'US cycling is not as dead as people like to say' - Quinn Simmons still on a high after key role in Worlds glory

Quinn Simmons will end his 2026 season at the Japan Cup in Utsunomiya on Sunday, bringing down the curtain on a 51-race calendar that included a second US national road race title and a key role in Brandon McNulty's world title win in Montreal.

Like every rider in the eight-man US national team, Simmons is still buzzing about their collective performance and victory in Canada, where he ultimately placed fourth.

Simmons went on the attack with Mathieu van der Poel and Wout Van Aert with 85km to race and then marked attacks and blocked the chase with Matteo Jorgenson once McNulty had made his attack. Simmons later revealed he averaged almost 350 watts during the final 17km of the race.

"It was a huge day for American cycling, we probably haven't even realized how big of a day it was yet," Simmons told Domestique and Cyclingnews on the eve of Il Lombardia.

"It was 33 years since we took the jersey and then we did it in the fashion that we did it. It's something that will highlight a lot of our careers."

Simmons hopes the world championships can be a turning point for US cycling, with Ashlin Barry also winning the men's under 23 road race title, while Kristen Faulkner is the current women's Olympic road race champion.

Cycling in the USA has still to emerge from the long shadow of the Lance Armstrong doping scandal, with gravel taking the spotlight and revenue from road racing. However a new generation of riders is emerging in a mix of European teams, including EF Education-EasyPost and the new Modern Adventure team, while the Philadelphia Cycling Classic is back on the calendar.

"In some ways, I'd say it's kicking on. Maybe there's only 14 or so WorldTour riders but the top ten of us are quite good riders," Simmons said of the men's pro scene before highlighting the fundamental business reason why there is a lack of major pro races in the USA.

"US cycling is not as dead as people like to say. Maybe we're missing US races but the American financial model won't do something that loses money.

"Until cycling finds a way to profit off its spectators, you're not going to find big American companies willing to lose money to put on races. I think cycling needs to change before it will grow in the US."

Simmons is satisfied with his 2026 season but also regrets missing out on a Tour de France stage victory.

"It's been good but I've also missed my two biggest objectives, so there's some disappointment there," Simmons said.

"I have to be happy with the way I've ridden. I think I took a step up from last year, even though I haven't won a lot. I've shown that I'm at least in the game for the big races. I just missed that final piece. It's better to be in this position than to be completely out of the fight, so I can at least be happy that I've been in the fight."

Simmons was junior world champion in Yorkshire in 2019 and immediately stepped up to WorldTour level with Trek-Segafredo. He has nine victories on his palmares but has still to make a breakthrough in the Classics. He is now 25 but already with seven seasons as a pro under his belt.

"I've been quite close for a number of years at a lot of big races, but I just haven't quite done it," Simmons said. "I still believe I can figure it out but maybe I won't. Maybe I'll never reach the top level. But at least I'm still trying and I still believe in it."

Simmons was second on stage 2 of the Tour to Foix, behind his Lidl-Trek team leader Mads Pedersen, after spending 168km in the breakaway. He was in six other breakways during the Tour as he hunted for a stage win and made numerous other attacks. He also had to follow team orders, acknowledging that Lidl-Trek "write my paycheck" as he rode in support of Pedersen's green jersey ambitions.

Simmon's attacking style, his stars and stripes jersey and his flowing locks made a big impression at the Tour. His attacks and hard work won him the official Best Teammate of the Tour de France award for the second year in a row.

"The Tour was super fun," Simmons said. "I think I did a similar Tour to last year and this year I came even a few percent better. My performance showed that. Of course, I wanted the stage but I have to be happier with the way I was riding. If I keep building like this, next year can be even better."

Simmons will head home to Colorado for the off-season, no doubt doing the off-piste skiing trips and high mountaineering that are impossible during the season.

The Lidl-Trek Classics squad will include Filippo Ganna and  Jordi Meeus in 2027, alongside Pedersen, Toms Skujiņš, Jonathan Milan, Mathias Vacek, super talent Albert Withen Philipsen and Jakob Söderqvist. The fight for Tour selection will also be tough with the arrival of Felix Gall, alongside Juan Ayuso, Derek Gee-West and others.

Yet Simmons is not afraid to fight for his place, as he did in 2025 and 2026. In 2027 he wants that so far elusive stage victory.

"For sure, my eyes are already on the Tour," he said, admitting the 2027 World Championships in France are tough for him.

He may return to Strade Bianche despite a run of crashes and bad luck, while the Tour of Flanders and other cobbled Classics may be on his eventual race programme. But July will always be the centrepiece.

"Maybe we give Flanders a crack, we'll still have to see with the team," Simmons said. "But now for me, the biggest objective every year will be the Tour."