Sully's Top 10 Pro Road Worlds

The World Pro Road Championship is (in my opinion) the absolute pinnacle of cycling; it's something I've been obsessed with almost my entire life. Every kid that has ever raced a bike has dreamed of pulling on that rainbow jersey that shows you are the best in the world. One day, one race, one chance to be World Champion. Here are my personal top 10 editions of the "Mondiali".... --------------------

10 - Johan Museeuw, Lugano Switzerland 1996 The Lugano course was considered too hilly for Museeuw, but he put in a massive effort to stick with Mauro Gianetti and put him away easily in a 2-up sprint. Gianetti was a local and played a big part in designing the course for those World's, but the home-field advantage still wasn't enough to take down Museeuw.

9 - Maurizio Fondriest, Ronse Belgium 1988. We all know the story. Criquilion went up the inside of Steve Bauer and ended up in the barricades and on his arse. A young Fondriest cruises by and is the shock winner. It launched the career of one of the classiest riders of all time. How often did I ride past a shop window and glance at myself in the reflection, wishing I looked like Fondriest!?

8 - Peter Sagan, Richmond USA 2015.

Everyone knew Sagan was a favorite. He had virtually no teammates, hid in the field all day, then attacked once, and that was it. Masterful.

7- Igor Astarloa, Hamilton, Canada 2003 Spain has always been one of the heavyweights when it comes to the World's. So it was no surprise that there was a Spanish winner in 2003. Only it was Astarloa and not the huge favorite Valverde. A few years later, I was incredibly fortunate to be teammates with Igor. We only ever roomed together once. That night I just wanted to ask him questions about what it was like to wear the rainbow jersey; Igor just wanted to ask me about what it was like growing up in Tasmania. One of the nicest guys you will ever meet.

6 - Marino Basso, Gap France 1972

I only discovered this gem a few years back when I was restoring a Basso "Gap" model bike from the 80s, named after Marino's World Championship win in that town in 72. In a controversial finish, Basso sprinted out of a small group to catch his Italian teammate Franco Bitossi right on the line. Basso claimed the others pulled Bitossi back close enough that he had to sprint for the win, while Bitossi claimed that his own teammate stole the World Championship from him. But an exciting finish, nonetheless, and some bloke called Merckx could only manage 4th.

5 - Allejandro Valverde, Innsbruck Austria 2018 He is not everyone's cup of tea, but I love Valverde. An absolute survivor, and his track record is just amazing. He had been trying to win the World Championship for 15 years and had multiple near misses until he finally succeeded in the twilight of his career in Innsbruck in '18.

4 - Abraham Olano, Duitama Colombia 1995 Another year of Spanish dominance. On a super hilly high-altitude course in Colombia, the great Marco Pantani couldn't quite shake the Spanish Armada. Miguel Indurain was a marked man, so his teammate Abraham Olano broke free on the last lap and looked a sure winner until he punctured with around a km to go. He "rimmed" it to the line on a flat back tire on wet roads to become World Champion as everyone held their breath, hoping the tire wouldn't roll off. High drama.

3 - Greg LeMond, Chambery France 1989 In a sprint against Sean Kelly and Dimitri Konychev, you usually wouldn't give Greg LeMond a huge chance of winning. But after a long 260km on a demanding circuit under pouring rain, LeMond pulled off an amazing downhill sprint to win his 2nd World Championship, which was captured in one of the most iconic cycling photos of all time.

2 - Oscar Camenzind, Valkenberg Nederland 1998 As a 20-year-old, I had just spent one of my first years living in Europe, and I was in Valkenberg for the World Championships. A couple of days before my Under 23 race, we were out riding the course when we tacked onto some Swiss pros who were also pre-riding the course. Rolf Jarmann and Oscar Camenzind rode up the Cauberg with such ease, their hair perfectly gelled in place, no helmets, chatting comfortably. I held on for about half the climb, and then they pulled away. I was star-struck. They seemed like the coolest guys I had ever seen and were everything I wanted to be. That weekend, after my U23 race had ended in mediocracy, I stood on the side of the road in the freezing rain all day and watched Camenzind attack and ride away solo to become World Champion.

1 - Gianni Bugno, Stuttgart Germany 1991, Bennidorm Spain 1992. Bugno was my cycling idol, and his poster was on my bedroom wall. I still consider him my all-time favorite. In '91 he launched a long and powerful sprint to easily put away Steven Rooks and Miguel Indurain to become World Champion in Stuttgart. Despite 3rd place in the Tour de France, his '92 season wasn't what he had hoped for as World Champion. The '92 Worlds were coming down to a sprint from a medium-sized group. The French were best placed with multiple riders to aid their favorite and great sprinter Laurent Jalabert. Bugno had one teammate left with him, so somewhat isolated, he once again launched his trademark powerful, smooth sprint from a long way out. In the slightly uphill finish, Jalabert could only manage to scramble onto Bugno's wheel for 2nd, while Konychev was 3rd, many lengths behind. Poetry on a bike.