The long running saga concerning Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome and the Tour de France finally drew to a close today as it was announced Wiggins wouldn't be selected for the Sky team in July due to an ongoing knee problem but as the conspiracy theorists start their rounds is there really more than meets the eye with this decision?...

Yesterday I spoke about how the Dauphine has a very different feel compared with the early season stage races that Chris Froome has hoovered up so far this year because it's the first real test for riders looking to compete in the General Classification at the Tour de France in July, but just how important is the Dauphine both as a race in it's own right and as build up towards the Tour?...

A lull in the cycling season this week could lead to an early bout of post-cycling depression but fear not, if this week is a quiet one then next week is likely to be explosive as the Criterium du Dauphine 2013 kicks off this weekend and it's going to be some race. The usual Dauphine mix of a few mountains, a time trial and a bunch of sprint stages has been replaced by a very undulating 8 day course that provides little for the sprinters but plenty of climbing for the GC contenders including of course l'Alpe d'Huez and if the Giro fell short of real GC competition then this should be a race at the opposite end of the scale - Contador, Froome, Valverde, Rodriguez, Quintana, Rolland are amongst the frankly huge names on the start-list and it's going to make for an evenly fought battle of the fittest. Unlike many of the early season stage races the Dauphine is the first real indicator of Tour de France form - if riders are flagging here then they will likely be flagging at the tour and there are a few names with plenty to prove. Here's a little video of all the stages - not really a movie and there's no official trailer yet. A full race preview will follow later in the week, oh and you might want to turn your speakers down...

In yesterdays Giro d'Italia rest day round-up I made a point of talking about this years Young Rider Classification and in particular Rafal Majka - Saxobank's new kid on the block. He again finished with the big favourites in today's tough stage from Valloire to Ivrea and finds himself just five seconds off the White Jersey and 8th overall in the General Classification. So who is Rafal Majka? And where has he come from?...

You know Bradley Wiggins is struggling when he even manages to lose time on a 'sprint stage'. Even if the weather was torrential if Cavendish can make it to the end to contest the sprint then Wiggins should be more than capable of finishing in the Maglia Rosa group but another wet descent and a chest infection has left the Pink Jersey well beyond his reach, in fact 5 minutes 22 seconds beyond his reach. So what now for Sky both at the Giro and of course the Tour?...

An interview with Rigoberto Uran at the Giro stage 10 press conference led to some choice words regarding team-mate Chris Froome. It's difficult to judge as sometimes with interviews such as this words and meaning get lost in translation but if there was talk of a 'Colombian Conspiracy' at the Giro early last week it appears it should be Chris Froome who's worried, not Bradley Wiggins...

OK, so the Giro is in full flow but it's not the only bike race happening right now - in fact the 2013 Amgen Tour of California starts today and here's a little film with insights from locals, fans, organisers and riders about the route stage by stage including a look at the gruelling Mount Diablo finish. Obviously the race is made difficult to watch thanks to the time difference but the summit finish stage is certainly worth staying up for - however much the Americans love this race though it does have it's downsides: Much of the race is flat, it's a bit of a sprint fest which often leaves the GC battle wanting and of course the Giro is on and those not in Italy are working hard to find form for the Tour de France so the start-list is often lacking in big names. It certainly won't rival the Giro, but bike racing is bike racing so never pass up the opportunity to watch more...Enjoy.

It took minutes for a large proportion of twitterati and cycling media to write off Bradley Wiggins Giro after his crash on a rain sodden descent of today's stage left him 1 minute 32 seconds off the Maglia Rosa and 1.24 back on Nibali and the other major favourites but is it really all over for Wiggins?...

There is little going on in the way of news today and one team will be happier for that than most. If Team Sky look black and blue it might not just be down to the kit - the team have been through the mill in the last few weeks and it would be easy for a dedicated 'Team Sky News' website to keep churning out the stories as no longer are the cycling squad and their exploits confined to the small column inches at the back of the newspapers, no, they are too busy making headlines on news channels across Europe. So, whats going on at Team Sky?...

Now, we are all well aware that there happens to be a little race happening right now in Italy (apparently) but here's something even littler. This beautifully shot video gives an insight into the domestic peloton following riders and director sportifs through this years Ruland-Melton Cicle Classic, which just happens to be my 'major' local race. I wrote a report on it last year (It was the worst day of weather that year, only 22 riders finished the race and there was me and about a dozen others braving it at the finish) but couldn't attend this year which meant of course that it was glorious sunshine! This one day race with it's 11 off-road sections is by far the toughest UCI 1.2 race going and this little video produced by Mat Pennell & Phil Sheehan is a real gem. Enjoy.

We are now just two sleeps away from the first Grand Tour of the year and it's shaping up to be quite an exciting prospect even if real 'favourites' are a little thin on the ground - even thinner now that Ivan Basso has withdrawn due to a 'lemon sized' cyst in the most uncomfortable of places and Jose Rujana has been held back by his Vacansoleil team thanks to an ongoing doping investigation but there are still riders looking to make an impression on this race and that extends beyond Bradley Wiggins and Vincenzo Nibali. So, who are the favourites?...