For the fourth iteration of Red Bull Imagination, it comes as no surprise the event took a different approach to competition this year. The early days of the week allowed these ten freeriders to take to the course, applying both practical and creative riding to prepare them for the main event.
Two teams captained by legendary riders Jeremy “Twitch” Stenberg and Robbie “Maddo” Maddison were set to take on a new format featuring five categories: Best Whip, Big Dawg, Creative Line, Speed and Style, and Team Line. Three judges will determine the winner of each category, culminating in an overall team win based on the most category wins.
Tyler Bereman, Patrick Evans, Kohl Denney and Tom Parsons on Team “Maddo” are Red Bull Imagination 2023 champions.
On Wednesday after two full days of riding, the draw had the riders split into their Teams and hand selected for various riding categories. The competition lineup was set as follows: Bereman, Patrick Evans, Kohl Denney and Tom Parsons on Team “Maddo” are Red Bull Imagination 2023 champions.
Team Maddo and category riders:
Creative Line – 2022 Red Bull Imagination rider Kohl Denney
Speed and Style, Best Whip – X Games Best Whip and Quarterpipe competitor Patrick Evans
Big Dawg, Best Whip – Leading freeride motocross rider and 13-time X Games medalist Tyler Bereman
Best Whip – Seven-time X Games medalist Tom Parsons
Team Jam – ALL riders
Team Twitch and category riders:
Creative Line – Four-time Red Bull Imagination rider Vicki Golden
Speed and Style – Two-time X Games medalist and AMA Supercross winner Josh Hill
Big Dawg, Best Whip – Third-place finisher from 2022 Red Bull Imagination Julien Vanstippen
Best Whip – X Games medalist and Spain’s leading freerider Guillem Navas Petit
Best Whip – 2022 Hill Jam ‘Best Whip’ winner Christian Dresser
Team Jam – ALL riders
Under blue skies and temperatures in the 80’s, the world’s largest manmade freeride course came to life. Below is a category overview and the respective winners.
Creative Line: Vicki Golden (Team Twitch)
Golden opened the competition with an impressive energy that equally matched her performance, featuring big whips and a Superman seat grab over the tree jump, setting the pace for the rest of the competition.
Denney followed suit, styling all over the course and leaving no feature untouched. He was riding lines that had not been hit throughout the week, including a new ramp (he built just the day before the competition) to take him atop the shipping container and into a new line.
Speed and Style: Patrick Evans (Team Maddo)
Josh Hill had the speed, but Patrick Evans had the style. Hill was faster but didn’t match Evans’ style, who secured a slight advantage with a big backflip in his run.
Big Dawg: Tyler Bereman (Team Maddo)
Vanstippen pulled off an absolute gauntlet out of the container chute: sending it twice over the 180-foot jump with an Indian Air and a Double Grab.
Bereman matched the pace and hit a huge jump in the center of the course for the first time, sending it over the Fasthouse rooftop and into the back of course at more than 185 feet.
Best Whip: Patrick Evans (Team Maddo)
The Best Whip category was run like a knockout, with six riders being whittled down to a final two. Parsons, Bereman, and Evans would ride for Team Maddo and Navas, Vanstippen, and Dresser would ride for Team Twitch. Each rider looked like an expert as they rode their quad-whip line.
Parsons showcased upside-down whips for the fans but couldn’t reach the finals., and Navas effortlessly flicked his bike through the air.
The showdown for the win boiled down to Evans and Vanstippen. While Vanstippen pulled off some impressive tricks, Evans dominated with a variety of whips to secure the victory.
Team Jam: Team Twitch
Two teams, three minutes to ride. Team Twitch executed the Team Jam line as close to synchronized swimming as one can get on a dirt bike. The team led from the back and rode their way in perfect harmony around the course.
Team Maddo followed and applied a different approach to the course, approaching lines and jumps from all different angles. Maddo even came out for a not-to-be-missed burnout on the Fasthouse rooftop to keep the crowd loud.
“With this Team format and these freeride categories, everyone could bring their strengths to the table for their respective team and try to beat the other team for bragging rights. And everyone stepped up to the plate to bring their skills for an epic day of riding.”
said Bereman
Viewers can now tune in to the exclusive behind-the-scenes series by scrolling up and pressing the play button for the competition highlights.
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