Riders to watch at Australia's 2026 Road National Championships – Chapman and Plapp face tough time trial challenge, Jayco-AlUla holds trump card laden hand for road races

The chase for Australia's national titles at the Westbridge Funds Road National Championships is opening up the summer block of racing. Competitors from the WorldTour are coming back home from Europe and lining up with the best of the domestic scene in Western Australia to see who will get the honour of wearing the green and gold striped jerseys of a title holder for the rest of 2026.

The competition opens with the time trials, the U23 men among the opening acts as they set out to take on the race against the clock on Wednesday January 7, with the U23 and elite women's and elite men's time trials unfolding on Thursday January 8.

Then it is onto the criteriums on the fast but technical Northbridge circuit on Friday January 9, when the weather is expected to cool from its 30°C+ temperatures and there is potential for rain. Saturday, with its cool summer forecasts of temperatures in the low 20s, is when the road races begin to unfold, with the U23 men's battle among the schedule. Sunday is the final day of competition through Kings Park, with the prize of the U23 women's and elite women's title up for grabs in the middle of the day, and the elite men's race into the evening to decide the final battle in Perth.

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Throughout, there will be a deep field of riders expected to be vying for the national title. The only Australian WorldTour squad of Jayco-AlUla and the Women's WorldTour team of Liv-AlUla-Jayco are always dominant forces, though while the riders from other top-tier teams may not have strength in numbers, a nothing-to-lose attitude can sometimes prove the winning edge. There are domestic teams, too, that are strong in both numbers and determination, given that the championships provide a once-a-year chance at home for many locally-based riders to show they have what it takes to take the battle to the WorldTour professionals and, with any luck, show that Europe is where they deserve to be.

Cyclingnews has been keeping a keen eye on top performers across both the domestic and international scene and combed through the start lists to pull together this list of just who might be among the riders in the running to claim a green and gold jersey in the time trials and road races in 2026.

Time Trials

Elite Women

With the retirement of Olympic gold medallist and World Champion in the discipline, Grace Brown, in 2025, Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ) quickly pulled on the elite women's time trial national stripes. Now she has had another year of fine-tuning and delivering powerful results in the race against the clock – an individual time trial fourth at the Road World Championships and a winning effort as part of Australia's Mixed Relay Team Trial squad. However, a rider who was her ally in Kigali is now one she has singled out as one of her greatest threats in Perth, with the 2023 Junior World Time Trial champion, Felicity Wilson-Haffenden (Lidl-Trek), stepping up into the elite ranks this year. The 2025 U23 champion Alli Anderson (Liv-AlUla-Jayco Continental) will also be moving up to the elite category, and it's never wise to rule out Amber Pate (Liv-AlUla-Jayco), runner-up in last year's title chase and the only other rider in the field within a minute of Chapman in the 29km race against the clock.

Elite Men

Just like in the women's individual time trial, there are two key favourites that are hard to go past, defending champion and three-time title winner Luke Plapp (Jayco-AlUla) and 2023 victor Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG). Last year, Plapp was eight seconds ahead of Vine as the race played out on the new 38.5km time trial course in Bold Park, but Vine is looking to step it up this year. He told Cyclingnews late last year, when reflecting on 2025, that 'I just went into Australia a bit underdone, so I'm trying to fix that'. With such a small margin between the top two, any improvement from Vine could provide a significant challenge. However, Plapp has a reputation for being the master of finding January form, given he has both three elite road and time trial titles to his name already at just 25. As far as the lower spots on the podium go, Kelland O'Brien (Jayco-AlUla) has rarely been off them, finishing third in the elite time trial in three of his last four appearances, with fourth-place being as far away from the podium as he has been. The Australian team also have Ben O'Connor on the time trial start list this year. Still, a new potential podium challenger that could help reduce the chances of Jayco-AlUla sweeping up so many of the top spots is emerging with the appearance of 2023 Junior World Time Trial champion Oscar Chamberlain (Decathlon CMA CGM) on the start list.

U23 Men

In the U23 men's race of truth, Julian Baudry (Team Brennan) was last year's surprise road race winner in his first year in the category after getting away early in the break, but knowing he won't be let get away easily this time, the focus has turned to the time trial in 2026. This was evident when he took third in the race against the clock at the Tour of Bright in December as the first of the U23 riders behind elite national champion Plapp and his Jayco-AlUla teammate O'Brien. Still, Baudry will also have to contend with plenty of rivals stepping up from the U19 category, including those who claimed the podium spots in the junior division last year, including the 18-year-old Max Goold (NSN Development Team), Lucas Stevenson (Team Brennan) and Fletcher Medway (Ineos Grenadiers Racing Academy). It will also be interesting to see what a bit of time with a time trial bike at Lidl-Trek Future may have done for multi-discipline cyclist Jack Ward.

U23 Women

In the U23 women's event, the riders from the top two steps of the podium in 2025, Anderson and Wilson-Haffenden, have shifted up to the elites this year, leaving Sophia Sammons, who was third last year, as a key rider to watch. The local, who last year also took fifth in the combined U23 and elite women's road race, will be happy if her favoured hot conditions remain at least until the race against the clock is finished. Sophie Marr also appears to have stepped it up a level, coming third in the Tour of Bright time trial, won by Chapman. Then there are also last year's fifth and sixth-placed riders, Kiera Will and Mackenzie Coupland, the latter of whom is stepping up from the development squad to the WorldTour team of Liv AlUla Jayco this season.

Road Races

Elite Women & U23

The Liv Alula Jayco AlUla assault on the combined elite and under 23 women's road race on Sunday looks set to be the definition of overwhelming force. Not only does the squad have Australia's only Women's WorldTour team bringing a strong contingent to the start line, but also the Continental development team, which is home to the defending champion Lucinda Stewart, who last year swept up both the elite and U23 titles when she crossed the line first after finding her way into the lasting early break. Between the two squads, they have nine riders on the start list, and that includes the last two winners in Stewart and Ruby Roseman-Gannon. The 2024 winner looks like a rider who could well be a top card on the course with punchy climbs, should it come down to a group battle, and Georgia Baker would be a powerful sprint force if she can hang in over the climbs at the front of the race. Still, with so many options for the team and so many tactics that could unfold, it's a long list of options across both the top tier and development team to choose from that also includes Amber Pate, along with Talia Appleton and Sophie Marr, who are both eligible for the U23 title. However, the Lidl-Trek trio of Amanda Spratt – a three-time winner who is retiring at the end of the season – Felicity Wilson-Haffenden and Lauretta Hanson aren't ones to concede defeat easily, and there is also the powerful combination of Neve Bradbury, Tiffany Cromwell and Emily Dixon – who will be eligible for the U23 title – from Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto. Several domestic teams also have solid numbers, from Continental squad Meridian Bikebug to Butterfields Ziptrack and will be trying to boost a rider onto the podium. There are also some dangerous lone rangers, including two former winners, Brodie Chapman, plus Nicole Frain (Factor Racing), who is hoping to make the most of her gravel form.

Elite Men

Jayco-AlUla have won the elite men's road race and dominated the podium as well in the last two editions, with a clean sweep of the steps led by Luke Plapp in 2024 and Luke Durbridge and Plapp claiming the top two places in 2025. The bad news for their rivals is that they are also pulling in another trump card in 2026, with Ben O'Connor taking to the start line at his home National Championships and making the already formidable team even more of a force to be reckoned with as they head to the start line with six riders. They don't, however, have the complete edge in numbers as Team Brennan – which this year also has a powerful addition in the form of Patrick Eddy – is lining up with seven, and the team of last year's third-placed Liam Walsh, CCACHE x Bodywrap, has the biggest squad, with eight strong riders. There are also plenty of other contenders who will be flying solo, from Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), who came sixth in the road race last year and is intent on delivering a stronger start to the season this year in Australia. A recovered Matthew Dinham (Picnic PostNL) will also be returning to the Australian national title race for the first time in three years, while Sam Welsford will be lining up for new team Ineos Grenadiers and hoping he can get a chance to sprint for victory in front of home crowds. The 2024 U23 road title winner and 2025 runner-up, Fergus Browning, will also be stepping up into the elite category, putting on display his new Terengganu Cycling Team colours. Then there is the strong and experienced local rider Mark O'Brien, always a bit of a wild card and dangerous if he is let get away, a fact proven by his green and gold gravel stripes and Melbourne to Warrnambool title.

U23 Men

Defending champion Julian Baudry may no longer be let slip away easily after last year's win, but that doesn't mean he won't try, and he also has a number of other Team Brennan teammates to chase the title. That includes Levi Hone, who finished fourth last year and proved his powerful form in December when he took victory at the top of Mount Buffalo at the Tour of Bright. Will Heath, who finished seventh last year, should be a strong contender for the nine-strong CCACHE x Bodywrap squad. Jackson Medway (Tudor Pro Cycling U23 Team) and his younger brother Fletcher Medway (Ineos Grenadiers Racing Academy), who is just stepping out of the junior category, are also among those to keep an eye on. Then there is last year's junior road race winner, Alex Hewes, who will be joining forces with the 2025 junior time trial title winner, Max Goold, as they both take to the line for the NSN Development Team. Jack Ward, who signed with Lidl-Trek Future mid-2025, has also added a considerable amount of experience since lining up last year and taking ninth, and the course could play well into his strong climbing ability, combined with a surprisingly punchy finish.