Brandon McNulty's Packed Fall Schedule Gives Plenty of Shots to Win in Rainbow Jersey Debut

Brandon McNulty is still coming down from the high of winning the UCI Road World Championships on Sunday.

After a wild night celebrating with Team USA riders and staff, it’s back to his day job with UAE Emirates-XRG.

McNulty will debut his freshly minted rainbow jersey at the Giro dell’Emilia on Saturday, then race an Italian autumn block that includes Il Lombardia on October 10.

The dream now is to win a race in the rainbow jersey.

“Maybe next week in Il Lombardia or maybe a stage in the Tour de France next year in the jersey,” he told Sporza on Sunday. “If I could do that I would be satisfied with my career.”

UAE officials confirmed his full calendar to Velo on Tuesday that includes a full block of one-day Italian races to close out his dream season.

McNulty will debut the rainbow jersey at the Giro dell’Emilia on October 3, then race the Coppa Agostoni, Tre Valli Varesine, Gran Piemonte, and Il Lombardia, the season’s final monument.

His Italian campaign continues at the Giro del Veneto on October 14 and the Veneto Classic on October 18.

A full Italian block to close out dream season

His victory keeps the jersey inside the UAE team bus after 2024-25 world champ Tadej Pogačar missed Montréal following his season-ending crash at the Vuelta a España.

UAE brass were in Montréal to congratulate McNulty, though they may also have been expecting to celebrate Isaac del Toro.

The Mexican arrived as a five-star favorite, but McNulty and Team USA out-raced the stacked elite men’s field to take the first U.S. title since 1993.

McNulty got the royal treatment in Montréal, with a golf cart ride around the finish grounds and a standing ovation when he returned to the team hotel.

Team USA riders and staff celebrated with champagne, and someone posted a clandestine video of McNulty cutting up the dance floor.

Now, instead of heading home to Arizona, he’s flying back to Europe.

Debuting the rainbow jersey in Italy

How much will the rainbow jersey change McNulty? The usually reserved and quiet rider is about to find out.

The Italian fall races are a big deal for UAE. With Pogačar injured, the team needs someone else to chase what would have been his sixth straight Il Lombardia title.

Yates is the defending champion at the Coppa Agostoni, while Del Toro lit up the Italian autumn last year, winning the Giro dell’Emilia, Gran Piemonte and Giro del Veneto and finishing fifth at Il Lombardia.

The Mexican, fifth after a hard-fought worlds on Sunday, has yet to confirm whether he’ll race the Italian block.

McNulty will now be at the center of attention when he returns to racing this weekend and will wear the prestigious rainbow tunic in road races until Sallanches, France, for the 2027 worlds.

The win Sunday will also move him up the hierarchy inside the already-crowded team bus at UAE, and with the world title comes some pressure.

He became the first rider since Óscar Freire in 1999 to take his first victory of the season at the world championships.

Every men’s road world champion since at least 2006 has won at least once in the rainbow jersey.

McNulty will want to ride the wave of emotion and momentum all the way to the end of the season.

After few nights celebrating history with family and friends, McNulty will get a few cracks at putting his first “W” on the board before the 2026 season ends.