Carlos Sastre (Cervelo TestTeam) won his second Giro stage today beating Franco Pellizotti (Team Liquigas) to move into 4th place on the GC. Danilo Di Luca (Team LPR Brakes) finished third ahead of maglia rosa holder Denis Menchov (Team Rabobank) who finished 4th. Sastre remains 61 seconds out of third place going into the last two stages of the centenary Giro d'Italia.

"These stages are really made for Carlos," remarked teammate Serge Pauwels. "The short stage at Blockhaus was maybe too short, but, when the stages are longer like today with steady climbs, they are perfect for him.

"He showed he picked the right moment when the favorites were looking at each other and I was in a good position to slow down the chase group containing the favorites. So Carlos was able to immediately make a gap of thirty seconds. Then it was Astana's turn to try to ride in the front, but Popovych blew and Navarro as well, then it was over as Carlos rode off," Pauwels added.

"It was the second victory for myself, the third for the team," Carlos Sastre told reporters at the finish line. "The team support me and helped me to the end. Serge was close to me during the last hour of the race which worked nicely for us.

"We tried the maximum in this stage of the Giro d'Italia and I now sit fourth in the GC but it will be difficult to move up in the next couple of days. But I think we are happy, this is very good for our team because we did a fantastic job."