Teodor Kabakchiev takes victory on Day 2 of Sea to Sky. The Bulgarian won the Forest Race in Kemer, Türkiye by 50 seconds from James Moore, with Mitch Brightmore third. Mario Román and Manuel Lettenbichler both finished with 10-minute penalties, which dropped them down the official classification. Round 7 of the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship is now set up for Saturday's Mountain Race.
Kabakchiev Takes Control After CP6
The Forest Race covered roughly 40 km with nine checkpoints. Kabakchiev won in 1:45:02, ahead of Moore (+0:50) and Mitch Brightmore (+1:43). The race was close all the way: the top six finished within 4:27.
Kabakchiev did not lead early. He was fourth at CP4, while Moore and Thomas Scales traded the fastest times through the opening checkpoints. Moore led at CP5 with Kabakchiev 24 seconds back. Kabakchiev then took the lead at CP6, 24 km in, and was fastest to every checkpoint from there to the finish. His margin over Moore grew from 2 seconds at CP6 to 50 seconds at the line. He set the fastest sector time on four of the ten sectors, three of them after CP6.
Penalties Reshape the Order
Ashton Brightmore was fourth, 2:54 behind the winner, and set the fastest times on two sectors: CP6–CP7 and the run from CP9 to the finish. David Cyprian was fifth and Graham Jarvis sixth. Dieter Rudolf, Alfredo Gómez, Toby Shaw and Luke John Walker completed the top ten.
Román and Lettenbichler were the biggest movers. On the road, Román was fourth and Lettenbichler fifth, 2:08 and 2:33 behind the winner. Each was given a 10-minute penalty, which put Román 14th (+12:08) and Lettenbichler 15th (+12:33) in the final classification. Lettenbichler still set the fastest time on the longest sector, the 7.1 km from CP4 to CP5, in 23:44. Scales, who was fastest on two early sectors, also took a 10-minute penalty and finished 19th.
A Course That Tests Everything
The loop headed north into the mountains. It dropped to about 270 m at km 17, then climbed to its highest point of 1,430 m at CP6. A course that big tests every part of the bike. The front runners rode Sherco (Kabakchiev), Beta (Moore), GASGAS (Mitch and Ashton Brightmore), KTM (Cyprian and Lettenbichler) and Husqvarna (Román). Plews Tyres, the exclusive HEWC tyre partner for 2026–2028, supports Moore and Román among others. Factory Links supplies bearing and seal kits and lists Sherco as an official supplier. S3 Parts makes hard enduro skid plates, footpegs and brake protectors.
What's Next: Mountain Race, Then Hixpania
The Mountain Race takes place on Saturday 10 October and closes the Sea to Sky weekend. Mitch Brightmore won Thursday's Beach Race and Kabakchiev won today's Forest Race, so the weekend is wide open. The championship then moves to northern Spain for the finale, the 24MX Hixpania Hard Enduro, on 23–25 October. Keep an eye on the HEWC standings for the points picture.