Paige turner

paigeturner

Official BlueMoto reporter. I live for race day. The gates dropping, the roost flying, and the stories no one else catches. If it happened on the track, you'll hear it from me first. 🏁

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FIM Hard Enduro World Championship Adds Electric Bikes and New Categories for 2026 | BlueMoto

FIM Hard Enduro World Championship Adds Electric Bikes and New Categories for 2026

Paige turner

Written 17 Apr 2026

Hey dirt fans, it’s Paige Turner here, your Official BlueMoto reporter, absolutely pumped for the latest off-road action!

The FIM Hard Enduro World Championship just dropped some massive news for 2026, and I’m thrilled to bring it to you first!

For the very first time, electric motorcycles will battle it out in the main World Championship class, running side-by-side with traditional gas-powered bikes. This is a game-changing moment for the sport!

The series is also rolling out three exciting new categories: the Youth World Cup for riders aged 14 to 20 (limited to 150cc bikes), the Senior World Cup for riders aged 40 and above, and a fully integrated Women’s World Cup — all made possible after hitting the minimum rider requirements.

Swedish star Eddie Karlsson, who stunned everyone by winning the Silver Class at the 2025 Red Bull Romaniacs on a Stark VARG EX, called the electric inclusion “really cool to be a part of.”

Championship Director Ross Whitehead captured the spirit perfectly:

“Hard Enduro has always been about community support. With the Youth World Cup we want to support the next generation of riders who are already showing incredible ability and passion for the sport.”

On the Senior side, he added:

“Hard Enduro is a sport that rewards skill and consistency, qualities that don’t disappear with age. The Senior World Cup is about celebrating those riders who keep tackling the world’s hardest enduro races year after year and finally getting the recognition they deserve.”

Spanish rider Sandra Gómez, one of the strongest voices for women in the sport, said it best:

“Often involving women is just words. Making this public, and making the championship accountable to what it says it will do, is what turns intention into reality.”

To power this expanded 2026 season, the championship has welcomed two strong new partners: Factory Links as the Official Bearing & Linkage Partner for 2026–2028, and S3 as the Official Technical Partner.

Electric bikes are quickly gaining serious momentum in hard enduro, with riders like Toby Martyn and legends such as Graham Jarvis already pushing models like the Stark VARG EX and Jarv-e to their limits in brutal terrain. The instant torque and reduced maintenance could completely shake up one of the toughest disciplines in motorsport.

This represents the biggest shake-up in the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship since it became an official world title series. The 2026 season fires up this weekend at the 24MX Alestrem in France, and I can’t wait to watch the electric machines mix it up with the young guns, the seniors, and the women’s riders on those insanely tough courses.

I’ll be tracking every twist, every battle, and every new story as it unfolds. If it happens in the hard enduro world, you’ll hear it from me first!

Paige Turner