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Bernal suffered a knee injury in a crash at the Vuelta a San Juan in January and was forced to forgo last week’s Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta del Sol as a result.
The knee injury comes after a life-threatening crash in training saw the Colombian miss most of the 2022 season, requiring seven separate surgeries, and it appears his European debut will now be put on hold.
“We’re not sure when he’s going to race next,” Ineos deputy team principal Rod Ellingworth said.
Though the damage to his knee shares no connection to the after-effects of last year’s crash, Ellingworth admitted its subsequent bruising has cast doubt on the 26-year-old’s plans to return in time for La Grande Boucle in July.
“This little issue is nothing at all to do with last year,” Ellingworth told Cyclingnews at the Volta ao Algarve. “It’s just some bruising around the knee.
“We just don’t want to take any risks with him. He’s frustrated, he’s desperate to race. But you’ve got to be strong with these guys because they always want to push.
“Sometimes you have to hold them back. Last year, Egan wanted to come back earlier but we held him back… I’m not putting any expectations on him at all. I think that would be unfair.
“He will have his own expectations because that’s how driven he is. But you can’t say anything about the Tour yet. It’s totally open.
“You can’t fault what he has done. It’s pretty phenomenal where he is. He sends me videos and updates of what he’s doing in training, and he couldn’t be doing any more, to be honest.
“We’re running with him, giving him every opportunity, backing him 100 per cent.”
Bernal had been unveiled as one of the star riders competing in the Paris-Nice up until Thursday, his withdrawal now opening the door for a new Ineos rider to tackle the likes of Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) and Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma).
