The off-season is a time for riders to enjoy some relaxation and recuperation before readying themselves for an intensive training block that will get race ready ahead of the first round of the 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in May.
But this time of year is also an interesting proposition for teams, who are waiting eagerly to find out if they’ve done enough to secure UCI World Series Team status, and a spot at every UCI World Cup of the 2026 season.
A new qualifying process was introduced at the start of the 2025 season to enhance the competitiveness and excitement of each UCI Mountain Bike World Cup, while establishing a clear development pathway to the highest level of mountain biking. All teams are required to register with the UCI to be classified as either a UCI Mountain Bike Team or a WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team (previously known as UCI MTB Elite teams). UCI World Series Team status is awarded to 20 teams in each of the Endurance and Gravity formats, which guarantees participation at each UCI World Cup.
Like in the 2025 series, the 20 teams for each format are made up of the top 15 in the UCI team rankings and five year-long wildcard spots that are awarded based on a scoring matrix.
A team’s UCI points are calculated by adding together the points of the four highest scored riders of each team without making a distinction between men Elite, men Junior/U23, women Elite and women Junior/U23. These points are accrued across all UCI-registered events (not just WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series points) and are scored in finals only. The rankings cut off was 28 October 2025.
There is a bit of a difference for 2026 though. Unlike in 2025, points aren’t transferred with riders to their new teams, meaning there’s no opportunities for a team to make shrewd off-season signings to increase their chances of bagging UCI World Series Team status. Also, this season will see teams ranked 1-10 offered a two-year licence, and the teams ranked 11-15 offered a one-year licence, unlike last season where the top 15 ranked teams were only offered a one-year licence.
Being in the top 15 provides an invitation to become a UCI World Series team, but it doesn’t guarantee participation—teams still need to accept and complete registration.
Three-quarters of the UCI World Series teams decided, the remaining 10 spots are awarded to year-long wildcards, while there are a number of other ways that teams and riders can bag their spot on a startline or in the start hut, including round-by-round wildcard entries and a rider’s individual UCI ranking.
