answers

Lest the team be forgotten, Ben Jacques-Maynes and Jeremy Vennell lead a Bissell squad that is always on the attack in California

Bissell rider followed a twisty, terrible road from his crash in last year's Amgen Tour to his homecoming on Monday

Plus, maglia rosa trivia and Theo Bos' Giro sufferfest

With Leipheimer claiming he's not a factor and Horner suspicious, the opening stage of the Amgen Tour was a tactical grudge match

Sagan was surgical, strong and explosive in Santa Rosa on Sunday; Horner says Liquigas rider could win five stages

Liquigas captain limits losses in Giro's opening week and looks ahead to the grind in the Dolomites

Olds, Stevens locked in a race for UCI points after Olds wins World Cup round 5 in China

Peiper is bullish on young Americans; rain and a technical approach may make for a treacherous Giro finale on Monday

At 39, Amgen Tour champ Chris Horner keeps getting better and better. (Don’t believe us? Just ask him.)

From a cautiously optimistic Horner to an on-form Talansky and on-fire Nibali, there is no single favorite for the seventh Amgen Tour

Michael Rogers' 2010 Amgen Tour of California win was transformative

For the defending Tour of California champ, it’s Baldy or bust

Neal Rogers examines the 2009 Amgen Tour of California and whether the race can survive, or even thrive, with a new May date

Canadian and Spaniard take the biggest gains on the overall favorites for the Giro in Verona

Top favorites for the overall keep the rubber down and their chances alive in Italian tour's Danish kickoff

Andrew Hood and Gregor Brown recap the Giro d'Italia's wild opening act in Denmark, recapping Taylor Phinney's run in pink and whether the out-of-country tour start is worth it

Race leader Taylor Phinney is winning fans in the Italian media and public with his fluent language skills and coolness under pressure

Giro d'Italia leader endures nervous day in Denmark that saw him isolated near the finish

After a disappointing but enlightening rookie pro season in 2011, Phinney has come of age with his Giro win

European Correspondent runs down the key stories from Saturday's opening stage and looks ahead to Sunday's wind-battered affair

Canadian best among GC favorites after time trial, but favorites know the race will be won in the Dolomites

Without a patron, heavy final week should decide who wears the maglia rosa in Milan

News leaked this week of Giro d'Italia organizer RCS Sport negotiating a groundbreaking revenue sharing deal, but what do the stakeholders think?

Small cadre of Americans takes aim at the maglia rosa on Saturday, led by prologue threat Taylor Phinney

Second-year Garmin pro has the fire back after second-place ride and is aiming for California then the Tour

One of the top American riders for many years, Chris Horner has nonetheless never been selected to Olympic team, suggests bias

New Giro d'Italia race director Michele Acquarone says the 2012 edition of the Italian tour will be "more respectful" to the riders and said plans to take the Giro to the United States are on hold.

Frank Overton analyzes Rory Sutherland's power data from the final stage of the Amgen Tour of California.

Check out Brian Holcombe's author page.

Winning on American soil is nothing new for Greg Henderson, Team Sky’s Amgen Tour of California stage 2 winner in Modesto.