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<\/a>Not how Swenson wanted to spend his day in Bentonville\nSwenson starts off on the back foot, finishes on a podium<\/p>\n
For Keegan Swenson, Big Sugar started off with what could have been big trouble. Specialized\u2019s gravel star was left chasing after struggling to fix a flat early in the race. Swenson would finish the race 24th, more than 3:30 back from the day\u2019s winner.<\/p>\n
That would be enough to reclaim the overall title in the LTGP series, though. But only by a single point. His challengers, Brendan Johnston and New Zealand\u2019s Matthew Wilson, finished 7th and 5th, respectively. After a long wait at the finish line for confirmation of results, Swenson takes his fourth LTGP title in five years with 123 points to Johnston\u2019s 122 and Wilson\u2019s 120 points.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m stoked to have won the overall as it was a rough day for me. I flatted early on and it took a while to get that sorted, but I just put my head down and chased all day. I wasn\u2019t sure how it was going to shake out in the front, and I was just hoping that the guys that were close to me on the standings weren\u2019t having great days as well. I\u2019m super psyched to have done it,\u201d Swenson said after the finish. \u201cIt\u2019s been another good year for me and this Series is awesome, so to cap it off with another overall win in the Grand Prix is super good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stack-Michasiw wins the under-23 overall<\/p>\n
Almost exactly one minute behind Swenson, Oskar Stack Michasiw crossed the finish line in Big Sugar. That was enough for 29th in the elite race and, much more importantly, the top spot in the LTGP\u2019s under-23 rankings. Through consistent results this year, the Saskatoon racer moved up from fourth overall in 2025 to win the U23 standings for 2026. That guarantees Stack-Michasiw entry into the 2027 elite LTGP series.<\/p>\n
On the under-23 women\u2019s side, Kylee Hanel had an even better day. The U.S. racer finished fourth in the elite women\u2019s race to cement her season overall title in the under-23 women\u2019s LTGP standings.<\/p>\n
Andrew L\u2019Esperance rolled into Big Sugar in a three-way tie for ninth overall. With the top 10 racers earning automatic qualification for the 2027 season, there was more than pride and prize money on the line in Bentonville on Saturday.<\/p>\n Unfortunately for the Canadian, his 17th place finish leaves him a single point shy of 10th overall. Cobe Freeburn takes 9th overall with 90 points, Alexey Vermeulen 10th overall with 89, and L\u2019Esperance 11th with 88. Highlighting just how competitive the season is now, Cameron Jones was a single point behind L\u2019Espy, with 87 points. That leaves L\u2019Esperance to qualify for 2027 through the Wild Card system, if he chooses to.<\/p>\n<\/a>Andrew L\u2019Esperance Photo: Gravel Burn
\nL\u2019Esperance on the wrong side of the maths<\/p>\n