The Life Time Grand Prix is globally recognised as the pinnacle of off-road racing. It’s where the best athletes in the world come to prove their mettle. Not only that, with a US $590,000 prize pot, it commands respect as the richest series in the sport. Participation in the season-long GP is restricted to just 25 athletes, who must meet rigorous selection criteria in order to make the cut.
For MAAP, the choice to support the Life Time Grand Prix as an official sponsor was easy. Our shared desire to inspire and motivate the future of the sport, today and tomorrow, through continued investment in professional riders and the wider off-road racing community creates a natural alignment that enables the sponsorship to flourish.
As the Official Performance Cycling Apparel Sponsor, we aim to deliver for the athletes and wider off-road racing community. The male and female athletes who top the standings will wear a dedicated MAAP-designed leader’s jersey on the podium, while we also invest in the next-generation of the sport and produce programming dedicated to talking about the future of off-road racing
This is about continuing to fuel the meteoric rise of gravel and MTB racing. Pushing the discipline of off-road as far as we can. And creating a clean line for the next stars of the sport to emerge.
Funding the future
MAAP created the Future of Off-Road Racing Fund as one component of this sponsorship.
Through the Fund, two U23 athletes each year – one male, one female – will get support for their racing endeavours. That means financial as well as technical assistance. The goal is to bring through the next generation of off-road racing talent. To nurture the next winners of Sea Otter or Chequamegon.
Why now?
Off-road racing stands on the threshold of a new era. The rapid professionalisation of the sport, driven in large part by the super-boom in gravel cycling worldwide, has totally changed the game.
It would be a reach to claim that the discipline is fully professional. There are some dedicated gravel teams, and XC MTB has been professional for decades albeit with a focus on shorter formats and the Olympics. MAAP’s Privateers brings together a small number of the most elite competitors in the sport, while our PRO.FWD initiative serves to create a pathway for less-established gravel riders to cement their futures.
All that notwithstanding, the majority of athletes on the start line at your favourite international off-road race will not be getting paid a salary to be there. Indeed, many of the top ten won’t.
We want to help usher in this new era, and make it easier for young talent to reach that promised land of full-time gainful employment as an off-road bike racer. We’ll do this through the Future of Off-Road Racing, always endeavouring to preserve the original pioneer spirit of the discipline.
Voice of the sport
As well as the Fund, we’ll also be launching the Future of Off-Road Racing programming at each of this year’s Life Time events. This will take the form of in-depth panel discussion bringing together elite athletes – including those from our Privateer and Pro FWD programmes, off-road experts and other luminaries to address the discipline's most pressing questions as it evolves.
Rosa Klöser is one of MAAP’s Privateers. She burst through into the top echelon of the sport with a small bunch sprint victory in Unbound 2024.
"I am very excited to see one of my core partners become active with an initiative like the Future of Off-Road Racing Fund. I believe these kind of initiatives are critical for the long-term growth of our sport.
“If we want off-road racing to keep evolving, we need to create real and accessible pathways for the next generation. Supporting young riders today is what ensures the level and diversity of racing down the road. I myself hope that I can play a role in supporting this fund."
Payson McElveen has been a stalwart of the privateer scene since way before the gravel boom. He’s seen plenty change in his career, and is optimistic about more development in the future, driven by the Future of Off-Road Racing project.
“When I was an U23, I had a lot of interest in races like Leadville and other endurance off-road races, but it was often tough to rally support to pursue them. I was lucky to find a few sponsors at the time who also saw the incredible potential of these sorts of events right as the off-road boom was beginning, but it often still felt like an uphill battle.
Today, some young riders dream of chasing Unbound or the Life Time Grand Prix rather than XCO or road racing, so it’s incredibly encouraging to see programs created to support that next generation of athletes.”
The Series events will take place live at each round of the Grand Prix, and also be streamed to ensure the maximum access for athletes and stakeholders around the world.
Sea Otter kicks things off, with the first panel taking place on Friday 17 April at 12:30, at the Sea Otter Awards Podium.
What is the Life Time Grand Prix?
Life Time and the events that operate under its Grand Prix banner have done much to drive the discipline of off-road racing forward.
There are six events in the 2026 GP:
• Sea Otter Classic
• Unbound Gravel
• Leadville Trail 100 MTB
• Chequamegon MTB Fest
• Little Sugar MTB
• Big Sugar Gravel
Unbound is perhaps the world’s best-known gravel race. It stands apart as the one every rider dreams of winning. Leadville, which skews to MTB, is an iconic race with its own history and terroir. It’s incredibly rare for an athlete to win both – only three ever have – which serves to underline what a momentous, varied and challenging contest the GP really is.
Taken together, the Life Time Grand Prix gives continuity to the season. A sense of progression and a unified goal. A season-long contest where every event matters, but all is not necessarily lost if you have a bad day at just one of them.
The overall Grand Prix is won by the rider with the most accrued points across the series, with $50,000 in prize money for the top overall finisher in both male and female categories.
