Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler has won the 2024 Red Bull TKO. In what turned out to be a closely fought battle between Lettenbichler and his teammate, FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Trystan Hart, the young German ultimately claimed victory by just five seconds over the Canadian.
Red Bull TKO is held in Sequatchie, Tennessee, and celebrated its 14th edition in 2024, making it one of North America’s longest running hard enduros. Following a short qualifying heat on Saturday to decide the start order for the first of Sunday’s three knockout rounds, it was Mani who posted the fastest time, securing pole position for race day.
When the event last featured on the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship calendar, back in 2022, it was Hart that took the win ahead of Lettenbichler. This year, Mani was fully focused on reversing that result and taking his fourth victory of the season. Action started on Sunday with Knockout Race #1, held over the event’s long course. The top 30 riders would then progress to Knockout Race #2. Lettenbichler, riding smoothly over the technical terrain posted the quickest time. Hart completed the race in third, just 14 seconds behind.
The second race saw competitors split into five rows, with the top four in each row qualifying for the final. Both Mani and Trystan went fastest in each of their respective rows, setting up what would turn out to be an intense Final Knockout.
Held for 35 minutes plus one lap over the short course, the Final Knockout challenged riders with a mix of rocky riverbeds and daunting climbs. And with temperatures reaching 35 degrees, both skill and stamina were required to excel. Just five minutes into the action, it was clear it would be a hard-fought battle for the win between Lettenbichler and Hart, with the two KTM stars soon opening up a sizeable gap on the rest of the field.
Swapping the lead as the race progressed, the two riders were often wheel to wheel over some of the most challenging obstacles. Going into the final lap, Mani moved in front with a narrow five-second advantage over Trystan, and despite the best efforts of the Canadian, he couldn’t overcome his teammate. After close to 50 minutes of grueling hard enduro racing, Mani took the Final Knockout win by a mere five seconds, and with it, the 2024 Red Bull TKO crown.
In taking victory, Lettenbichler extends his lead at the top of the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship to nine points, with two rounds left to race. Next up is a new event for the FIM Hard Enduro calendar – Sea to Sky in Turkey on 10-12 October.
Manuel Lettenbichler: “It’s been an incredible battle here at Red Bull TKO. Trystan has been riding so well and he really pushed me today. I haven’t been feeling too good here – I got a little bit sick last week and I’ve been struggling to find my speed, especially in such an intense race and in the heat here in Tennessee. I had some good lines, and I was able to pass Trystan on the hill, so that set me up well. Other than that, I just tried to save some energy, but at the end, I was exhausted. I’m stoked to take another TKO win and happy that we have a reasonably chilled September now. My plan is to get a little rest before starting to get some training in for Sea to Sky.”
Trystan Hart: “It was never going to be easy, but the race win was my goal here today, so I’m a little disappointed to come so close. Mani is such a good rider and to beat him, you’ve got to be on point. I was just a little bit off all day – I didn’t win the first race, and every year I’ve won here, I’ve won that first race. In the main event, I did almost everything perfect – I got the holeshot, held the lead, got it back when Mani passed me. We both made mistakes on the hills, they were really tricky, but I was the last one to make a mistake there and Mani got passed me. I tried everything but by that point, I had zero energy. I’m happy to finish second, of course, and I know I gave it my all, it’s just tough to miss out by such a small margin. I’ll be back next year to take that top step again.”
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