GIULIO CICCONE’S hopes of success in the Giro d’Italia’s general category disappeared last Sunday on his home roads as he fell well behind the leaders on the hellish Blockhaus climb.

Apparently his suffering was not helped by a wasp sting.

No rival to the leaders’ ambitions, the 27-year-old is no longer a marked man and, free to try for stage wins, did just that yesterday with a powerful ride on the Giro’s mountainous 177km stage 15 from Rivarolo Canavese to Cogne.

Brit Hugh Carthy took a creditable fourth place on the stage, the Preston rider not far behind young Colombian Santiago Buitrago and Spain’s Antonio Pedrero.

But the weekend’s main drama came on Saturday as Simon Yates soared to victory in a dynamic stage 14 in the hills above Turin, six days after the Bury rider’s own nightmare on the slopes of the Blockhaus left his title hopes in tatters.

The 29-year-old went solo on the final descent into the city, winning the stage 15 seconds in front of Australian Jai Hindley and Ecuadorean race favourite Richard Carapaz, who finished second and third.

It proved enough for Carapaz to take the race leader’s pink jersey off long-time incumbent Juan Pedro Lopez, who had started the day 12 seconds clear, and the time gaps among the top 10 grew more distinct before the race’s gruelling final week.