He was born on August 3, 1977 in Mos, Pontevedra (Spain). He made his professional debut in 2000 with the Portuguese team Porta da Ravessa, two years later the also Galician Álvaro Pino signed him for the Swiss team Phonak, where he proved to be very combative in all areas.

He finished 10th two consecutive times in the Tour de France (2004 and 2005), winning a stage in the 2005 edition to which he added the prize for combativity.

In the 2005/2006 season he moved to the Caisse de Espagne – Illes Balears team, led by José Miguel Echevarri and Eusebio Unzué, reaching the final victory in the Tour de France, after being second in the race, and after the testosterone positive test of the US runner Floyd Landis who finished first. In September 2010 he announced his retirement from cycling.