With Team LPR Brakes showing spectacular form with four stage wins- two for Alessandro Petacchi and two for Danilo Di Luca- it should come as no surprise that the two Italians, and indeed their entire team, are eager to find a way into the Tour de France. Di Luca has already spoken up in defense of his Continental Pro team, which did not receive an automatic (or wildcard) invite to the Tour. According to French sports daily l'Equipe, Petacchi may have some options up his own sleeve to return to the Grande Boucle.

While LPR Brakes has no intention of releasing Petacchi from his contract, the Belgian Silence-Lotto team has expressed interest in engaging the Italian sprinter for the Tour de France. No deal has been reached, but Silence-Lotto directeur sportif Roberto Damiano has confirmed his interest in a short-term hire of "Ale-Jet" for le Tour.

Fabian Cancellara didn't test himself at the Giro's tough Cinque Terre time trial.

(Photo: Roberto Bettini)

Cancellara Opts Out of Giro TT

Of all the time trial favorites to test their mettle on the long and technical Cinque Terre time trial Thursday in the Giro d'Italia, Olympic and former world TT champion Fabian Cancellara was the notable non-starter. Team Saxo Bank's Swiss specialist pulled out of the Giro in a planned move, preferring to focus on training camps in view of the upcoming Tour de France.

"It has been our plan all along for me, that I would be taking it day by day in the Giro," Cancellara said on the team's website. "I'm very happy with the part of it that I have raced and the atmosphere here at the Giro is always really special. I'm very fond of this race and I've always felt extremely welcome here. I'd like to come back in one of the next seasons and if it fits in my program I would love to make a result here."

Cancellara has had a quiet season thus far, missing out on key goals such as the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.

"My season this year has not been completely as planned, but I definitely feel that I'm on the right track and I'm looking forward to the next goals for me and the team," he added. "Now, I'll take it easy for the next couple of days, before I'm off to a very demanding training camp in the Alps with some of the other riders on the Tour team."

Today's time trial was won by Russian Denis Menchov (Rabobank), who also took over the maglia rosa of race leader.

Great form and bad luck with crashes. Horner's up and down season continues.

(Photo: Roberto Bettini)

Horner Home, Thinking of Tour

Team Astana's Chris Horner was forced to abandon the Giro d'Italia this week, but the American remains positive and is already thinking ahead to returning to the Tour de France. Horner has shown exceptional form all season despite multiple injuries, including a cracked collarbone. His injuries from a crash in Tuesday's stage 10 of the Giro didn't appear too serious that day, but Wednesday morning brought a new world of pain, sufficient to send him packing. The initial diagnosis was a muscle strain serious enough that his left leg was unable to support the weight of his body on the bike or off.

"At this level of racing it's not enough just to finish the race," Horner wrote on his blog. "You need to be able to do the job that can help the team. If I continued to race, the amount of time it would take my body to recover would be increased, and there would be no real benefit to the team, since my riding would continue to deteriorate as the injury worsened."

Back home in Bend, Oregon, Horner will rest and recover in order to build back up for the Tour de France in July, where he once again is expected to be a key support man for the team's GC men, Contador, Armstrong and Leipheimer. 

"If crashes come in threes, I have completed my quota," Horner wrote. "So now I'm [back in] Bend to recover and get ready for the upcoming Tour de France. The frustration I feel about having to leave a race when I was in a great position to help the team will keep me motivated to come into the Tour in even better fitness than I came to the Giro."