Vincenzo Nibali is furious. The fourth positive doping test within the Astana structure has again put the negative spotlight on Alexandre Vinokourov's team. The Tour de France winner criticizes the riders who have tested positive but refuses that the team has any kind of responsibility.

Nibali tries to keep firmly at distance from the positives of Victor Okishev and Ilya Davidenok from the Continental Team Astana and Maxim and Valentin Iglinskiy from his own Astana team.

"If someone associates me with these cases, he doesn't understand anything. They are four idiots that have nothing to do with me. I learnt about the most recent case by surfing on the internet. For two days I had turned the computer off and it would have been better not to have turned it on again. I don't understand the behaviour of these people. I just hope that those who fovern cycling, will make them pay dearly," Nibali tells La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I hope they catch all dopers. If they catch another 10 riders, I will be happy. This means that the controls are being done and that they work. It is not my problem. I believe in myself and in my consciousness. Of course I can not be held responsible for their sins," he says. About Iglinskiy who was part of his Tour de France team, he repeats: "In every team, you are forced to accept certain people. He is not part of my group and we have no relationship."

However, despite the four doping cases, Nibali believes Astana should continue in the WorldTour.

"It would be absurd to blame the team. In fact, I can guarantee that the sponsors are angry and won't refuse to make any harsh decisions.

Vinokourov and his right-hand man Shefer are in Kazakhstan to meet with investors and make decisions. But surely you can not blame them for what happened. And those who dope will be excluded from the team. To remove the license would be a mistake," he tells the Italian sports daily.

Sports director Giuseppe Martinelli agrees. 

"I am fully convinced that these positives destroy the image of riders like Nibali and Aru. I don't know how things will change but I'm sure there is no problem with the license because things will go in the right direction."