“Today a miracle happened” - Brandon McNulty left “at a loss for words” after ending 33-year US wait in Montreal Worlds epic
CyclingSunday, 27 September 2026 at 21:54
Brandon McNulty could barely make sense of what he had just achieved after surviving one of the wildest World Championship finales in recent memory to claim the rainbow jersey in Montreal.
The American ended his country's 33-year wait for an elite men's road world title with a 13-second victory over Michael Matthews and Mathieu van der Poel, having spent the closing stages alone while some of the biggest names in the race repeatedly threatened to bring him back.
🌈🇺🇸 BRANDON MCNULTY 🇺🇸🌈
— UCI (@UCI_cycling) September 27, 2026
Unbelievable scenes as the American claims the 2026 Men Elite UCI Road World Championships title 🤯
Just WOW! 👏#Montréal2026 pic.twitter.com/jXjh5EOKIe
McNulty survives one final collapse in the gap
At one point McNulty had more than a minute in hand. On the final lap that advantage collapsed towards ten seconds as Tom Pidcock and Giulio Ciccone helped drive the chase, before hesitation behind gave the exhausted American one final reprieve.
Even then, he refused to believe it was over. "I'm really at a loss," McNulty admitted in his immediate post-race television interview. "Until the last 300 metres I really didn't believe it. I was so tired. The last time up Mont-Royal I was just dying. I kept pushing and... I don't know."
McNulty had been forced to drag himself across the final climbs while the race continued to explode behind. Van der Poel attacked again, Pidcock refused to stop trying and Mauro Schmid also launched a late move, but nobody could finally bridge the gap.
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McNulty's attack came after an exceptional collective performance from the United States during the decisive phase of the race.
Quinn Simmons had already spent a long period at the front alongside Van der Poel and Primoz Roglic, while Matteo Jorgenson remained deeply involved when the favourites eventually regrouped. Once McNulty attacked, both Americans behind were ideally placed to cover moves without contributing to the chase.
"We said for weeks that we have a super strong team and anything's possible," McNulty said. "We rode crazy well; marked everything; had guys ahead. I'm seriously at a loss for words."
That strength in numbers had been visible throughout a finale in which the race repeatedly changed shape. Simmons eventually finished fourth and Jorgenson eighth, putting three Americans inside the top eight on the day McNulty finally succeeded where his teammates had helped create the opportunity.
The possibility of actually becoming world champion, though, had apparently remained little more than a joke inside the McNulty household before the race. "We talked about it, I made some jokes with my wife," he said. "In the end I knew something could happen but that it would take a miracle. Today a miracle happened."
After 6:17:04 of racing and a final hour in which his rainbow jersey hopes appeared to swing from secure to doomed and back again, McNulty crossed the line alone as the first American elite men's road world champion in 33 years.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- Chapeau to Brandon McNulty on a truly fantastic ride, but I don't think that he would have made it without the outstanding work of teammate Matteo Jorgenson, who marked every single move from behind. It was textbook team tactics, and it made for someone excellent viewing.
santiagobenites28-09-2026 - Lance was a jerk and won a few good races, but was probably doping early and often. As an Austrian American immigrant kid, I’m much happier to see a domestique like McNulty play the game to perfection than to have a totally jackass like Lance be remembered for anything but his corruption. McNulty is what I like about the country my parents chose, Lance is what I loathe. Happy to have a cleaner taste in my mouth today.RidesHills28-09-2026
- He’s honest, he honors his astounding teammate, and he put on a show even when he didn’t have the legs. I thought he’d hit a rager and shoot off the front at some point but some days it’s just not going to happen. A complicated man raced a worthy race, and it helped make today a wonderful crazy show.RidesHills28-09-2026
- Without Simmons at the front, the US doesn’t get to sit in the wheel. Without Jorgensen as the great disrupter, McNulty doesn’t stay away. This was multiple examples of team tactics played out perfectly, one time after the next. He may be a domestique most days, but damn that was perfect cycling across multiple riders, to the consternation of so many others. Congrats, Brandon McNulty, well deserved win for what is really and truly a team sport.RidesHills28-09-2026
- great ride from Michael Mathews
Davide28-09-2026 - LOLsantiagobenites28-09-2026
- he backed del Toro to win over McNulty.whkman27-09-2026
- LOL! My thoughts exactly!frieders327-09-2026
- an amazing race from all angles even if McNulty didn't win. Healy closing the gap on his own, Remco coming back, jorgensen the ultimate teamate, Wout using himself up for remco, it was endlesswhkman27-09-2026
- first American to win since Lance...go ahead Lance hating fetishizers, weigh in on your hatred of Lance, this is your cuewhkman27-09-2026
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