DUNNE

In a flashback from the past and indicator of what could be to come, Valentina Höll (YT Mob) and Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) set the fastest times in Downhill qualifying on the Enduro Trails of Bielsko-Biała. Höll and Bruni were the dominant forces in the 2024 UCI Downhill World Cup season, and showed they are ready to fight for glory again with strong performances at the start of the opening weekend of the campaign. Höll produced a stirring finish in Women's Downhill Q1. The Austrian found herself in third after the opening split, as Tahnee Seagrave (Orbea / FMD Racing) set the pace. British rider Seagrave held sway after the first three splits, but defending UCI Downhill World Cup champion Höll found pace between the third and fourth timing checks. After taking the lead at the fourth split, Höll powered away to cross the line in a winning time of 3:39.203. Seagrave crossed the line in second, 1.566 behind Höll. Harriet Harnden (AON Racing - Tourne Campervans), switching from Enduro to Downhill, made it a two-three for Britain, as she came home in a time of 3:41.290 for third place. Marine Cabirou (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) was the winner at Bielsko-Biała 12 months ago, and she took sixth place behind Höll. Of the 32 starters, there was only one DNF at the Szczyrk Mountain Resort in southern Poland, with Jolanda Kiener failing to get to the fourth split. BRUNI MAKES STATEMENT OF INTENT Men’s 2024 UCI Downhill World Cup champion Bruni threw down an early marker with victory in Q1. The French rider was only ninth at the first split but made relentless progress. He hit the front at the third split, only for his fellow French rider Amaury Pierron (Commencal/Muc-Off By Riding Addiction) to go faster at the fourth split. Pierron had an issue on the run to the finish, coming home in 79th, as Bruni stopped the clock in a time of 3:08.648. Oliver Davis of Trek Factory Racing DH took second, 1.359 behind Bruni, with Ryan Pinkerton (Mondraker Factory Racing DH) completing the top three. After his issue in Q1, Pierron had to push hard in Q2 to qualify for Sunday's final. He came home in fifth in Q2 to advance to the finals. Like Amaury Pierron, several top riders who didn’t make it through Q1 were back on track for Q2, where they had to push hard to earn their place in Sunday’s finals — making for an incredibly exciting and high-stakes qualifying session. JUNIOR QUALIFYING In the Junior Qualifying, Aletha Ostgaard (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) topped the Women’s Qualifying, while France's Max Alran (Commencal/Muc-Off By Riding Addiction), the 2024 overall series winner, set the pace in the Men's Qualifying. The UCI Downhill World Cup finals in Bielsko-Biała take place on Sunday, May 18, with Junior racing kicking off at 11:30 CET, followed by the Elite Men and Women finals. Fans around the world can tune in live: both the Men’s and Women’s Junior UCI Downhill World Cup races will be streamed on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series YouTube channel. To find out where to watch the Elite finals in your region, click here.

The 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series has already witnessed the opening rounds of the cross-country and enduro formats, with three race weekends full of nail-biting, unpredictable racing in Araxá – Minas Gerais (Brazil) and Pietra Ligure, Finale Outdoor Region (Italy). This weekend, downhill joins the action alongside the second round of the UCI Enduro World Cup in the Enduro Trails of Bielsko-Biała (Poland), and fans can expect more of the same in the gravity-fuelled formats. A MODERN CLASSIC The Beskid Mountains venue in southern Poland hosted rounds of the UCI Downhill World Cup and UCI Enduro World Cup for the first time last year, and instantly became a modern classic. Its Enduro Trails network was already renowned in this corner of Europe for its steep, technical and natural terrain, while its new downhill course delivered on its pro debut with its blend of jumps, technical features and wood sections. Riders were also treated to a warm welcome from the thriving local mountain bike community, with passionate Polish fans stationed on every jump, berm, rock garden and drop. The downhill course is broadly the same, while the UCI Enduro World Cup features a new stage from last year – the final 2.31km Stary Zielony – with the remaining stages reshuffled in order. In total, athletes will take on five stages during a 37km course featuring 1,320m pedal ascent (and 440m gondola) and 1,609m of descent. FIRST-ROUND FORM FINDER The opening round of the UCI Downhill World Cup is always difficult to predict, with riders coming off a long off-season that could have included a switch in team and bike set-up, recovery from injury or operation, or simply seven months without racing. Reigning overall series champions Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) and Valentina Höll (YT Mob) will line up as favourites with points to prove – both having missed out on the top spot last year in Bielsko-Biała. But Bruni and Höll face stiff competition from a chasing pack of riders that’s more competitive than ever. For Höll, Harriet Harnden (AON Racing - Tourne Campervans) is the most intriguing opposition in Poland. The reigning UCI Enduro World Cup overall winner has switched formats for 2025 and is focusing on downhill, but still found time to dominate the first UCI Enduro World Cup round of the season in Pietra Ligure, Finale Outdoor Region (Italy) last weekend. Other likely challengers for Höll include last year’s victor in Bielsko-Biała, Marine Cabirou (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team), Nina Hoffman (Santa Cruz Syndicate) and Tahnée Seagrave (Orbea/FMD Racing). Bruni meanwhile hasn’t gone between the race tape since Mont-Sainte-Anne (Canada) last October, but few would bet against the Frenchman being in contention for the win on Sunday. Ronan Dunne (Mondraker Factory Racing) was the only rider to get the better of Super Bruni in Poland last year, but a resurgent Amaury Pierron (Commencal/Muc-Off By Riding Addiction), format-switcher Richard Rude Jr (Yeti/Fox Factory Racing) and wildcard qualifier Aaron Gwin (Gwin Racing) could all stand between the Frenchman and the top spot this time out. A POTENTIAL HOME WINNER Before Sunday’s Downhill final, there’s the small matter of the second UCI Enduro World Cup to be decided on Saturday. Slawomir Lukasik’s (Yeti/Fox Factory Racing) wait for a debut win goes on – the Pole missing out by an agonising 0.374 seconds to Daniel Booker in Pietra Ligure, Finale Outdoor Region – but he will be hoping home advantage can help give him the edge in the Beskid Mountains. Charles Murray (Specialized Gravity) spoiled the Polish party in 2024, but with Richie Rude focused on downhill, that’s one less challenger for Lukasik to contend with. In the women’s field, there will definitely be a different winner from last year – Isabeau Courdurier (Lapierre Zipp Collective) having retired from full-time racing at the end of 2024. With first-round winner Harriet Harnden also switching formats to downhill in Poland, the competition is wide open. Morgane Charre (Pivot Factory Racing) has UCI World Cup-winning experience on her side, but Ella Conolly showed consistency in Pietra Ligure to put herself into contention, while fourth-placed finisher Raphaela Richter was the only rider other than Harnden to win a stage in Enduro’s heartlands. Racing gets underway in Enduro Trails Bielsko-Biała on Saturday with the UCI Enduro World Cup – full schedule and events details are available here.

While there may have been a break in the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series over summer, there’s been plenty of off-road action for fans to sink their teeth into since the most recent UCI World Cup in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie. The highlight was the Olympic Games Paris 2024, where Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) retained his title with a last-ditch pass on Victor Koretzky (France) in a nail-biting men’s cross-country Olympic (XCO) race. This came hot off the tyre tracks of Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s (France) victory 24 hours earlier – the home favourite dominating to finally clinch an elusive gold medal in what looks set to be her last season in mountain biking before switching to the road. Rather than heralding the season’s conclusion though, the Olympics kicked off a series of races that will prove decisive in how this year’s titles and championships are distributed. And before the final three rounds of the 2024 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there is the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships to be decided.  ANDORRA AWAITS  The 35th UCI Mountain Bike World Championships will take place in Andorra’s Vallnord Pal Arinsal Bike Park between 28 August - 1 September. A regular on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series circuit, it’s the second time that the Pyrenean venue has hosted the annual rainbow jersey-deciding races.  Nine years ago, icons of mountain biking Nino Schurter (Switzerland) and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France) were victorious in Vallnord in the Cross-country Olympic (XCO), while Loïc Bruni (France) and Rachel Atherton (Great Britain) won the Downhill (DHI). Each win kickstarted periods of dominance that saw Schurter claim five world championships in a row, while the others each have five in their collections. All but Atherton are still amongst the favourites to be crowned champions this time round as well – the British downhill legend’s last race the 2023 UCI Downhill World Championships in Fort William.  WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP-WORTHY COURSES The Andorran spot is a favourite with both riders and fans thanks to its big, natural features, but the bike park’s build crew have added a few new surprises to keep everyone guessing.  The XCO races will pit the Endurance athletes against a 4km track that packs 160m elevation gain into each lap. The loop contains three big, long ascents, but the riders won’t have a chance to catch their breath on the flat or downhill sections, which are crammed with singletrack, roots and rock gardens before a final section of pump track. If the technicality of the Vallnord course doesn’t get you, the altitude will; located at 1,900m vertical, riders will also battle against reduced oxygen levels, which could become a factor in the race’s outcome if they haven’t acclimatised properly.  Although the Downhill course starts even higher at 2,400m vertical, the Gravity contingent won’t be hanging around long enough for altitude to play as big a factor. But if the course used in the 2023 UCI Downhill World Cup is anything to go by, they’re not in for an easy ride either. The 1.6km course drops 427m and is a tale of two halves. The top sees riders build up a head of steam on an open hardpark before delving into a lower section where they have to navigate rock gardens, off-camber piste, and endless immovable pine trees.  PIDCOCK AND FERRAND-PRÉVOT TARGET BACK-TO-BACK TITLES The Olympic champions Tom Pidcock and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot are clear favourites for the XCO UCI World Championships, which would see both also complete back-to-back victories having won at Scotland’s Glentress Forest course last year. But it’s far from a foregone conclusion.   Pidcock is likely to resume his rivalry with Victor Koretzky – the Frenchman targeting vengeance over the Brit after he’d led the Olympic race until the very last section of singletrack – while the bronze medallist from Paris 2024, Alan Hatherly (South Africa), is in red-hot form and leads the 2024 UCI XCO World Cup overall in the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. Others in contention include Mathias Flückiger (Switzerland), who won the 2023 UCI XCO World Cup round in Andorra, while it’s hard to rule out his fellow countryman Nino Schurter (Switzerland). The 10-time UCI World Champion already has four wins to his name at the venue, and another would be a fitting finale in what is predicted to be his final season.  Ferrand-Prévot’s challengers are harder to predict, but last year’s winner in Andorra – Mona Mitterwallner (Austria) – is unlikely to be battling for a podium place after being off the pace for most of the season. Haley Batten (USA) was closest to the Frenchwoman in Paris and has been consistent all year, while Puck Pieterse (Netherlands) comes into the race after a stage-winning performance on the road at the Tour de France Femmes. One outside contender is Evie Richards; the 27-year-old Brit was a surprise UCI World Champion in 2021 so knows how to win on the biggest stage, and has been flying somewhat under the radar this season despite finishing fifth at the Olympics.  GAZE AIMS TO REGAIN RAINBOW WHILE KELLER FACES OFF WITH FERRAND-PRÉVOT Just like at the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there is a separate Cross-country Short Track (XCC) race format that plays to the strengths of the more sprint-focused Endurance riders.  Reigning champion Sam Gaze (New Zealand) currently leads the men’s 2024 UCI XCC World Cup overall, but there’s likely to be a tyre width separating the podium steps with Koretzky, Pidcock and Hatherly all with XCC wins to their names this year.  The women’s event is set to be just as close, and Alessandra Keller (Switzerland), Pieterse, Ferrand-Prévot, Batten and Richards are just a handful of riders who could come out on top. BRUNI VS PIERRON AND CAN HÖLL MAKE IT A HAT-TRICK? After a washout in Fort William (Scotland, Great Britain) that saw Charlie Hatton (Great Britain) and Vali Höll (Austria) clinch the 2023 UCI Downhill World Championships titles, riders will be hoping for slightly more predictable conditions on course come Saturday, August 31.  After a season that has seen the rivalry between Loïc Bruni and Amaury Pierron (France) reignited, all eyes will be on the French pair come the men’s final. Bruni has the edge at the venue and in UCI World Championships (two wins to zero, and five to zero respectively), but his compatriot has found some of the form that has alluded him since 2019 – winning the last two UCI Downhill World Cup rounds in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy) and Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France). Other Frenchmen Loris Vergier and Thibaut Daprela have also recorded UCI World Cup wins in Andorra in recent years, so don’t be surprised if it’s a French 1-2-3. It will also be a momentous occasion as Greg Minnaar (South Africa) takes to the UCI World Championships start gate for the 28th and very latest time. The four-time UCI World Champion and widely regarded G.O.A.T isn’t there to make up the numbers either, as his third place at Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France) last time out proved. On paper, the women’s race looks like a less competitive affair – 2024 UCI Downhill World Cup overall leader Vali Höll targetting her third consecutive rainbow jersey. But the 22-year-old Austrian hasn’t been looking her infallible self of late and has found herself on the lower steps of the podium after mistakes in race runs at the UCI Mountain Bike World Series rounds in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy), Les Gets (Haute-Savoie, France) and Bielsko-Biała (Poland). Those ready to pounce on any errors include Tahnée Seagrave (Great Britain), Marine Cabirou (France) and a resurgent Myriam Nicole (France). RETURN OF THE WHOOP UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD SERIES A week on from the UCI World Championships sees the return of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series for the first of the final three UCI World Cups of the 2024 season. The Loudenvielle-Peyragudes, France (6-8 September) weekender will see the downhill athletes joined by the Enduro and E-enduro riders for an all-out Gravity affair, where the Enduro and E-enduro overall winners will also be decided. It’s not the final Enduro and E-enduro race of 2024 though, with the first ever UCI Mountain Bike Enduro & E-Enduro World Championships scheduled the following week (12-15 September) in Val di Fassa, Trentino, Italy. All the action from the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships is available on Max, Eurosport and discovery+, with WBD Sports platforms bringing the sport to countless screens worldwide.