Egan Bernal returns to lead INEOS Grenadiers in search of glory in the mountains of Catalunya

Without a big name to hunt for the general classification, INEOS Grenadiers can only pleasantly surprise in the grand scheme of things during the upcoming Volta a Catalunya. Perhaps, we'll see the British formation take on a new role of stage hunters?

Just a month passed since his crash at Clássica Jáen but Egan Bernal is already back in the action. The Colombian rider was originally due to lead the charge of INEOS at the Giro d'Italia, however whether he'll be ready to pick up the lead already in Catalunya? What we know for sure he'll at the very least try - that's the Bernal we know after all.

But the realistic leader for INEOS Grenadiers should probably be Laurens De Plus. The 29-year-old didn't have the best Tirreno-Adriatico, but he already proved to be in great shape at the start of the season with a GC podium at Volta ao Algarve where he lost only to Jonas Vingegaard and Joao Almeida.

If we're to speak of a back-up, the name of Geraint Thomas obviously pops up. For the experienced Welshman it's not unusual to take the early months of season easy with view to his main objectives - typically Grand Tours - and with Geraint's one and only goal in the final year as a pro being the Tour de France, he's unlikely to play a crucial role in Catalunya.

However who may leave a mark in the history of the Spanish stage race is Axel Laurance. Albeit not a GC contender as we're used to with INEOS, the Frenchman will have a more than good shot at winning up to four, but not less than two stages. The only issue will be the obvious lack of support in the easier stages, where only Omar Fraile, Lucas Hamilton and Michael Leonard are far from designated, or even sufficient sprint train.