Who are the riders to watch in the men's U23 road race at the World Championships?

Aubin Sparfel heads into the U23 road race in excellent form after winning the 1.Pro Grand Prix de Wallonie, beating Romain Grégoire, Milan Fretin, Benoît Cosnefroy and teammate Paul Lapeira on the uphill finish in Namur.

If you were not already aware of the Frenchman's qualities, the finish told you plenty. Sparfel packs a serious punch, but also has the climbing ability to survive a demanding race.

His 2026 season has been strong throughout. He finished fourth overall and won a stage at the Giro Next Gen, placed 15th in the French Road Race Championships and later added another stage win at the Tour de l'Avenir.

Sparfel's previous World Championship road race appearance came as a junior in Zurich in 2024, where he finished 18th. He will be aiming considerably higher in 2026.

Next up is Max Bock, who currently rides for Red Bull Rookies. At 21, the German is developing into an impressive all round rider and has already produced some strong results at both U23 and professional level.

He also took his first UCI victory this season with a solo win on stage two of the Sauerlandrundfahrt.

His sixth place overall at the Czech Tour was perhaps his most impressive performance of 2026 given the level of opposition.

The Montréal parcours may suit some of the more explosive riders slightly better, with the relatively short main climb potentially working against Bock. But if he can make the race hard from distance and launch a long range move, he could be difficult to bring back.

Matisse Van Kerckhove is a young rider who can seemingly do just about everything. The Visma | Lease a Bike Development rider can climb, sprint and time trial, making him one of the most versatile talents in the U23 peloton.

Van Kerckhove will step up to the WorldTour with Team Visma | Lease a Bike in 2027 and will be hoping to arrive there with the U23 rainbow jersey already in his collection.

His World Championships have not started in the way he would have hoped, however. A day before the U23 time trial, his younger brother Seff was hit by a driver while training in Montréal, with Matisse part of the same training group. Seff was forced to miss the remainder of the championships, while Matisse endured a difficult time trial the following day, finishing 12th after struggling to find his usual power.

That result should not change how he is viewed ahead of the road race. The nature of the Montréal course should suit him well. His combination of climbing ability and speed makes him one of the major favourites, particularly if a reduced group contests the title.

If he can put a difficult few days behind him, Van Kerckhove has all the qualities needed to turn his World Championships around. For us, he remains the slight favourite for the road race title.

Sticking with the Visma | Lease a Bike setup, another rider to watch is Elliot Rowe.

The young Scotsman made a name for himself in early September by finishing sixth overall at the Tour of Britain and winning the young rider classification.

He was already on the attack during the opening stage around Lincoln, mixing it with riders such as Filippo Ganna, Tim Wellens and Jasper Stuyven. It was another indication of the engine Rowe already possesses at just 20 years old.

A hard and attritional race should suit him perfectly, particularly if the favourites begin attacking early.

Mattia Negrente is one to watch if the race is decided from a reduced group, with the young Italian possessing an impressive finishing kick.

Riding for XDS Astana Development, Negrente has had a somewhat mixed season, but victory at the Italian U23 Road Race Championships showed exactly what he is capable of when everything comes together.

He will be hoping to produce something similar in Canada and follow in the footsteps of compatriot Lorenzo Finn, who won the U23 world title in Rwanda last year.

If Negrente reaches the finale in a small group, few riders will want to take him to the line.

Henrique Bravo has established himself as one of the standout talents emerging from South American cycling. The Brazilian has enjoyed an excellent 2026 season, with overall victories at the Tour of Antalya, Oberösterreich Rundfahrt and Giro della Valle d'Aosta.

The 20-year-old is a natural climber, but he has also shown enough punch to make him dangerous on a course such as Montréal.

Bravo currently rides for Soudal Quick-Step Devo and has continued to impress against some of the strongest U23 riders in Europe, including a fifth place overall at the Tour de l'Avenir.

With Brazil set to have limited numbers in the race, Bravo will need to manage his energy carefully and choose his moments. But that could also give him the freedom to race aggressively.

Could a daring solo attack be his best route to the rainbow jersey?