Riders to watch: Pal Arinsal - Andorra

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports can confirm that 14 wildcard teams (eight cross-country and six downhill) have been selected for round 14 of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide (Switzerland), presented by Le Gruyère, on September 18-21. While all six teams that applied for a downhill spot secured a wildcard, it was another competitive selection process in cross-country, with only eight of the 19 applicants selected. The majority of qualifying teams have already featured in the 2025 series, but there will be a first appearance for Swiss Endurance outfit Thömus Akros - Youngstars. The nine-strong cross-country team is the development arm of WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team Thömus Maxon and has a strong focus on supporting the future stars of Swiss cross-country mountain biking. A number of its riders have already lit up this year’s WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series too, having qualified based on their UCI ranking points. Monique Halter has recorded two second place finishes in the Under 23 UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Cup, most recently in Pal Arinsal (Andorra), and sits in 10th place in the overall series standings, while her younger brother Nicolas Halter has also recorded two podium finishes this year to find himself in eighth. Elsewhere, Lexware Mountainbike Team is the only Endurance team to continue its 100% wildcard qualification record, while Goodman Santacruz, Rogue Racing - SR Suntour, Team High Country and Kenda NS Bikes UR Team do the same in downhill. As we enter the final three rounds of the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there will start to be greater focus on teams’ UCI points (a combination of the four highest scoring team riders’ points) which determine whether a team is offered UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team status for two years (teams ranked 1-10) or one year (teams ranked 11-15). At the time of writing, BIXS Performance Race Team occupies 12th place in the Endurance teams rankings and would therefore earn itself UCI Mountain Bike World Series Team status for 2026. The 14 wildcard teams for round 14 of the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide are: UCI Cross-country World Cup: BIXS Performance Race Team Bike Team Solothurn Lexware Mountainbike Team KTM Factory MTB Team Thömus Akros - Youngstars Cabtech Racing Team Trek Future Racing Massi UCI Downhill World Cup: Kenda NS Bikes UR Team Rogue Racing - SR Suntour Goodman Santacruz Team High Country Future Frameworks The Alliance

The Swiss UCI World Cup round will be the record-breaker's last after 17 seasons.  Nino Schurter (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team) has announced that he will be lining up at a UCI World Cup for the last time in Bike Kingdom - Lenzerheide (Switzerland) on September 19 and 21.  The 39-year-old shared his retirement news on a post on social media, adding “it’s been one hell of a ride”.  In the video, Nino Schurter said: “Dear mountain bike family and beyond. For the past two decades, I've given my body, my mind and my soul to mountain biking. A beautiful sport, but also brutal at pro level. You either win races, you are a contender, or you're gone. There's no place for passengers. It's all or nothing. 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “When I raced my first World Championships, I was just a kid chasing a dream in Lugano 2003 and I left with my first international medal. What I didn't know then: that dream would carry me through countless unforgettable moments and let me win more than half of all of those championships along the way. “It's been one hell of a ride. But now it's time. Time to let my mind breathe and to spend more moments with the people who have supported me through it all. This year gives me the perfect goodbye. Crans-Montana will be my final XCO World Championships and Lenzerheide, my favourite race, will be my last World Cup. Two home races. I couldn't have scripted it better. “I want to thank everyone of you teammates, competitors, fans and the entire mountain bike community. You made this journey unforgettable. You were the reason I pushed harder. And you were the magic behind the medals. “I'm not disappearing. I'll still be riding, even racing (just not between the World Cup tape) and diving into new projects I can't wait to share soon. But for now, I'm giving it everything one last time. See you in Crans-Montana. See you in Lenzerheide. Let's make it legendary.” The Swiss rider is widely regarded as the greatest of all time, claiming 10 UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Championships, nine UCI XCO World Cup overall titles, 36 UCI XCO World Cups and bronze, silver and gold medals at Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016 respectively.  Not only will Lenzerheide give him a home send-off on his record-extending 132nd UCI XCO World Cup start, but with three wins at the venue (2016, 2017 and 2023), it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Schurter going out at the top with win number 37 – another record. The retiring star added: “I’m incredibly thankful for everything I achieved in my life as a professional mountain bike racer. Now it's time to take all this experience into a new chapter of my life. I'm sure what comes from here is going to be just as exciting. Yes, I'm saying goodbye to cross-country World Cup racing but I will remain in the exciting world of cycling with all the great people involved.” We wish Nino the best in retirement from the UCI World Cup race tape!

While the UCI Enduro World Cup overall titles have already been wrapped up, it’s still all to play for in the battle to be best of the rest. The 2025 UCI Enduro World Cup has been a series for the ages with the return of two-day rounds, new venues, a first night stage, debut wins, and privateers going toe-to-toe with factory-funded teams. The main story of the season has been the dominance of two riders – Sławomir Łukasik (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) and Ella Conolly. The former has managed to step out of the shadows of teammate Richard Rude Jr (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team), winning half of the series’ six rounds to date and podiuming in the three to clinch his first overall series in La Thuile, Valle D’Aosta (Italy). Connolly, meanwhile, has been even more clinical, finishing in the top two all year and picking up a hat-trick of consecutive wins in Loudenvielle-Peyragudes (France), Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland (Austria) and Val di Fassa - Trentino (Italy) to claim the women’s title – all without the support of a factory team. But while the overall series might be wrapped up before a rider even takes on the final round’s first stage, the battle for second place will go to the wire, with five riders mathematically in contention in the men’s field, and three in the women’s. MURRAY AND MELAMED FAVOURITES While five riders can still finish runner-up in the men’s series, the focus is on Charles Murray (Specialized Gravity) and Jesse Melamed (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team). The pair are separated by just 20 points, with the New Zealander holding the marginal advantage over his Canadian rival. For Murray to stand the best chance of staying in second, he has to win in Morillon – something he hasn’t managed all year – or place higher than Melamed. But there are still scenarios where he can remain second if the Canyon CLLCTV rider finishes higher in the round. For Melamed to leapfrog the Specialized Gravity rider, he has to win for the second time this series or finish with a points gap that is greater than 20 – for example, Melamed comes 2nd (350 points) and Murray 4th (280 points). Although these are the more likely scenarios, there are also some outsiders, starting with two-time UCI Enduro World Cup winner Daniel Booker. The Australian privateer is 165 points behind Murray, and must be ruing his 90th and 95th place finishes in Val di Fassa – Trentino and Loudenvielle – Peyragudes. To finish second, he needs to win his third round of the series, for Murray to finish 9th or lower and for Melamed to finish third or lower. And then we get to highly unlikely but mathematically possible. Fifth-placed William Brodie has to win, and for Murray to finish 31st or worse, while sixth-placed Greg Callaghan needs to score maximum points and for Murray to finish 97th. Although both are feasible, neither has won a UCI Enduro World Cup before, so there would need to be a lot of firsts for the stars to align. KUCHYNKOVÁ IN DRIVING SEAT The contest in the women’s overall isn’t as tight as the men’s, with Simona Kuchynková (Cube Action Team) holding a 180-point lead over third-place Nadine Ellecosta (Abetone Ancillotti Vittoria Factory Team), but the Slovakian isn’t a shoo-in for second, with Morgane Charre (Pivot Factory Racing) also in contention. To guarantee the runner-up spot, Kuchynková can afford to finish as low as seventh, with 230 points enough to give her an unassailable lead. For Ellecosta, she needs to win and Kuchynková to finish eighth or below, or to outscore the Slovakian by 240 points – a scenario that hasn’t occurred all year. Things are even tougher for Charre, who has to win and hope Kuchynková finishes ninth or lower. JUNIOR TOP TWOS EFFECTIVELY TIED UP In the Juniors, the men’s top two can’t change regardless of what happens in Morillon, with Melvin Almueis dominating the series with four wins to take the overall and Cooper Millwood the best of the rest despite missing a round in Val di Fassa – Trentino.   Lacey Adams (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) just needs to score one point to mathematically secure the junior women’s overall title, with Lucile Metge needing to win and for Adams to effectively not start. While Adams’ teammate Chloe Bear (Yeti/Fox Factory Race Team) can’t contest for the overall series, she can still make it a one-two for the American factory outfit but needs to outscore Metge and for the Frenchwoman to have a bad weekend in front of a partisan home crowd.