The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports confirm that seven wildcard teams have been selected for the first two Endurance rounds of the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, which will take place in Araxá – Minas Gerais (Brazil) from 3 to 6 April (Round 1) and from 10 to 12 April (Round 2).
Source: press release
Three of the spots go to Brazilian teams Caloi Henrique Avancini Racing, Specialized Racing BR and Soul Extreme Racing Team, while the other four are filled by promising, development-focused European UCI MTB teams that have a wealth of emerging talent at their disposal.
With just one week separating the opening two rounds of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Araxá – Minas Gerais, the seven teams have received wildcard entries for both rounds and will join the 20 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series Endurance teams on the start line in Brazil.
Of the three local teams selected, the most well-known outside of Brazil is Caloi Henrique Avancini Racing. The three-rider team is managed by Brazilian legend and two-time UCI World Champion Cross-country Marathon Henrique Avancini, who recently announced that he will come out of retirement to try the road.
Specialized Racing BR will have athletes represented in all racing categories (Elite, Under 23), while the new Soul Extreme Racing team includes the multiple Brazilian Olympic national champion cross-country (XCO), Karen Fernandes Olimpio.
Elsewhere, the U23-focused Lexware Mountain Bike Team has a squad that includes Elina Benoit, a Swiss rider who recorded multiple top-10 finishes in U23 races last season; Trinity Racing, the British development squad responsible for Haley Batten and Christopher Blevins, features new addition Line Burquier (UCI Junior XCO World Champion in 2021, then crowned UCI U23 World Champion the following year); while UCI World Cup regulars Maximilian Foidl (KTM Factory MTB Team) and Yana Belomoina (Massi) will look to use their years of experience to seize their wildcard opportunity in Brazil when the race gets underway April 3-6.
The seven wildcard teams for rounds 1 and 2 of the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Araxá Minas -Gerais are:
- Caloi Henrique Avancini Racing
- Specialized Racing BR
- Soul Extreme Racing Team
- Lexware Mountainbike Team
- Trinity Racing
- KTM Factory MTB Team
- boulders
For more information on the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, visit www.ucimtbworldseries.com
