The 2026 UCI BMX Racing World Cup season came to an exciting conclusion in Sarasota, Florida (USA), with Rounds 9 and 10 deciding the overall winners across the four categories: Men Elite, Women Elite, Men Under 23 and Women Under 23. Two days of racing at the Sarasota BMX Track produced a maiden Elite win, a long-awaited return to the top of the podium and dramatic battles for the overall titles.
After a dry Saturday, showers on Sunday tested the riders, but they did nothing to dampen the celebrations of the weekend’s race winners and the new UCI BMX Racing World Cup overall winners.
Brink holds on to Men Elite title despite late drama
Jaymio Brink (NED) arrived in Florida with a comfortable lead in the Men Elite overall standings. However, a crash in Saturday’s quarter-finals opened the door for his rivals. That left Arthur Pilard (FRA), sixth in Saturday’s final, as the only rider who could still mathematically overhaul him in Sunday’s final round.
Come Sunday’s semi-finals, with rain falling on the track, Pilard made a difficult start and failed to secure one of the four places in the final. His challenge was over, and Brink was confirmed as the 2026 UCI BMX Racing World Cup Men Elite overall winner without lining up in the final race of the season.
Unusually, neither of the top two in the overall standings made Sunday’s final, a reminder of the depth of the field and the unpredictability of BMX Racing.
Saturday belonged to Leo Garoyan (FRA), who claimed his first Men Elite UCI BMX Racing World Cup victory. Juan Esteban Naranjo Murillo (COL) finished second, ahead of Olympic medallist Carlos Ramírez (COL).
Sunday brought another French winner, with Jérémy Rencurel returning to the top of a Men Elite UCI BMX Racing World Cup podium for the first time in four years. Evan Oliviera (FRA) finished second, while Mateo Carmona Garcia (COL) took third.
Brink finished the season with 2,150 points, ahead of Pilard on 2,040. Rencurel’s strong finish to the campaign lifted him to third overall with 1,873 points.
Smulders turns the tables on Shriever
The Women Elite title also went down to the final round. Bethany Shriever (GBR) won on Saturday, overtaking Laura Smulders (NED) in the standings and claiming the leader’s plate heading into the final day. The pressure was now firmly on the Dutch rider.
Behind them, Molly Simpson (CAN) and Zoé Claessens (SUI) were locked in a battle for third in the overall standings. Simpson’s failure to reach Sunday’s final handed the advantage to Claessens.
The Swiss rider made the most of it, winning Round 10 and ending her season on a high. Smulders rode a calculated race to finish second, while Shriever’s attempt to pass her on the third straight backfired when Leila Walker (NZL) came past in the final turn. Walker took third, and Shriever crossed the line in fifth.
Despite losing the leader’s plate on Saturday, Smulders reclaimed the overall title with 3,721 points. Shriever finished second on 3,623, with Claessens third on 3,199.
Challis completes a dominant Women Under 23 campaign
Freia Challis (GBR) secured the Women Under 23 overall title with a round to spare, the highlight of a remarkable campaign in which she won seven of the 10 UCI BMX Racing World Cup rounds. She sealed it in style with victory on Saturday, ahead of Derin Merten (USA) and Aleksandra Simashkina (AIN), before she and Merten repeated their one-two on Sunday, with Maya Savina (AIN) taking third.
Challis finished the season on 1,334 points, well ahead of Merten on 747. Isabella Schramm (AUS) completed the overall top three with 700 points.
French domination in Men Under 23
French riders continued their impressive form in the Men Under 23 category. Brothers Matteo and Titouan Faure finished first and second in Saturday’s final, with Matteo taking the win ahead of his younger brother.
Clément Rocherieux (FRA) finished eighth in the same final, but had already done enough to secure the overall title with one round remaining.
Sunday brought another Faure family celebration, as Matteo again finished ahead of Titouan. This time, Yorgi Piccart (BEL) joined them on the podium, claiming his first Men Under 23 UCI BMX Racing World Cup podium in third.
Rocherieux finished the season as the Men Under 23 overall winner on 1,229 points. Fellow Frenchman Pierre Geisse was second overall on 869, with Matteo Faure moving up to third on 865.
The final races in Sarasota concluded the 2026 UCI BMX Racing World Cup season, with the overall titles shared between four riders from three nations.