"The team deserves a Grand Tour": Fernando Gaviria hopes to tip the scales for Caja Rural in 2026

The 2026 season is already underway, and Fernando Gaviria’s debut with his new team is getting closer. In the last transfer window, the Colombian sprinter left Movistar Team after the Spanish squad chose not to renew him, but he found a new home in Spain by signing with Caja Rural - Seguros RGA. Will he become their new leading man?

Caja Rural’s plan is for Fernando Gaviria to become a true UCI points machine to launch the new 2026–2028 triennium in style. Even without wins, consistent Top 10s are highly valuable for a Spanish ProTeam like theirs, which also dreams of returning to a Grand Tour this season.

At least that’s what Gaviria himself indicated in a recent interview with MARCA. The Colombian said that Caja Rural - Seguros RGA’s main team objective is to secure a spot in one of the three Grand Tours, above all at the Vuelta a España.

"Within the team, the expectation is that we can participate in one of the Grand Tours. They deserve it as a team, because they scored very good points and have a strong ranking. Personally, I’d like to race a Grand Tour with Caja Rural: it’s one of the goals," Fernando Gaviria said.

On paper, Caja Rural is not due a wildcard this year for the 2026 Vuelta a España. Despite a standout showing last year, with Abel Balderstone as the top home rider in the final general classification (13th), alongside an excellent Jaime Guardeño (14th), the team is far from throwing in the towel.

Fernando Gaviria also reflected on his three seasons at Movistar Team, clearly trending from good to worse. His final year was the most disappointing of all.

"It was a pretty average year, leaning towards bad. Early in the season I had a shoulder injury and then split my knee in a crash while preparing for the Tour de France; several things limited my preparation. On top of that, missing out on the Tour’s eight-man roster threw me off a bit, because it felt like splitting the season in two. But well, cycling is like that and things don’t always go your way," he concluded.