ANALYSIS | INEOS Grenadiers’ possible plan for Spaniard Carlos Rodríguez in 2026

Pending official confirmation, the 2026 Tour de France is starting to take shape within INEOS Grenadiers. The British team heads into next season after a particularly strong transfer window, their best in years, and with a hierarchy that is beginning to crystallize ahead of July’s showpiece. The latest signals suggest Carlos Rodríguez will not be at the start of this edition.

All indications are that Oscar Onley will be the team’s undisputed leader at the 2026 Tour de France. At 23, the Scot has established himself as the squad’s big long‑term bet after finishing fourth overall in the 2025 edition, a result that puts him automatically at the heart of the project.

The financial and sporting effort INEOS made to sign him reinforces his status as leader. Since Geraint Thomas’s triumph in 2018, the team has not had a British winner of the French Grand Tour, and although Onley is not yet at the level of riders like Tadej Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel or Jonas Vingegaard, he does embody a compelling narrative: trying to close the gap to the dominant forces of the Grand Tours.

What’s more, the route seems to suit his profile. With just one individual time trial and a team time trial to open the race, the course would allow INEOS to keep him well placed without having to seize full control of the race at any point.

As support in the hierarchy, Kévin Vauquelin stands out. The 24‑year‑old Frenchman already knows how to win a Tour stage (he did so in 2024) and finished seventh overall in 2025, showing consistency and solidity.

Vauquelin adds versatility and bite to the INEOS Grenadiers block, although the sense persists that he is not a pure Grand Tour specialist. Significantly improving on seventh looks difficult, especially considering he finished 10 minutes behind Onley in 2025 and 22 behind the winner Pogacar. That gap fuels doubts about his capacity to make the decisive step in the fight for yellow.

For his part, Carlos Rodríguez is coming off a very uneven 2025, short on racing due to crashes. He opened with sixth at the Volta à Comunitat Valenciana and a DNF at the UAE Tour. At Liège–Bastogne–Liège, he crossed the line in 33rd, while he took sixth overall at the Tour de Romandie.

His season ended early, with ninth at the Critérium du Dauphiné and a withdrawal from the Tour de France, which left him sidelined for several months after suffering a pelvis fracture. That makes his 2026 start an unknown, and we do not yet know how he will be. His calendar has not been discussed, but the projected Tour line‑up could position him as leader for the Giro d'Itallia or Vuelta a España.

Rodríguez' first Grand Tour was the 2022 Vuelta a España. Aged just 21, the Andalusian finished sixth overall. Given the depth of young talent that year, he was only fifth in the white jersey competition.

The following year he debuted at the Tour de France. In the world’s most prestigious and competitive race, he achieved the best GC result of his career. He finished fifth with a stage win in Morzine, and was second best young rider; only Jonas Vingegaard, Tadej Pogacar and the Yates brothers finished ahead overall.

In 2024, he opted for the double. He cracked the top 10 at both the Tour and the Vuelta. In France, he placed seventh overall, with several honourable results, and second in the young riders’ classification. In Spain, he was 10th, solid results but not improving on his previous results.

Finally, he lined up at the 2025 Tour de France. Up to that point, he had four top 10 results in his four Grand Tours. He was on track to repeat, sitting 10th after 17 stages. However, on the day of the Col de la Loze, one of the toughest of the edition, he was forced to step off and did not race again that season.

The rider from Granada was building into form, starting quietly and improving as the days passed. That crash halted his progression completely and is why there are doubts around his 2026 campaign.

The signings of Onley and Vauquelin will reduce his prominence at the Grand Tours, and it is up to him to turn the situation around. He has enough talent to lead the team and be their top GC rider.