This course's edition gets tougher with every stage. The Dauphiné starts in La Voulte-sur-Rhône, in the south-east of France. The riders will first be presented with three hilly stages. There is a flat 31.9-kilometre individual time trial on the fourth day.

After the time trial, the riders will head for the Alps. The fifth stage is supposed to be the best sprinters' opportunity; the sixth stage is hilly. The real climbers' stages follow in the final weekend. Stage seven is particularly important with a view to the Tour. That stage is similar to the eleventh Tour stage, which finishes at Alpe d'Huez. In the upcoming Dauphiné, the finish is earlier, but the riders will have to climb the Col du Galibier and the Col de la Croix de Fer, also part of the Tour. The last stage will also be for the climbers, with a climb of the Col de la Colombière and a finish on the Plateau de Solaison.

Team Jumbo-Visma will have a strong team at the start. "We'll look at it from day to day", sports director Grischa Niermann says. "We think the riders will be okay after a first altitude training and then we want to show ourselves. But winning this Dauphiné is not a goal in itself. It is good preparation for the Tour, which remains our main goal. After the Dauphiné, we'll go on altitude training, but it is also important to race in the preparation period and then this race comes at the perfect moment."

Primoz Roglic and Wout van Aert, both at the start on behalf of Team Jumbo-Visma, have previously been successful in the Dauphiné. The Slovenian won a stage in 2020 and the Belgian champion has already won three stages, including a time trial. They will be joined by Jonas Vingegaard, Steven Kruijswijk, Tiesj Benoot, Christophe Laporte and Chris Harper.

Niermann: "I expect Primoz and Wout will want to test their form and further improve their race rhythm. Many eyes will be on us, so we will have to race in a smart way."