American cyclist Brandon McNulty, 28, has clinched an unexpected solo victory in the men's UCI road race in Montreal, marking his country's first win in the event since 1993. The UAE Emirates teammate of Tadej Pogacar succeeded the Slovene as world champion in what he described as a "miracle" win.
McNulty held a 50-second lead at the start of the final lap on the hilly Montreal circuit, fending off a late chase from Tom Pidcock. The race, ridden without radios, was described as chaotic, particularly due to confused tactics within the Belgian team, which seemingly hampered pre-race favourite Remco Evenepoel.
Evenepoel, who had secured time trial gold a week earlier, was unable to add the road race title. The final hour of racing saw multiple lead changes and regroupings before McNulty definitively seized the initiative with just over 30km remaining.
In other news from the championships, Demi Vollering, winner of the women's road race, was fined 1,000 Swiss francs and received a points deduction and yellow card for a "non-compliant" racing position, though her race results were unaffected.