Welcome to stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia - the day that the fight for the GC should really hot up. The 186km stage from Falzes to Cortina d'Ampezzo features five climbs, including the fearsome Cat.1 Passo Giau, before finishing at the fashionable ski resort after a long, technical downhill.

Spain's Nieve is only 4:20 down in the GC so this is an interesting move from the Euskaltel rider. He is now 1:17 back on the five leaders. Liquigas continue the pace setting through Agnoli. Off the back, John Gadret is taking a pair of scissors to his jersey, for some inexplicable reason. He's also riding this climb with no hands at the moment.

Txurruka drops back - he was clearly acting as a foil and launchpad for his team leader. Nieve now continues on his way in pursuit of the leading five riders.

DOUBLE ATTACK: Euskaltel pair Mikel Nieve and Amets Txurruka blast off the front of the pack.

The gap is not coming down any more now they're onto this Cat.2 climb. Seeldraeyers is setting the pace, with Rabottini in his wheel. Both have shoulders swaying like metronomes.

Jose Rujano (Androni) is losing touch with the peloton. Alessandro Ballan (BMC) is already off the back, while Christian Vande Velde (Garmin) needed a wheel change after a puncture. The whole of the pack is strung out thanks to the pace set by Liquigas. Szmyd sprays a fan who is running alongside with water - that'll teach him.

Now Liquigas come to the front to take the baton from Euskaltel. Ivan Basso looks pertty relaxed. He even has a bit of a grin. The Lampre team of Cunego and Scarponi are there too. The gap is down to 1:50.

Reminder of the leading five riders out ahead: Branislau Samoilau (Movistar), Matteo Rabottini (Farnese Vini), Kevin Seeldraeyers (Astana), Jose Serpa (Androni Giocattoli) and Matteo Montaguti (Ag2r-La Mondiale).

Big pat on the back for Euskaltel: they have reduced the gap to 2:40 now. At one point, this break way six minutes clear.

Rabottini has cracked! The Italian blue jersey has already been dropped by the other four escapees at the start of the Cat.1 Passo Duran. Hang on - false alarm... he's just dropping back to speak to his DS and for a bike change.

The work by Euskaltel sees the lead drop to 3:40. The leaders are powering along this small flat segment ahead of the Cat.1 Passo Duran.

Red jersey Cavendish, impressively, is back in the pink jersey group after a superb descent.

Seven Euskaltel riders are pulling the peloton along at the moment. They trail the leaders by 4:50. After yesterday's win for Jon Izagirre, the Basque boys clearly want more. They didn't make the break, but there's a long way to go, and this shows they mean business.

Lunch time for the peloton and it's Euskatel who set the pace: this could be carnage.

Another withdrawal: Thomas Vaitkus of Orica GreenEdge.

The leaders pass through the feeding zone. They have 3:50 over Carrara and Marzio Bruseghin, who are riding just a little ahead of the peloton. Mark Cavendish is riding in a group three minutes behing the pack.

It's back together in the bunch, with Euskaltel resuming their pacing duties on the front.

This is an incredibly fast and seemingly interminable descent. Rabottini is taking a back seat. He and Samoilau are the only riders with short sleeves in the leading group.

Vacansoleil-DCM's Matteo Carrara has pulled off the front of the pack with a Movistar rider on this descent.

It's a long, fast and sweeping descent here, with frequent hairy hairpins. Luckily, the weather is dry and sunny today. Aerial pictures are pretty special, with the peloton strung completely out.

The bunch goes over the top 4:17 in arrears, so they have managed to reduce the gap on the steep section of that climb.

No one apart from Rabottini seems too concerned about the points here: the other four riders are more concerned with putting on some long-sleeves ahead of this fast, long descent. Rabottini takes the points, uncontested, to consolidate his lead in the KOM standings.