the end of the season. Astana Qazaqstan Team Having reportedly signed a contract with the team prior to its disbanding, Cavendish started 2023 as a free agent; however, in mid-January, he signed a contract with the . He is scheduled to make his first starts with the team in Oman, at the Muscat Classic and the Tour of Oman. Riding style and incidents Cavendish has an aggressive riding style that has been compared to a sprinter pushing on the starting blocks. At the 2009 Tour de France, the points he gained in the intermediate sprint in stage fourteen were removed after he was judged to have driven Thor Hushovd too close to barriers on the course. After stage nineteen, he said he was "embarrassed" for his comments about "deserving" green jersey wearer Hushovd. After stage four of the 2010 Tour de Suisse, Cavendish was found to be at fault for a crash involving himself and Heinrich Haussler during the end of the sprint stage. The crash caused Haussler, Arnaud Coyot and Lloyd Mondory to quit the race because of their injuries, though Cavendish was able to continue. Cavendish received a thirty-second penalty and a CHF200 fine (£159 or €186 as of January 2020). The start of the next stage was disrupted by fellow riders protesting Cavendish's riding and style, and what they claimed was a lack of respect from him. His riding style resulted in organisers of the 2013 Boxmeer Criterium in the Netherlands to announce he was not welcome due to an incident during stage ten of the 2013 Tour de France, when he bumped Dutch rider Tom Veelers in a sprint finish, sending the Argos-Shimano rider tumbling. Another instance of dubious safety concerns while riding was witnessed on the opening stage of the 2014 Tour de France as Cavendish caused Simon Gerrans to crash while trying to push him out of the way during the sprint. In 2016, Cavendish accepted responsibility and apologised for the crash of South Korean cyclist Park Sang-hoon at the men's omnium event at the Olympics when an incident between them led to Park being thrown from his bike. After the crash, Park appeared unconscious and did not move while paramedics administered first aid; he was eventually taken away on a stretcher. Cavendish has been described as confident, even arrogant. In 2008 he said, "When journalists at the Tour de France ask me if