After being docked 2 minutes on stage ten of the Giro d’Italia, consequentially leaving him 12th in the GC, Richie Porte’s other GC rivals have offered their condolences and sympathies for what has happened.

Others have spoken about the pressure it will put him under in the stage 14 time trial as he needs to take back lots more time than he initially had to take.

“It’s not just important for morale, it’s important tactically too,” Martinelli said. “Richie Porte certainly had an advantage over us with the time trial to come but now he has to go even better again in the time trial. Porte has been tranquil up to now, thinking about the time trial, and this might provoke him to come out and make the race. I’m expecting a more aggressive Sky tomorrow, definitely,” Astana manager Giuseppe Martinelli told Cyclingnews.

“We didn’t see it on television, we just heard it on the radio. I don’t even know what happened. It sounds like he punctured and I’m sorry that he’s lost time in that way,” Etixx-QuickStep DS Davide Bramati told Cyclingnews at the finish in Forlì. 

As for his rider Rigoberto Uran, who was 2 minutes down on Porte before stage ten, he now finds himself a minute ahead, which Porte will struggle to take on him in the time trial as Uran is so strong in the discipline.

“I think it’s Aru and Contador who’ve benefited the most because Porte was closest to them on GC and in a position to take the maglia rosa,” Bramati said. “We’re already two minutes down and I think it’s going to be impossible, but we’ll certainly try.”

Current GC leader Alberto Contador, who was likely to lose the GC lead in a Grand Tour for the first time in his career to Porte in the TT as he was only 22 seconds ahead on stage nine said he was sorry for Porte to lose time that way.

“I’m sorry for Richie,” Contador said after he heard the news. “At points like that in a race you’re going flat out, your heart-rate is really high, and you only think about losing as little time as possible, not the rules.”