Amaury Pierron (Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction) bounced back from a collarbone injury to clinch his 13th Men Elite UCI World Cup race victory, while Tahnée Seagrave (Orbea/FMD Racing) added another win to her collection following an eventful day at Bike Kingdom – Lenzerheide (Switzerland), presented by Le Gruyère.
Pierron’s win equalled the Frenchman with Australian Sam Hill in fifth position of all-time UCI Downhill World Cup event winners. Meanwhile, Seagrave took her third Women Elite UCI Downhill World Cup victory by the narrowest of margins.
The final European round of this year's series saw riders descend on Bike Kingdom in search of the event victory and overall points. Conditions were dry and sunny once again with the dusty track encouraging fast runs and risk-taking. With only two races remaining next month in North America the tension was rising on the Swiss slopes as riders risked everything.
Both Pierron and Seagrave surprised themselves with victories after coming through Q2 and feeling that they left time on the Swiss course.
The Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide course also had an impact in the overall standings as Jackson Goldstone crashed in the men’s Elite category and Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) finished fifth.
After finishing runner-up in the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships two weeks ago Henri Kiefer (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) was second, while Lachlan Stevens-McNab (Trek Factory Racing DH) finished third.
Meanwhile, the Women Elite UCI Downhill World Cup overall standings remain in the balance as Valentina Höll (YT Mob) and Gracey Hemstreet (Norco Race Division) placed third and fourth respectively – behind runner-up Nina Hoffmann (Santa Cruz Syndicate) who was just six hundredths of a second slower than Seagrave.
The men’s Junior competitors continue to set times that also challenge their Elite counterparts in an enthralling battle for overall honours. Asa Vermette (Frameworks Racing / 5DEV) had a perfect weekend after qualifying quickest and then taking his first UCI World Cup victory of the campaign. Meanwhile, Rosa Zierl (Cube Factory Racing) continues to take the women’s Junior category by storm as the 16-year-old extended her overall lead with a fourth World Cup success of the year.
PIERRON TAKES RECORD WIN AS OVERALL RIVALS FALTER
Amaury Pierron kept his calm to take his first men’s Elite UCI World Cup victory of the season. The two-time overall UCI World Cup winner finished runner-up in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France) before suffering a collarbone injury.
It looked to be another tough weekend for the Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction rider who was forced to go through Q2 into the finals, alongside Andreas Kolb (YT Mob) and Ronan Dunne (Mondraker Factory Racing DH). The trio dominated the early starters with Pierron, two-time winner in Lenzerheide, setting his winning time of 2-44.6. Les Gets, Haute-Savoie (France) winner Dunne was also in contention just a second behind, while Kolb posted 2-46.4.
The big jumps and hard landings on course resulted in a host of flat tyres which ruined the hopes of several finalists. After finishing runner-up at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships two weeks ago, Henri Kiefer (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) was closest challenger and finished just four tenths behind Pierron in runner-up. New Zealander Lachlan Stevens-McNab finished quickly, but the young Trek Factory Racing DH competitor was eight tenths behind in third.
Jordan Williams (Specialized Gravity) had a fairytale victory last year in Lenzerheide but suffered a crash in practice and finished down in 26th. The Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide course provided challenges throughout, and Ryan Pinkerton (Mondraker Factory Racing DH) crashed into the starting gate which ended his challenge.
Coming into the event five-time UCI Downhill World Champion Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) is competing for overall honours with the newly crowned UCI World Champion Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate). After qualifying fifth fastest Goldstone threw caution to the wind and had the lead through the top section. However, after losing time in the second sector Goldstone pushed his limits too far and crashed out off the course. The Santa Cruz Syndicate rider got back on the course and finished 25th in 2-53.3.
Penultimate starter Luca Shaw (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) showed his pure speed and smooth riding as he challenged the time of Pierron into the bottom section. However, after hitting a shallow rut Shaw lost control of his bike wheel and lost a second of time to finish ninth.
Final starter Bruni had the opportunity to gain advantage in the overall standings and deny fellow Frenchman Pierron the victory. The Specialized Gravity rider found himself over a second behind into the middle and technical section of the course. Despite giving everything in a bid to take victory Bruni had to settle for fifth position after finishing 1.6 seconds behind countryman Pierron. With two rounds remaining Bruni leads the overall standings by 100 points ahead of Goldstone.
Following his victory Pierron said: “I really didn’t expect that one. It was quite a nightmare weekend for me, a lot of problems with mechanicals. Everything looked like it was going wrong, I had no expectations and gave everything I had today and it was enough for the win.
I didn’t expect it as my run was not so good, at the bottom it was super-slow but it was enough today. I’m super-stoked. I injured myself at the end of last year so all winter was tough and then I was injured again in mid-season with my collarbone.
It has been a hell of a season, it’s not over yet. If I can keep going this way then hopefully we can have more success.”
SEAGRAVE TURNS WEEKEND AROUND TO TAKE THIRD WIN
British rider Tahnée Seagrave took her third Women Elite UCI Downhill World Cup win of the season. The 30-year-old had to progress through Q2 for the first time to book her finals position.
After overcoming an early error in her finals run, Seagrave mastered the rest of her ride to post a winning time of 3-11.5 – eight seconds quicker than her fellow early starters. The Orbea/FMD Racing rider also went nine seconds quicker than her qualifying time the previous day but had a long time to wait for victory to be confirmed.
Overall series challenger Gracey Hemstreet (Norco Race Division) had a crash in practice earlier in the week. The Canadian qualified eighth fastest the previous day and maintained her UCI World Cup overall challenge with a fourth-place finish.
Winner at La Thuile - Valle d'Aosta (Italy), Nina Hoffmann (Santa Cruz Syndicate) qualified second fastest following a mixed season and brought the challenge to her rivals. The 29-year-old stayed in contention with the fastest time of Seagrave before taking a slender lead during the steep wooded section. However, the German lost out by six hundredths of a second and had to settle for runner-up spot.
Final starter and Women Elite UCI Downhill World Champion, Valentina Höll (YT Mob), was looking for her first UCI Downhill World Cup win of the campaign. The Austrian rode an aggressive top section but found herself over a second behind Seagrave. Höll regained ground through the technical wooded part and led by four tenths into the final part. However, the UCI World Champion lost speed on the steps and important time as she finished third just eight tenths of a second back.
With two rounds remaining Höll leads the overall standings by 127 points ahead of Hemstreet, while Seagrave remains in contention following her victory.
“I was not feeling good all week, I just wanted to be kind to myself and make myself feel better,” said Seagrave. “I really didn’t expect to win today. I tried to avoid Q2 all year and we were successful until yesterday. I really can’t believe how stressful it was, I really don’t envy anyone who does Q2.
“The track was super different, the nerves and you start picturing every bad scenario, that was new to me.
“I did what I had to do to get into today and an extra run was probably quite nice. The run to me didn’t feel very good. I was surprised when I saw my time and I definitely thought that it would get beaten.”
Talking about her slight mistake in the top section of the course, Seagrave added: “It was in a horrible spot. I just pushed down on my cranks as hard as I could. It was a nice spot afterwards to re-settle and get back into the flow. I was good.”
VERMETTE BOOSTS OVERALL HOPES WITH VICTORY
Asa Vermette mastered the slopes of Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide and took his first Men Junior UCI Downhill World Cup win of the season. The 18-year-old has been consistent this season with four UCI Downhill World Cup podium finishes this season, but a win had eluded him prior to this weekend.
The Frameworks Racing / 5DEV was flawless after qualifying quickest and was 4.7 seconds clear of his nearest rival in the final. Newly crowned UCI Downhill World Champion for the age category and UCI Downhill World Cup series leader Max Alran (Commencal/Muc-off by Riding Addiction) crashed the previous day and only qualified eighth fastest. The Frenchman pushed the Swiss course to its limits resulting in a few small mistakes. Alran then suffered a rear-wheel puncture in the final sector and lost vital time to stop the clock in 2-51.0, narrowly beating his brother Till Alran (Commencal/Muc-off by Riding Addiction) – with pair finishing fourth and fifth respectively.
Alran’s time was quickly beaten as Oli Clark (MS-Racing) stopped the clock in a 2-50.4. He was overtaken by fellow New Zealander Jonty Williamson (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) as the podium battle hotted up. Penultimate starter Tyler Waite (Yeti / Fox Factory Race Team) was also in the podium battle until a puncture on the top section of the course ended his hopes.
Final starter Vermette made no mistake as he mastered the course and went quickest in every sector to stop the clock in an impressive 2-44.7 to win by 4.7 seconds. The win takes Vermette to 22 points behind series leader Max Alran with two rounds remaining.
After taking his long-awaited first UCI World Cup win of 2025, Vermette said: “It was the exact run I wanted to put down, I hit all my marks, didn’t go off line and it was pretty perfect. I’m stoked.
“I got first yesterday, so to back it up today feels insane. I’ll try not to think about the overall. I’ll just try and be in the moment, and for the next races.
"I’m stoked that I’m getting close [to the overall], I definitely want to try and get that.”
ZIERL CONTINUES DOMINATION WITH FOURTH WORLD CUP WIN
After qualifying in second the previous day, 16-year-old Rosa Zierl found her rhythm and took a fourth Women Junior UCI Downhill World Cup victory of the 2025 campaign. The Cube Factory Racing rider was crowned Junior UCI World Champion for the first time two weeks ago in Champéry and produced another memorable performance under pressure at Bike Kingdom – Lenzerheide.
Denmark’s Rosa Marie Jensen narrowly beat Zierl in qualifying as the two prepared for a head-to-head battle in the finals.
Meanwhile, Aletha Ostgaard (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team) came into the weekend looking for a second UCI World Cup win of the season, following her success in La Thuile - Valle d'Aosta. The American was third-from-last out of the starting gate and posted the quickest women’s Junior time of the weekend in 3-14.5 – almost eight seconds quicker than her qualifying run.
Wearing her rainbow stripes Zierl put down a fluent run and led by seven tenth of a second at the opening split. The Austrian continued to increase her advantage during a flawless ride and stopped the clock in a winning time of 3-11.4 – three seconds quicker than Ostgaard.
SFR Specialized Factory Racing rider Jensen was last out of the starting gate in a bid for her second UCI World Cup victory. Despite losing time to Zierl in the top section Jensen produced a stylish run and clinched a podium finish with third place in 3-16.7.
Zierl now leads the overall Women Junior UCI Downhill World Cup standings by 75 points and could seal the title at penultimate round in Lake Placid Olympic Region, New York next month.
Following her victory Zierl said: “It’s crazy. I was enjoying this track, but struggling a bit. I just wanted to come down safely and be consistent. After winning the UCI World Championship title, another win is more than I expected.
“I’m so happy. Racing in this [the World Champion jersey] still feels unreal. To do a good run now, I’m so happy.”
The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series continues at Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide (Switzerland) on Sunday with Cross-country Olympic action. Meanwhile, the UCI Downhill World Cup moves to its penultimate round at Lake Placid Olympic Region, New York (USA) from 3-5 October
