QUALIFYING - Leogang World Cup Downhill - Mountain Biking Pictures

View as: Slideshow | One Page

The track was dry, the track was fast, the track was getting more beat up as the day went on. No holds barred during qualifying at the 2018 Leogang World Cup downhill where Luca Shaw, Tahnee Seagrave, Thibault Daprela and Vali Holl took top spots in their classes. The Elite Men's times were so close that riders who were just 10.3 seconds off the fastest time failed to break the Top 60 and did not qualify. Phil Atwill squeaked in at #60, Aaron Gwin barely held on with an injured hand, Brook MacDonald qualified 2nd all while his Instagram account was being hacked, Rachel Atherton and Myriam Nicole both crashed and plenty of pre-race-day nail-biting was the theme of the day. Sven Martin, @maddogboris and Dan Hearn capture the highs and lows as the clock counts down to Sunday.

View as a slideshow or one page feature by using the controls at the upper left of your page

Irie mon vibes here in Leogang brotha. Yahmahn! -Sven Martin

Luca Shaw scrubbing his way into first place. -Dan Hearn

Clawing some valuable qualifying points Tahnee now sits in second going into finals day. -Sven Martin

Having fun is the best way to start the day. Vali Holl. -Sven Martin

What would a rider do these days without social media? Brook MacDonald's Instagram has gone AWOL, but he was present and correct on track today. 2nd place qualifier. -Dan Hearn

Loic, the white knight, ready to pillage some Leogang gold tomorrow. -Sven Martin

Yes, that's Finn's helmet after a big slide in the last corner of the track in his last training run. Luckily no hard impact and just a couple scratches. @maddogboris

Anna Newkirk only 4 seconds off Vali HÖll which is not bad considering last weeks win margin. Go Anna! #USDH -Sven Martin

Thibaut Daprela first run this morning...

...was very different to his qualifying run later. -Sven Martin

Video is processing. Try again soon.

Phew. -Sven Martin

Loris Vergier showing one of the three (or more) lines on the steep, dropping, tricky left-hander before the last reaches of the course. -Sven Martin

Troy snubbed and squashed entering the second part of the motorway. -Sven Martin

Aarin Gwin gettin cozy with the Austrian tress in his late first training run. After that run, he knew it could at least be a race for the points! His mechanic, John Hall, in the audio. @maddogboris

The only adjustment Aaron Gwin and John made to the bike was switching to softer grips. Hard man that Aaron Gwin guy. -Sven Martin

Mondraker Bro Train Member, Mike Jones, on his way to 9th place with focus on the podium! @maddogboris

2nd, 7th and 9th places for the Mondraker team. Laurie Greenland took 6th. -Dan Hearn

Just a week after his win in Fort William, Kye A'Hern blasted into 2nd place in qualis by the slimmest of margins. -Dan Hearn

A crash for Myriam Nicole and Rachel Atherton left the #1 spot wide open. Both will be back with a vengeance tomorrow! -Dan Hearn

A savage rut in the first section of track bucked Rachel over the bars in qualis. -Dan Hearn

Isak Leivsson wasn't in Pole position today but Sender'd his way into 12th. -Dan Hearn

Early morning wake-up. @maddogboris

Last weekends podium boy Reece Wilson adjusts his saddle angle mid-flight into tuck mode. He had the fastest first split of the entire day but failed to break the Top 60. Thankfully he was protected. -Sven Martin

Amaury Pieron with the focus looking for the white leader jersey. -Sven Martin

Now that the Death Grip Movie is done, Brendan can start using his brakes again. -Sven Martin

This beast has better cellular signal than all of Fort William. -Dan Hearn

After being detained at the German border for being two centimetres too tall, the Polygon Mothership squeezes its way into the pits this morning. Better late than never. -Sven Martin

Greg doesn't want to be left out of the horns game even though he is on the sidelines. *** Editors note -bicycle stunts without helmet performed under close adult supervision (mongo) at near-track-stand speeds. -Sven Martin

Nastassie Gimenez third today in the junior ladies. -Sven Martin

Flat Tire Defender going into Gwins wheel for tomorrow. -Sven Martin

Kade has so many different styles and kinds of whips. I don't know what to even call this one. He will be showcasing them the next two weeks at the upcoming Crankworx events. Third today. -Sven Martin

Luca boosting the super sender boom boom huck jump. First place, first class. -Sven Martin

Phil Atwill having a look at the clock and deciding he should crack on to make the final. 60th spot. Thankfully his XXXXL bike was just long enough to make up that .11-second difference. -Sven Martin

The Commencal crew do it right. Big truck with additional satellite display and booth area, full media team on duty following the teams exploits. Remi Thiron gets the follow-cam treatment. -Sven Martin

Tracey Hannah unleashed the Lion today and ended up on the second Position. @maddogboris

Its took us half the night to decide which scrub we will show you guys here. Watch out for a full scrub gallery soon. Thanks for the effort Matt Walker! @maddogboris

Do they study Eliot Jackson's new website after qualifying to figure out the difference between Loic's 4th Place and Finn's 16th Place run? @maddogboris

LOL. Kick him while he's down. @maddogboris

Mark "the Shark" Wallace with a safe run and 11th place. @maddogboris

#USDH Anna Newkirk's warm-up technique to improve coordination seems to work pretty well. Fastest at Split 1 and at the end, just 4.4 seconds behind Vali Höll on second place. @maddogboris

The Kerr Brothers, Henry and George, killing some time for their start with some serious cow-watching. Henry (on the right) with a solid 5th in Junior men qualifying. @maddogboris

Tahnee had a tough weekend so far and was actually not very happy with her quali run. But the fastest Elite Women's time should bring her smile back for finals! All the points add up. @maddogboris

Luckily Thibaut Daprelas leader's jersey didn't get dirty in his massive training run crash before finals. @maddogboris

Mirror Mirror on the wall...who is the fastest of them all? @maddogboris

Danny and Dave fully high tech with their own water sprinkler system for warm up. Luckily they had an umbrella with them. Danny suffered a flat but is protected and in the show. @maddogboris

Loris Vergier gettin' ready for his quali run. 5th place for him and just 1.3 seconds behind his teammate Luca Shaw! @maddogboris

Vali with another first place seeding but she hs some challengers hot on her heels. -Sven Martin

Sketchy moment in the first corner for Blenki. Without it, he would probably be in a better position than 15th. Still only 5 seconds off the top pace. @maddogboris

Connor stretches his legs before the pedal section on the motorway. -Sven Martin

What would a Troy Bronsan start house image be without his hand shaking? Get ready to do it tomorrow together with him in front of the livestream. 7th place for the Aussie pinner just 1.8 back. @maddogboris

The new Aussie brother and sister team on the World Cup circuit. Kye and Sian A'hern. @maddogboris

The Leogang locals waiting to get their field back on Monday. @maddogboris

Tracey Hannah took all the right lines today on the track. 2nd place. @maddogboris

Yes Emilie Siegenthaler! 3rd Position for the Pivot Factory Racing pilot. @maddogboris

Luca Shaw you badass! Smoothness for the win. @maddogboris

Yaa naaahh yeahhh?! Aaron just does what he has to do, even with a bit of pain. @maddogboris

Massive thanks to Team MS Mondraker for the best coffee in the Pits. @maddogboris

Jamie Edmondson was stoked to qualify 4th in juniors. He's got 1.5 seconds to make up on Kade tomorrow to break onto the podium. -Dan Hearn

European champ Monika Hrastnik sailed into 4th place. -Dan Hearn

Dry and dusty roots were the order of the day. Any rain tomorrow will completely change how the track rides. Fabien Barel speaks on what it takes. -Dan Hearn