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1/1/2026 8:10am
The place to chat all things MTB racing in 2026! Post 'em if you've got 'em!
World’s elite MTB riders return to Australia in February for the third, even gnarlier, edition of Red Bull Hardline Tasmania.
The rider lineup for the 2026 edition of Red Bull Hardline Tasmania has been revealed. The invite-only roster will see 22 of the world’s best male and female mountain bikers return to Maydena Bike Park in Tasmania 7-8th February 2026. Here is all you need to know:
- Known globally as the toughest downhill race on the planet, Red Bull Hardline Tasmania fuses speed, precision, and sheer nerve on a 3.4 km course packed with 60 km/h descents, massive 10 m+ drops, and the kind of technical terrain that separates the brave from the fearless.
- 2026 will see the world’s top male and female riders will take on a newly redesigned Maydena Bike Park top section that promises to be even more spectacular - and more punishing. The original course took over 7,500 hours to build and with the new features added for 2026, the riders have really got their hands full.
- Course designer, and the brains behind Maydena Bike Park, Simon French says: "On the edge of Tasmania’s Southwest Wilderness, Maydena Bike Park has provided a perfect canvas for developing a course that's befitting of the Red Bull Hardline legacy. Using nearly 600m of vertical elevation, the course takes in a huge diversity of forest types, terrain and trail features."
- Featured in the Red Bull Hardline Tasmania class of 2026 are returning champions Jackson Goldstone, who took out the top spot after a massive redemption run at the 2025 competition, and Gracey Hemstreeet, who made history in 2025 as the first to win the Red Bull Hardline women’s category.
- Goldstone will go head-to-head with young gun Asa Vermette, fresh off a triumphant win at this year’s Red Bull Hardline Wales, where he made history as the youngest ever winner at just 18 years old.
- Also racing in Australia will be Scotland's Louise Ferguson who became the first ever female rider to do a top-to-bottom run of the Red Bull Hardline Wales course and qualify to race the final, where she finished 18th and became the inaugural women's champion.
- The 2026 edition of Red Bull Hardline Tasmania marks the 12th year of Red Bull Hardline since its creation in Wales in 2014 and promises another unmissable showdown as the world’s most progressive male and female MTB riders push the limits on one of the most extreme courses in the sport.
Red Bull Hardline Tasmania will be broadcast live on Red Bull TV and on Red Bull Bike YouTube channel.
RED BULL HARDLINE TASMANIA 2026 RIDER LIST
Aaron Gwin 🇺🇸
Asa Vermette 🇺🇸
Kaos Seagrave 🇬🇧
Bernard Kerr 🇬🇧
Charlie Hatton 🇬🇧
Dan Booker 🇦🇺
Luke Mier-Smith 🇦🇺
Darcy Coutts 🇦🇺
Edgar Briole 🇫🇷
Gee Atherton 🇬🇧
Rónán Dunne 🇮🇪
Théo Erlangsen 🇿🇦
Jackson Goldstone 🇨🇦
Troy Brosnan 🇦🇺
Sam Hill 🇦🇺
Brook McDonald 🇳🇿
Connor Fearon 🇦🇺
Matteo Iniguez🇫🇷
Lou Ferguson 🏴
Jess Blewitt 🇳🇿
Gracey Hemstreet 🇨🇦
Mikayla Parton 🏴
TRACK INFO
Track Length: 3.4km
Speeds: Up to 60km/h+
Largest Vertical Drop: 10m+
That is a wild list of racers! Can't wait for this event!
Ag at hardline!!!
I just want the dude to do whips & have fun with zero pressure to win.
Most excited to see Briole back on the list. He's been pretty much radio silence since his crash at Tasmania last year.
Strictly speaking this isn't racing news, but I figured it feels right to share it here:
Crankworx and the FMBA Unveil the Slopestyle Super League: A Bold New Era for Competitive Slopestyle Mountain Biking Begins in 2026
Whistler, BC, December 3, 2025 - Crankworx and the Freeride Mountain Bike Association (FMBA) announce a major evolution in the world of Slopestyle mountain biking with the launch of the Slopestyle Super League (SSL). Debuting in 2026, this new competitive structure redefines what the typical Slopestyle season looks like and is designed to strengthen the sport, expand opportunities for athletes, and provide a clearer, more engaging global season for fans.
The Slopestyle Super League is the result of an extensive review of the FMBA competition framework, incorporating input from the FMBA Advisory Board, event organizers, and athlete representatives. The SSL replaces the former Crankworx FMBA Slopestyle World Championship (SWC) and introduces a streamlined, high-stakes format featuring a Regular Season followed by Playoffs, culminating in a “Winner Takes All” Slopestyle Super League Final.
A New Structure for a New Era
Beginning in 2026, the Slopestyle Super League will feature:
1. Regular Season
A calendar of designated Gold and Diamond events will make up the SSL Regular Season.
Key elements include:
Athletes accumulate points across all Regular Season events.
All results count toward SSL standings each year.
The number of counted results will be based on the final number of confirmed events in the season.
At the conclusion of the Regular Season:
Top 3 men and top 2 women in the standings receive automatic qualification to the SSL Finals.
Men ranked 4–15 and women ranked 3–8 in league standings qualify for Round 1 of the Playoffs.
2026 SSL Regular Season Events
The inaugural season will include five events:
February: Gold - Crankworx Christchurch Slopestyle, New Zealand
March: Diamond - Crankworx Rotorua Slopestyle, New Zealand
May: Gold - Event in Europe (details coming soon)
July: Diamond - Event in Europe (details coming soon)
August: Diamond - Crankworx Whistler Slopestyle, Canada
The two European events will be revealed in 2026
2. Playoffs
The SSL Playoffs will determine the first-ever Slopestyle Super League Champions.
Round 1
The first Playoffs event will feature a total of 18 men and 9 women, drawn from:
12 men + 6 women from SSL Regular Season standings
Additional 6 men + 3 women invited from the FMB 52-week World Ranking
Additional details:
Points earned in this competition count toward the FMB World Ranking.
The top 7 men and top 3 women from Round 1 advance to Round 2 - the SSL Finals.
In 2026, this event will be the Crankworx SilverStar Slopestyle (Gold)
Round 2: Finals
The SSL Finals will bring together 10 men and 5 women:
3 men + 2 women pre-qualified from the Regular Season
7 men + 3 women advancing from Round 1 of the Playoffs.
Additional details:
Points earned in the Finals also contribute to the FMB World Ranking.
The 2026 Slopestyle Super League Finals will be hosted at the Crankworx Mont-Sainte-Anne Slopestyle (Diamond) in Québec
At the conclusion of the Finals, winners will be crowned Slopestyle Super League Champions.
Invitation Criteria
Regular Season
Invitations to all Gold and Diamond events continue to follow the FMB World Ranking, as outlined in the FMBA Rulebook.
Points earned at SSL events align with the existing FMB World Tour points structure.
Automatic qualification for Finals:
Top 3 men and top 2 women in SSL standings
Round 1 of Playoffs qualification:
Men ranked 4–9 and women ranked 3–5 in SSL standings
Playoffs: Round 1
12 men + 6 women from SSL standings
6 men + 3 women added from the FMB 52-week World Ranking
Total: 18 men + 9 women
Playoffs: Finals
3 men + 2 women pre-qualified from Regular Season
7 men + 3 women advancing from Round 1 of the Playoffs
Total: 10 men + 5 women
Calendar Transition
The 2026 season will serve as a condensed inaugural edition, running January to September 2026.
Starting with the 2026/2027 cycle, the Slopestyle Super League will adopt a dual-year season structure: October 2026 – August 2027 (continuing in similar overlapping seasons each year thereafter)
This change is designed to create a natural competition arc, allow for better planning for organizers and athletes, and align the league with broader seasonal rhythms in mountain biking.
A Vision for the Future
The introduction of the Slopestyle Super League marks a milestone moment for Slopestyle mountain biking. By simplifying the structure, increasing competitive opportunities, and establishing a clear progression toward a season finale, the SSL provides a more compelling framework for athletes and fans alike.
The full structure of the Slopestyle Super League - including rules, rankings, and pathways, is detailed online: www.fmbworldtour.com/slopestyle-super-league/
Fans can follow all updates about the Slopestyle Super League on @fmbworldtour and www.fmbworldtour.com.
I have heard on good authority that there will be a hardline on Cypress mountain the week before the whistler world cup
Yeah. I saw Gee and Dan in that area during late summer. So hard to know how many WC races will race it if it's week before Whistler WC. That would mean three big races back to back with some serious risk....hmmm
Having Hill, Gwin, Vermette and Goldstone on the same race is actually pretty wild.
I'm old enough to remember when Hill and then Gwin were the next big thing.
Hopefully the track gets some slower gnarly tech stuff.
The party boi's are gonna be burnt to a crisp before the WC even gets to town. Pace yourselves fellas...
More developments in the WBD saga, with a deal with Netflix apparently "days away", as reported by Deadline:
"Netflix has emerged victorious with what appears to be the highest and so far the winning bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, Deadline has learned, and will start exclusive talks to finalize a deal. This caps a tumultuous day that saw Paramount move aggressively to counter the giant streamer and seal a deal of its own for WBD. Netflix offered around $28 a share for WBD, according to sources, mostly in cash.
Netflix would acquire the Warner Bros. Studios and HBO Max streaming assets. Paramount’s offer was for all of WBD. Bloomberg is reporting that Netflix offered a $5 billion breakup fee if the deal fails to close. Comcast also bid for the studio and streaming businesses.
Global Networks, or the businesses that would likely not go to Netflix, include entertainment, sports and news television brands and channels globally including CNN, TNT Sports, Discovery networks, top free-to-air channels across Europe, the Discovery+ streaming service and Bleacher Report."
What this all means for the MTB broadcasting side of things obviously remains to be seen at this point. More as the story develops.
If you're interested, here's a brief overview of the potential anti-trust legality issues surrounding this acquisition
Who else saw this coming?
fun/interesting AI summary of potential future of WBD/netflix/World Cup someone sent me, can be found here (i put it in the warner bros thread for discussion) - https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/The-Hub,2/UCI-grant-Discovery-WC-rights-from-2023-to-2030,11398?page=24#comment-719756
Nothing a bribe won’t fix in the current administration.
At least this administration doesn't keep an auto-pen available for anyone to use for their own benefit.
yes, they just use the living autopen, so smart he just aced 3 cognitive tests you‘d never administer 3x in a year on a „normal“ patient
Race Talk please, not pointless left vs. right talk. You've got enough social media platforms elsewhere for that. ~Vamos
Can anyone tell me why I can't log into Vital using Chrome. I'm having to go to Edge browser to log in.
Just out of the blue I get this when clicking Login:
must be that new anti-bizutch filter we've been working on 😂
JK, don't know why, I'm logged in via Chrome just fine, try again in a few?
something changed this week. I use a VPN with Chrome and this week I started getting the same message until I deactivate the VPN
In our ever ongoing battle against the spammers, relentless bunch that they are, we have indeed been playing with geo-blocking and other techniques recently to try and keep them at bay. Where was your VPN set to? Some Asian locations have been giving us trouble so we've been blocking them.
its set to california
This is some great race talk!
Ahh yes, my favorite Asian country. Great food
I too dislike VPN talk.
So with that in mind.
Of the junior men moving up to elite who's gonna place highest in Korea?
Asa because he is used to traveling far distances.
Headlines like this won’t help Mont-Sainte-Anne’s chances of returning to the UCI race calendar any time soon.
Quebec ski resort won't see 'a single dollar' from government until repairs made: minister | CBC News
PQ calling on the Legault government to ‘regain control’ of Mont-Sainte-Anne
2026 USAC National Champs calendar here - https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/hub/usa-cycling-2026-national-championship-schedule - DH returns to Big Bear at the end of July.
Yeah its not a good look, there have been a few incidents over the years there
Post a reply to: 2026 Race Talk