Holding back on making any predictions prior to tackling a race he’s four times finished second in, Tour de France champion Cadel Evans will be backed by a very strong BMC Racing Team lineup in the Critérium du Dauphiné, which begins on Sunday.
Last year’s WorldTour champion Philippe Gilbert, 2010 third-placed finishing Tejay van Garderen and veteran US rider George Hincapie will be part of the selection for the event, and will give Evans their full backing if he is in a position to challenge.
Speaking before the event, the Australian was giving nothing away in terms of his expectations. "This will be my final test before the Tour de France and it's not only a good chance to gauge my training but also another chance to race with some of the guys who will be helping me at the Tour de France," he stated. "Though I haven't raced since the Tour de Romandie, I've been able to get a good bit of training in on much of the parcours that is similar to what I'll face in both the Dauphine and the Tour."
In contrast to last year, when the Australian had victories in Tirreno-Adriatico and the Tour de Romandie to his credit, as well as a stage win in the former, Evans has had a quieter spring this time round. He was 32nd and 29th in Tirreno and Romandie, although he did take a stage win plus the overall standings in the three day Critérium Internationale in March.
Evans hasn’t competed in over a month and so the Dauphiné will be very important in showing him exactly where he is in terms of preparation. If he performs well, it will also give the 35 year old encouragement that he is on course to fight well in July.
With both a 5.7 kilometre plus a 53.5 kilometre time trial featuring, Evans and Van Garderen will have a platform to gain time on the specialised climbers prior to the big mountains. Van Garderen recently finished third in the time trial and fourth overall in the Amgen Tour of California, and so his form is building.
Directeur sportif John Lelangue said that their overall strategy will depend on how both fare in these tests.
"We know we have two guys to protect and who can both perform well in the time trial," he stated. "After that, there are still three critical days of mountain stages with options to play offensive or defensively, depending on where we are after the time trial."
Gilbert is likely to get a chance to chase a stage win in the race, although the GC riders will be favoured if they are in contention. He, Evans, Van Garderen and Hincapie will be joined by Amaël Moinard (FRA), Steve Morabito, Manuel Quinziato and Michael Schär.