No wonder Dylan Groenewegen didn't want to return to the Criterium du Dauphiné. After a week spent chasing defeat, the Dutchman left empty-handed before the final weekend of mountains.

or ......" Only once did he take a sprint win, and that was for a seventh-place finish.

"I brought him here because I wanted him to do something different. He's never ridden the Dauphiné or Tour de Suisse in preparation for the Tour," Matt White, director of BikeExchange-Jayco, told Cycling News.

"The idea was to give him a different load, a harder load.

Groenewegen would have had to keep his Tour prospects in the back of his mind. The hilly course did not offer a clear group sprint opportunity, and the fact that Groenewegen was one of only two pure sprinters reduced his chances.

On day one, when Jumbo Visma led the race on the climb, he fell off and was forced to chase fruitlessly with his teammates. This became a familiar scene that was repeated the next day and on stage 5. However, the breakaway stayed together and he settled for second place in the breakaway behind Edvald Boasson Hagen.

"We are realistic. There could be three sprints or none. We can't control the other teams' races.

"But what we knew was that we could race hard enough to get him ready for what's ahead. The glass is half full and half empty. We got what we wanted. We also wanted a chance at a stage win, but that was out of our hands."

White insisted that Groenewegen, who decided not to race the mountain stages, was in good condition and optimistic about the Tour. The Dutch rider, who was partially banned last year for his involvement in Fabio Jacobsen's crash at the Tour of Poland, is a newcomer at the start of the season and has won four races this season, two stages at the Tour of Saudi Arabia, one stage at the Tour Acorn, and one stage at the Winnendal Classic He has won four races this season.

"Change is difficult for everyone, but he has blended in very well," White said. 'Luca Medjeck is the most experienced lead-out man in the world. This relationship started in Saudi Arabia.

"This Dauphiné was part of the process to make sure he arrives in optimal condition for an important race, the Tour de France. It's the Tour de France. It will be a different story in the Tour de France.