The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports can confirm that six wildcard teams have been selected for the second Downhill round of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series that will take place in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France) on May 30-June 1, presented by FACOM.
Four of the teams will be making their second appearance in this year’s series, while there are first starts for The Alliance and Gwin Racing. All six outfits are crammed full of up-and-coming talent, but five-time UCI Downhill World Cup overall champion Aaron Gwin (Gwin Racing) is the highest-profile rider yet to qualify through the new wildcard system.
The 37-year-old showed he still has what it takes to compete in the Elites after returning from injury at the end of the 2024 season, qualifying for finals last time out in Loudenvielle and finishing 12th in Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada. While he has only gone between the race tape twice this year in domestic races in the US, third and fourth-place finishes are evidence that he shouldn’t be overlooked in the Pyrenees. Gwin is joined by compatriot Gavin Tomlinson and Canadian Michael Delesalle – both of whom are making the step up to the Elite class in 2025.
The Alliance meanwhile is made up of three promising riders from the southern hemisphere. New signing Jackson Connelly has recorded the trio’s biggest result to date, finishing 25th at the 2023 UCI World Cup in Snowshoe (USA), while James MacDermid has been with the team for three years but is yet to qualify for an Elite finals run. Ursula Summers completes the outfit, with the 16-year-old making her UCI World Cup debut in France.
Elsewhere, well-known names to qualify via the wildcard system include Thibaut Daprela (Rogue Racing - SR Suntour), Thomas Estaque (Goodman Santacruz), and 2019 Junior Men’s UCI Downhill World Champion Kye A’Hern (Kenda NS Bikes UR Team).
The six wildcard teams for round 6 of the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Loudenville-Peyragudes are:
- Goodman Santacruz
- The Alliance
- Rogue Racing – SR Suntour
- Kenda NS Bikes UR Team
- Team High Country
- Gwin Racing
In addition to hosting round 2 of the UCI Downhill World Cup, Loudenvielle-Peyragudes will also stage round 3 of the UCI Enduro World Cup, following the season opener in Pietra Ligure - Finale Outdoor Region (Italy), and round 2 in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, from 16–18 May.
