Ashton and Mitch Brightmore, Valentino Hutter, and Dieter Rudolf competed in the 12th edition of the event in Croatia.
The prologue on Saturday already determined the starting positions for Sunday’s main race. The youngest team member still struggled a bit with adapting to the more powerful bike. Although Vale was not satisfied with his performance, he still finished the prologue in 8th place.
For Dieter, things went much better. He quickly found his rhythm and pushed hard. He was able to pass his teammate who had started ahead of him, clearly enjoyed the ride, and finished 2nd in the prologue.
The Brightmore brothers used Saturday’s run to get familiar with navigation, the bike, and the terrain. Ashton started the race first, which made it challenging to find the correct route. After being caught and giving up the lead, he was able to follow the other riders closely. Finishing 4th still meant a strong starting position for the race.
The older brother, Mitch, reported feeling comfortable on his GASGAS and finished 3rd after several exciting battles.
Vale was more content after Sunday’s race. He found a good rhythm and was able to push. However, the fact that the young rider from Styria rode almost the entire three-hour race alone left him uncertain. Not knowing whether his pace was competitive, he was ultimately surprised by his strong result. After a consistent ride without major incidents, he secured an encouraging 8th place.
Ashton caught up quickly with the riders who had started before him. Intense battles for position developed, which the young Brit clearly enjoyed. He played it safe and used the service stop to refuel. This cost him some time, but he quickly regained the ground he had lost. The GASGAS rider took the lead and held it until the finish line. Ashton thus earned the first victory of 2025 for the X-GRIP Racing Team.
Mitch and Dieter were also part of the leading group early in the race and delivered strong performances. When Dieter decided not to stop for fuel in hopes of winning, Mitch also continued without stopping. But on race day, no one could match Ashton’s pace. Mitch and Dieter also had issues with navigation, and the hope for victory faded.
The Austrian/British duo fought for second place until the very end. The experienced Austrian rider held on and secured second place, celebrating an X-GRIP Racing Team podium sweep with his teammates. Mitch, the older Brightmore brother, missed out by just 5 seconds but was very satisfied with his performance.
This strong result at LIKA 2025 in Croatia highlights the great atmosphere and teamwork within the X-GRIP Racing Team and the excellent coordination with their bikes.
Next week, the action continues in the homeland of the Brightmore brothers with the infamous Valleys Extreme Hard Enduro. For two days, the hard enduro elite will compete across the steep slopes and forests of the Welsh valleys for top positions.
