David De La Cruz – who previously this month took part in the 99th Giro d'Italia – will be sidelined in the next period after undergoing appendectomy on Monday, at the Hospital de Palamos, in Girona. The 27-year-old was due to come back at the Critérium du Dauphiné, this Sunday, but he'll now take a break and stay off the bike for three weeks before starting training again. As a consequence, his calendar for the second part of the season will be reshuffled.

"I'm upset, because the condition was there, despite having to abandon the Giro d'Italia, and I was eager to race Dauphiné, especially as last year I came 13th in the GC. But things are as they are, so I will now take a rest. Once I'll return to training I will talk to the team about my program and goals for the remaining of the season, because now I'm even more motivated to show what I can do", said De La Cruz, who so far this year has raced 39 days, his strongest display coming at Paris-Nice, where he finished in the top 20.