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World Championships 2026: McNulty holds on

Race: Published

Vinyl 3D cycling illustration introducing the men’s elite World Championship road race in Montréal on 27 September 2026. McNulty in navy USA kit leads an illustrative montage of national-team riders. Title: The Race for Rainbow.
Riders representing Guillaume Boivin in Canada kit, Biniam Girmay in Eritrea kit and Andreas Leknessund in Norway kit lead the early break. Sixteen riders build an eight-minute advantage.
French riders increase the pace in the peloton as the breakaway’s advantage starts to shrink.
Mathieu van der Poel, Quinn Simmons, Oscar Onley and Primož Roglič during the favourites’ attacks.
Brandon McNulty rides away alone in USA colours with around 33 kilometres remaining.
USA teammate Matteo Jorgenson covers rivals’ attacks behind McNulty. Title: A Team Behind the Solo.
McNulty continues his solo effort as the chase approaches. Ten kilometres remain and his advantage is down to ten seconds.
Close-up of McNulty pushing towards the finish, with an inset showing his solo ride. Title: One Final Effort.
McNulty celebrates at the finish as world champion, thirteen seconds ahead. Title: He Holds On!
Podium: McNulty with gold and rainbow jersey in centre, Michael Matthews with silver at left, Mathieu van der Poel with bronze at right.
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The race

Brandon McNulty won the men's elite road race at the 2026 World Championships in Montréal on 27 September. He attacked alone around 33 km from the finish, was down to a ten-second lead with 10 km left, and held on to win by 13 seconds. Michael Matthews was second and Mathieu van der Poel third.

The 273.4 km race opened with a sixteen-rider break that built an eight-minute lead before France took up the chase. Van der Poel, Quinn Simmons and Oscar Onley went clear among the favourites, with Primož Roglič joining them. Behind McNulty's solo, his USA teammate Matteo Jorgenson covered the counter-attacks.

Key moments

  1. A sixteen-rider break escapes and builds an eight-minute lead.
  2. France lifts the pace in the peloton and the gap starts to fall.
  3. Van der Poel, Simmons and Onley attack; Roglič joins them.
  4. Around 33 km from the finish McNulty goes clear alone.
  5. Jorgenson covers the rivals' attacks behind his teammate.
  6. With 10 km left the lead is down to ten seconds.
  7. McNulty holds on and wins by 13 seconds.

Podium

Men's elite road race, UCI Road World Championships, Montréal, 273.4 km

#RiderNation2026 salary
1Brandon McNultyUSA€1.4M Model
2Michael MatthewsAustralia€1.1M Model
3Mathieu van der PoelNetherlands€4M Reported

In the comic: Brandon McNulty, Matteo Jorgenson, Michael Matthews, Mathieu van der Poel, Quinn Simmons, Oscar Onley, Primož Roglič, Biniam Girmay, Andreas Leknessund, Guillaume Boivin. Salaries, contracts and agents on each rider's page.

Sources

The two reports differ on where the winning attack came: 33 km to go for the UCI, 32 km for USA Cycling, so the comic says "around 33 km". Conflicting elevation and final-lap gap figures are left out. The cover is an illustrative montage, not a literal depiction of one race group.

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