Jarvis makes Gold Class history while Lettenbichler claims seventh Romaniacs crown
The 2026 Red Bull Romaniacs will be remembered for more than just another victory by Manuel “Mani” Lettenbichler. The German claimed his seventh overall Romaniacs title, matching the record set by hard enduro legend Graham Jarvis.
But this year’s edition also marked another milestone, with Jarvis becoming the first rider ever to finish the event’s Gold Class aboard an electric motorcycle.
Competing on the electric JARV-E machine, Jarvis completed one of the toughest hard enduro races in the world against a field dominated by conventional two-stroke and four-stroke enduro bikes. While he was no longer fighting for the overall win, simply reaching the finish in the premier Gold Class was enough to make history and show that electric motorcycles are becoming increasingly capable in the sport’s toughest events.
We caught up with Jarvis after the race to ask what it was like finishing what many Filipinos would simply call an “e-bike” in one of the world’s most demanding hard enduro competitions, and how it compared with the two-stroke machines that carried him to seven Romaniacs victories.
“Hey, very good. We learnt so much and the bike is great... It’s so much more fun [and] easier all around,” Jarvis told MotoPinas.
That naturally led to another question. If gasoline-powered bikes have to stop and refuel during the race, how often did he have to swap batteries?
His answer was surprisingly simple.
“Same as combustion bikes.”
According Red Bull Romaniacs, service and fuel stops are generally spaced about every 70 kilometers. With Gold Class stages ranging from around 140 to as much as 180 kilometers, riders typically stop once or twice each day. In Jarvis’ case, those scheduled stops meant swapping depleted batteries for fresh ones instead of filling a fuel tank.
The Briton remains one of the biggest names in hard enduro, having won Red Bull Romaniacs seven times between 2008 and 2022. This year, rather than chasing an eighth title, he set out to prove that an electric motorcycle could survive one of the sport’s toughest tests.
Meanwhile, Lettenbichler once again showed why he is the rider to beat in modern hard enduro. The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing star controlled the race through the demanding off-road stages before securing his seventh Romaniacs victory, drawing level with Jarvis as the event’s most successful rider.
This year’s Romaniacs also showed how quickly the sport is changing. Alongside Lettenbichler’s record-tying triumph, the Adventure Ultimate class continued to attract larger production-based adventure bikes, with CFMOTO’s Mario Roman crowned as champion. Jarvis’ historic finish also showed that electric motorcycles are no longer just experimental machines. They are becoming genuine contenders in one of off-road racing’s toughest arenas.
