A significant move has taken place in the professional cycling transfer market. After an eye-catching 2025 campaign, Haimar Etxeberria is set to leave Kern Pharma and step up to the WorldTour with Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, one of the most ambitious and strategically-driven teams in modern cycling. Still only 22, his performances quickly brought him to the attention of several major squads, with intense competition to secure his signature.
According to reports, he turned down interest from multiple WorldTour organisations before committing to the Red Bull-backed project, viewed by many as one of the biggest long-term development platforms in the sport.
Etxeberria’s rise has been fuelled by a quietly consistent run of results at professional level, including fourth at the Circuito de Getxo, fifth at the Tour de Vendee, eighth at the Circuit Franco-Belge, and overall victory at the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon. What stands out is not merely isolated success, but his ability to deliver across a variety of race profiles, suggesting all-round potential rather than a single-dimensional speciality.
Why Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe matters for his trajectory
The German-registered team has undergone a clear transformation over the last two seasons, evolving from a steady Grand Tour contender into a project geared towards global visibility, super-talent recruitment and performance innovation. The arrival of major figures such as Evenepoel and Roglic has placed them firmly in the category of Tour-winning ambitions — but an equally clear trend is their desire to build a pipeline beneath their leaders.
This approach mirrors broader WorldTour dynamics where elite squads increasingly seek riders with upside, not simply immediate results. The emphasis has shifted towards riders who can be moulded over multiple seasons using advanced sports science, analytics, altitude integration and multidisciplinary performance models.
Haimar Etxeberria signs with Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe on the cycling market
Where Etxeberria could fit
His profile suggests multiple potential development pathways:
• breakaway specialist with stage-hunting capability, or
• all-round support rider with GC corridor, depending on future physiological testing and performance data.
What is certain is that his signing represents more than a traditional transfer — it aligns with WorldTour cycling’s shift towards forward planning, talent incubation and multi-year competitive architecture. Etxeberria is no longer simply one to watch in Spain — he becomes one to watch in the WorldTour.