A Journey Worth Following | Mitch Brightmore Quietly Climbing to the Top | S2E14

In this episode we sat down to chat with the other half of the Brightmore brothers - Mitch. The older of the two and setting the bar high with a number of championships already under his belt, Mitch is paving the way for juniors looking to become pro in hard enduro. 

We chat about what it was like growing up with a brother like Ashton and the rivalry and competition between the two. Having someone to consistently train with was almost an unfair advantage looking at the way they pushed each other and made each other better. It was a big adjustment when Ashton was out with injury for Mitch to focus on training, riding and racing on his own. While it may have been a challenge it might also have been exactly what he needed to look at racing from a different perspective and enhanced approach. 

Once again we see how having a trials background is certainly not the only way to excel in hard enduro but certain builds a strong foundation for technique. This translated well to short format high intensity races but requires more work when faced with the long GPS intensive days we often see in hard enduro. Mitch is a talented rider who was inevitably gong to be picked up by a pro team and what better match that joining the X-Grip team? It’s clear how well they all work together and how seamless the move has been. 

XL Lagares was a big race, an important race… one that truly showed Mitch’s potential. Not only to fans but most importantly to himself and his now biggest rival, Manuel Lettenbichler. It proved that he has what it takes to compete at the top with the world’s best rider and although he didn’t quite get to the top sport, Erzberg 2026he is going to be laying all his cards on the table. Just missing a podium finish in 2025, Mitch is set to give this year everything he’s got and we’re all for it!

We hope you enjoy this episode. 

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

01:01 Meet Mitch Brightmore 

01:22 A sibling rivalry - Riding with Ashton

03:46 How trials technique translates

06:52 First championship win: Super Enduro junior title 

08:17 Short format vs long format racing

09:22 Roof of Africa

10:29 The X-Grip call 

12:08 Erzberg Rodeo 2025  

14:43 Erzberg 2026 strategy

15:30 Bike setup for Erzberg

16:07 The toughest part of Erzberg 

18:11  Alestrem & XL Lagares  

19:04 The moment Mitch realised he could beat Mani 

22:08 Season goals for 2026

24:09 Studying competitors  

Mitch came within 9 seconds of beating Mani at Lagares. Do you think Erzberg 2026 is where it finally happens? Drop your prediction in the comments and subscribe so you don't miss our Erzberg coverage. The Brightmore era in hard enduro is just getting started🤘↓↓↓