Hard Enduro World Championship Calendar Bombshell from WERA – “we’re only racing six rounds”
World Hard Enduro riders group – WERA – say they’re not racing Lagares, The Roof, Sea to Sky and Forza Orza rounds in the 2026 Hard Enduro Word Championship stating HEWC promoters ignore their sporting and financial demands.
The World Enduro Riders Association (WERA) has issued a strong statement regarding the 2026 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship (HEWC) calendar.
On the grounds that HEWC series needs “a more sustainable and feasible schedule that respects the realities faced by professional riders, factory teams, manufacturers, and the broader enduro community”, the group, set up in the Hard Enduro World Championship during the 2025 season to address problems in the series from a rider’s perspective, has taken a strong stand against the series promoters, ProTouchGlobal.
We’re only doing six rounds…
WERA say that despite repeated efforts to collaborate with promoter and its championship director Ross Whitehead, and in the “absence of meaningful financial support from the promoter for travel expenses, logistics, and entry fees,” they will only race in a maximum of six HEWC rounds this season.
This comes on the back of the 2026 calendar announced with nine-rounds and having clarified new rules and classes for this season along with the FIM. You can read more on those here: New Hard Enduro World Championship and World Cup Classes for 2026
“We expressed our concerns multiple times before the calendar announcement”
“WERA has always been committed to fostering a collaborative environment for the growth of hard enduro,” said Alfredo Gomez, WERA President. “We expressed our concerns multiple times before the calendar announcement and remained open to working with the promoter to create a balanced season. Unfortunately, our input was not adequately addressed, forcing us to take this step to protect the sustainability of the sport.”
WERA riders say they have unanimously agreed to race only six HEWC rounds from the current calendar they will not attend due to “excessive logistical demands, costs, and scheduling conflicts”:
XL Lagares (Portugal): “one of Europe's most remote events” they say which poses significant logistical challenges, compounded by the prologue being held far from the main race site.
Roof of Africa (Lesotho): The event's location demands massive and expensive logistics, and it has been criticised as “the worst-organised race in recent seasons from a rider's perspective”.
Sea to Sky (Turkey): High logistics and registration costs make participation untenable, they say of this rider favourite event, further aggravated by the insufficient preparation time between this event and Hixpania.
Forza Orza (Sweden): directly clashes with the Tennessee Knock Out which is a key event for many professional riders – at least the Red Bull sponsored ones. WERA suggests rescheduling Forza Orza to avoid this conflict.
WERA riders say they will focus on Alestrem, Silver Kings, Abestone, Wild Woods Extreme, Hixpania, and Forza Orza if their date is adjusted to resolve the scheduling clash.
