After a short break, the Enduro World Cup is back for the fourth round and it’s the second time in 2023 riders will face a new venue. This week sees Leogang host its first Enduro World Cup ahead of a weekend of Downhill and XC racing. A new venue is always tricky to predict, but we have given it our best shot. Here are some predictions on who could be top performers this week.
After the technical challenge of Pietra Ligure riders haven’t had too long to rest as the season quickly moves along to Leogang. This week’s racing will offer a different challenge to those found at the last round in the Finale Outdoor Region and as an untested venue riders will not know what to expect before practice. The last round in Pietra Ligure saw a strong French showing in the Women’s racing as Morgane Charre secured her first win of the season followed by Gloria Scarsi and Isabeau Courdurier. We currently have an overall points tie between Charre and Courdurier so expect these two to be going hard to pick up any extra points possible.
The Men’s racing saw Jesse Melamed finally get his winning speed in 2023 taking the win in front of fellow Canadian Rhys Verner. Rhys Verner is very much a rider to what this year as he is having the best season of his career. Completing the top three was Alex Rudeau who is proving over the past few seasons to be a real contender for top results.
Morgane Charre:
Our first pick this week is Morgane Charre who is on incredible form so far this year and with a short gap between rounds three and four she will still be firing on all cylinders. Coming off the win in Pietra Ligure will give the French racer a lot of confidence heading into the unknown quantity of Leogang.
Isabeau Courdurier:
Currently tied on points with Morgane Charre, Isabeau Courdurier will want to kick off the next two weeks of racing with a win as she is on the hunt to match her 2022 overall title as the last EWS champ by becoming the first-ever Enduro World Cup champ.
Bex Baraona:
After an incredible performance in Derby, Bex Baraona was a little off the pace in Pietra Ligure crossing the line in 7th place. As we head into a fresh race week on fresh stages we expect Bex Baraona to find some extra speed and take home a top result on the Austrian trails.
Jesse Melamed:
After his win by over five seconds at the last round it is hard to bet against Jesse Melamed for the win this week. Along with carrying great speed this year, as one of the more experienced riders he will be very used to getting up to speed on fresh trails.
Rhys Verner:
Rhys Verner is on fire this year with some incredible results leading up to a massive 2nd place finish in Pietra Ligure. It will be interesting to see if the Candian rider still opts for the trail bike setup this week or if he goes for something a little bigger as he looks to go one better on Thursday.
Richie Rude:
Richie Rude had an incredibly tough third round as after taking the win at the second round he had a big crash at Pietra Ligure, resulting in a damaged front brake, destroyed kneepad, and a gash to his elbow. The crash and an 8th place in Italy cost him the overall lead which he will be looking to take back with a great result this week.
While we have made our main predictions for potential winners above there were other riders who we should mention as potential top performers this weekend.
Raphaela Richter:
The German racer has had a mixed bag of results this year but Pietra Ligure saw a standout performance as she only dropped outside the top five on one stage. The resulting fourth place matches her best result from last year, but with the speed clearly there this year, as she took two stage wins at the last round we think Raphaela Richter will be one of the main threats for the podium.
Alex Rudeau:
The French national Enduro Champion struggled to match his EWS Loudenvielle winning pace at the first two Tasmanian rounds. Following his third place at Pietra Ligure becoming his second-best finish we think the fast French racer will be one to watch this week.
Who Will Win the Elite Women’s Race?
Who Will Win the Elite Men’s Race?