Good news for Moletta

Andrea Moletta had probably the most spectacular crash of the early season, slamming into a lamp post and stone wall during Milano-Sanremo. He came out of it with a broken right thigh, with doctors warning before the operation that they couldn't say when he might return to racing.

Moletta had a metal plate put in to his thigh on Tuesday, and it went well, Gerolsteiner spokesman Jörg Grünefeld told Cyclingnews. "The doctors are quite satisfied with the operation. They said if his recovery will go on at its best, Andrea may get out of the hospital in two or three days."

"They are also optimistic that Andrea can do some races in the late season," he continued. "The Vuelta probably would be too hard for him, but hopefully any other race in September or October could see Andrea at the start."

"Christian Henn (Sports Director) said that it would be perfect for him if he could still do some races this year," Grünefeld concluded. "Then the start in the 2008 season would surely come easier for him."