Aline Seitz (HigherDOSE l Renova) and Justin Williams (L39ION of Los Angeles) sprinted to their first victories in the American Criterium Cup this season, winning the fifth round in Salt Lake City, Utah on Saturday.
Seitz won with a well-timed move on the final corner of the final lap and held off Skylar Schneider (L39ION of Los Angeles) and Marlies Mejías (Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28). The Swiss rider had made the series podium twice before but both times came up short to series leader Schneider, who had won three of the first four events.
Racing solo for her squad, Seitz needed the victory to edge closer to Skylar Schneider in the overall standings, now trailing in second position by 26 points with one race to go. She predicted that positioning would pay off at the new course for the Mayer Brown Criterium, a short, four-corner course, coming in at just under one kilometre, in the Granary District of Salt Lake City.
"I knew if you win the last turn here, you probably win the race," Seitz said and managed to pull it off. The race was also without series contenders Paola Muñoz (Fearless Femme pb The Beasley Firm), Andre Cyr (HigherDOSE l Renova) and USPro crit champion Kendall Ryan (Caldera Medical x Aurea Racing), who did not make the trip to Utah.
Claudia Marcks (Pedla Racing Division), who won the ACC race at the Tour of America’s Dairyland, also came as a solo rider. She rounded the final corner on the outside and nearly crashed when her wheel skidded, but she reacted quickly and finished fourth, taking enough points to move into third in the overall standings.
Justin Williams wins Salt Lake Criterium 2026 (Image credit: Brian Hodes / American Criterium Cup)
L39ION riders hold both red leader's jerseys, with Justin Williams extending his lead with the Salt Lake victory and mathematically sealing the men's overall with any result at the final race in St. Louis, Missouri in three weeks.
His top rival and ACC current runner-up Lucas Bourgoyne (Team Cadence Cyclery p/b Waldo Racing) underwent surgery to have his appendix removed, so Justin Williams piled on the points to hold the top spot, now by a 42-point margin.
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Breakaways came and went throughout the men's race and the riders settled into one fast field with a dozen laps to go. Then Foundation Cycling New York came to the front for their leader, Jordan Parra, who had not competed at an ACC race since the opener at Tulsa Tough. L39ION took over on to begin the final lap, but the lead-out for Justin Williams was disrupted by a move in the middle by Preston Eye (Clif Family Drifters Cycling).
The ACC leader abruptly went into warp speed on the final corner and opened space to the front for the win. Eye finished second and Parra went third. Team Cadence riders Cade Bickmore and Luke Fetzer trailed in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Ian Williams (Stellina Racing) finished sixth and held on to third overall in the ACC standings, now just three points ahead of Eye.
The final race of the series takes place on September 6 at the Giro Della Montagna, which serves as the third day of racing in the Bommarito Audi West County Gateway Cup in Missouri.
Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. On the bike, she has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast), and spends time on gravel around horse farms in north Georgia.
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