Brandon McNulty ends 33-year US drought to win men's world road race in Montreal

Brandon McNulty became the first American to win the men's road race world title in 33 years at Montreal 2026, crossing the line 13 seconds ahead of his rivals. The 28-year-old completed the 273.4km course in six hours and 17 minutes to claim the world crown.

McNulty, who also won the Montreal Grand Prix in 2025, celebrated a rare U.S. victory in the event; the previous American winner was Lance Armstrong in 1993. He had visibly reacted at the finish, putting his hands on his head in disbelief as he realised he had held off the chasers.

The decisive move came when McNulty launched an attack with around 30km remaining and built a lead of 50 seconds entering the final lap. He began to show signs of fatigue on the last climb and his advantage was reduced to just 10 seconds, but the pursuing group could not close the gap. Despite his evident exhaustion, McNulty maintained enough of a margin to reach the line first.

Australian Michael Matthews took second and Mathieu van der Poel of the Netherlands finished third on the podium. Britain's Tom Pidcock recorded seventh place, Ireland's Ben Healy was 10th and Remco Evenepoel of Belgium came home 12th.

Even without injured riding legend Tadej Pogacar, Montreal 2026 featured a strong list of favourites expected to influence the race, including van der Poel, Evenepoel, Wout van Aert, Paul Seixas and Pidcock. Those riders repeatedly animated the event and sought to force breaks beneath the gradually yellowing Canadian maples, but timing rather than raw power decided the outcome. Such was the race distance that many attacks came too early, and it was McNulty — described as a time triallist and domestique to Pogacar by trade — who ultimately rode clear and expended himself to secure victory.

"Until the last 800m I didn't believe, I was so tired," said McNulty. "I'm at a loss for words. I knew something could happen but it would take a miracle and I guess today a miracle happened."

The win awards McNulty the men's road race world title and ends a 33-year wait for an American champion in the event; it follows his previous success at the Montreal Grand Prix in 2025.