XDS Astana sign Spanish climber after the confirmation of Arkéa - B&B Hotels' end

Spanish cyclist Cristián Rodríguez will ride for XDS Astana Team from the 2026 season. The Andalusian rider has signed a one-year contract with the Kazakh squad, which belongs to the UCI WorldTour. With this move, Rodríguez will take a new step in his professional career, after a decade in the peloton, three of them in the highest category of international cycling.

At 30 years old, Rodríguez comes to the Kazakh team after a solid season in Arkéa in which he won the Mercan'Tour Classic, was second at the Andorra MoraBanc Classica and finished fourth in the Tour du Jura, confirming his consistency and ability to perform in mountainous terrain. His signing strengthens Astana's structure in this profile of riders, especially in one-day races and grand tours.

On his arrival to the team, Cristián Rodríguez commented:

"I am very happy to join such a great team as XDS Astana Team. It is a legendary squad with a long history and has been competing at the highest level for many years. I am very grateful to the team for trusting me as a rider, and I will do my best to repay that trust. Next season I am fully prepared to give 100% for the team's goals and to support my new teammates. At the same time, I want to keep growing as a professional cyclist and I will look for opportunities to show my best version in the races where the team trusts me. I'm really looking forward to the new season."

For his part, XDS Astana Team general manager Alexandr Vinokourov added:

"We have been following Cristián Rodríguez for a long time. He is a rider who performs consistently year after year, achieves good results in races that suit his characteristics and is always willing to help his teammates, even in the Grand Tours. Now we have had the opportunity to sign him for next season with the aim of strengthening our group of climbers and our block for the mid-mountain classics, where we traditionally look for great results."

Rodríguez thus becomes Astana's first recruit for 2026. After the contract renewals for Aaron Gate, Matteo Malucelli, Nicolas Vinokurov, Harold Martín López and Lorenzo Fortunato, the Kazakh team already has 21 names on its roster for next season. Furthermore, contract renewals can be expected for sprinter Max Kanter, African champion Henok Mulubrhan, or all-rounder Simone Velasco. That leaves us with possibly up to six question marks that are to revealed in coming days.

Cristián Rodríguez has excelled in several stage races and classics on the international calendar. In 2021 he won the overall classification of the Tour du Rwanda, in addition to achieving a stage victory in the same edition and finishing fourth overall in La Route d'Occitanie. A year later he was second in the Vuelta a Andalucía.

In 2023 he repeated second place in La Route d'Occitanie, took the same position in the Giro dell'Appennino and was fourth on Mont Ventoux. In 2024 he reached fourth place in a stage of the Tour de France and finished fifth overall in the Tour of Oman. In 2025 he won the Mercan'Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes and was second in both the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica and a stage of La Route d'Occitanie.