Rónán Dunne takes the downhill MTB crown in the jungle at Red Bull Hardline Tasmania. Full results and analysis
The inaugural Red Bull Hardline Tasmania hit the jungle slopes of the Maydena Bike Park in Tasmania, Australia over the weekend. Some of the world's best downhill mountain bike riders battled it out for Hardline glory in the brand new downhill MTB event.
Hardline Tasmania not only kicked off the Red Bull Hardline tenth anniversary year and celebrations in style, but also saw Hardline tick off a couple of huge milestones for the Hardline story. Firstly, the new event saw Hardline take its first steps away from its traditional home in the Dyfi Valley, Wales and expand into a mini-series. It also saw female competitors make it to the finals for the first ever time. As the ladies showed they have what it takes to take on the challenge of the toughest downhill MTB event on the planet.
However, it would be Rónán Dunne who would take the glory in Tasmania. Cheered home by a massive crowd of 5,000 spectators, Irishman Dunne set an unbeatable time of 3:08.145, on the course that dropped 600m in just 2.3km. The incredibly fast jungle track also featured huge jumps with the largest being a massive 23m gap. There was a host of other technical features including gnarly rock gardens and 10m plus free fall drop.
The podium would be made up of three-time Hardline winner Bernard Kerr who took second spot in a time of 3:10.021. Kerr was the last man down the mountain as the top qualifier, but couldn't quite match the blistering run laid down by Dunne. The podium was rounded out by New Zealander George Brannigan in a time of 3:11.021.
Elsewhere, Red Bull Hardline (Wales) winner and pre-race favorite – Jackson Goldstone – started his run looking fast but crashed out in a high-speed spill that the young Canadian star described as one of the biggest crashes of his life. He damaged his left leg as he tangled with, but thankfully mostly missed, an unpadded tree. Jackson is now heading home for some recovery, and hopefully we will see him at Fort William for the first round of the UCI Downhill World Cup in April.
The women would take most of the headlines for their history-making achievements over the weekend. In particular, wildcard entry Gracey Hemstreet and Louise-Anna Ferguson who became the first-ever female riders to compete in the Red Bull Hardline Final. Gracey Hemstreet set the fastest time in the Women's field with a time of 3:56.586 and also took the Rider of the Week award. Tahnee Seagrave, Harriet Burbidge-Smith, Hannah Bergemann and Cami Nogueira failed to qualify for the Final.
Red Bull Hardline Tasmania is available for viewing on Red Bull TV now. Red Bull Hardline (Wales) takes place over the first weekend of June this year, with all the event information including ticket info available at Redbull.com.
Red Bull Hardline Tasmania full results
Rónán Dunne, IRL, 3:08.145
Bernard Kerr, GBR, 3:10.021
George Brannigan, NZL, 3:11.021
Matteo Ingiuez, FRA, 3:13.047
Connor Fearon, AUS, 3:13.469
Laurie Greenland, GBR, 3:14.177
Sam Gale, NZL, 3:14.700
Sam Blenkinsop, NZL, 3:14.721
Theo Erlangsen, RSA, 3:15.807
Gaeton Vige, FRA, 3:15.844
Brook MacDonald, NZL, 3:16.607
Baxter Maiwald, AUS, 3:18.072
Adam Brayton, GBR, 3:18.508
Thibault Laly, FRA, 3:18.727
Kaos Seagrave, GBR, 3:20.832
Vincent Tupin, FRA, 3:21.447
Jim Monro, GBR, 3:22.525
Dennis Luffman, GBR, 3:25.487
Johny Salido, MEX, 3:36.340
Remy Morton, AUS, 3:45.607
Matt Jones, GBR, 3:54.107
Gracey Hemstreet, CAN, 3:56.586
Reed Boggs, USA, 3:59.562
Thoomas Genon, BEL, 4:19.916
Louise-Anna Ferguson, GBR, 5:08.412
Dan Booker, AUS, DNF
Jackson Goldstone, CAN, DNF