Juan Ayuso back in training following challenging spring but won't race again before June

Grand Tour contender Juan Ayuso has had a mixed start to life at Lidl-Trek this season, with a crash and illnesses ruling him out of several major goals in March and April. Now, the Spaniard looks set to remain out of action until June.

Ayuso switched to Lidl over the winter after leaving UAE Team Emirates-XRG. He started this season well, adding the Volta ao Algarve to his palmarès along with a stage win on the final mountain day.

Since then, however, he crashed out of Paris-Nice while leading the race on stage 4, injuring his hip.

Last month, he reportedly crashed while training in Andorra and was then forced to leave Itzulia Basque Country during the fourth stage after suffering from stomach issues.

A comeback at the Ardennes Classics and bid at Liège-Bastogne-Liège was ruled out after he fell ill with a viral infection following Itzulia.

Now, Spanish newspaper AS reports that the 23-year-old won't return to racing before June's Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, which figures to be his main preparation for the Tour de France.

The race, formerly known as the Critérium du Dauphiné, runs from June 7-14, meaning Ayuso will have been away from competition for two months before returning to the peloton.

AS reports that Ayuso is back to training normally following his most recent illness, though he and his team did not consider adding any further races to his calendar before the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

He'll face off against the likes of Paul Seixas, Oscar Onley, and Isaac del Toro at the eight-day race.

However, other Tour favourites Tadej Pogačar (racing the Tour de Suisse), Jonas Vingegaard (racing the Giro d'Italia this month), and Remco Evenepoel (skipping racing in June altogether) won't be lining up in France.