Chris Froome, who is aiming to join Israel Premier Tech's Tour de France contingent, will add a new one-day race to his program, the Mont Ventoux-Denivelle Challenge, after his participation in the Criterium du Dauphiné.

According to an interview with team sports director Rick Verbrugghe of Belgium's La Dernière Heure newspaper, only two slots remain in the lineup of eight Israeli premier techs for the Tour de France, and one of them, Froome has not yet decided whether it will be allocated to.

After a promising 11th-place performance in the tough Mercan Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes, where teammates Jakob Fuglsang and Mike Woods swept the top two places, Verbrugghe said the 37-year-old's Tour de France run depends on his next race. He said.

"It all depends on the Dauphiné," Verbrugghe told La Dernière Heure. After the Dauphiné, he will be in the Mont Ventoux race (June 14)."

Froom has never competed in Mont Ventoux-Denivelle, where Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana Cazacustan) is the defending champion. Notably, in the 2016 Tour de France, he got tangled up with a televised bike and was forced to ride part of the climb before changing bikes.

Verbrugghe stressed that the team's main goal is GC in the Tour de Suisse in June and that they will not be as strong as Israel Premier Teach at the Dauphiné.

"Switzerland is our priority," he said, "and with Fuglsang we will try to get on the podium or even win the overall. And with Fuglsang, we will try to get on the podium or win the overall."

"But we have Chris Froome coming up in the Dauphiné. I'm looking forward to seeing how he does in the Dauphiné."

Verbrugghe said that of the 12 racers for the Israel Premier Tech Tour, six are confirmed and six are undecided. He also said that the team will very likely go for stage wins, not GC in the Tour.

Froome himself admits that his experience with the Criterium du Dauphiné, which starts on Sunday, is very mixed; he won six stages and the overall in 13, 15, and 16 years. Unfortunately, I had a bad experience with a big crash in 2019 and I want to get rid of that this year."

"I've seen a lot of progress in my form over the past two months and I want to build on that to be in top form for July."

As for what can be expected from Froome at the Dauphiné, Verbrugghe said, "It's hard to say. He is coming back strong, but the Dauphiné will give us an idea of what his current capabilities are at the highest level. In training, his data is heading in the right direction. But now we have to see what he can do in the race. But the signs are good."

Verbrugghe confirmed that he would allow Froome to compete in the Tour if he thought he could challenge for a stage win, adding, "That would be great."