ENDURO GP OF WALES – REPORT

FORSITESERVICES ENDURO GP OF WALES

RHAYADER, POWYS

AUGUST 6 – 9 2026

Report: Chris CZORA

The hills of Rhayader were once again the venue for world championship motorcycle racing, as the ‘Forsiteservices Enduro GP of Wales’ delivered an action-packed mixture of exciting motorcycle competition, music and summer festival vibes over its four days.

This was the third consecutive Grand Prix to be held in mid-Wales, and was once again organised by members of the Rhayader Motor Club along with Saintswell Off-Road and a huge team of volunteers and staff from off-road motorcycle clubs based across Wales and further afield in the UK.

The competition saw over 120 of the world’s best enduro riders in action, from countries as far afield as New Zealand, Colombia, Mexico and the USA. The international stars were also joined by many of the UK’s top competitors, all cheered on by a huge crowd estimated at 20,000 for the weekend. Spectators were out in force to see the 2026 Enduro GP season draw to a close, and whilst the event favourite, Spaniard Josep Garcia had already wrapped up the title, plenty of class championships were yet to be concluded including a battle of the Brits as Steve Holcombe and Brad Freeman disputed the ‘E3’ world championship for larger machines over 250cc. Additional titles were also disputed in the Junior (under 23), Youth (18 & under), Women and Open (amateur) classes, with a non-championship ‘National’ enduro also taking place alongside the main event for domestic Expert level riders.

Riders would be treated to a challenging fifty mile route starting at Cwmythig Hill near St.Harmon, making a trip over to the Saintswell enduro venue near Bwlch-y-Sarnau before the return back to Cwmythig. The weekend enduro programme required riders to complete a total between five and six laps of the route dependent on race category, with each lap including of a number of timed off-road ‘special tests’, the combined times of which determined the results.   

Saintswell hosted the majority of the tests, with an ‘Enduro’ test comprised of a typical Welsh forestry and trail enduro setting, coupled with an ‘Extreme’ test, with riders facing a mixture of steep hills along with natural and man made obstacles to provide a tough, technical challenge. The riders had to be back on the throttle however as the nearby Saintswell ‘Grass’ test was a flat out blast across a grassland field circuit, with raw speed and smooth throttle control being the key to a fast time. Whilst acting as the event start and finish, Cwmythig Hill also hosted the ‘Cross’ test, a mixture of technical obstacles, a lap of the hillside motocross track, with a fearsome quarry section incorporating a near-vertical cliff section just before the finish.  

The festivities got underway as early as Thursday evening, with the traditional riders’ parade being held in Rhayader town centre. The market town streets were packed out with race fans and townsfolk, who were treated to cavalcade of noise and colour as the competitors paraded their machines through the town.

Formalities got underway 24 hours later on Friday evening, as the ‘Super Test’ kicked off the competition at Cwmythig Hill, ahead of the main weekend programme. The venue was packed out as riders competed both head-to-head and against the clock on a demanding man-made obstacle course consisting of rock beds, concrete sleepers, large tyres and telegraph poles, combined with a rock-strewn track surface. With spectators cheering and sounding their air horns, the riders put on a spectacular show for the packed crowd, with French rider Zac Pichon eventually taking the win from Garcia and crowd favourite Billy Bolt in third.

The main enduro itself started from 9am on Saturday morning, with competitors spending a full day in the saddle. Much of the talk was about the hot, sunny conditions, and whilst a Welsh enduro normally can expect some bogs and mud, this was the total opposite, with many of the riders and crowds remarking that the dusty surface, scorched grass and hot weather made the event more reminiscent of a Grand Prix enduro in Spain or Italy.

Highlights of the day included Josep Garcia taking the victory by 34 seconds from Pichon, with Nathan Watson the best British rider in third, just ahead of Steve Holcombe, who took a vital E3 class victory to put one hand on the championship trophy. Local star Alex Walton, in almost his backyard finished a credible 21^st, taking 7^th in the E3 category.

There was British success in the Womens’ class, as Rosie Rowett took the victory ahead of her team-mate on the Rieju factory team, world champion Rachel Gutish of the USA, whilst another Brit Nieve Holmes took the third podium step on her locally backed ET James Sherco machine. Elizabeth Tett was seventh overall, and lead rider in the Enduro Youth category, backing up a strong display in Friday’s super test where she had been the top overall Womens’ rider.

The Youth category saw Welsh pride upholded by up and coming enduro star Rees Jones on his PAR Homes backed KTM, amongst a predominantly French, Italian and Spanish line up of young riders he finished a credible eighth.

As Saturday’s action drew to a close, spectators reconvened at Cwmythig Hill as the attention turned away from the track and to the ‘Country on the Hill’ music gig taking place on the site’s main stage. Many of the late Saturday afternoon spectators at Cwmythig were country music fans who had attended for the gig, with more than a few spectators sporting cowboy boots and stetsons. As the sun settled amongst the rolling hills, music and race fans alike enjoyed an evening of country, with the headline act being the ‘Luke Combs UK’ tribute act. Being endorsed by Luke Combs himself, the headliner attracted quite a following, as the event village was packed out into the late evening.

Image from Luke Combs UK

The good natured revelry gave way to a warm night, and spectators, officials and riders were greeted by a beautiful Welsh Sunday sunrise as the final day of competition got underway. Josep Garcia was the rider to beat once again, the fast spectacular riding style of the Red Bull KTM rider means he is equally as popular with the British crowd as the home riders, and despite not always setting the fastest time on all the stages, he rarely made a mistake, and stayed consistent to take the overall victory from his team-mate Andrea Verona, the Italian star recovering after a difficult Saturday to finish second overall from Zac Pichon, and with it, clinching the world title in the ‘E2’ category. Nathan Watson was again the top Brit in fourth, with Brad Freeman finishing sixth, and also taking the ‘E3’ victory. This put pressure on his title rival Steve Holcombe, who needed a minimum of fifth in class to secure the title. A fall in the ‘Extreme’ test had hampered his progress but he kept his cool to finish eleventh overall, fourth in class giving him the title.

There was bad news for the local star Alex Walton as injury forced him to withdraw from the event, however his rival Jack Edmonsdon, the 2026 Welsh Two Day Enduro and Sprint Enduro champion had a much better day as he took seventeenth, and fifth in the ‘E1’ (under 250cc) class on his PAR Homes KTM.     

Over in the Womens’ class, Rachel Gutish was able to fight back and round off her championship winning campaign by taking the win ahead of the two Brits Rachel Rowett and Nieve Holmes. Elizabeth Tett’s good weekend was curtailed with an injury on Sunday that forced her retirement, but she still finished third in the Womens’ Youth championship, Lorna Lafont of France taking the overall honours and the title.

Rees Jones continued his good weekend in the Youth category as he took ninth position, just ahead of a notable British name, Fraiser Lampkin who continues the famous Lampkin motorcycling dynasty. Fastest Youth rider on Friday’s super test, he was backed over the weekend by his famous father Dougie Lampkin MBE, the former multiple world trials champion a notable face in the crowd as he supported his son. Reece Jones, a Welsh rider who is an enduro rookie following a stellar youth motocross career rounded off a difficult weekend, where he was not classified on Saturday, by taking fifteenth on Sunday ahead of Joshua Lawer and Charlie Crossland.

The National enduro was won by Wrexham’s Harry Houghton, the winner of last year’s season opening Jack Frost Enduro at Saintswell. In rather different temperatures to his previous success, he won on both days. A rather notable name in the category was the World Supersport road rider and Triumph factory team member Tom Booth-Amos, who traded his supersport bike for a Triumph enduro machine, and on a rather different course to his usual settings, recorded some decent midfield finishes on his busman’s holiday.   

With podium ceremonies completed, Cwmythig saw an array of post-event action on Sunday night as the FIM hosted the end of season awards ceremony at the venue. Both the president of the Auto Cycle Union Tim Lightfoot, and the international FIM president Jorge Viegas were in attendance, each choosing to miss the British MotoGP Grand Prix at Silverstone to instead attend the Welsh extravaganza. Many race fans joined the Grand Prix staff and volunteers for a post-event afterparty late into the night to close the weekend. For those working at the enduro, the festivities had an especially satisfying feel as the Enduro GP promoters awarded them a ‘Best Ever Event’ award, in recognition to the huge scale and excellent organisation over the weekend.

For Andrew James, head of the Rhayader Motor Club, this was a proud moment to saviour. “We’ve been honoured to bring international motorcycle racing to Wales over the past three years, and showcase the best of Welsh enduro to the world. This was our third Grand Prix event, and as an organising group we were determined to make this one the biggest and best yet. The crowds, weather, racing and the evening festivities have all been superb, the atmosphere was fantastic and we’re all over the moon about it. The award from Enduro GP is a true reflection of the months of hard work club members, volunteers and enthusiasts have put into the event, and whilst they’re too numerous to thank individually, my deepest gratitude goes to everyone who’s played a part in organising this event over the past three years.” The Enduro Grand Prix of Wales goes out on a high, as following a successful three years, organisers have opted to take a well-deserved break for 2027. Whilst talk of a 2028 return was not confirmed, there is hope that after a period of rest, the world’s best will again return to Rhayader in the future.