The two fast Frenchmen have form when it comes to series-deciding showdowns. But who will come out on top this time?
For Specialized Gravity’s talismanic Frenchman, Loïc Bruni, the mid-season break arrived bang on cue. The roar of the chainsaws fizzed against the hammering rain in Les Gets as his great rival Amaury Pierron treated the downhill world to a masterclass which, almost from the first split time, threatened to be one of the all-time great race runs.
he Commencal MucOff by Riding Addiction star had, against every conceivable odd, won in Val di Sole, Trentino, on the infamous Black Snake and just as in Italy, his run in Haute-Savoie, Les Gets (France) was somehow a different Pierron.
The man from Brioude was finally back on a race bike and at the sharp end of the time sheets having returned from a broken back suffered during one of the first practice sessions of last season. Not only was he back in the all-white colours of the Commencal factory entry, but the trademark smile was also back too. The swagger had returned but it was somehow altered. The once wild, ‘fast in, faster out’, rodeo style now tamed with apparent added ‘Bruni’ – there were calculations, compromises, an added rigidity and focus to his efforts. Whether it was conscious or not, Pierron Version 2.0 was on a different level. It was enough to furrow the dark brows of the man who had so deftly extracted points from the previous season and a half. Luck was on Loïc’s side; a break in the season, a chance for the kettle to come off the boil was imperative.
At 30 and 28 years of age respectively, Bruni and Pierron have been locking horns since they were Juniors. When it comes to their trophy cabinets, a winner is far from clear cut. Bruni has taken up Nicolas Vouilloz’ mantel of king of the UCI World Championships and has amassed five sets of rainbow stripes whereas Pierron is still waiting for his first. They have both won the UCI Downill World Cup overall title two times. Pierron won his first of those in 2018 when he became the first Frenchman in (then) nearly 20 years to have taken top honours. He has 12 Elite UCI World Cup wins to his name ahead of Bruni’s 10.
Two tracks remain this season; Loudenvielle, Peyragudes, in France and Mont-Sainte-Anne, in Canada. And in that fact may just lie Loïc Bruni’s second advantage. He won in Loudenvielle last season (his first UCI World Cup win on French soil) on the venues debut whilst Pierron remained on the sidelines. Bruni has won in Mont-Sainte-Anne too whereas his rival has yet to win there.
Even in terms of machinery there is little to nothing to separate them. The Commencal Supreme remains one of the most successful race machines in the sports history and a closer inspection of those being raced in the Commencal MucOff by Riding Addiction pit represent the zenith of the breed. Prototype linkages, custom made (steel) chainstays with every titanium bolt paint marked and torqued to perfection. The Specialized Gravity prototype machine has shrouded itself in the kind of aura only previously seen around bikes such as the Honda RN-01 and the Sunn Radical Plus. Completely bespoke to Bruni’s needs it features all and every manner of modern bike tech including additive machined lugs and electronically actuated suspension. Both teams are well-oiled, precision machines adept at providing bikes that can allow their pilots to operate at their own highest levels.
It's punch and counter punch, jab, and parry. The pairing that treated us to a finger-nail ruining finale in Snowshoe in 2019 are at it again. There is nothing to choose between them and their respective teams. All that we have to do now as fans is sit back and enjoy it.
