World Championships Montréal men's under-23 road race 2026 preview, profile, favourites & predictions - Alvaréz, Sparfel, Rowe, Wiggins and a stacked Belgian team headline

Cycling
Friday, 25 September 2026 at 12:55
hectoralvarez
On the 25th of September, the World Championships will host the men's under-23 road race, featuring big riders such as Ben Wiggins, Ashlin Barry, Cameron Rogers and Héctor Alvaréz. Below, you'll find the favourites for the race, the course and the preview.
The riders will find the exact same course as in the GP de Montréal, only with 13 laps instead of 16. Unlike the elite races, the event will indeed begin in Montréal, with the climb to Mount Royal right in the very first meters of the stage.
The riders will take on 13 laps of a circuit that favours climbers but allows classics specialists to fight for the win as well. Its main feature is the ascent to Mount Royal (the Voie Camillien-Houde).
This climb is 1.7 kilometers long at 7.7% officially. But it is only one of the climbs in the circuit which includes the Côte de Polytechnique which maxes out at 9%, a second small hilltop and then also the rise to the finish line which features 500 meters at 5%.

Profile: Montréal - Montréal

Profile of the men's under-23 road race world championships 2026
Montréal - Montréal, 175 kilometers

Preview 2026 men's under-23 road race world championships

It will be a race that will be hard to control and favours chaos. The Belgians will have a numerical strong point with the presence of Niels Driesen, Matteo Vanhuffel and Matisse van Kerckhove.
The Spaniard are on a roll and following the victory of Benjamin Noval Jr. in the junior's race, Héctor Alvaréz could deliver the win on this one. The Lidl-Trek rider has already put himself on display impressively against World Tour teams and should have the skillset to win here. After his victory at the GP de Wallonie, Aubin Sparfel has also placed himself as a big face to take the rainbow jersey.
The British have Elliot Rowe and Ben Wiggins to try and cause mayhem in the race; the United States have Ashlin Barry whilst Cameron Rogers perhaps better represents Australia.
The likes of Henrique Bravo and Mateo Ramirez could well see South America take a world title although their collectives are not as strong; whilst others such as Matteo Scalco and Jan Huber also have the ability to perform on such a course.

Prediction men's under-23 World Championships road race 2026:

*** Aubin Sparfel, Héctor Alvaréz
** Niels Driesen, Henrique Bravo, Matteo Vanhuffel
* Elliot Rowe, Matteo Ramirez, Matteo Scalco, Jan Huber, Kasper Borremans
Pick: Hector Alvaréz
How: Small groups sprint.
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