Brandon McNulty follows Greg LeMond and Lance Armstrong as US riders to win cycling world title

September 28, 2026

Joking with his wife before the biggest single-day race in cycling, Brandon McNulty said it would take a miracle to become world champion.

Well, “I guess, today, miracles happen,” McNulty said after becoming the first American to win the men’s road race at the world champonships since Lance Armstrong did it in 1993.

On Monday, McNulty — known mainly as a support rider to cycling superstar Tadej Pogacar on his trade team, UAE Team Emirates — was still marveling about how he pulled off a solo breakaway with 33 kilometers (20.5 miles) to go in Sunday’s grueling race in Montreal — which lasted more than six hours.

McNulty crossed the finish line 13 seconds ahead of Australia’s Michael Matthews, with the Netherlands’ Mathieu van der Poel in third. AP NEWS