Evie Richards and Lachlan Stevens-McNab feature in New Documentary: The Cycle

The 20 teams that will form the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Endurance line-up have been confirmed, with some of the sport’s biggest names guaranteed to compete across all nine rounds of the 2026 UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) and Cross-country Short Track (XCC) World Cup calendar.Riders such as  Christopher Blevins (Specialized Factory Racing), Victor Koretzky (Specialized Factory Racing), Alan Hatherly (Giant Factory Off-Road Team - XC), Evie Richards (Trek - Unbroken XC), Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon), Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing), Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) and Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Premier Tech) are all assured a place on the start line.FACTORY AND DEVELOPMENT-FOCUSED TEAMS SECURE 2-YEAR LICENCEThe top 10 teams in the 2025 UCI ranking have been rewarded with two-year WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series team licences, and the list is made up of some big factory outfits and plucky underdogs who find themselves at the top table after relying on wildcard entries last time out.Specialized Factory Racing dominated proceedings last year and it will be tough for its riders to match their success in 2026. Christopher Blevins had a record-breaking year as he navigated his way to a Men Elite UCI XCO-XCC World Cup overall double, while Victor Koretzky made up for a middling season by defending his UCI XCC World Championship title. The team is packed full of firepower – Martin Vidaurre Kossmann and Adrien Boichis both highlighting their potential – while Haley Batten, Sina Frei and Laura Stigger all have elite-level wins to their names.The second-best spot in 2025 was taken by Decathlon Ford Factory Racing courtesy of Women Elite UCI XCO World Cup overall winner Samara Maxwell’s podium-placing consistency throughout the year. The team will have to do it without the New Zealander for 2026 – the 24-year-old announcing she’s taking a year-long sabbatical from racing – but Savilia Blunk and Joshua Dubau are consistent top 10 finishers on their day and ready to step up.One team looking up in 2026 is Canyon XC Racing. Home of UCI XCO World Champion Jenny Rissveds, the Swede was in the form of her life towards the end of last season and will be hoping to carry on where she left off when racing gets underway at the opening round in MONA YongPyong (South Korea). Teammate Luca Schwarzbauer showed signs of his best, and the pair will be joined by reigning Women U23 UCI XCO World Cup overall winner Valentina Corvi, who will continue racing in the U23 class this year.Another outfit that showed promising form towards the latter stages of the 2025 series was Cannondale Factory Racing – Charlie Aldridge picking up his first UCI XCO World Cup win in Mont-Sainte-Anne (Canada) and Luca Martin securing two wins (one XCC, one XCO) in his first elite season. Swiss icon Jolanda Neff completes the squad as they look to wrestle top-dog status back from their US rivals Specialized.Elsewhere, UCI XCC World Champion Alessandra Keller leads Thömus maxon’s Swiss teamsheet alongside compatriots Mathias Flückiger and Lars Foster, and Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team gets a youthful boost with Ella Macphee and Gustav Pedersen joining Simone Avondetto and Luca Braidot in the elite ranks.Scott-SRAM MTB Race Team enter a new chapter following Nino Schurter’s retirement with an established and competitive line-up in Filippo Colombo, Fabio Puntener and Bjorn Riley ready to carry the team forward and score consistently. Elite stalwarts Simon Andreassen and Jennifer Jackson (Orbea Fox Factory Team) meanwhile will be hoping to push on in the team’s second season.The final two teams with a 2-year licence are U23 UCI XCO-XCC World Cup overall winner Finn Treudler’s Cube Factory Racing, and previous wildcard entrant Bixs Race Team, who have retained Ramona Forchini and Marcel Guerrini as they embark on their first season as a UCI World Series team.BIG NAMES AND FRESH OUTFITS AMONGST 1-YEAR LICENCE TEAMSThe biggest name to find itself amongst the 1-year licenced teams is Giant Factory Off-Road Team – XC, the home of back-to-back UCI XCO World Champion Alan Hatherly. The South African’s multi-discipline schedule means he isn’t able to bank points for the team consistently throughout the season, but when he does race a UCI World Cup, there’s a high chance he’ll be contributing near-maximum points.Trek - Unbroken XC’s Evie Richards will be looking to defend her UCI XCC World Cup overall title while Vlad Dascalu returns for the American team.Also, like in the Gravity selection, one team that was ranked in the top 15 teams won’t be returning to the 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series – Ghost Factory Racing folding after 15 years in the sport. It isn’t the last we’ll see of its riders though, with Anne Terpstra, Nicole Koller and Caroline Bohé all now part of the Lapierre PXR Racing team – a hybrid of the Ghost and Lapierre Racing teams of 2025, which also sees Anton Cooper and Tobias Lillelund retain their spots.Other teams to secure the automatic WHOOP UCI World Series Team status were Mathis Azzaro’s Origine Racing Division and KMC Nukeproof MTB Racing Team.STARS AMONGST WILDCARD SELECTIONSIn addition to the top 15 ranked teams, five full-season wildcard spots were made available by the UCI for the remaining UCI Mountain Bike Teams.The five wildcard spots went to the established outfits Alpecin-Premier Tech, BH Coloma Team, BMC Factory Racing and Liv Factory Racing, as well as Mondraker Factory Racing XC, who will line up for its second season.This guarantees starting places for multi-discipline stars Mathieu van der Poel and Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Premier Tech), previous UCI World Cup winners Jordan Sarrou and Loana Lecomte (BMC Factory Racing).The full list of teams to secure WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team status were:2-year licence1. Specialized Factory Racing2. Decathlon Ford Racing Team3. Canyon XC Racing4. Cannondale Factory Racing5. Thömus Maxon6. Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team7. Orbea Fox Factory Team8. Cube Factory Racing9. Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team10. BIXS Race Team1-year licence11. Trek - Unbroken XC12. Origine Racing Division13. KMC Nukeproof MTB Racing Team14. Giant Factory Off-Road Team - XC15. Lapierre PXR RacingWildcards (1-year licence)16. BH Coloma Team17. Liv Factory Racing18. Mondraker Factory Racing XC19. BMC Factory Racing20. Alpecin-Premier TechThe 2026 UCI Cross-country World Cup kicks off on May 1 in MONA YongPyong (South Korea) - marking the first UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event on Asian soil in 25 years. From there, the season begins its European leg in Nové Město Na Moravě (Czechia), before heading to Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland (Austria), Lenzerheide (Switzerland), La Thuile – Valle d’Aosta (Italy), Pal Arinsal (Andorra) and Les Gets – Haute Savoie (France). The riders will then cross the Atlantic to close out the season in Soldier Hollow, Midway, Utah (USA) and Lake Placid Olympic Sites, New York (USA).

The 20 teams that will make up the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Teams for the 2026 Gravity season have been confirmed, and their rider line-ups are jam-packed with UCI Downhill World Cup round winners, multi-time overall series champions and new contenders who are set to challenge the old guard for podium places.As well as the reigning Elite UCI World Cup and UCI World Championship victors Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate) and Valentina Höll (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres), each round’s start list will feature some of the biggest stars and icons of Gravity mountain biking – from Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) and Tahnée Seagrave (Orbea FMD Racing) to Aaron Gwin (Frameworks / TRP) and Myriam Nicole (Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction).FACTORY TEAMS AND PLUCKY UNDERDOGS REWARDED WITH 2-YEAR LICENCEOne of the main changes between the 2025 and 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Teams is that this year, the top 10 teams in the UCI rankings have been rewarded with two-year licences – guaranteeing their spot in the start hut in 2026 and 2027 regardless of their UCI points at the end of the year.The top-ranked team from last year was Canyon DH Racing, and the German manufacturer’s factory outfit remains unchanged – Troy Brosnan, Marine Cabirou and Luca Shaw lead the charge alongside rising stars Henri Kiefer and Aletha Ostgaard.Second in the rankings was Santa Cruz Syndicate, who can thank the outstanding form of Jackson Goldstone for their lofty position. The Men Elite UCI Downhill World Cup overall winner and reigning UCI World Champion enjoyed a record-breaking season in 2025 and will have a tough job to match his five victories, which included a streak of four-consecutive wins. Following YT Mob’s folding at the end of 2025, the team line-up evolves, with Austrian Andreas Kölb joining and Laurie Greenland no longer part of the roster. Nina Hoffman returns for her fifth season with the Steve Peat-mentored team.One rider who will be desperate to get the better of Goldstone this season is Loïc Bruni. The Specialized Gravity rider took the battle for the overall title right down to the wire last season, and it will be exciting to see him resume his duel with the Canadian rider in South Korea. Finn Iles and Jordan Williams will also return to the American manufacturer’s factory team.The fallout from the YT Industries closure was one the biggest stories of the off-season, as it determined which team four-time UCI World Champion and UCI World Cup overall winner Vali Höll would be riding for in 2026. The Austrian opted for Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres – a smaller outfit that punched above its weight in 2025 to secure a two-year licence. She joins the likes of Lisa Baumann and Antoine Pierron.Pierron’s brother, Amaury, returns after a season of highs and lows with his Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction team, which includes the icon Myriam Nicole, 2024 UCI World Champion Loris Vergier, and the Alran twins – with Max, the reigning Men Junior UCI Downhill World Cup overall winner.Elsewhere, Tahnée Seagrave will be aiming to build on her good form from 2025 in her Orbea FMD Racing squad alongside Martin Maes, while two-time UCI World Cup winner Ronan Dunne and US Champion Ryan Pickerton have been joined by Oli Clark at Mondraker Factory Racing DH. The final three teams to receive a two-year licence were Richie Rude Jr’s Yeti / Fox Factory Race Team, with the American Enduro star continuing to prioritise Downhill in 2026; Women Junior UCI Downhill World Cup overall winner Rosa Zierl’s Cube Factory Racing; and Trek - Unbroken DH, who have added Oisin O’Callaghan to a line-up that includes Lachlan Stevens-McNab, Matt Walker and Sacha Earnest.BIG NAMES AND PREVIOUS WILDCARDS SECURE 1-YEAR LICENCEWhile the top 10 ranked teams know that their UCI World Series status is secure until the end of 2027, teams ranked 11-15 will have to prove themselves all over again to retain their guaranteed spot in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series start hut.The biggest team to find themselves with a one-year licence is Giant Factory Off-Road Team - DH. They will be hoping that Lake Placid Olympic Region winner Luke Meier-Smith and Rémi Thirion can help turn their fortunes around in 2026.Other established names include the Greg Minnaar-managed Norco x adidas Race Division, with one of the break-out stars from 2025, Gracey Hemstreet, and 2011 UCI World Champion Danny Hart as their focus for results.Elsewhere, Gloria Scarsi’s MS-Racing and Mille Johnset’s Nukeproof Axess Racing will ensure that both pinners will feature in each UCI World Cup round.The final licence went to Unno Factory Racing DH. Formerly known as Rogue Racing - SR Suntour, the team’s consistency was one of the stories of 2025. Entering each round as a wildcard, they banked enough points to outscore teams with much bigger budgets.ICONIC ATHLETES RELY ON WILDCARD SPOTSThe final five WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series team spots are assigned based on a different selection criterion, but in 2026 they were, coincidentally, also the next five teams on the UCI rankings.The biggest name in this category is arguably Scott Downhill Factory, who can rely on the riding of Jess Blewitt, Benoit Coulanges and new-signing Dakotah Norton to help nudge them up the rankings and into a guaranteed slot in 2026.Smaller outfits like Reece Wilson’s AON Racing and Charlie Hatton’s Continental Atherton also needed a season-long wildcard for the second year in a row, while Santa Cruz Burgtec by Goodman’s spot will see Thibaut Laly and Nathan Pontvianne lining up in the start hut.Another exciting wildcard selection is Frameworks Racing / TRP, home to Asa Vermette, who will be joining the Elite ranks in 2026. The American team has also added five-time UCI World Cup overall winner Aaron Gwin to its team sheet, and both riders will be in contention for top spots at each UCI World Cup round.The full list of Gravity teams to secure WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team status are: 2-year licence:Canyon DH RacingSanta Cruz SyndicateCommencal/Muc-Off by Riding AddictionOrbea FMD RacingMondraker Factory Racing DHYeti / Fox Factory Race TeamCube Factory RacingSpecialized GravityTrek - Unbroken DHCommencal Schwalbe by Les Orres1-year licence:Norco X Adidas Race DivisionMS-RacingNukeproof Axess RacingUnno Factory Racing DHGiant Factory Off-Road Team – DHWildcards (1-year licence):Santa Cruz Burgtec by GoodmanScott Downhill FactoryFrameworks Racing / TRPAON RacingContinental AthertonThe 2026 UCI Downhill World Cup kicks off on May 1 with the Race of South Korea, marking the first UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event on Asian soil in 25 years. From there, the season continues in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France) for the opening round of the European leg, which also features stops in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland (Austria), Lenzerheide (Switzerland), La Thuile – Valle d’Aosta (Italy), Pal Arinsal (Andorra), and Les Gets, Haute-Savoie (France). The riders will then cross the Atlantic to downhill’s spiritual home of Whistler Mountain Bike Park, British Columbia (Canada), delivering on decades of anticipation before wrapping up the season at the historic Lake Placid Olympic Region, New York (USA) in October.

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports and SCOTT Sports are proud to confirm a new long-term partnership for the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series.The international sports brand that develops, markets, and sells bike, winter sports, running and outdoor products becomes the Official Cross-country Bike Partner of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, as well as the Event Presenting Partner for the UCI World Cup round in Soldier Hollow, Midway, Utah (USA).This new partnership builds on SCOTT Sports’ previous commitment to the series, which began with a local partnership for the 2025 UCI World Cup round in Lenzerheide (Switzerland).Since inventing the world’s first aluminum ski pole in 1958, innovation and progression have been central to SCOTT Sports’ philosophy. This commitment has shaped a strong mountain bike heritage dating back to the creation of its UCI World Cup team in 2002, which has supported numerous champions, including Olympic gold medalist and 10‑time UCI World Champion Nino Schurter. Chris Ball, Vice President of Cycling Events at WBD Sports, said: “SCOTT Sports has been synonymous with success in the cycling world for many years and we are thrilled to have them on board as partners of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the pinnacle of mountain bike competition, in an extended capacity for the next two seasons.” Julian Wagner, Global Bike Marketing Lead at SCOTT Sports, said: "We’re incredibly excited to partner with the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series over the next few seasons. Cross-country racing is woven into our DNA, so stepping in as the Official Cross-country Partner feels like a natural fit. It’s a great opportunity to celebrate our heritage while continuing to push the sport forward." The 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season kicks off on May 1 with the Race of South Korea – marking the return of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup to the Asian continent for the first time in 25 years.