Manuel Lettenbcihler - FIM Hard Enduro World Championship 2024 Stop 4 - Red Bull Romaniacs.
© Future 7 Media/Red Bull Content Pool
Enduro
Champion's return: Lettenbichler dominates Red Bull Romaniacs after surgery
Down in deepest Transylvania, Manuel Lettenbichler overcame injury and relentless adversity to claim his fifth victory at the infamous Red Bull Romaniacs.
Напишано од Paul Keith
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Part of this story

FIM Hard Enduro World Championship

The seven-round calendar for 2024 adds Turkey’s Sea to Sky and the 24MX Hixpania Hard Enduro in Spain, plus the UK and Turkey for the first time, while returning to the USA.

35 локации на турата

Red Bull Romaniacs

Set in Romania's Carpathian Mountains, more than 450 riders from around the world compete in the obstacle-laden prologue in downtown Sibiu followed by a no-holds-barred Hard Enduro in the mountains.

Romania

Manuel Lettenbichler

German hard enduro rider Manuel Lettenbichler is renowned for delivering powerful performances in the world's most prestigious events.

GermanyGermany

Billy Bolt

British rider Billy Bolt made history in 2021 by becoming the first ever FIM Hard Enduro World Champion – and now he’s hungry for more glory.

United KingdomUnited Kingdom

Wade Young

At 16, Wade Young became the youngest-ever winner of the Roof of Africa and he's been a top hard enduro contender ever since.

South AfricaSouth Africa

Jonny Walker

British rider Jonny Walker is one of the leading names in hard enduro, with a trophy cabinet full of the sport's biggest prizes.

United KingdomUnited Kingdom
Overcoming an ongoing knee injury to come through and win arguably the toughest-ever edition of Red Bull Romaniacs in convincing style is a testament to the skills and resilience of the two-time hard enduro world champion Manuel Lettenbichler. The German secured his fifth win in the multi-stage race in Romania's Carpathian mountains ahead of Spain's Mario Roman and Bulgarian Teodor Kabakchiev, recapturing the lead of the Hard Enduro World Championship in the process.
Five weeks to the day before the Red Bull Romaniacs Prolog fired-up, Lettenbichler was undergoing knee surgery and the Red Bull KTM Factory Team rider was in a cautious mood when he arrived in host city Sibiu, anticipating five days of hard racing over 586km: "I came here with no expectations just with one plan, to make some points for the championship and it turned out completely different."
Manuel Lettenbichler during the fourth offroad day of FIM Hard Enduro World Championship 2024 Stop 4 - Red Bull Romaniacs in Sibiu, Romania on July 27, 2024.
Now it's five: Lettenbichler celebrates Red Bull Romaniacs victory again© Future 7 Media/Red Bull Content Pool
I came here with no expectations just to make some points for the championship
01

Red Bull Romaniacs Prolog: some old favourites

With the injured Billy Bolt sharing reporting duties with Paul Bolton, the Prolog saw a welcome return to the top step Red Bull Romaniacs from Jonny Walker. With two titles here, the Brit is in rare company: Lettenbichler, Graham Jarvis and Cyril Despres are the only other multiple winners at this event. On the Prolog, a true obstacle course laid out in the medieval heart of Sibiu, Walker was untouchable and over the course of eight laps, scoring a popular victory.
Alfredo Gómez, a three-time runner-up at the event, was second-fastest and in fourth was Chris Birch. A Gold Class winner way back in 2010, the New Zealander is still leading the way in the Silver class.
02

Offroad Day One: the toughest-ever Red Bull Romaniacs

Third place in the opening Prolog was a good start for defending champion Lettenbichler, but no one was prepared for what was to follow on Offroad Day One, as the race moved out of the town centre and into the wilds of Transylvania’s Carpathian mountains. There, Lettenbichler unleashed his formidable skills to seize the lead.
The day featured some special challenges, as the riders took on precipitous climbs around mountains nicknamed 'K2' and 'Brother of K2' by race organiser Martin Freinadametz. The Flying Fox stage saw the return of the zipline, last seen at Red Bull Romaniacs in 2004, because there was no other way for the bikes to cross a gorge. Heavy rain made the afternoon's challenge even tougher, as they took on section like 'Pandora' and 'Bedtime Alarm'.
"I think it was the toughest Red Bull Romaniacs day that I've ever completed,” said Lettenbichler at the end. "I rode so hard, it was so intense. ‘Bedtime’ nearly killed us, it was almost impossible to ride.”
I think it was the toughest Red Bull Romaniacs day that I've ever completed
Third-placed Wade Young, winner of the Xross Hard Enduro Rally in Serbia, added: "I think Martin wants to hear that he broke us. I'm glad I made it to the finish, it was a really tough day. Yeah, really tough!"
03

Offroad Day Two: Mani vanishes over the horizon

Lettenbichler came into Offroad Day Two looking to protect his lead and after Mario Roman and Wade Young had rounded out the podium the previous day, it was time for Bulgarian Teodor Kabakchiev to stake his claim by coming fastest through the 183km course.
Seven-time Romaniacs winner Graham Jarvis built on his strong opening day to finish sixth and eighth overall, riding for much of the afternoon with his compatriot Mitch Brightmore, who's leading the Junior championship.
"It was definitely easier than yesterday,” said Brightmore. "After the service point Graham Jarvis and me were riding flat out together towards the end. That was my highlight of the day to get to race with Jarvis.”
This was also the second-ever marathon stage at Romaniacs and the day finished with the riders having to repair and service their own bikes before heading to hotels to catch some essential rest.
04

Offroad Day Three: Roman conquers the winding road

After the marathon stage, Mario Roman came to the front on what was another tough day, with a mix of taxing, technical sections and high-speed sections – conditions that the Spaniard relishes – riding for part of the day with Mani. He finished fastest on the day, 2m 26s ahead of the German. Wade Young was also on a charge, finishing seven minutes behind Roman.
"I'm super happy to have the best times of the day,” said Roman. "I enjoyed the riding. I rode with Mani for a while and it was amazing to ride with him with all the experience he has had over these years."
05

Offroad Day Four: finishing with a flourish

Lettenbichler went into the final day with an unassailable lead, crossing the finish line at the top of the famous Gusterita hill climb as the champion for a fifth time in six appearances at Red Bull Romaniacs..
Manuel Lettenbichler performs during the fourth offroad day of Red Bull Romaniacs in Sibiu, Romania on July 27, 2024.
One last climb to glory for Lettenbichler© Tiberiu Hila/Red Bull Content Pool
“It was a tiring week, waking up at 4:30am, racing some brutal race tracks, having a sore ass and scratches everywhere,” he said. "I was so tired after day one that I thought I might not make it. But here we are with another Romaniacs win and it feels so good."
Lettenbichler began the day knowing he simply needed to stay in touch with Roman and Kabakchiev to wrap up his fifth win in Romania and it gave him a front row seat to the best battle of the day, as the two Sherco riders battled for the runner-up spot on the podium.
The Bulgarian managed to overcome Roman’s eighth-minute lead to take second place overall ahead of his team-mate. Wade Young was also making good time, but with a shorter 100km route, the South African had too much of a gap to challenge for the podium, finishing fourth ahead of fellow GasGas rider Michael Walkner.
Mitch Brightmore came through his first-ever Red Bull Romaniacs in sixth place overall to make it four wins from four in the Junior Class, with his brother Ashton making it a 1-2 for the Brightmore brothers.
06

Red Bull Romaniacs 2024 results

Pos
Name
Bike
Nat
Time
1.
Manuel Lettenbichler
KTM
DEU
23h 22m 21s
2.
Teodor Kabakchiev
Sherco
BUL
+33m 22s
3.
Mario Roman
Sherco
ESP
+35m 37s
4.
Wade Young
GASGAS
RSA
+1h 7m 47s
5.
Michael Walkner
GASGAS
AUT
+1h 26m 26s
6.
Mitch Brightmore
HUS
GBR
+4h 4m 28s
7.
Sonny Goggia
KTM
ITA
+5h 34m 56s
8.
Alfredo Gomez
RIEJU
ESP
+6h 19m 30s
9.
Matthew Green
KTM
RSA
+6h 19m 33s
10.
Francesc Moret
Sherco
ESP
+6h 40m 13s
07

FIM Hard Enduro World Championship Standings (After round 3)

Position
Name
Bike
Nationality
Points
1.
Manuel Lettenbichler
KTM
DEU
67
2.
Wade Young
GASGAS
RSA
62
3.
Mario Roman
Sherco
ESP
62
4.
Teodor Kabakchiev
Sherco
BUL
57
5.
Mitch Brightmore
Husqvarna
GBR
50
Part of this story

FIM Hard Enduro World Championship

The seven-round calendar for 2024 adds Turkey’s Sea to Sky and the 24MX Hixpania Hard Enduro in Spain, plus the UK and Turkey for the first time, while returning to the USA.

35 локации на турата

Red Bull Romaniacs

Set in Romania's Carpathian Mountains, more than 450 riders from around the world compete in the obstacle-laden prologue in downtown Sibiu followed by a no-holds-barred Hard Enduro in the mountains.

Romania

Manuel Lettenbichler

German hard enduro rider Manuel Lettenbichler is renowned for delivering powerful performances in the world's most prestigious events.

GermanyGermany

Billy Bolt

British rider Billy Bolt made history in 2021 by becoming the first ever FIM Hard Enduro World Champion – and now he’s hungry for more glory.

United KingdomUnited Kingdom

Wade Young

At 16, Wade Young became the youngest-ever winner of the Roof of Africa and he's been a top hard enduro contender ever since.

South AfricaSouth Africa

Jonny Walker

British rider Jonny Walker is one of the leading names in hard enduro, with a trophy cabinet full of the sport's biggest prizes.

United KingdomUnited Kingdom
Enduro