Road to Montréal: How the contenders are building for the World Championships

The last rider to win the elite men’s road race after competing in the Vuelta a España was Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) in 2022. Evenepoel won his first Grand Tour in Spain before producing an emphatic solo victory to take the rainbow jersey in Wollongong, Australia. 

While Evenepoel isn't at the Spanish Grand Tour this year, many riders currently racing across Spain will quickly turn their attention to the Worlds once the Vuelta reaches Granada on September 13.

There are just two weeks between stage 21 and the elite men’s road race. Crucially, the final week of the Vuelta clashes directly with the GP Québec and Montréal, ruling out a quick trip to Canada to take part in the two Canadian WorldTour events.

Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), who was in cruise control at the Vuelta and likely already thinking about his bid to win a third successive rainbow jersey, has confirmed that his 2026 season is over, which opens the door wide for the gold medal in Montréal.

Enric Mas (Movistar), who stepped into the red jersey in the absence of Pogačar, has led the race with pride, winning atop the Alto de Aitana on stage 9 and extending his lead during the second week. AS reported that the Spaniard is set to lead the Spanish team in Canada, alongside Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek), though the squad is yet to be confirmed (like most nations), and how the rest of the Vuelta plays out could impact what Mas does.

Another classification leader, Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike), is also set to head to Canada after the Vuelta. Van Aert, who leads the points classification, has played an important role in teammate Matthew Brennan’s three stage wins, and added his own on stage 13 from the breakaway.

He is set to co-lead the Belgian team alongside Evenepoel. With Pogačar's absence, Belgium will be aiming for victory and nothing less. 

This also marks a new approach for Van Aert, since he has never ridden the Worlds after the Vuelta, as he crashed out of the Spanish Grand Tour in his only previous appearance back in 2024.

Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM), Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost), and Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) currently sit in the top 10 and are also pencilled in for the Worlds, though, like Mas, plans could change depending on how the Vuelta finishes. 

Additionally, it is not yet confirmed whether Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) will line up, as Slovenia’s squad remains uncertain following Pogačar’s crash.

Meanwhile, Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), who abandoned the race ahead of stage 10, highlighted the Worlds as a key target. Just days before abandoning, the former world champion explained on his Lang Distance podcast that despite struggling for form, “the most important thing is that I’m ready for the World Championships in a month’s time.”

The GP Québec and GP Montréal haven’t struggled in terms of attracting star-studded start lists in recent seasons, but the Worlds have added another layer of significance, and thus the two races are set to attract many of the stars who are targeting the rainbow jersey.

Among those is Evenepoel, who was in red-hot form the last time he was in action, winning a record-breaking fourth Clasica San Sebastian, following his standout Tour de France, where he won two stages and finished second in the GC. 

As a former World Champion and with his most recent form, all eyes will be on Evenepoel in the coming weeks, as he returns to action in Canada for the first time since his Neo-pro season back in 2019.

The third rider on the Tour podium in Paris was Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), and the Mexican champion will be dreaming of becoming the first rider from Mexico to win the rainbow jersey in the road race.

Since that standout Tour, Del Toro shone in Germany, winning a stage and the GC of the Lidl Deutschland Tour. Del Toro will be making his debut at the GP Québec and Montréal, as will the man he beat to the Tour podium...

Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) thrived under the spotlight at the Tour, finishing fourth despite being the youngest starter at the race in 89 years. 

The 19-year-old has shown that he also thrives in one-day races, securing podium finishes at the European Championships, Strade Bianche, Liège-Bastonge-Liège, as well as victory at Flèche Wallonne in the last twelve months. 

A victory in Montréal on September 27th would see Seixas surpass Karel Kaers in 1934 as the youngest winner of the elite men's road race. 

Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5), who also finished in the top 10 at the Tour, will feature in the Canadian double, and these aren't the only races for the latter, but more on that later.  

Ayuso will be hoping to build on a positive performance at last year's Worlds, where he was the only rider to initially follow the devastating acceleration of Pogačar on Mont Kigali, before Del Toro bridged across, and the Spaniard was eventually distanced on the savage, steep cobbles of the Mur de Kigali.

Some of the other stars who are currently pencilled in for the Canadian double include Matteo Jorgenson (Visma | Lease a Bike), Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek), Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost), Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek), and home rider Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek).

Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) will headline the 86th edition of the Skoda Tour de Luxembourg, adopting the same approach that he took ahead of the 2024 Worlds. 

On that occasion, Van der Poel kicked off the race with a bang, sprinting to victory on the opening stage. He led the race ahead of the final stage, but the GC slipped from his grasp, and he had to settle for second overall behind Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious). 

Just a week later, Van der Poel secured a bronze medal in the road race in Zürich, Switzerland, behind Pogačar and Ben O’Connor (Decathlon CMA CGM) on a course which many thought would be too difficult for the Dutchman. 

This year, Van der Poel will line up in Luxembourg after finishing 30th at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. His last appearance on the road came on the final stage of the Tour de France on the Champs-Élysées, where he claimed a spectacular victory after breaking clear with Pogačar on the Montmartre climb.

After crashing out on stage 16 of the Tour de France in the time trial, Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) is set to make his return to racing at the Giro della Toscana on September 9. 

Red Bull confirmed that the German could start more one-day races in Italy, though it will be decided on a race-by-race basis. Lipowitz himself confirmed that he would like to race the Worlds, but will only do so if he feels that he is at the right level to do so. 

The German isn't the only rider who will race in Italy before the Worlds. Pidcock lined up at the GP Industria & Artigianato on September 6, in what was his first road race since becoming a two-time world champion in the Cross-country Olympic event, before making the trip to Canada for the GP Québec and Montréal.