Video: Pinotti on the stage 17 startline at the Giro d'Italia

BMC's Marco Pinotti spoke exclusively to Cyclingnews on the start of stage 17 at the 2012 Giro d'Italia this morning and the veteran Italian predicted that the next five days will be hardest of the race so far.

Pinotti singled out his teammate Taylor Phinney for praise and talked up the American's chances of doing well in the final time trial this Sunday. With five Italian national time trial championships on his palmares, Pinotti is certainly well-qualified to pass judgement.

He also identified Team Sky's Columbian rider Sergio Henao as the standout performer in the race so far. The 24-year-old is in the middle of his debut season in Europe and has impressed everyone over the last couple of weeks, forcing his way into the top ten of the overall GC. He currently lies in 8th place, 1:55 behind race leader Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha).