The title was decided before the main race
Manuel Lettenbichler became the 2026 FIM Hard Enduro World Champion on Friday evening at Hixpania in Spain. He finished fifth in the SuperEncierro and scored no points, but challenger Mitch Brightmore finished fourth and also missed the scoring positions. The 32-point gap therefore remained intact with only 30 points still available.
A season built on wins and control
Before Hixpania, Lettenbichler had won five of seven rounds and finished on the podium at every event. His victories came at Alestrem, Extreme XL Lagares, Forza Orza, Abestone and Sea to Sky. At Sea to Sky he recovered from a ten-minute penalty and 15th starting position to win the Mountain Race by more than four minutes.
Five consecutive crowns
The championship is his fifth consecutive Hard Enduro world title after the 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 crowns. He achieved the 2026 title on a KTM 300 EXC for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. The wording matters: it is his fifth consecutive title in this championship and, according to KTM, his sixth world championship crown when his wider career record is counted.
The points calculation
Only the top three scored in Friday’s SuperEncierro. Billy Bolt won ahead of Ashton Brightmore and Teodor Kabakchiev. With Mitch Brightmore fourth and Lettenbichler fifth, neither title contender added points. Saturday and Sunday together offered 30, one fewer than Brightmore needed even in the best possible scenario.
Hixpania after the title moment
The weekend continued after the crown was mathematically secure. Lettenbichler finished second in Saturday’s Campoo Xtreme and then runner-up to Mario Román in Sunday’s Lost Road. Those results do not change when the title was won: Friday’s points situation decided the championship, while Sunday completed the event result.
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Primary source checked internally: FIM Hard Enduro World Championship.
