Canada’s incredible success at Red Bull Rampage continued on Friday. While wind shortened the event, pausing competition after all riders had finished one run, Brett Rheeder already had the points he needed to earn the win.
Rheeder’s victory extends a Canadian winning streak at Red Bull Rampage that extends all the way back to 2015. Together, Rheeder, Brandon Semenuk and Kurt Sorge have wins at the last seven Red Bull Rampage events.
For Rheeder, the win caps off an emotional comeback. The Mout Albert, Ont. rider stepped back from competition for a period. His return was postponed by an injury that took him out of Rampage in 2021. Proving Grounds was the Canadian’s first competition since 2019.
Judges rewarded Rheeder’s trick-filled first run with a score of 90.66. Szymon Godziek rode a massive 360-drop and canyon gap backflip combo to second place overall, with an 86.33.
Brandon Semenuk placed third, with 84 points, but also brings home the best trick award for his thrilling caveman drop into the course off of the starting platform.
Semenuk was considering two different and very technical starts to his run, but couldn’t miss the opportunity for such a distinctive entry. “I thought, If I’m going to do it, I might as well go all in and do the slightly scarier thing. It’s just way too cool to pass up.”
“Huge thanks to the boys for building that, it’s so steep up there,” Semnuk added. His two-person build crew started the week alone. Semenuk was busy winning the final round, and series overall, of the American Rally Association at the Lake Superior Rally. That put extra pressure on his Rampage build crew to start the line without him present.
Another Canadian earned the McGazza Spirit Award. Tom van Steenbergen takes home the rider-voted award for his inspiring return to Rampage just one year after a nearly career-ending crash at the 2021 event.
“It was definitely not easy coming back from that crash. Making that decision was tough. You don’t want to take someone’s spot away. I had more planned in that run, but I’m just happy to be back,” van Steenbergen said after the event. For the Canadian, the McGazza award carries a…
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