The 14 UAE Team Emirates - XRG riders chasing the rainbow jersey at the World Championships

UAE Team Emirates - XRG will arrive at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships with one of the deepest groups in Montréal, sending 14 riders to Canada as the team looks to add another rainbow jersey to an already remarkable season.

The Emirati squad highlighted its World Championships contingent on social media on Saturday, wishing its riders luck ahead of the week-long event in Montréal. Among the names are several riders who could play significant roles in the elite men's road race, while others will have individual ambitions in the time trial or serve their respective national teams in support roles.

Isaac del Toro will naturally attract much of the attention. The Mexican heads into the World Championships after winning the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal last Sunday, beating France's Paul Seixas in a two-man sprint.

Brandon McNulty completed the podium in third, while Adam Yates was also part of UAE's aggressive tactics in the finale. The result provided a direct preview of the terrain that will decide the rainbow next week.

Del Toro's victory was UAE's fifth consecutive win in Montréal, following previous successes for Tadej Pogacar, Adam Yates and McNulty. It also demonstrated the advantage of having several riders capable of attacking on the demanding Mount Royal circuit.

The World Championship road race, however, will be a considerably different challenge. The elite men's race on September 27 will cover approximately 273 kilometers, with around 3,800 meters of elevation gain. After a long opening section from Brossard, the riders will complete 12 laps of the Mount Royal circuit, featuring the 1.6-kilometer Voie Camillien-Houde climb at roughly 7.8 percent.

That combination of distance, repeated climbing and accumulated fatigue makes Del Toro one of the obvious contenders for the rainbow jersey. The Mexican will nevertheless face a field containing Remco Evenepoel, Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert, Tom Pidcock and Seixas, among others. Pogacar, who won the previous two men's road world titles, will not defend his jersey after ending his season following his Vuelta a España crash.

McNulty is another particularly interesting UAE option. The American was third in the recent Montréal dress rehearsal and won the race in 2025. He is also expected to be among the team's strongest options in the individual time trial, alongside Denmark's Mikkel Bjerg and Belgium's Rune Herregodts.

The 14 elite riders featured by UAE are João Almeida, Igor Arrieta, Mikkel Bjerg, Jan Christen, Isaac del Toro, Felix Großschartner, Rune Herregodts, Brandon McNulty, António Morgado, Jhonatan Narváez, Ivo Oliveira, Kevin Vermaerke, Pavel Sivakov and Adam Yates.

Their responsibilities will vary considerably depending on their national selections. Almeida will represent Portugal after a very disappointing season, while Yates will lead Great Britain alongside Tom Pidcock and Oscar Onley. Narváez will lead Ecuador's ambitions, and Del Toro will be Mexico's principal name in the elite men's road race.

The group also includes riders with experience in supporting leaders over difficult terrain. Großschartner and Sivakov can potentially play a role deep into the race for Austria and France respectively, while Arrieta, Christen, Morgado and Narváez offer different attacking possibilities depending on how the race develops.

UAE's representation does not end with the elite men's field. The team's social-media post also featured five riders competing in the men's under-23 race: Daan Dijkman, Ugo Fabries, Moritz Mauss, Mateo Ramírez and Enea Sambinello.

The U23 road race will be contested on a separate day (September 25) during the Montréal championships, giving UAE a sizeable presence across the younger category as well, although none of them are amongst the main favourites.