diff --git a/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-main__ci-4.21.yaml b/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-main__ci-4.21.yaml
index 3cafb352fb238..ef441c212105a 100644
--- a/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-main__ci-4.21.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-main__ci-4.21.yaml
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ tests:
       AUX_HOST: openshift-qe-metal-ci.arm.eng.rdu2.redhat.com
       CATALOGSOURCE_NAME: prega-operators
       DISCONNECTED: "false"
+      ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST: '[72976]'
       EXPECTED_MAJOR_HUB_VERSION: "4.21"
       EXPIRATION_TIME: friday 23:59 UTC
       IMAGE_INDEX_OCP_VERSION: "4.21"
diff --git a/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-ztp-left-shifting-kpi__ci-4.21.yaml b/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-ztp-left-shifting-kpi__ci-4.21.yaml
index c8a046f4eb226..dde6b625d7a4f 100644
--- a/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-ztp-left-shifting-kpi__ci-4.21.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/config/openshift-kni/eco-ci-cd/openshift-kni-eco-ci-cd-ztp-left-shifting-kpi__ci-4.21.yaml
@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ tests:
     env:
       AUX_HOST: 10.6.157.20
       CATALOGSOURCE_NAME: prega-operators
+      ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST: '[72976]'
       EXPECTED_MAJOR_HUB_VERSION: "4.21"
       IMAGE_INDEX_OCP_VERSION: "4.21"
       MCH_AVAILABILITY_CONFIG: Basic
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-commands.sh b/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-commands.sh
index 904cd170b7e12..c60f532124120 100755
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-commands.sh
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-commands.sh
@@ -60,6 +60,358 @@ function show_multiclusterhub_related_objects {
   done
 }
 
+###############################################################################
+# WORKAROUND FRAMEWORK
+#
+# Workarounds are opt-in via the ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST environment variable.
+# This ensures workarounds are explicitly enabled and easily traceable.
+#
+# Format: ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST="[72976, 12345]" (list of PR numbers)
+# Default: "[]" (no workarounds enabled)
+#
+# To enable a workaround:
+#   1. Add the PR number to ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST in the Prow config
+#   2. Once the upstream fix is released, remove the PR from the list
+###############################################################################
+
+# Check if a workaround is enabled by its PR number
+# Usage: is_workaround_enabled 72976
+function is_workaround_enabled {
+  local pr_number="$1"
+  local workaround_list="${ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST:-[]}"
+
+  # Check if the PR number is in the list
+  # The list format is "[72976, 12345]" or "[72976]" or "[]"
+  if [[ "${workaround_list}" =~ (^|[^0-9])${pr_number}([^0-9]|$) ]]; then
+    echo "Workaround PR #${pr_number} is ENABLED (ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST=${workaround_list})"
+    return 0
+  else
+    echo "Workaround PR #${pr_number} is DISABLED (ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST=${workaround_list})"
+    return 1
+  fi
+}
+
+###############################################################################
+# WORKAROUND: OCM CA Bundle Race Condition
+#
+# CI Workaround PR: https://github.com/openshift/release/pull/72976
+# Upstream Fix PR: https://github.com/open-cluster-management-io/ocm/pull/1309
+#
+# Problem: The cluster-manager controller has a race condition where it may
+# create CRDs with an invalid "placeholder" CA bundle before the cert rotation
+# controller creates the actual CA bundle ConfigMap. This causes:
+#   1. CRDs to have caBundle: cGxhY2Vob2xkZXI= (base64 of "placeholder")
+#   2. Webhook conversion fails with "InvalidCABundle"
+#   3. CRDs not becoming Established
+#   4. MCH fails with: "no matches for kind ClusterManagementAddOn"
+#
+# This workaround detects and remediates the issue by:
+#   1. Checking if CRDs have the placeholder CA bundle
+#   2. Patching webhook services with serving-cert-secret-name annotation
+#   3. Waiting for secrets to be created by service-ca-operator
+#   4. Extracting real CA bundle and patching CRDs
+#   5. Restarting MCE operator to force reconciliation
+#
+# Enable by adding 72976 to ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST in Prow config.
+# Once upstream fix is released in ACM/MCE, remove 72976 from the list.
+###############################################################################
+
+CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE="open-cluster-management-hub"
+PLACEHOLDER_CABUNDLE="cGxhY2Vob2xkZXI="  # base64 of "placeholder"
+
+# Check if a CRD has the placeholder CA bundle (indicating the race condition)
+function is_crd_cabundle_placeholder {
+  local crd_name="$1"
+  local current_cabundle
+  current_cabundle=$(oc get crd "${crd_name}" -o jsonpath='{.spec.conversion.webhook.clientConfig.caBundle}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+  if [[ "${current_cabundle}" == "${PLACEHOLDER_CABUNDLE}" ]]; then
+    return 0  # true - has placeholder
+  fi
+  return 1  # false - does not have placeholder
+}
+
+# Check if the OCM CA bundle race condition is present
+function detect_ocm_cabundle_race_condition {
+  echo "Checking for OCM CA bundle race condition (PR #1309)..."
+
+  # Check if ClusterManagementAddOn CRD exists and has placeholder caBundle
+  if oc get crd clustermanagementaddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io &>/dev/null; then
+    if is_crd_cabundle_placeholder "clustermanagementaddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io"; then
+      echo "DETECTED: clustermanagementaddons CRD has placeholder CA bundle"
+      return 0
+    fi
+  fi
+
+  # Check if ManagedClusterAddOn CRD exists and has placeholder caBundle
+  if oc get crd managedclusteraddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io &>/dev/null; then
+    if is_crd_cabundle_placeholder "managedclusteraddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io"; then
+      echo "DETECTED: managedclusteraddons CRD has placeholder CA bundle"
+      return 0
+    fi
+  fi
+
+  echo "No CA bundle race condition detected"
+  return 1
+}
+
+# Patch a webhook service with the serving-cert-secret-name annotation
+function patch_webhook_service_annotation {
+  local service_name="$1"
+  local secret_name="$2"
+
+  echo "Patching service ${service_name} with serving-cert-secret-name annotation..."
+
+  # Check if annotation already exists
+  local current_annotation
+  current_annotation=$(oc get svc -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" "${service_name}" \
+    -o jsonpath='{.metadata.annotations.service\.beta\.openshift\.io/serving-cert-secret-name}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+  if [[ -n "${current_annotation}" ]]; then
+    echo "  Service ${service_name} already has annotation: ${current_annotation}"
+    return 0
+  fi
+
+  oc patch svc -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" "${service_name}" \
+    --type=merge \
+    -p "{\"metadata\":{\"annotations\":{\"service.beta.openshift.io/serving-cert-secret-name\":\"${secret_name}\"}}}"
+
+  echo "  Patched ${service_name} with secret ${secret_name}"
+}
+
+# Wait for a secret to be created by service-ca-operator
+function wait_for_secret {
+  local secret_name="$1"
+  local timeout="${2:-120}"
+
+  echo "Waiting for secret ${secret_name} to be created (timeout: ${timeout}s)..."
+
+  if oc wait --for=jsonpath='{.data.tls\.crt}' \
+      -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" \
+      "secret/${secret_name}" \
+      --timeout="${timeout}s" 2>/dev/null; then
+    echo "  Secret ${secret_name} is ready"
+    return 0
+  else
+    echo "  WARNING: Secret ${secret_name} not ready after ${timeout}s"
+    return 1
+  fi
+}
+
+# Extract CA bundle from a secret and patch a CRD
+function patch_crd_cabundle {
+  local crd_name="$1"
+  local secret_name="$2"
+
+  echo "Patching CRD ${crd_name} with CA bundle from secret ${secret_name}..."
+
+  # Extract the CA bundle from the secret (base64 encoded)
+  local ca_bundle
+  ca_bundle=$(oc get secret -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" "${secret_name}" \
+    -o jsonpath='{.data.tls\.crt}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+  if [[ -z "${ca_bundle}" ]]; then
+    echo "  ERROR: Could not extract CA bundle from secret ${secret_name}"
+    return 1
+  fi
+
+  # Patch the CRD with the real CA bundle
+  oc patch crd "${crd_name}" --type=json \
+    -p "[{\"op\": \"replace\", \"path\": \"/spec/conversion/webhook/clientConfig/caBundle\", \"value\": \"${ca_bundle}\"}]"
+
+  echo "  Patched ${crd_name} with CA bundle from ${secret_name}"
+}
+
+# Force MCE operator to reconcile
+function force_mce_reconciliation {
+  echo "Forcing MCE operator to reconcile..."
+
+  # Restart the MCE operator deployment
+  local mce_namespace="multicluster-engine"
+  if oc get deployment -n "${mce_namespace}" multicluster-engine-operator &>/dev/null; then
+    oc rollout restart deployment/multicluster-engine-operator -n "${mce_namespace}"
+    echo "  Restarted multicluster-engine-operator deployment"
+
+    # Wait for rollout to complete
+    oc rollout status deployment/multicluster-engine-operator -n "${mce_namespace}" --timeout=120s || true
+  fi
+
+  # Force reconciliation by annotating the MCE resource
+  local mce_name
+  mce_name=$(oc get multiclusterengine -o jsonpath='{.items[0].metadata.name}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+  if [[ -n "${mce_name}" ]]; then
+    oc annotate multiclusterengine "${mce_name}" \
+      "workaround.ocm.io/force-reconcile=$(date +%s)" \
+      --overwrite
+    echo "  Annotated multiclusterengine/${mce_name} to force reconciliation"
+  fi
+}
+
+# Main workaround function for OCM CA bundle race condition
+# Returns 0 if workaround was applied, 1 if not needed or failed
+function apply_ocm_cabundle_workaround {
+  echo ""
+  echo "============================================================"
+  echo "Applying OCM CA Bundle Race Condition Workaround"
+  echo "Upstream fix: https://github.com/open-cluster-management-io/ocm/pull/1309"
+  echo "============================================================"
+  echo ""
+
+  # Step 1: Verify the race condition is present
+  if ! detect_ocm_cabundle_race_condition; then
+    echo "Workaround not needed - no race condition detected"
+    return 1
+  fi
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 1/6: Patching webhook services with serving-cert-secret-name annotation..."
+
+  # Define webhook services and their corresponding secrets
+  # Format: "service_name:secret_name"
+  local webhook_services=(
+    "cluster-manager-addon-webhook:addon-webhook-serving-cert"
+    "cluster-manager-registration-webhook:registration-webhook-serving-cert"
+    "cluster-manager-work-webhook:work-webhook-serving-cert"
+  )
+
+  for entry in "${webhook_services[@]}"; do
+    local svc_name="${entry%%:*}"
+    local secret_name="${entry##*:}"
+
+    if oc get svc -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" "${svc_name}" &>/dev/null; then
+      patch_webhook_service_annotation "${svc_name}" "${secret_name}"
+    else
+      echo "  Service ${svc_name} not found, skipping..."
+    fi
+  done
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 2/6: Waiting for service-ca-operator to create secrets..."
+  sleep 5  # Give service-ca-operator time to notice the annotation
+
+  for entry in "${webhook_services[@]}"; do
+    local svc_name="${entry%%:*}"
+    local secret_name="${entry##*:}"
+
+    if oc get svc -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" "${svc_name}" &>/dev/null; then
+      wait_for_secret "${secret_name}" 60 || true
+    fi
+  done
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 3/6: Creating ca-bundle-configmap from serving cert..."
+
+  # The cluster-manager controller reads CA from ca-bundle-configmap.
+  # If this ConfigMap doesn't exist or is empty, it uses "placeholder".
+  # We need to create it from the serving cert secret.
+  local ca_bundle_cm_exists
+  ca_bundle_cm_exists=$(oc get configmap -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" ca-bundle-configmap -o name 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+  if [[ -z "${ca_bundle_cm_exists}" ]]; then
+    echo "  ca-bundle-configmap does not exist, creating..."
+    local ca_cert
+    ca_cert=$(oc get secret -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" addon-webhook-serving-cert \
+      -o go-template='{{index .data "tls.crt"}}' 2>/dev/null | base64 -d || echo "")
+
+    if [[ -n "${ca_cert}" ]]; then
+      oc create configmap ca-bundle-configmap \
+        -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" \
+        --from-literal="ca-bundle.crt=${ca_cert}"
+      echo "  Created ca-bundle-configmap with CA from addon-webhook-serving-cert"
+    else
+      echo "  WARNING: Could not extract CA from addon-webhook-serving-cert"
+    fi
+  else
+    # Check if the configmap is empty
+    local cm_data
+    cm_data=$(oc get configmap -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" ca-bundle-configmap \
+      -o go-template='{{index .data "ca-bundle.crt"}}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+    if [[ -z "${cm_data}" || "${cm_data}" == "placeholder" ]]; then
+      echo "  ca-bundle-configmap exists but is empty/placeholder, updating..."
+      local ca_cert
+      ca_cert=$(oc get secret -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" addon-webhook-serving-cert \
+        -o go-template='{{index .data "tls.crt"}}' 2>/dev/null | base64 -d || echo "")
+
+      if [[ -n "${ca_cert}" ]]; then
+        oc delete configmap -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" ca-bundle-configmap
+        oc create configmap ca-bundle-configmap \
+          -n "${CLUSTER_MANAGER_NAMESPACE}" \
+          --from-literal="ca-bundle.crt=${ca_cert}"
+        echo "  Recreated ca-bundle-configmap with real CA"
+      fi
+    else
+      echo "  ca-bundle-configmap already has valid CA data"
+    fi
+  fi
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 4/6: Patching CRDs with real CA bundles..."
+
+  # Patch ClusterManagementAddOn CRD
+  if is_crd_cabundle_placeholder "clustermanagementaddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io"; then
+    patch_crd_cabundle \
+      "clustermanagementaddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io" \
+      "addon-webhook-serving-cert" || true
+  fi
+
+  # Patch ManagedClusterAddOn CRD
+  if is_crd_cabundle_placeholder "managedclusteraddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io"; then
+    patch_crd_cabundle \
+      "managedclusteraddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io" \
+      "addon-webhook-serving-cert" || true
+  fi
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 5/6: Verifying CRDs are now Established..."
+  sleep 5  # Give the API server time to process the changes
+
+  local crds_ok=true
+  for crd in "clustermanagementaddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io" "managedclusteraddons.addon.open-cluster-management.io"; do
+    if oc get crd "${crd}" &>/dev/null; then
+      local established
+      established=$(oc get crd "${crd}" -o jsonpath='{.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Established")].status}' 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+      if [[ "${established}" == "True" ]]; then
+        echo "  ${crd}: Established=True ✓"
+      else
+        echo "  ${crd}: Established=${established} ✗"
+        crds_ok=false
+      fi
+    fi
+  done
+
+  echo ""
+  echo "Step 6/6: Restarting cluster-manager and forcing reconciliation..."
+
+  # Restart cluster-manager deployment to pick up the new ca-bundle-configmap
+  # This ensures it stops trying to re-apply CRDs with placeholder CA
+  echo "Restarting cluster-manager deployment..."
+  if oc get deployment cluster-manager -n multicluster-engine &>/dev/null; then
+    oc rollout restart deployment cluster-manager -n multicluster-engine
+    echo "  Restarted cluster-manager deployment"
+    oc rollout status deployment cluster-manager -n multicluster-engine --timeout=120s || true
+  fi
+
+  # Force MCE reconciliation
+  force_mce_reconciliation
+
+  echo ""
+  if [[ "${crds_ok}" == "true" ]]; then
+    echo "============================================================"
+    echo "Workaround applied successfully!"
+    echo "CRDs are now Established, MCH should progress normally."
+    echo "============================================================"
+  else
+    echo "============================================================"
+    echo "Workaround applied but some CRDs are not yet Established."
+    echo "MCH will retry and should eventually succeed."
+    echo "============================================================"
+  fi
+  echo ""
+
+  return 0
+}
+
 # create image pull secret for MCH
 oc create secret generic ${IMAGE_PULL_SECRET} -n ${MCH_NAMESPACE} --from-file=.dockerconfigjson=$CLUSTER_PROFILE_DIR/pull-secret --type=kubernetes.io/dockerconfigjson
 
@@ -126,13 +478,60 @@ EOF
   set -x ;
   oc -n ${MCH_NAMESPACE} wait --for=jsonpath='{.status.phase}'=Running mch/multiclusterhub --timeout 30m ;
 
-} || { \
-
+} || {
   set +x ;
-  show_multiclusterhub_related_objects ;
-  dump_multiclusterhub_pod_logs ;
-  echo "Error MCH failed to reach Running status in alloted time." ;
-  exit 1 ;
+  echo ""
+  echo "MCH did not reach Running status in the first attempt."
+  echo "Checking for known issues and applying workarounds if needed..."
+  echo ""
+
+  workaround_applied=false
+
+  # WORKAROUND PR #72976: OCM CA bundle race condition
+  # Enable by setting: ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST="[72976]"
+  if is_workaround_enabled 72976; then
+    if apply_ocm_cabundle_workaround; then
+      workaround_applied=true
+    fi
+  else
+    # Check if the race condition exists but workaround is disabled
+    if detect_ocm_cabundle_race_condition; then
+      echo ""
+      echo "WARNING: OCM CA bundle race condition detected but workaround is DISABLED."
+      echo "To enable, set ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST=\"[72976]\" in Prow config."
+      echo ""
+    fi
+  fi
+
+  if [[ "${workaround_applied}" == "true" ]]; then
+    echo ""
+    echo "Workaround applied. Waiting for MCH to reach Running status (second attempt)..."
+    echo ""
+
+    # Wait again for MCH to reach Running status
+    if oc -n ${MCH_NAMESPACE} wait --for=jsonpath='{.status.phase}'=Running mch/multiclusterhub --timeout 30m; then
+      echo ""
+      echo "MCH reached Running status after applying workaround!"
+      echo ""
+    else
+      # Second attempt also failed - gather diagnostics and exit
+      set +x ;
+      show_multiclusterhub_related_objects ;
+      dump_multiclusterhub_pod_logs ;
+      echo "Error: MCH failed to reach Running status even after applying workaround." ;
+      exit 1 ;
+    fi
+  else
+    # No workaround was applicable or enabled - this is some other issue
+    show_multiclusterhub_related_objects ;
+    dump_multiclusterhub_pod_logs ;
+    echo "Error: MCH failed to reach Running status in alloted time." ;
+    echo ""
+    echo "No applicable workaround was found or enabled."
+    echo "Current ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST: ${ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST:-[]}"
+    echo ""
+    exit 1 ;
+  fi
 }
 
 set +x ;
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-ref.yaml b/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-ref.yaml
index 07114cb7bfeb9..601240dbdb57e 100644
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-ref.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/acm/mch/acm-mch-ref.yaml
@@ -32,5 +32,17 @@ ref:
       than the Basic availability, which gives components a replicaCount of 1. So it is very important
       that you set spec.availabilityConfig to "Basic" if you are using multicluster engine operator on a
       single-node OpenShift cluster.
+  - name: ENABLE_WORKAROUND_LIST
+    default: "[]"
+    documentation: |-
+      List of PR numbers for workarounds to enable. Format: "[72976, 12345]" or "[]" (empty, default).
+      Workarounds are opt-in to ensure they are explicitly enabled and easily traceable.
+      Once an upstream fix is released, remove the PR number from this list.
+
+      Available workarounds:
+      - 72976: OCM CA Bundle Race Condition workaround
+               Upstream fix: https://github.com/open-cluster-management-io/ocm/pull/1309
+               CI workaround: https://github.com/openshift/release/pull/72976
+               Remove when: Upstream fix is released in ACM/MCE
   documentation: |-
     Apply MCH crds to openshift cluster.
\ No newline at end of file