In Episode 9 of Season 2, the Diverge Podcast looks back on the stellar performances of Candice Lill, Tyler Jacobs, and Luke Moir in Round 1 of the UCI MTB World Series. The trio collected 5th, 6th, and 19th, respectively, in Araxá, Brazil. And will go again this weekend at the same venue. Back home, Marco Joubert and Hayley Preen were crowned the King and Queen of South African gravel racing in 2025 when they won the national titles in a muddy Karkloof.
The opening round of the UCI MTB World Series saw victories for Chris Blevins and Evie Richards in the short-track XCC on Saturday, and for Victor Koretzky and Samara Maxwell in Sunday’s cross country. The win was Maxwell’s first at elite level; while in the men’s race, Specialized Factory Racing swept the top 3 places as Blevins and Martin Vidaurre flanked Koretzky. The best placed South African for the weekend was Lill. She secured a front row start for the XCO with 7th in the XCC before racing for victory for 7 of the 8 laps.
Tyler Jacobs raced to an impressive 6th in the XCC and XCO events in her first outing for Liv Factory Racing. Photo by Liv Factory Racing.
Jacobs had an impressive first outing for Liv Factory Racing, notching up two 6th place finishes, in the XCC and then the XCO. Moir made his elite debut in Brazil and raced with the same aggression that has seen him collect stellar results in the South African early season. 17th in the XCC and 19th in the XCO sets him up well for a second shot at the Top 10 this coming weekend.
Once again, the U23 racing will be broadcast live on the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series YouTube channel and the Elite Women’s and Men’s races will be on SuperSport in South Africa. The XCC events will take place on Friday, 11 April, and the XCO on Saturday the 12th. You can view the full schedule below.
XCC: Friday 11 April 2025
- 11:15 Local Time | 16:15 South African Time: Women U23 (YouTube)
- 11:55 Local Time | 16:55 South African Time: Men U23 (YouTube)
- 13:00 Local Time | 18:00 South African Time: Women Elite (SuperSport 199)
- 13:40 Local Time | 18:40 South African Time: Men Elite (SuperSport 199)
XCO: Saturday 12 April 2025
- 9:00 Local Time | 14:00 South African Time: Women U23 (YouTube)
- 10:45 Local Time | 15:45 South African Time: Men U23 (YouTube)
- 12:45 Local Time | 17:45 South African Time: Women Elite (SuperSport 10)
- 14:45 Local Time | 19:45 South African Time: Men Elite (SuperSport 10)
Marco Joubert won the 2025 South African Gravel Championships ahead of Tristan Nortje (left) and Jaco van Dyk (right). Photo by Kevin Benkenstein.
Joubert and Preen’s South African gravel championships titles were won in wetter conditions than the Brazilian cross-country events were raced in. The mud did not stifle the racing action, though, as event director Kevin Benkenstein explained in his report from the race. Joubert was joined on the podium by his Imbuko ChemChamp teammate Tristan Nortje and Honeycomb 226ers’ Jaco van Dyk. Preen’s nearest rival on the day was Samantha Sanders, while Cherise Willeit fought off Sarah Hill to claim third.
Hayley Preen regained the SA title which she last won in 2022, after holding off Samantha Sanders (left) and Cherise Willeit (right). Photo by Kevin Benkenstein.
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