The HTC Colombia rider has had his pre-season hampered by dental problems and finished well down the pack in the Tirreno Adriatico and Milan-San Remo.
Tomorrow's first stage is an individual time trial in Lloret de Mar, before the field which includes Ireland's Nicholas Roche and Phillip Deignan plus Team Sky's Brits Chris Froome and Steve Cummings, heads off to Banyoles from Salt on Tuesday.
Speaking about Cavendish, who is being tipped to do well in two or three stages of this seven stage race, HTC Team Director Brian Holm said to his press office: "There are two stages, perhaps three, that are definitely good for him. He had a lot of bad luck with crashes and the team spent a lot of time chasing and chasing, and that cost him a lot of energy. But he's at a good level."
Lance Armstrong's Radio Shack team will not be invited to compete in the Giro D'Italia which starts on May 8th in Amsterdam.
"On Monday, we're going to announce 22 teams, but RadioShack won't be in the race," race director Angelo Zomegnan told Cyclingnews.
Picture copyright of Covsupport News Service. Credit CNS/KM