Brandon McNulty set for 12,000-rider homecoming after wild wedding celebrations with US cycling teammates

Brandon McNulty is preparing for an unusual homecoming later this month, with the reigning world champion set to join around 12,000 cyclists at the El Tour de Tucson on November 21.

The event will bring the rainbow jersey back to Arizona, where McNulty grew up and has a home, after a season in which the 28-year-old won the world title.

Before celebrating at home, McNulty has a trip to Japan on his schedule to ride the Saitama Tour de France criterium on Sunday. He has already been enjoying some time away from racing, as a lively photograph from a fellow rider's wedding recently revealed.

McNulty's appearance in Tucson comes at the end of an extraordinary few months for the Phoenix native.

His victory at the World Championships in Montreal in September made him the first American to win the elite men's road race title since 1993, and he has wasted little time putting the rainbow jersey on display and winning. 

Speaking to Domestique during the Italian autumn classics in October, McNulty explained why he had decided against shortening his season following his World Championship victory.

"I think it's special to race," McNulty said at Gran Piemonte.

He went on to complete his original Italian programme, finishing fifth at Il Lombardia before taking a solo victory at the Veneto Classic on October 18.

That marked the end of his European road racing campaign, although his commitments as world champion are far from over.

McNulty is confirmed for the Saitama Criterium on November 15, where he will line up alongside Il Lombardia winner Paul Seixas, Michael Matthews and Oscar Onley at the event organised by Tour de France owner ASO.

The Japanese exhibition event will take place over a 2.45km circuit, with riders completing 25 laps through the city.

Six days later, McNulty will be back in the United States for an altogether different occasion.

El Tour de Tucson is expecting approximately 12,000 participants for its 43rd edition, with McNulty and US national champion Quinn Simmons among the big-name riders.

Unlike the professional races that have occupied most of their calendars, the Arizona event is built around participation and fundraising, bringing together cyclists across three distances.

McNulty and Simmons are also scheduled to participate in the El Tour Prologue Camp ahead of the main event, giving a smaller group of cyclists the chance to spend time on the bike with professional riders.

Former Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, multiple world champion Chloe Dygert and retired American professional George Hincapie are among the other familiar names expected to attend.

For McNulty, the occasion will mark his first major appearance on home roads since becoming world champion.

Before their appearance in Arizona, McNulty and Simmons were among the American professionals celebrating the wedding of UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider Kevin Vermaerke over the weekend.

Vermaerke shared a photograph on Instagram showing several riders posing together, with their shirts off and a few ties still hanging around their necks.

McNulty and Simmons featured in the picture alongside fellow professionals including Larry Warbasse, Will Barta, Cole Kessler and Sean Quinn.

The photo offered a rare glimpse of McNulty and his fellow Americans letting loose away from the racing.

Attention will soon turn to 2027, with UAE Team Emirates-XRG set to outline its plans for the new season at a training camp in December. For McNulty, it will mark the beginning of preparations for his first full campaign in the rainbow jersey.