The Critérium du Dauphiné dates back to 1947 and has become a crucial race for riders preparing for the Tour de France in July. Spanning eight days from Sunday June 4, 2023 until Sunday June 11, 2023, the Dauphiné provides valuable insight into the form of riders ahead of the upcoming Grand Tour, giving each of the Tour hopefuls an early chance to assess their competition.
This year’s edition of the Dauphiné has a mixture of hilly and mountainous stages with a 31.1km-long individual time trial halfway through the race. Towards the end of the week the peloton tackles the Alps on stages seven and eight, both featuring over 4,000 metres of climbing.
One rider is going into this race as a clear favourite to win, but there’s nevertheless a stacked start list of riders who will all be looking to challenge him for the victory. We look at some of the favourites who could be in with the chance of taking the overall title at this year’s Critérium du Dauphiné.
Jonas Vingegaard, Jumbo-Visma
Jonas Vingegaard will certainly be the favourite going into the week-long race having won the Tour de France in 2022 and given his strong form so far this season. He also has previous form here, coming second in the Critérium du Dauphiné last year behind his teammate Primož Roglič, making it a one-two for Jumbo-Visma. Vingegaard will be back in France in July, looking to defend his Tour title, and the Dauphiné will be his final test against some of his rivals before the Grand Départ.
We’ve only caught small glimpses of the Danish rider’s form so far this year. His most recent race was in early May at the Itzulia Basque Country where he dominated, claiming the overall victory and securing three stage wins. In his last race before that at Paris-Nice however, Vingegaard was faced with a stronger line-up featuring his key rival Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates). While Vingegaard beat Pogačar in the quest for yellow last year, the Slovenian was in exceptionally good form in the first part of the season and Vingegaard was no match for him at Paris-Nice.
Since the Itzulia Basque Country, Vingegaard has been preparing for the upcoming races at an altitude training camp. While his primary focus is on defending his Tour title, the Critérium du Dauphiné will give an indication as to how well his preparation has been going and give insight into his current form.
Jonas Vingegaard during the Tour de France