Once the Giro d'Italia is over, it's time for the Giro del Dauphiné , a week-long stage race which starts on Sunday 4 June and which will offer a route full of pitfalls and climbs, especially over the next weekend. In the middle, a time trial of 31 km with little plain.

The highlight, after Friday's stage with a slightly uphill finish in Crest-Voland, will be Saturday with the finish line on the Croix de Fer (after having also climbed the Madeleine) and Sunday 11 June, the day on which, in 50 km, climb the Col du Granier, the Cucheron, the Col de Porte and the terrible wall of La Bastille , 1,400 meters with an average gradient of 14 percent.

Obviously the number one favorite for the final victory is Jonas Vingegaard , who will be able to count on a top-level team like Jumbo Visma capable of fighting for more than one stage victory (in particular with Laporte and Benoot).

Then there are several riders chasing the podium and a good result in view of the Tour de France. This is the case of Mikel Landa of Bahrain Victorious, David Gaudu of Groupama Fdj, Richard Carapaz of Ef Education EasyPort, Enric Mas of Movistar, Adam Yates of Uae Emirates and Jay Hindley of Bora hansgrohe.

A lot of curiosity for the Ineos Grenadiers, which presents Egan Bernal, Carlos Rodriguez and Daniel Felipe Martinez (and Ethan Hayter for the stages ) and for the Trek Segafredo with Giulio Ciccone , forced to miss the Giro due to Covid.

From favorites to those riders who can do very well from a Fantacycling perspective, even if some are real bets: we're talking about Matteo Jorgenson, Max Poole, Tobias Johannessen, Lenny Martinez, Ben O'Connor and Guillaume Martin . The condition of Julian Alaphilippe remains to be verified, as he should aim for stage victories. Very few occasions for the sprinters, whose presence is limited to Sam Bennett, Ethan Vernon and Dylan Groenewegen .

Remember to line up your formation before the start and, above all, not to block too many runners. In fact, on 11 June the Tour of Switzerland starts, another category 3 race which will see the surprise participation of the world champion, Remco Evenepoel . Ready for the challenge?

The stages of Dauphiné 2023:

Stage 1 Chambon-sur-Lac – Chambon-sur-Lac (158km)

Stage 2 Brassac-les-Mines – La Chaise-Dieu (167.3km)

Stage 3 Monistrol-sur-Loire – Le Coteau (194.1km)

Stage 4 Cours – Belmont-de-la-Loire (time trial, 31.1km)

Stage 5 Cormoranche-sur-Saône – Salins-les-Bain (191.5 km) Stage 6 Nantua – Crest-Voland (170.2 km)

Stage 7 Porte-de-Savoie – Col de la Croix de Fer (147.9 km)

Stage 8 Le Pont-de-Claix – La Bastille – Grenoble Alpes Métropole (152.8km)

Photo Sprint Cycling