World Cup surprise: Boichis will miss the final two rounds and focus on the road

Adrien Boichis will not compete in the last two events of the XCO World Cup 2026. The Frenchman, one of the standout figures of the season and recently crowned world champion in Short Track, is switching disciplines to focus on road cycling in the coming weeks with Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe.

Adrien Boichis switches MTB for road cycling for the season finale

The organization of the MTB World Cup has confirmed that Adrien Boichis will not be present at the last two events on the calendar. This absence is particularly significant because the Frenchman was fully engaged in the fight for the overall title as the season reached its final stretch.

Luca Martin currently leads the World Cup with 1,634 points, while Boichis is in second place with 1,619, just 15 points behind. Everything pointed to Soldier Hollow and Lake Placid deciding an interesting duel between the two Frenchmen, but Boichis's decision to focus on road cycling completely changes the scenario.

The two events he will miss are:

• September 19-20: Soldier Hollow, Midway (Utah, USA) – XCO
• October 2-4: Lake Placid Olympic Sites, New York (USA) – XCO

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The news comes after an extraordinary season for Boichis. The Frenchman has achieved six victories in the World Cup between XCC and XCO, has just been crowned world champion in Short Track, and currently holds the number 1 spot in the UCI XCO ranking.

His absence, therefore, is not due to a loss of performance or being out of the fight for the World Cup. On the contrary: Boichis leaves the championship while he still had clear chances of winning it.

From Specialized Factory Racing to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe

Although in mountain biking Adrien Boichis competes with Specialized Factory Racing, the Frenchman is also part of the road structure of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, a team where he shares the roster with some of the big names in the international peloton, such as Remco Evenepoel and Primož Roglič.

And the calendar change has already taken place. This Wednesday, September 9, Boichis competed with Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe in the Giro della Toscana, a race that he finished with a victory for his teammate Giulio Pellizzari.

So far, there has been no announcement regarding the rest of Boichis's road calendar, but it is confirmed that he will not return to the MTB World Cup this season.

From the championship organization itself, they have explained that "a new challenge awaits Adrien Boichis" and have confirmed that the Frenchman will miss Soldier Hollow and Lake Placid to focus his efforts on his upcoming road races.

The decision prematurely ends one of the stories that promised to shape the conclusion of the XCO World Cup. With only 15 points separating Martin and Boichis before the last two events, the French duel seemed set to be resolved in the United States. Ultimately, Boichis has chosen to temporarily set aside MTB after one of his best seasons and tackle a new block of competition on the road.