“It’s more than a rumour...” – Johan Bruyneel drops transfer bombshell with Grand Tour winner set to break long-term contract at the end of 2026
Cycling
Richard Carapaz could be heading for a shock exit from EF Education-EasyPost at the end of 2026 despite still being contracted for next season, with Johan Bruyneel claiming he has been told the former Giro d'Italia winner is set to race elsewhere.
Carapaz has been one of EF's biggest names since arriving from INEOS ahead of the 2023 season and was included among a group of leading riders announced as having signed long-term contract extensions earlier this year. According to Bruyneel, however, the Ecuadorian is now highly unlikely to remain with the team into 2027.
The former team manager dropped the revelation on the latest episode of THEMOVE+ as he and Spencer Martin discussed the increasingly strong field assembling for the upcoming Vuelta a Espana. “I'm going to say it here first. Maybe Carapaz, maybe very, very, very likely, will not be riding for EF next year,” Bruyneel said.
Asked where Carapaz could be heading, Bruyneel refused to reveal a destination. “I can't say anything else, but the little bird told me that he's going somewhere else,” he said. “Although he still has a contract. He still has a contract for 2027.”
'It's more than a rumour'
Neither Carapaz nor EF have announced that their partnership will end this year, and there is currently no public indication of how his existing contract would be resolved if Bruyneel's information proves correct.
Bruyneel returned to the subject moments later to underline the status he was placing on what he had heard. “I'm going to classify it as it's more than a rumour,” he insisted. “It's more than a rumour.”
The timing is notable because Carapaz's value to EF has scarcely been higher. The 33-year-old endured a disrupted opening half of 2026, with surgery forcing him to miss the Giro d'Italia, but returned in June and quickly rediscovered some of his best form.
He finished second at the Tour de Suisse before enjoying an outstanding Tour de France, winning twice during the final week, taking the mountains classification and overall super-combativity award and still finishing eighth in the general classification.
Carapaz then finished second behind Remco Evenepoel at the Clasica San Sebastian just six days after the Tour ended. He has since confirmed his participation in the Vuelta, where he previously finished second overall in 2020, won three stages and the mountains jersey in 2022 and took fourth on GC in 2024.
“Even if you're a fan or not, the guy is just a racer,” he said. “He's a warrior and he's a spectacular rider. He does not leave anybody indifferent. He's super spectacular in his attacking style, keeps going. I think he's a great rider to have on a team.”
Bruyneel also pointed to the commercial appeal of that racing style, suggesting Carapaz remains the kind of rider who can deliver visibility for a sponsor as well as results on the road.
Could Carapaz be looking for one final major deal?
The podcast then moved from Bruyneel's sourced claim into speculation over what could make an early exit attractive. He did not suggest his source had told him the reason for a possible departure. “I think in EF's situation they have him on a contract for 2027,” Bruyneel explained. “They're probably not in a situation where they can offer him a multi-year contract, which will probably be his last contract.
“So I could perfectly envision him to have an offer from a team that has the funds and offers him a three-year deal, which would probably be his last deal," he adds. “If you're in Carapaz's situation and his agent has good negotiation skills, you can probably find a way out and sign that last big contract, which he fully deserves.”
“The amazing thing about Carapaz is he needs no system. He's just plug-and-play,” Martin said. “You could be the worst team in the peloton. You hire him, boom. He's going to perform. He does not need a complex system around him.”
Martin also suggested Carapaz may now be worth more than EF are paying him, particularly after the return he delivered at the Tour, where his two stage wins and polka-dot jersey provided some of the team's biggest moments of the race.
Exactly where Carapaz could go remains much less clear. Martin mentioned the financial strength of several Swiss-backed teams during the conversation, but explicitly stressed that he had no information about Carapaz's future and was merely considering possible destinations.
Bruyneel himself offered no clue beyond saying that Carapaz is likely to be “somewhere else” in 2027.
For now, the Ecuadorian remains firmly part of EF's plans and is preparing to line up for the team at the Vuelta a Espana on August 22. What happens beyond the end of the season is officially unresolved, but Bruyneel's claim has unexpectedly placed a Grand Tour winner who was not supposed to be available at the centre of the 2027 transfer market.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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