Who had the biggest breakout performances in the world of gravel in 2026? Here are six riders with top form through clouds of dust and mires of mud

The spotlight of gravel and mountain bike racing always shines on familiar performers like Keegan Swenson, Sofia Gomez Villafañe, Mads Würtz Schmidt, Kate Courtney and two-time gravel world champion Marianne Vos. They line up at an off-road race, and people pay attention.

However, deeper fields around the world now challenge these proven winners, coming from various backgrounds and fresh talent has made impressive moves to grab attention, especially at events in the UCI Gravel World Series, Gravel Earth Series and Life Time Grand Prix.

This year's UCI Gravel World Championships in Nannup, the first time in five years rainbow stripes were decided outside Europe, saw a gravel specialist win the men's race, Magnus Bak Klaris of Denmark. Of course, Vos reigns on all surfaces, but she was put to the test by Rosa Klöser, Larissa Hartog and Nele Laing, women who focus on dirt racing.

Because of the distance and cost to travel to Western Australia, as well as a conflict with Little Sugar MTB in Arkansas for many Life Time Grand Prix riders, some of the breakout rides happened long before races for rainbow stripes. The Traka continued to provide a platform for new stars, while Unbound Gravel always has storylines, during the mudfest itself and in the days following, like riders jumping into iconic US one-day races like Tulsa Tough or winning an unexpected US road title.

Who went from a supporting role to a leading role this season? Who was able to score a career-defining victory or podium?

Here is a collection of notable athletes we noticed from the 2026 calendar of off-road racing.

Magnus Bak Klaris

Magnus Bak Klaris certainly wasn't a rider off the gravel radar before 2026, with multiple Danish National Gravel Championships wins plus victories that included Santa Vall, The Rift and the UCI World Series race Wörthersee Gravel. However, at races like The Traka and Unbound, where the prestige and attention hit another level, Bak Klaris hadn't cut through to the podium step, plus his early-season results in 2026 weren't quite what they had been last season.

The 30-year-old rider, however, had certainly turned that around before 2026 was over. The signs of the building form were on display in September, when the previously missing season win tally started to build at Falling Leaves Lahti and then continued to roll on at Gravel Grit n' Grind. Still, even though he had finished in the top 10 at the UCI Gravel World Series in 2026, that was not enough to make him among the heavily marked men of the rainbow jersey race, which worked to his advantage.

"I didn't come in as one of the favourites, so I could maybe save some more energy than some of the others and hide a little bit," he told a small group of media, including Cyclingnews, following the event. That 'little bit' was enough to help propel him in the four-man sprint and claim a win that means he'll not be able to hide in the pack through 2027, not with the rainbow jersey on his back. (SG)

Nele Laing

A one-time Zwift Academy finalist, Nele Laing entered the 2026 season with some promising gravel results after stepping into a few races in the UCI Gravel World Series and coming just off the podium at two of them. Though when she ventured over to the United States, now with the Canyon-DT Swiss squad, to try her hand at Sea Otter, she was definitely the wild card in the leading group of four that charged toward the line.

Impressive enough was her presence in Monterey alongside three-time US gravel champion Lauren Stephens (Aegis x Land of Enchantment), 2025 Traka 360 and Unbound 200 winner Karolina Migoń (PAS Racing) and the now four-time Life Time Grand Prix series winner Sofia Gomez Villafañe (Specialized Off-road). However, she wasn't just holding on but was the first of the four to put on the pressure through the crucial final section, and dropped Migoń as a result. Villafañe may have ultimately come over the top with Stephens following, but third at that early-season US race was more than enough to make sure she wouldn't be able to go unnoticed.

The 27-year-old then clearly showed that this was more than a one-off with third at The Traka, wins at UCI series events Hegau and 3Rides, plus a fourth at the UCI Gravel World Championships. Then, in a result that will help ensure she is keenly watched by rivals in 2027, she finished off the season by winning Nedbank Gravel Burn. (SG)

Bradyn Lange

Victories define seasons for athletes, and one win stands out the most in 2026 for Bradyn Lange. Yes, he did win Sea Otter Classic Gravel in the stars-and-stripes jersey to take the top spot in the opening round of the Life Time Grand Prix. But it was how he won, out-sprinting four-time race winner Keegan Swenson with a crafty move on the final corner.

Lange proved his decision in 2025 to focus solely on gravel, or "try to be one of the best at one thing instead of good at multiple", was working. He won his first US national title in any discipline on the gravel roads of Minnesota. He moved to Canyon x DT Swiss ATR for the new year and won The Hills, a UCI Gravel World Series event in Italy, then finished second at The Traka 200 in Spain, and beat the best off-road rider in California.

The Oregon native still exhibited his mountain bike prowess with podiums at Leadville Trail 100 MTB and Chequamegon MTB, boosting him to his best finish in the Grand Prix across five years, finishing fifth on the elite men's leaderboard. He had the unique distinction of being the youngest rider in the Grand Prix field back in 2022 at age 21. Now at 27, he's got an early invitation to return for a sixth season, and he can no longer ride under the radar. (JT)

Kylee Hanel

"A surreal experience" is how Kylee Hanel described making the main chase group at Big Sugar Gravel to finish fourth overall. While Stella Hobbs rode away with the solo victory, the 20-year-old held her own against the most dominant riders in off-road racing, Sofia Gomez Villafañe and Hayley Preen taking the final podium spots, while Hanel held off a charging Karolina Migoń.

She sealed the women's U23 title in the Life Time Grand Prix with top series points in all the races except Leadville Trail 100 MTB, where she finished second in the category. In between Sea Otter Gravel and the overall win at Unbound Gravel 100, she went back on the road with Aegis x LOE and went fourth overall at Tour of the Gila, with a stage win and youth classification title.

The multi-talented rider from Oregon competed for the first time at national events last year, where she had top 10s at US road and gravel nationals. Then this summer, she won the USPro U23 women's time trial national championship by 36 seconds over her closest competitor. She didn't realise at the time that it qualified her for Road Worlds, but knew it was a great opportunity for experience and to ride for Team USA in Montreal, even with two more Grand Prix races to follow in October.

"I'm the only one putting pressure on myself," she admitted to Cyclingnews at the UCI Road World Championships, finishing 21st in the U23 time trial and 29th in the road race. The pressure was off when she landed on the wide-angle podium at Big Sugar. (JT)

Matthew Wilson

Matthew Wilson may have been in the Life Time Grand Prix in 2025, but he walked away from last year with 'unfinished business' after not delivering the hoped-for results. With a new team in 2026, Scott Sports USA-Shimano, and determination to show what he was really capable of, Wilson went all out in pursuit of a wild card spot this year. The rider from New Zealand gained that spot, with 12th at Sea Otter Gravel and 28th at Unbound, but this time the best was yet to come.

Some indication of his early season form was already on display when the multi-discipline rider, who had come third at the New Zealand National Championships road race at the start of the year, washed off the mud of Kansas, borrowed a mate's road wheels and went straight to the top of a criterium podium at Tulsa Tough. Then, when he shifted into his mountain bike comfort zone at Leadville, his LifeTime journey all of a sudden took on a whole new complexion.

Wilson went from fighting for a start in the series to fighting for the top spots with his Leadville Trail 100 MTB runner-up spot and then a win at Chequamegon. Fifth at the season-ending Big Sugar Gravel was enough for a third-place overall and to clinch a guaranteed spot in 2026. There is now no doubting what the 25-year-old is truly capable of. (SG)

Mārtiņš Blūms

Martins Blums gained entry into this year's Life Time Grand Prix as a wild card with top finishes at Sea Otter Gravel and Unbound Gravel 200. A 12-time mountain champion of Latvia, including the 2024 Marathon MTB national title, Blums was in the chase group behind winner Matthew Wilsom at Chequamegon MTB and finished eighth. He then surprised the field in second overall at Big Sugar Gravel, where he surged from 12th to seventh overall in the final series standings.

Big Sugar was indeed big for his 31st birthday, racing with bib number 31. He made a breakaway group after backtracking from a wrong turn, finished on the podium in second place, and, with a series top-10 finish, earned his ticket to return in 2027.

He had limited gravel racing in his legs when he started at Sea Otter Gravel in California, but had support for his solo season from Scott Sport USA. Unbound was unfamiliar territory, which he said made him nervous, "but at the same time, it will be a cool challenge," he admitted on a social post. A knee injury at a World Cup mountain bike race in Switzerland kept him away from Leadville Trail 100 MTB, so we'll have to wait another year to see if his precision on a mountain bike can give Keegan Swenson a run for his money. (JT)

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