The Ultimate Guide to the 2023 Racing Season

Mar 17, 2023 at 9:30
by Ed Spratt  

As we head into the 2023 race season with new team signings and a refresh of World Cup racing, let's take a look at what to expect over the next twelve months and some events to watch out for. We will keep this article updated with any news, rescheduling and cancellations.


March



March kick starts the international race season with heavy hitters such as Crankworx Rotorua, Cape Epic and the opening two rounds of the new Enduro World Cup. The month also ends with the final round of Red Bull's new urban DH series with the racing coming to a close in Mexico.

Crankworx Rotorua

18-26
Rotorua, New Zealand

Tennessee National - Enduro

18-19
Windrock Bike Park, USA


Swiss Bike Cup

18-19
Gränichen, Switzerland

Cape Epic

19-26
Cape Town, South Africa


Taipei Cycle Show

22-25
Taipei, Taiwan

French Cup XC

24-26
Marseille, France


Red Bull Guanajuato Cerro Abajo

25
Guanajuato, Mexico

EDR World Cup

25-26
Maydena, Australia


Tennessee National Downhill

26
Windrock Bike Park, USA

EDR World Cup

31-1 April
Derby, Australia




April


2022 Sea Otter Classic Expo

While there are no big international races in April expect some of the big names to start prepping for the start of the XC and DH World Cups as we see some big national series in Europe start up for the year. Alongside national events, April also sees the Oceania continental championships, Masters World Championships and the industry gets together for Sea Otter Classic.

Brioude DH Cup

1-2
Brioude, France

iXS European Downhill Cup

14-16
Losinj, Croatia


DHSE Rock Creek

14-16
Zirconia, USA

UK National DH Series

15-16
Rheola, UK


Oceania Continental Championships

15-16
Towoomba, Australia

Swiss Bike Cup

15-16
Schaan, Switzerland


Masters World Championships

19-23
Cerro Bayo, Argentina

Sea Otter Classic

20-23
Monterey, USA


French National EDR Championships

22-23
Levens, France

French Cup XC

28-30
Guéret, France




May


Eventual winner Jolanda Neff happy to sit back in the pack.

The XC World Cup final kicks off in May with the opening round in Nove Mesto. This month also sees the Crankworx World Tour arrive at its second stop of 2023 as it returns to Cairns.

DHSE Windrock Bike Park

5-7
Oliver Springs, USA

4X Pro Tour Rd1

6
Szczawno Zdroj, Poland


UK National DH Series

6-7
Fort William, UK

XC World Cup

11-14
Nove Mesto Na Morave, Czech Republic


Austrian National DH Championships

13-14
Windischgarsten, Austria

French Cup DH

14
La Grand-Combe, France


Crankworx Cairns

17-21
Cairns, Australia

iXS Dirt Masters

19-21
Winterberg, Germany


Swiss Bike Cup

19-21
Lugano, Switzerland

4X Pro Tour Rd2.

20
Winterberg, Germany


French Cup XC

26-28
Lons le Saunier, France

DHSE Mountain Creek Bike Park

26-28
Vernon, USA




June


TITLE

After a very long winter, the DH World Cup finally gets into gear in June with the season opener at Lenzerheide. Followed by two more rounds in Leogang and Val di Sole. The EDR and XC World Cup season also continue with a packed month of top-level racing. But there is more as June also houses European continental championships, Crankworx Innsbruck and Eurobike.

Swiss National XC/XCC Championships

2-4
Crans Montana, Switzerland

EDR World Cup

2-4
Finale Outdoor Region, Italy


XC Marathon World Cup

2-4
Finale Outdoor Region, Italy

4X Pro Tour Rd3.

3
Dobřany, Czech Republic


XC World Cup

8-11
Lenzerheide, Switzerland

DH World Cup

8-11
Lenzerheide, Switzerland


DHSE Snowshoe Mountain

9-11
Snowshoe, USA

European XC Marathon Continental Championships

11
Laissac-Aveyron, France


XC World Cup

15-18
lLeogang, Austria

DH World Cup

15-18
lLeogang, Austria


EDR World Cup

15-18
lLeogang, Austria

Eurobike

21-25
Frankfurt, Germany


Crankworx Innsbruck

21-25
Innsbruck, Austria

Swiss Bike Cup

24-25
Savognin, Switzerland


EDR World Cup

24-25
Val Di Fassa Trentino, Italy

French Cup DH

25
Les Carroz, France


European XC Continental Championships

25
Krakow, Poland

XC World Cup

29-2 July
Val di Sole Trentino, Italy


DH World Cup

29-2 July
Val di Sole Trentino, Italy

4X Pro Tour Rd4.

30
Val Di Sole, Italy




July


Hupert spent the most time in the dish doing 1.5 laps before bar spinning out

July is another busy month with plenty of big national races alongside the return of Red Bull Hardline before Crankworx Whistler closes out the month ahead of Augusts World Championships.

BC Bike Race

3-9
British Columbia, Canada

Megavalanche Alpe d'Huez

3-9
Alpe d’Huez, France


French National DH Championships

5-8
Les Arcs, France

American National XC/XCC Championships

5-9
Macungie, USA


French Cup XC

7-9
Puy-Sant-Vincent, France

UK National DH Series

8-9
Llangollen, UK


USA DH/EDR National Championships

12-16
Rock Creek, USA

French National XC/XCC Championships

13-16
Jeumont, France


iXS European Downhill Cup

14-16
Semmering, Austria

4X Pro Tour Rd5.

15
Jablonec, Czech Republic


Canadian National DH Championships

15-16
Fernie, Canada

Red Bull Hardline

15-16
Dyfi, UK


Ard Rock

21-22
Yorkshire Dales National Park, UK

Canadian National XC/XCC Championships

22-23
Kentville, Canda


British National DH Championships

22-23
Rhyd-y-Felin, UK

British National XC/XCC Championships

22-23
Tong, UK


Crankworx Whistler

21-30
Whistler, Canada

Canadian National EDR Championships

30
Whistler, Canada




August


Pinkbike Racing s very own Aimi Kenyon took home her first podium on home soil.

August may be light on races but the first few weeks will be packed as we get the XC, XCC, XCM and DH World Championships in Scotland. Following the battles for the rainbow jersey the month closes out with the continuation fo the World Cup season in Andorra.

DH World Championships

3-5
Fort William, UK

XC Marathon World Championships

6
Peebles, UK


XC World Championships

8-12
Peebles, UK

French Cup DH

12-13
Chatel, France


Swiss Epic

15-19
Lenzerheide/St Moritz/Davos, Switzerland

DHSE Massanutten Resort

18-20
McGaheysville, USA


UK National DH Series

19-20
Glencoe, UK

Swiss Bike Cup

19-20
Basel, Switzerland


French Cup XC & DH

19-20
Les Menuires, France

XC World Cup

24-27
Pal Arinsal, Andorra


DH World Cup

24-27
Pal Arinsal, Andorra

Malverns Classic

24-27
Malvern, UK




September


Jesse Melamed would ave liked a bit more tech to showcase his skills but would still manage a respectable 8th on the fast and open slopes in Loudenvielle

September is another stacked month with back-to-back World Cups across XC, DH and EDR. Following this XC racers will get a taste of next year's Paris Olympic course before the World Cup series heads across the pond to the penultimate round in Snowshoe.

DH World Cup

1-3
Loudenvielle, France

EDR World Cup

1-3
Loudenvielle, France


XC World Cup

7-17
Les Portes Du Soleil, France

XC Marathon World Cup

7-17
Les Portes Du Soleil, France


DH World Cup

7-17
Les Portes Du Soleil, France

EDR World Cup

7-17
Les Portes Du Soleil, France


iXS European Downhill Cup

15-17
Verbier, Switzerland

US Open

21-24
Killington, USA


UK National DH Series

23-24
Antur Stiniog, UK

Paris Olympics Test Event

23-24
Paris, France


Sea Otter Europe

23-25
Girona, Spain

iXS International Rookie Championships

24
Schladming, Austria


XC World Cup

27-1 October
Snowshoe, USA

XC Marathon World Cup

27-1 October
Snowshoe, USA


DH World Cup

27-1 October
Snowshoe, USA




October


Eyes on the money. History is about to be made - no pedalling required.

In what will probably be carnage the World Cup XC and DH season close out 2023 at Mont-Sainte-Anne, holding this race in October is definitely going to be interesting if the weather doesn't;t play fair. October will also see Red Bull Rampage return.

XC World Cup

5-8
Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada

DH World Cup

5-8
Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada


Australian National EDR Championships

14-15
Red Hill, Australia

Red Bull Rampage

TBC
Utah, USA




November


During early practice most session together and bounce off each other s learnings.

November is a lonely month as currently there is only the Pump Track World Championships in Argentina.

Pump Track World Championships

18
Neuquen, Argentina





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52 Comments

  • 97 0
 Can PB write an article on HOW to watch MTB this year? As in, what subscriptions are needed or if it's free, links, & etc. TIA
  • 121 1
 I’m working on just that at the moment. Hopefully we should have it ready soon.
  • 13 3
 This is all that matters for this article.
  • 20 0
 It’s shocking to me that no broadcast schedules have even been published yet with the Enduro season opener in less than 10 days. I’ve been checking the GCN+ app almost daily to see if any mountain bike races have been added…absolutely nothing. And yet, UCI publishes a video today on YouTube about “Ones to watch” this season…
  • 5 0
 @edspratt: thanks!!
  • 2 0
 @jvm226: help.globalcyclingnetwork.com/hc/en-gb/articles/13642680168849-How-can-I-watch-the-2023-UCI-Mountain-Bike-World-Cup-on-GCN
  • 1 0
 @bgoldstone: thank you!
  • 2 1
 @jvm226: Agree - no announcements, no trailers, nothing at all. Nothing on GMBN.......
  • 5 0
 @Starch-Anton: keep in mind that when it comes to dh the new crew as next to no footage to use. I’m assuming that Red Bull has all the rights. Part of the test event in April is probably to get footage of riders in current setups.
  • 2 0
 @bgoldstone: I wasn't talking solely about DH....we haven't seen anything about XC, and that starts before DH.
Plenty of sports change coverage, I don't think that should be an issue.

It's a new era for MTB racing - yet you wouldn't know.....

The sport struggles for sponsors, and coverage, being invisible.....
  • 7 0
 @jvm226: Absolutely agree. All the hype about how the new contract was going to usher in some golden age and all we get is “subscribe to GCN+” while their site is a maze of “highlights only, live only, etc” available in your country … maybe, scroll through the lists and see tons of road and cross stuff… And we are supposed to believe this is an improvement? You would think the new broadcast company would have a clean clear site with the races, dates, and a simple CLICK TO WATCH style like RedBull Tv did. Someone below mentioned “this is the year mob began to die” (sic) and I agree. I didn’t miss a UCI mtb race in the last 5 years but this year I will be surprised to see one at all. Disappointing. Oh well, I will enjoy Rob and Claudio on Crankworx coverage back on RedBull.
  • 5 0
 @Starch-Anton: agreed. In an age of hype and hyperbole, these people have totally failed to deliver anything all. Epic fail for the new broadcast companies.
  • 5 0
 @edspratt: thanks for the work! What you are doing will be greatly appreciated! Just can’t wrap my head around why the new broadcast contract holders have been so woefully inept at putting together a streamlined compelling portal for the viewers. In the streaming age, the model is clear (you’d think they’d at least attempt to match RedBullTV as a starting point before boasting about their epic step up for the sport) so your input will help us all negotiate the most basic step of product point of sale. Amazing how they boast of what improvements they are bringing to our beloved sport when they can’t even clearly communicate how/when/where we can give them our money to see it.
  • 23 0
 I'm really, really worried.

I've been watching BattleBots for a few seasons on Discovery, and I'm catching up on the most recent season. The commercials are literally (not figuratively) longer than the actual broadcast. You'll come back from commercial break, get 5 min of content, then another 10 min commercial break. Its infuriating to try and watch. They hype up the next fight, but its at least 20 min of commercials away. Commercials in paid content at all is tough, but for this show its downright abuse.
  • 10 0
 Battlebots are sick
  • 2 0
 BattleBots...... easier to film than EWS.
  • 4 0
 S&!t. That does not sound good Frown
  • 7 0
 I know it would be a lot of research, but it would be rad if this article could be updated over time with links for how to watch events that can be watched (online of course).

I already love having this article, but we over here on the internet are lazy and can't be bothered to using google for more than 30s at a time Wink

Imagine if articles like this would be the jumping-off point for everyone to watch these events, it would be the most viewed article in mountain biking each season!
  • 7 0
 Why is DH Southeast the one random small regional series listed here? lol. You don't have the US Open DH but you have DH Southeast listed?...odd
  • 2 0
 Ya. Definitely odd but DHSE is a fun series to race in.
  • 3 0
 ESC has 13 enduro, 10 downhill, and 8 Ebike races in its series this year…..zero mention. “Ultimate Guide” ppppffttt!
  • 1 0
 Seems a bit odd, but it's probably due to the series coverage and recognition(?) of the top riders. They put out a decent 30-minute replay/recap the Monday after every race. Even though it's regional, over the course of the season, a casual fan may find it a little easier to follow than some of the national events.
  • 7 0
 July 12-16 USA National Championships for DH, Enduro, Dual Slalom: Rock Creek, Zirconia NC.
  • 2 0
 Thanks, I have added that to the list.
  • 3 0
 £6.99 per month in the UK, or £39.99 for the year (while offer lasts). If I pay monthly just for the months where there are DH races it'll cost just under £35.
I'll probably stump up for June and see how it goes. I'll begrudgingly pay to watch the racing if the coverage is worth it, but my gut feeling is I'll only be laying out for that 1st month.
  • 1 0
 Sounds like it's going to be cheaper in some shithole where a VPN will help
  • 2 0
 2023 Maxxis ESC presented by Kate’s Real Food Schedule

Maxxis ESC Intense Cycles DH Series
April 30 Powder Ridge, CT
June 18 Jiminy Peak, MA
June 25 Killington, VT
July 23 Sugarbush, VT
July 30 Mount Snow, VT
Aug 20 Sugarloaf, ME
Aug 27 Blue Mountain, PA
Sept 17 Thunder Mountain, MA
Oct 8 Powder Ridge, CT
Oct 15 Killington, VT Series Finals


Maxxis ESC Stan’s No Tubes ENDURO Series
May 21 Powder Ridge, CT
June 4 Glen Park, PA
June 18 Jiminy Peak, MA
June 25 Killington, VT
July 8 Arrowhead, NH – Outbound Night Enduro
July 23 Sugarbush, VT
Aug 6 Burke, VT
Aug 20 Sugarloaf, ME
Aug 27 Blue Mountain, PA
Sept 10 Arrowhead, NH
Sept 17 Thunder Mountain, MA
Oct 1 Woodstock, VT
Oct 29 Thunder Mountain, MA Series Finals


Maxxis ESC Oakley Showdown Series
June 18 Jiminy Peak, MA
June 25 Killington, VT
July 23 Sugarbush, VT
Aug 20 Sugarloaf, ME
Aug 27 Blue Mountain, PA
Sept 17 Thunder Mountain, MA Series Finals

Maxxis ESC Motorex EBike Enduro Series
May 21 Powder Ridge, CT
June 4 Glen Park, PA
July 8 Arrowhead, NH – Outbound Night Enduro
August 20 Sugarloaf, ME
Sept 10 Arrowhead, NH
Sept 17 Thunder Mountain, MA
Oct 1 Woodstock, VT
Oct 29 Thunder Mountain, MA Series Finals
  • 1 0
 Lol. Just a few races.

PB, What about:
West Virginia Enduro Series
East Coast Enduro Series
Go Nutz DH & Enduro Series
Bryce Mtb Park - DownDuro series
Windrock Race League
  • 1 0
 PB - You missed the USA Cycling National Championships in Zirconia, NC (Ride Rock Creek MTB Park) on July 12 - 16. Pretty big event over here in the states. The pro line, Stampede, is LEGIT!

Also, don’t forget to post the entire Maxxis Eastern States Cup racing series. They put on an awesome series in the U.S. northeast

Thanks!
  • 4 0
 So how do we watch the world cups on North America?
  • 5 0
 Pay a fuck load of money for Discovery subscription or something.
  • 23 1
 We’re all gonna share a login
  • 16 0
 Pay for GCN and get an VPN. Then you can watch the european broadcast and enjoy things like non dumb measurement units and the proper spelling of words like "colour" and "aluminium".
  • 2 0
 help.globalcyclingnetwork.com/hc/en-gb/articles/13642680168849-How-can-I-watch-the-2023-UCI-Mountain-Bike-World-Cup-on-GCN
  • 1 0
 @martinaasa: ... with your "Swedish miles" (which to be fair are still metric) Smile .
  • 1 0
 @martinaasa: I love me some ALOOMINEEUM
  • 5 1
 You need to add the US Open at Killington September 21-24.
  • 3 0
 That's on the list now, thanks!
  • 4 0
 National level series are posted for other countries. Why not Canada?
  • 3 0
 Canadian Nationals in Fernie this year. See you all there! I will be the old guy a minute (or more) slower than the pros.
  • 1 0
 Test Event DH for Warner Bros/Discovery/ESO at Lourdes, 21-22-23 April !
fullattack.cc/lourdes-accueillera-bien-le-test-event-de-la-coupe-du-monde-de-descente-2023
  • 2 0
 So ready to bustin' my Massanutten watching some DH in VA
  • 1 0
 Or just busting your wheels in their rock gardens.
  • 2 0
 April 1 - 2 Brioude DH Cup on the home soil of the Pierron brothers
  • 1 0
 I have added this to the list, the Brioude DH Cup is always a great one to watch.
  • 1 3
 Feels like this year is the first year in the history of mountain biking where it's not worth it to watch mountain bike racing, and you would be better off just going out to ride or do something with your family. Enduro has never been worth watching cause there's nothing to watch and I'm not going to pay to watch World Cup DH that has been watered down and compromised. Chris Ball is the entire reason and enduro will always only deserve hate. No major races on on the entire West coast is also unimpressive. This is the year professional mountain bike racing starts to die..
  • 1 0
 The Pinkbike Balance Bike World Championships 25-27th of August at the GT Bicycles Malverns Classic!
  • 1 0
 what about the us cup in temecula california
  • 2 1
 But which ones can I watch for free on free on my telly?
  • 2 0
 Dream team this year?
  • 1 0
 What's happening with the fantasy EWS (or whatever it's called now)?





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