Diego Uriarte will step up to the WorldTour with Movistar Team in 2027 after signing a three-year contract through the end of 2029. Movistar confirmed the signing on Tuesday, adding the 24-year-old from Equipo Kern Pharma as the Spanish team continues to reshape its men’s squad for next season.
Uriarte has spent his entire professional career inside the Kern Pharma structure, having first developed through the organisation’s amateur set-up before turning professional in 2024. The rider from Barañain, Navarra, has built his reputation around long breakaways, hard work on the flat and an ability to stay competitive across varied terrain rather than fitting into one narrow role.
His breakthrough result came in February 2025, when he won stage 4 of the Vuelta a AndalucÃa from the breakaway in AlhaurÃn de la Torre. It was his first professional victory and rewarded a season in which he became one of the most active attacking riders in the peloton. Kern Pharma later credited him with more than 1,600 kilometres spent in breakaways during 2025.
WorldTour step follows first Vuelta
Uriarte’s 2026 season brought another important step when he made his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a España. He was again visible in breakaways during the opening week before his race ended on stage 8 following a crash during the neutralised section. The incident was included in ProCyclingUK’s stage 8 report and brought an early finish to what had been his biggest race to date.
Even without a second professional victory in 2026, his profile remained clear. Uriarte finished sixth on the final stage of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, raced WorldTour events including Liège-Bastogne-Liège and continued to make breakaways a regular part of his racing. Kern Pharma describe him as a rider able to work across different terrain, with his sustained power on the flat one of his strongest qualities.
That versatility should make him useful to Movistar in several roles. He can support leaders in stage races, work deep into one-day races and still be given freedom to enter breakaways when the situation allows. At 24, he also arrives with room to develop further after three seasons at professional level.
Movistar continue Spanish recruitment drive
Uriarte is the latest addition to a Movistar recruitment programme that has placed a clear emphasis on younger Spanish riders. His former Kern Pharma teammate Iván Cobo has already been confirmed on a deal through 2029, with ProCyclingUK previously covering Cobo’s move to Movistar. Hugo de la Calle and Javier Cubillas are among the other riders joining the men’s squad for 2027.
The Uriarte signing also has a strong local connection. Both rider and team are based in Navarra, and his arrival restores a Navarrese presence to Movistar’s professional men’s roster after several seasons without one. For a rider who developed within the region’s cycling system before progressing through Lizarte, Finisher and Kern Pharma, the move represents both a step into the WorldTour and a continuation of a career built close to home.
Movistar have committed to Uriarte through 2029 rather than offering a shorter transition deal, giving both rider and team time to develop that range at WorldTour level. His first season in blue will begin in 2027 after a Kern Pharma spell that established him as one of the most persistent breakaway riders in the Spanish professional peloton.
