The top 10 teams in each format will be awarded a two-year license.
Source: press release
WBD Sports and the UCI are pleased to announce the 40 teams who have achieved WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team status for the 2026 season. WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series status guarantees their participation in every round of the series in their respective formats, placing them at the forefront of the sport's elite competition.
For the first time, the top 10 teams in the UCI results (in the Endurance and Gravity categories) have been awarded a two-year license, underlining their position among the best in the sport.
SECOND SEASON ACCORDING TO THE NEW QUALIFICATION FRAMEWORK
After three years under the leadership of WBD Sports, the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series is ready to begin its second season after redefining the team qualification criteria for the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup.
The revision, introduced ahead of the 2025 season, established the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team (formerly known as UCI MTB Elite Team) for the first time. This protected status guarantees participation in every round of the respective formats.
The goal was to help teams generate greater value by offering greater benefits to athletes and the sport, creating a clear group that fans could support, offering more exciting racing, and charting a clear path to the pinnacle of mountain biking. The initial results speak for themselves: the 2025 series has ranked among the most competitive in recent years.
For the 2026 season, a total of 83 teams from 20 nations have registered as UCI MTB teams across all formats Of these, 40 teams, both Endurance and Gravity, have achieved WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series team status:
SELECTION CRITERIA
The 20 teams selected for each format include the top 15 in the UCI team results, more five wildcard spots for the entire season assigned via a scoring matrix.
A team's UCI points are calculated by adding the points of the four highest-scoring athletes on the team, regardless of category (Elite Men, Junior/U23 Men; Elite Women, Junior/U23 Women). These points are awarded at the finals of all UCI-registered events (not just WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series stages). The ranking deadline is October 28, 2025.
Ahead of the 2026 series, the selection criteria for Team WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series status have been refined. The main changeUnlike 2025, riders no longer retain their points when changing teams during the offseason. This means that a team secures Team World Series status based on its performance in 2025, even if the riders who achieved that success have since changed teams.
Additionally, for the first time, the top 10 ranked teams in both Endurance and Gravity formats earned a two-year license , while teams ranked 11th to 15th receive a one-year license:
ENDURANCE
2-year license
- Specialized Factory Racing
- Decathlon Ford Racing Team
- Canyon XC Racing
- Cannondale Factory Racing
- Thömus Maxon
- Wilier Vittoria Factory Team
- Orbea Fox Factory Team
- Cube Factory Racing
- Scott SRAM MTB Racing Team
- BIXS Race Team
1-year license
- Trek – Unbroken XC
- Origin Racing Division
- KMC Nukeproof MTB Racing Team
- Giant Factory Off-Road Team – XC
- Lapierre PXR Racing
Wildcards (1-year license)
- BH Coloma Team
- Liv Factory Racing
- Mondraker Factory Racing XC
- BMC Factory Racing
- Alpecin-Premier Tech
GRAVITY
2-year license
- Canyon DH Racing
- Santa Cruz Syndicate
- Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction
- Orbea FMD Racing
- Mondraker Factory Racing DH
- Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team
- Cube Factory Racing
- Specialized Gravity
- Trek – Unbroken DH
- Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres
1-year license
- Norco X adidas Race Division
- MS-Racing
- Nukeproof Axess Racing
- Unno Factory Racing DH
- Giant Factory Off-Road Team – DH
Wildcards (1-year license)
- Santa Cruz Burgtec by Goodman
- Scott Downhill office
- Frameworks Racing / TRP
- AON Racing
- Continental Atherton
HOW ELSE CAN TEAMS PARTICIPATE IN THE WHOOP UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD SERIES?
For teams that have not achieved team status in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, Up to eight Wildcard places are available per format at each UCI Mountain Bike World Cup These Wildcard teams are announced prior to each round of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series and are selected based on factors such as UCI Continental Series results, UCI team results and individual athlete profiles.
AND WHAT ABOUT PRIVATE PILOTS?
Individual riders may still participate in a round of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series based on the following criteria:
- Samples: any reigning Olympic champion, UCI world champion, UCI continental champion or national champion.
- Cross-country: any Elite athlete ranked in the top 100 or any U23 athlete ranked in the top 200 according to the latest Olympic Individual results cross-country (XCO) UCI dated before the closing date for registration at the round event.
- DH: any Elite athlete ranked in the top 50 or any Junior athlete ranked in the top 100 according to the latest UCI Downhill Individual Ranking prior to the closing date for entries at the round event.
They are also planned additional places for the best Elite, Under 23 and Junior athletes in any round or in the final ranking of the UCI Continental Series , provided that the athlete is not registered with a WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series team. Further information is available in the UCI Regulations (articles 4.10.001 and 4.11.001).
The 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season will begin on 1 ° May with the Race of South Korea , marking the return of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup to the Asian continent for the first time in 25 years.
