In firsts for both of their careers, Maxxis’ sponsored riders Loris Vergier and Gerhard Kerschbaumer took landmark victories at Vallnord. Vergier earned his first World Cup DH victory, while Kerschbaumer took his first World Cup XCO win at the races, held July 13-15 in Andorra
The news from Vallnord was excellent for Maxxis across the board, as Kerschbaumer, Nino Schurter and Mathieu Van der Poel took the top three spots in men’s XCO, and Gunn Rita Dahle-Flesja took a record-setting 30th XCO World Cup victory. Vergier was one of a total of seven Maxxis riders who made the men’s DH top ten.
Santa Cruz Syndicate rider Vergier had injured his hand during his qualifying run, and faced the additional challenge of the steepest course on the calendar, but still won decisively by a margin of 1.3 seconds. MS Mondraker riders Brook MacDonald and Laurie Greenland joined Vergier on the podium in third and fourth place. Other Maxxis riders also made the top ten: Danny Hart of Madison Saracen Factory Team took sixth place; Troy Brosnan of Canyon Factory Downhill Team was seventh; Edward Masters of Pivot Factory Racing earned ninth place; and Connor Fearon of Kona Factory Team rounded out the top ten.
The XCO race began with SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing’s Schurter taking the lead. Torpado Gabogas rider Kerschbaumer bridged the gap by the end of the first lap, and Corendon-Circus’ Van der Poel was part of a three-man chase group. Kerschbaumer and Schurter traded the lead throughout the steep climbs and equally steep descents of the next several laps. Kerschbaumer gained the lead during the sixth lap and held it for the rest of the race, winning by 0:01:13, with Schurter in second place and Van der Poel, who broke away from the chase group in the fifth lap, in third place.
“This win means a lot,” Kerschbaumer told cyclingnews.com. “One week ago I was second behind Nino and today … it was amazing. The altitude I like a lot … I spent two months at home at altitude and it worked. In the downhills, Nino was stronger than me, but in the long climbs I think I was a little bit better, and I attacked there.”
Valentina Höll racked up another victory, with SRAM Young Guns Racing’s Paula Zibasa joining her on the Junior Women’s podium in fourth place. Kye A’Hern of Canyon Factory Downhill Team made the Junior Men’s podium, taking third place.
Maxxis congratulates Loris Vergier and Gerhard Kerschbaumer on their milestone victories, and congratulates Valentina Holl on her latest win. The company thanks all of these riders for their fine performances.
