SBS: Rory Sutherland (UnitedHealthcare) has left no doubts over his readiness for the upcoming Amgen Tour of California, his major goal of the season, by winning the tough opening stage of the SRAM Tour of the Gila at Mogollon, New Mexico.

CyclingNews: Irish cycling legend Stephen Roche may be part of the guiding body which helps to set the sport's rules, but his recent suggestions for "upgrading the image of cycling" were met with firm disagreement from the boss of his nephew Dan Martin, Garmin-Barracuda manager Jonathan Vaughters.

CyclingNews: It's almost 25 years since Ireland's Stephen Roche raced to glory in the 1987 Tour de France, part of a memorable Triple Crown year that also took in the Giro d'Italia and the UCI Road World Championships. Retirement came six years later and after initially filling his time with various projects, he is now helping to shape professional cycling's future as the UCI representative on the board of the Professional Cycling Council (CCP).

Cyclismas: The UCI trundled out Professional Cycling Commission member Stephen Roche to discuss their latest developments to benefit the sport of cycling for the sponsors, and to address the safety concerns of the peloton.

VeloNation: Grand Boucle champion disappointed with Tour de Romandie performance but feels all’s well in preparation for July.

Giro d'Italia - May 5-27 (Stages),
Amgen Tour of California - May 13-20 (Stages),
Tour of Turkey - April 22-29 (Stages & results),
Tour de Romandie - April 24-29 (Stages & results),
Joe Martin Stage Race - April 26-29 (Stages & results),
Liège - Bastogne - Liège - April 22 (Results),
Tour de France - June 30 - July 22 (Stages),
2012 Olympic Games - July 28 - August 12 (Races),
Vuelta a España - August 18 - September 9 (Stages),
More...

CyclingNews: Pulling on the Giro d'Italia's maglia rosa is a prestigious moment in any rider's career and Taylor Phinney believes that if he succeeds in wining the race's opening time trial on Saturday, his life will change forever.

InnerRing: The Giro d’Italia guide is now online. There’s a concise preview of every stage as well as information on the jerseys, the start list, TV viewing and more.

Tour of the Gila – cheat sheet...

CyclingNews: The SRAM Tour of the Gila kicks off on Wednesday, and the edition marks the first time that the event has designated as a UCI 2.2 stage race. Consequently, the grueling five-day stage race has attracted professional racers from Pro Continental teams UnitedHealthcare, Team Type 1 and Champion System - a Hong-Kong based sports apparel company. This team of eight adds to the already strong field of international participants from Belgium, Spain, Columbia, and Mexico.

VeloNation: Briton feeling confident after dominant performance in Romandie.

InnerRing: The news that pro cycling teams could get a share of the TV rights money paid by broadcasters would mark a significant change to the way business is done today. Here is a look at some of the issues surrounding revenue sharing.

CyclingNews: Sharing television rights between race organisers and cycling’s elite teams could be within touching distance. Cyclingnews understands that a deal between Italy’s RCS and the sport’s major teams is close to agreement.

CyclingNews: Tyler Farrar and Ryder Hesjedal will lead the Garmin-Barracuda team in this month’s Giro d’Italia. The American squad will be aiming for stage wins and a high overall placing through Hesjedal, who finished in the top 10 at the Tour de France in 2010.

Marijn de Vries: The woman in the breakaway has the most important task of the day: riding her ass off because the group must stay away, no matter what. If the breakaway is caught just before the finish, we still have the problem of the bonus seconds on the line.

Off The Beaten Path: Everybody knows that riding behind another cyclist decreases your wind resistance, but we also found that the front rider benefits from the draft, receiving a push from the rear rider.

VeloNews: Andrew Talansky (Garmin-Barracuda) is hoping his breakthrough second place at the Tour de Romandie kicks him to a higher level in the European peloton. The performance is validation for the rider whom many believe could be the next American to have success in grand tours.

PEZ: "The big news in group sets right now is SRAM’s all new 2012 RED gruppo – every piece has been redesigned, it’s even lighter than before, and works better than ever. I rode it at the Tour of Flanders cyclosportif in late March and after 6 hours 36 minutes, here’s what I can tell you… "

road.cc: A clutch purse for your bike. Nice, not essential.

PodiumCafe: Because every once and a while we all feel the need to get dirty I bring you WOR. The pro race is 50 miles mixed pavement, single track and fire road. Starting grid is seeded with a crit run Friday evening. What's the catch you ask?

Cyclismas: In the 1920s, cycling had but two Grand Tours. The Spanish were only slowing getting into gear, in 1924 launching a tour of the Basque Country. A Tour of Spain itself was still a long, long way off. For the two Grand Tours that did exist, the Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia, a comfortable formula had established itself: racing days alternating with rest days.

road.cc: Four others seriously injured in incident in southeast of country yesterday morning.

CyclingNews: As he serves out the remainder of his suspension for clenbuterol use, Spanish rider Alberto Contador has revealed that he is desperately missing the thrill of competition and the edge that it provides, but is training harder than ever and has been keeping a close eye on the 2012 season from the comfort of his living room.

SBS: It was exactly 116 days into the calendar year before Mark Renshaw, the world’s best lead-out man turned lead man at Rabobank, finally got his just desserts in the form of a Turkish delight.

BikeRadar: From the latest product news to details of routes and events, our news round-up is a collection of short snippets of information in one handy article.

Pedal: "The way this Crit Series goes is a bit strange. They have the biggest race on day one – the Athens Twilight isn’t just big, it’s huge. This four corner crit attracts huge crowds and the atmosphere is like no other race around. Being on the front line was incredible. Even though I got to enjoy it last year as well I just don’t see it ever getting old. The truth is, the staging of the race is half the show."

road.cc: Team Sky star unfazed both on and off the bike as he heads to Tour de France as one of the favorites.

BikeRadar: The Sea Otter Classic may no longer be the first event on the international mountain bike race calendar but it's still the earliest opportunity for many manufacturers to show off their latest wares to the press and public, and this year's outing didn't disappoint.

Saddle Americana: The troubling question we are now forced to confront is: are there really no donut shops in Boulder? Sometimes, a hungry cyclist craves the donut, and we’ve got to have somebody somewhere who can help in these situations!

PodiumCafe: Makes for a great reference work, having something to say about every Giro between 1971 and 2011. The McGanns are also good at trying to place the race within the wider context of Italian history and shining some light on the evolving business side of the Giro.