The final day of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Soldier Hollow adds another chapter to mountain biking history. Martina Berta cemented her status as the rider of the weekend with her victory in the women’s race of the UCI Cross Country World Cup. Meanwhile, in Midway, Utah, Martín Vidaurre thrilled the crowd after fighting his way up from 25th on the starting grid to a remarkable victory in the men’s race.

Less than 24 hours after becoming the first Italian rider to win a UCI Cross Country Short Track World Cup, Berta achieved a memorable one-two finish. The Italian controlled the race from the first lap onward before pulling away from Gwendalyn Gibson on the final lap. Gibson secures second place ahead of Sina Frei. With her podium finish, Frei is able to close the gap on overall leader Jenny Rissveds.

The men’s elite race unfolds in a completely different way. The winner remained undecided until the final stages of an extremely demanding and tactical race. After working his way through the field from an unfavorable starting position, Vidaurre launched his attack on the final descent, securing one of the most impressive victories of his career. Meanwhile, Luca Martin extends his lead in the overall standings. He increases his advantage over the absent Adrien Boichis.

In the women’s U23 category as well, Valentina Corvi shows no signs of slowing down, even though she had already secured both the U23 XCC overall title and the U23 XCO title earlier in the season. The Italian once again delivered a dominant performance and celebrated victory in Soldier Hollow.

Germany also has reason to celebrate in the U23 men’s race. Benjamin Krüger wins the race, while Paul Schehl secures the overall victory in the UCI XCO World Cup, rounding out a memorable day for the German team. In the team standings, Specialized Factory Racing underscores its dominance. Vidaurre’s victory, along with strong performances by Sina Frei and Haley Batten, helped the team extend its lead over the Decathlon Ford Racing Team to 797 points.

Patience Pays Off in the Men’s Race

Chris Blevins thrills the home crowd by taking the lead on the first climb and setting a fast pace right from the start. The brutal first lap immediately put several favorites under pressure. Among them were his teammate Martín Vidaurre, Riley Amos, and Cole Punchard, who all had to work their way through the field after an incident in Saturday’s XCC race. But even for Blevins, the pace proved too high. The American crashes coming out of a banked turn and is the first of several prominent riders whose hopes are dashed by a crash.

His crash, however, barely slows the action at the front. Riders like Sam Gaze, Luca Martin, and Charlie Aldridge of Cannondale Factory Racing continue to push the pace. Aldridge briefly manages to build a small lead on the fifth lap. The dropouts continue. Luca Schätti crashes in a rock garden, before Filippo Colombo suffers a flat tire shortly after catching up to the leading group. Aldridge then provides one of the race’s most spectacular moments. On the penultimate lap, the reigning European champion misjudges a landing, is thrown over a banked turn, and makes a spectacular landing in the safety net in front of the spectators. Fortunately, he lands on his bike first before being flung out of the net. Later, he told TNT Sports that he “thanks his lucky stars.”

Aldridge quickly got back on his bike, but the damage to his bike ended his chances of victory. At the front, Punchard and Martin continue to ramp up the pressure, while the riders in the leading group repeatedly test each other but fail to launch a decisive attack.

It isn’t until the final stretch that the race explodes. Mathis Azzaro has to unclip from his pedal on a technical section with potholes, causing the six-rider leading group to stretch out slightly. Vidaurre sees his chance, launches his attack shortly thereafter, and opens up a decisive gap. Punchard is unable to catch up to him before the finish. With his perfectly timed attack, the Chilean secures his first World Cup victory of the season. Punchard is rewarded with the first UCI World Cup podium finish of his elite career. Also on the podium is Mathis Guay, another rider who had a strong weekend. “It feels so good. I’ve been waiting for this all year,” says Vidaurre. “I’ve worked like crazy, my team has been incredible all season, and my teammates have been winning all year. Now it was finally my turn. I didn’t expect this today. I had really bad luck yesterday, but this just feels incredibly good.”

Martin continues to solidify his position in the fight for the overall title and could be crowned the 2026 UCI XCO World Cup Champion ahead of the final race in Lake Placid, depending on the plans of the absent Adrien Boichis, the only rider who can still mathematically prevent him from winning the title.

Berta Caps Off Her Dream Weekend

Martina Berta is undoubtedly the rider to beat in Soldier Hollow. Less than 24 hours after her breakthrough victory in the UCI XCC World Cup, she followed it up with a commanding solo win in the women’s race of the UCI XCO World Cup. The Italian immediately took control of the race and led from the first lap alongside overall leader Jenny Rissveds. However, Rissveds’ early offensive didn’t last long. By the middle of the race, the Swede had to drop back, allowing a small leading group to form consisting of Berta, Sina Frei, Gwendalyn Gibson, and Alessandra Keller.

Local hero Haley Batten, who grew up less than 20 miles from Soldier Hollow, thrilled the home crowd with an impressive solo ride and caught up to the lead group. But Berta isn’t ready to share the spotlight. On the fourth lap, she launches a decisive surge that immediately tears the group apart. Only Gibson can keep up with the Italian’s pace. Together, the two pull away from their pursuers lap after lap. Berta continuously increases the pressure on the climbs, helping the duo build a lead of about 30 seconds over the chasers.

Gibson attacks on the final climb, trying to catch Berta off guard. Moments later, Berta counters with an attack similar to the one she used earlier to break up the leading group. She crosses the climb with a small but decisive lead and holds it all the way to the finish. “It’s unbelievable—I can’t believe it,” says Berta. “After yesterday, I knew my legs felt good, but pulling off a one-two finish is incredible. Right now, I’m overwhelmed with emotion. I’m just so happy.”

Gibson holds on to second place and celebrates her first-ever UCI XCO World Cup podium finish. Frei secures the crucial third place after defeating Savilia Blunk in the sprint for the final podium spot.

Further back, Evie Richards also makes up ground on Rissveds in the final stretch. Nevertheless, Rissveds remains the clear leader in the title race ahead of the finale in Lake Placid. Her lead stands at 220 points, with a maximum of 330 points still up for grabs. Frei isn’t giving up the fight: “My mindset is to fight all the way to the finish line,” she says. “There’s still one race left, and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Corvi and Krüger Win in the U23 Division

Valentina Corvi continues her remarkable season in impressive fashion, celebrating another commanding victory in the UCI XCO World Cup U23 women’s race in her first outing wearing the rainbow jersey. The newly crowned UCI World Champion crosses the finish line 32 seconds ahead of Rafaelle Carrier and Makena Kellerman, who fight hard to challenge the Italian. Corvi takes control of the race early on. She breaks away to the front as early as the first few laps. At first, she rides alone at the front before Carrier and Kellerman manage to catch up. Behind them, only Maruša Tereza Šerkezi, Bloeme Kalis, and Lisa Kristin Jordø manage to keep the gap from widening too much, while the field continues to break apart.

For two laps, Carrier and Kellerman are able to keep up with the relentless pace of the UCI world champion. But Corvi still has reserves. On the penultimate lap, the Italian launched a decisive surge and quickly built a lead that neither of her two rivals could close. In the battle for second place, Carrier pulled away from Kellerman in the final stretch despite strong support from the home crowd. “Today, with the jersey, it’s even more special,” says Corvi. “I wanted to do it justice. It definitely gives me energy. I felt really good in the final laps and just tried to give it my all. I’ve worked very hard this season, wanted to achieve big goals, and I think I’ve managed that quite well.”

The U23 men’s race provided another memorable chapter for Germany. Paul Schehl described the race as a “pain cave.” His sixth-place finish, however, was enough to secure the overall victory in the U23 UCI XCO World Cup, just 24 hours after he had already won the U23 UCI XCC World Cup title. For his compatriot Benjamin Krüger, on the other hand, there was no stopping him. Krüger launched a devastating attack on the second lap and immediately broke away from the pack. With great confidence, he continued to extend his lead throughout the race and won by 49 seconds. Only Naël Rouffiac managed to get within less than a minute of the winner.

“It’s absolutely incredible, in front of this crowd,” says Krüger. “I can’t believe it. I’m lost for words. I attacked on the long climb in the second lap. I think riding alone on this course is actually a good strategy because you don’t have to pull the entire field. I just rode my own race and was able to see it through to the finish. Hopefully we’ll celebrate now with some good food.”

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