"I would really like to ride the Vuelta": Clément Champoussin reflects on a strong first year at XDS Astana and outlines 2026 goals

Clément Champoussin had an excellent debut with XDS Astana Team, securing many top 5 and working as a valuable domestique. The French rider was crucial to help his team maintain the World Tour licence, and he wants to have another successful campaign next year.

He and his team are currently in Spain preparing for the upcoming season. In the meantime, he gave an interview to Cyclism Actu where he talked about the past season and his main goals and ambitions for 2026.

“If we talk about the start of the season, yes, it was very good,” Champoussin said. “But the second part was a bit more complicated. After the Tour, I still managed to perform well at the Arctic Race of Norway, but then it became harder. That said, the first part of the season was really strong, with good results in WorldTour stage races and solid consistency.”

XDS Astana exceeded expectations in 2025 by comfortably securing its World Tour status, despite two rough years (2023 and 2024) which had left the team lagging behind by a wide margin. The objective to remain as a World Tour team, even if important, was not always the main driver.

“We had that objective in mind, of course, but we didn’t talk about it all the time,” he explained. “Early in the season, when several of us were in the same group, we tried to position ourselves to score points. But later in the year, that became much less of a factor.”

According to Champoussin, the situation was already largely settled by spring. “Quite early actually, after the Tour de Romandie or Liege-Bastogne-Liege. From that moment on, we raced with much more peace of mind.”

Having previously ridden for AG2R and Arkéa, Champoussin highlighted cultural differences in his first non-French team. “Overall, the atmosphere is less stressful. It’s calmer, everyone just does their job. That’s the main difference I’ve felt. We also had very good equipment this year, really high-performance bikes.”

Getting used to using English is not always easy for some riders, but that was not the case for Champoussin, even if he is not (yet) fully fluent. “I spoke a bit of English when I arrived. Now I understand quite well, even if I’m not bilingual. For simple discussions, it’s fine.”

Champoussin also reacted to the collapse of Arkéa - B&B Hotels, where he had spent two seasons (2023 and 2024), which announced it will not continue in 2026 after failing to secure enough funding.

“I really didn’t expect it at all,” he admitted. “I genuinely thought the team would continue, especially after the season they had. They were very visible with riders like Kévin Vauquelin at the Tour de France, Tour de Suisse and the Ardennes Classics. That’s why I was surprised that no sponsor stepped in.”

Looking ahead to the upcoming season, Champoussin does not have a specific goal yet. “I don’t have a precise objective, but the idea is to perform well in all the races I do. I’ll have a bit more rest mid-season to recover better. I'd really like to ride the Vuelta . If the results are good at the start of the season, I hope to be there.”

He also talked about his programme, which will differ compared to previous seasons. "The second part of my season isn't fully defined yet. At the beginning of the year, there will be races in Spain, as well as races in France like the Boucle Drôme-Ardèche. This season, I won't be doing Paris-Nice but Tirreno-Adriatico , followed by races in the Basque Country, Belgium, and the Ardennes Classics. The end-of-season goal would be the Vuelta a España."