{"id":357962,"date":"2026-01-08T00:05:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T00:05:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/357962\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T00:05:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T00:05:16","slug":"how-louise-ferguson-became-the-first-woman-to-conquer-red-bull-hardline-and-what-the-mtb-trailblazer-is-planning-for-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/357962\/","title":{"rendered":"How Louise Ferguson became the first woman to conquer Red Bull Hardline \u2013 and what the MTB trailblazer is planning for 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just three years on from her first World Cup race, Louise Ferguson had an incredible season in 2025, becoming the first female winner of Red Bull Hardline Wales as well as the UK national downhill champion. She also won the reader vote to be crowned as MBUK and BikeRadar’s MTB Rider of the Year for 2025<\/a>, supported by Lezyne. We caught up with Lou to reflect on her groundbreaking year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI actually feel like I\u2019m not much of a risk-taker,\u201d says Louise Ferguson. These are unexpected words coming from the first woman to complete a top-to-bottom race run through the treacherous rocks, off the huge drops and over the 90ft jumps of the infamous Red Bull Hardline Wales course.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really hard for me to turn my brain off, throw care to the wind and be like, \u2018Here we go!\u2019,\u201d she explains. \u201cI really struggle to do that, so have to fully grasp all the emotions and accept the consequences before I do it. I think about things quite a lot, and when I do decide to do something, I\u2019m going to commit to it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s this combination of careful consideration and steely resolve that\u2019s taken Ferguson to the highest level of downhill racing, where she\u2019s rarely outside the World Cup top ten. It\u2019s also seen her battle her way down the Red Bull Hardline Tasmania course \u2013 where she became one of the first two women to complete a race run in 2024, despite two big crashes \u2013 and become the first female rider to conquer Hardline Wales.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And it all stems from a desire to push herself. \u201cI do love the process of hitting big features and scaring myself,\u201d she says. \u201cBeing intimidated and then working through those fears and emotions, and getting it done \u2013 it\u2019s the most insane feeling! People are like, \u2018Oh, you\u2019re mental. I\u2019d never do that\u2019. But I\u2019ve built myself up to this point. I take measured risks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rider of the Year 2025, supported by Lezyne<\/p>\n

Louise Ferguson topped the reader vote to be crowned MBUK and BikeRadar’s MTB Rider of the Year for 2025. Supported by Lezyne, Rider of the Year celebrates the achievements of road cyclists and mountain bikers across three categories: Rider of the Year, Newcomer of the Year and the Lifetime Achievement Award. For 2025, our MTB winners were:<\/p>\n

Rider of the Year \u2013 Louise Ferguson
\nNewcomer of the Year \u2013 Daisy Craig
\nLifetime Achievement Award \u2013 Steve Peat<\/p>\n

Trails over tiles\u00a0
\n\"LouiseLouise Ferguson: our MTB Rider of the Year for 2025. Andy Lloyd \/ Our Media<\/p>\n

Growing up in Fort William \u2013 the UK home of World Cup downhill racing \u2013 bikes inevitably beckoned, and Ferguson had some great trails to ride, thanks to Joe \u2018Top Chief\u2019 Barnes and his Dudes of Hazzard crew. <\/p>\n

\u201cI owe them quite a lot, because they built a lot of our local tracks,\u201d she explains. \u201cWhen I got into riding with some friends, we ended up just riding their stuff, which was actually pretty gnarly \u2013 super-tight and technical, and steep and slippery. Once I started, I became obsessed. I look back now and a lot of my decisions were just around mountain biking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chief among those was her move to New Zealand in 2020, \u201cbecause they had good riding\u201d. Ferguson ended up getting stuck there because of COVID-19, but in hindsight, says it was the best thing that could have happened. \u201cThe women\u2019s side of things is really developed there\u2026 there are so many girls just killing it, and you go there and just get smoked! It\u2019s the perfect place to go to get better.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ferguson was welcomed into the Queenstown riding community. Having raced DH, enduro and even 4X in the UK, it didn\u2019t take her long to get between the tape, including at Crankworx Rotorua. Inspired by the example of fellow Fort William local Mikayla Parton, who\u2019d begun racing World Cups in 2019, she started to think about joining her on the international circuit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"LouiseFerguson is no stranger to hitting big lines. In 2022, she took part in the Red Bull Formation event in Utah. Robin O’Neill \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone I rode with hyped me up so much,\u201d she says. \u201cI saved up, and when the restrictions relaxed, I flew back to Europe and did my first privateer season. And I haven\u2019t looked back.\u201d That was in 2022, when Ferguson first travelled to Utah for the pioneering Red Bull Formation women\u2019s freeride camp, then headed home to Fort William for her World Cup debut. She didn\u2019t qualify, but says it was an \u201camazing experience\u201d and a good learning opportunity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the next round, in Leogang, Austria, she not only made it into the finals, but finished in fourth place \u2013 her best World Cup performance to date. This helped gain her a place on the Continental Nukeproof Factory Racing team for 2023, alongside Italy\u2019s Veronika Widmann and Ireland\u2019s R\u00f3n\u00e1n Dunne and Chris Cumming.<\/p>\n

\u201cNukeproof were really supportive that first year when I was a privateer, but it wasn\u2019t my intention to become a professional,\u201d she explains. \u201cI just loved riding and wanted to go and race and push myself. I went back to New Zealand at the end of the season, and I [got a job] tiling. I just thought I was going to keep saving up money and then go over to Europe and race each season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, Ferguson became a fully fledged pro rider, first with Nukeproof and then, since 2024, with Intense Factory Racing. Does she miss the tiling? \u201cI actually quite like tiling \u2013 it\u2019s not a bad job!\u201d she says. \u201cBut racing gives me so much travelling, and I get to meet some incredible people, and I feel like I make more of a difference riding than I do tiling!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Hardline hopes
\n\"LouiseFerguson was one of two women to complete a race run at Red Bull Hardline Tasmania for the first time in 2024. Dan Griffiths \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

Ferguson has definitely made a difference this year, by showing that women riders can tick off every single feature on the brutal Hardline Wales course. She first rode sections of the track in 2023, at the Red Bull Hardline Progression Camp, where she was the first female rider to hit the On-Off feature, and was eyeing up the 90ft jumps and road gap, until high winds made it too dangerous.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first invite was a last-minute call-up,\u201d she reveals. \u201c[Canadian freerider] Casey Brown got injured and couldn\u2019t make it, and Tahn\u00e9e [Seagrave, UK downhill star] was calling around a bunch of the girls to see who wanted to give it a go. I was like, \u2018I don\u2019t feel ready\u2019, and she was like, \u2018Nah, just come, it\u2019s going to be great\u2019. I got my eyes opened, had so much fun and ended up getting Rider of the Week, but the event got cancelled.\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019d hoped to return in 2024, but Intense had to prioritise World Cup points and couldn\u2019t risk her getting injured. Ferguson admits to being \u201cdevastated\u201d she couldn\u2019t take part, but \u201csuper-proud\u201d of the women who sent the road gap for the first time. This year, with new team signings Mille Johnset and Juanfer V\u00e9lez helping to rack up the UCI points, alongside established faces Joe Breeden and Oscar Griffiths, she persuaded the management to let her take part. They said, \u2018Okay, you can go\u2019 \u2013 and it did pay off! [Now] they\u2019re like, \u2018I think we need to support you coming to Hardline…\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Just what is it that she enjoys so much about the event? \u201cI just love pushing myself. The Athertons have built something insane \u2013 the features we\u2019re riding and the progression of the sport that\u2019s happened because of Hardline is incredible. And they\u2019re only going to keep pushing it, which is terrifying but also really cool. That\u2019s why I\u2019m really excited to be part of it \u2013 because I know it\u2019s always going to push me to keep getting better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"LouiseHitting the huge Hardline road gap. Nathan Hughes \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

In 2023, the road gap was Ferguson’s b\u00eate noire. \u201cIf you stand on the edge of it, you\u2019re [effectively] on the top of a two- or three-storey building. You psych yourself out a little bit. That first season, I couldn\u2019t sleep because I was thinking about that gap so much. I wanted to do it and felt like it was possible, but the intimidation of it \u2013 you can\u2019t turn around, there\u2019s no B-line \u2013 got to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ferguson explains that, while hugely imposing, the road gap is actually one of the less technical features on the track, so a good one to tick off early. \u201cAll the men were telling me to start on the road gap. I was like, \u2018You must be mental \u2013 there\u2019s no way this is the easiest feature!\u2019 Because it\u2019s blind and there\u2019s no ride-around. In fact, there\u2019s not even a way to get down \u2013 you have to get off your bike, put it on your shoulder and climb down these boulders.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year, she summoned up the nerve and sent it. \u201cIt seems like you have to turn your brain off, ride in with a bit of commitment and the chances are it\u2019ll work out,\u201d she explains. \u201cI\u2019m not going to lie \u2013 it didn\u2019t get easier throughout the week, it was still intimidating. But I kept telling myself I\u2019d done it before and if I just did the same thing again, the result was going to be the same.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The cliff drop actually turned out to be scarier. \u201cAs you run in, there\u2019s no reference for if you\u2019re going too fast or too slow, but the consequence of it is really high,” says Ferguson. “If you come up short, it\u2019s not good, and the run-out is a really steep chute, so you don\u2019t want to go long. Before my race run, I had to say, \u2018It\u2019s just a drop, it\u2019s chill\u2019 \u2013 trying to tell myself it\u2019s small, just to help with the self-belief.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the technical sections between the big features gave no opportunity to relax, either. \u201cIt\u2019s so slippery on those rocks \u2013 I have no idea what they\u2019re made of, but I don\u2019t like it!\u201d she says. \u201cComing from Scotland, the rocks are actually grippier in the wet, but [not in] Wales\u2026 I love downhill racing and I love the tech, but that track in the wet is gnarly. I did a lot of practice in the dry, and then when it came to actually putting a full run together, I had to do it in the rain and I was pretty scared.\u201d<\/p>\n

Centre of attention
\n\"LouiseFerguson is part of a tight-knit group of trailblazing women breaking new ground in mountain biking. Dan Griffiths \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

So, how does it feel to have conquered the track? \u201cIt\u2019s a big task and it feels incredible to finally get there and do it. The other women and I\u2026 it\u2019s been a bit of a battle. We\u2019ve had a couple of injuries and had to deal with a lot of bad weather. So, it feels extra special to put it all together in Wales, where the track is so technical.\u201d<\/p>\n

At one point, it looked like Ferguson wouldn\u2019t be allowed to race, after the weather caused seeding to be brought forward, not leaving enough time for any of the women to do the required top-to-bottom run in practice. Thankfully, Seagrave lobbied Red Bull on her behalf. \u201cThe toughest thing was not being in control of whether I could do a full run,\u201d says Ferguson. \u201cI just did everything I could, and it worked out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since her win, public attention has skyrocketed. \u201cIt\u2019s a huge compliment, but a bit much for me. I\u2019m really grateful for it, because I\u2019ve realised how much everyone cares about pushing women\u2019s sports forwards. My phone has been going crazy \u2013 there\u2019s so many women and young girls who\u2019ve messaged me and said the nicest things, and it just shows how many people are watching and how much potential we all have.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Louise“My phone has been going crazy \u2013 there\u2019s so many women and young girls who\u2019ve messaged me and said the nicest things,” says Ferguson. Nathan Hughes \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

She adds: \u201cI\u2019m super-lucky to be the one who managed to do it, but it\u2019s not just me \u2013 it was Tahn\u00e9e persevering with Red Bull and making sure we had the space to do it, and then all the other women. I was so nervous for that cliff drop, and then Cami [Nogueira, Argentine freerider] opened it up and I saw, \u2018Yeah, we can do this\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe men at Hardline are keen to bring us with them, but the other girls are the same size as me, so I know if they\u2019ve got the speed, I can too, and they\u2019ve gone through every challenge I\u2019ve been through.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The support from the other female riders does add its own pressure, though. \u201cWhen I was at the top, I had the other women on my mind, and all the build-up, and all the nice messages I got the night before. I just started thinking about how much it meant to everyone else. You just want to be thinking about your ride and not about everything else going on, so that was a big challenge for me \u2013 just switching off all the noise and focusing on getting down\u2026 I started off very tense, and managed to stop and refocus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earning her stripes<\/p>\n

Of course, Hardline hasn\u2019t been Ferguson’s only big win this year. She also claimed the national champion\u2019s red-and-white stripes in Fort William. \u201cBecause I moved to New Zealand, I haven\u2019t done a lot of British Champs,\u201d she says. \u201cLast year, I qualified first, got a little bit excited and had a \u2018hugey\u2019 [crash] in my race run. It hadn\u2019t been a goal of mine before that, but I thought, \u2018I\u2019d love to represent [my country]\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t explain my [2025] race,\u201d she admits. \u201cI just heard everyone shouting my name down the track, and when I crossed the finish, I had no idea if it was enough to be national champ, but I enjoyed it. I was really happy to see the time. It\u2019s not been a kind track to me, so I didn\u2019t have a lot of expectation to do well.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTo win in front of a home crowd felt really good \u2013 I actually used to work at Nevis Range. I\u2019m lucky that I\u2019ve got such good competition. Phoebe [Gale, who came second] has been on fire recently, and for Mikayla [Parton, third] it was her home track too \u2013 we grew up together and went to school in Lochaber so it\u2019s pretty sick to go through all of this with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"LouiseFerguson says she is “honoured” to be crowned as our Rider of the Year. Andy Lloyd \/ Our Media<\/p>\n

Beyond hard work and consistent progression, there\u2019s another factor that may have contributed to Ferguson’s success this year \u2013 her new teammate. \u201cI love riding with Mille,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s made the biggest difference, having another female to go racing with. It\u2019s nice to have the same kind of experiences and just vibe off each other in practice. We\u2019re very different riders, so I think it\u2019s really beneficial. She\u2019s fearless, whereas I feel like I\u2019m trying to be in control too much.\u201d<\/p>\n

And of course, the unassuming Scot has now scooped the coveted Rider of the Year award, winning the reader vote by a landslide! \u201cI\u2019m truly honoured,\u201d she told us. \u201cI want to say thanks to my team, who are such an amazing group of people and have given me the best year possible, and also, to Hardline. I\u2019m really excited with where we\u2019re going to go next year and the future for women in mountain biking!\u201d<\/p>\n

Back into the breach
\n\"LouiseFerguson is planning to return to Red Bull Hardline in 2026. Dan Griffiths \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

So, what\u2019s next for Louise Ferguson? A return to Hardline Wales is definitely on the cards. \u201cThis is the beginning. I went to Hardline in 2023 and I\u2019d never seen anything that big before. I was like, \u2018Okay, I do want to do this, I want to push myself\u2019. It\u2019s been a couple of years in the making, and now that I\u2019ve completed a run, I want to race it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I want the other women to be up at the top with me. In Tasmania, we were all ticking off features, and because of the weather and the schedule changes, it didn\u2019t completely happen. But now I\u2019ve done a run, it\u2019s hopefully going to be a real stepping stone. Tahn\u00e9e and Gracey [Hemstreet] are in the overall for the World Cup and it\u2019s hard to do something that might hinder that, but in a selfish way, I really hope we can make it work.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Ferguson, it\u2019s going to be interesting tackling Hardline knowing she\u2019s already conquered it once. \u201cThis year was [about] completing the track and hopefully next year it\u2019ll be about getting some good times,\u201d she says. \u201cFirst hits are [always] pretty nerve-wracking, but I\u2019m trying to tell myself it\u2019s going to be easier and more manageable mentally to get through everything\u2026 But I\u2019ve heard a rumour that they\u2019re changing the whole track, so it might be another challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"LouiseFerguson is also preparing for another World Cup campaign with Intense Factory Racing. Andy Lloyd \/ Our Media<\/p>\n

She\u2019s looking forward to another race season, too. \u201cAfter doing 90-footers in a full race run in the wet, everything at World Cups is going to be pretty chill! There are so many amazing women and it\u2019s really tough to qualify, but I feel very much in my element. The hard bit is that I can feel like I\u2019ve had a perfect run and the time doesn\u2019t reflect that [because I\u2019m] nowhere near the edge \u2013 that\u2019s where you have to be for World Cups.\u201d<\/p>\n

Overall, Ferguson just hopes to continue pushing herself \u2013 and to support and encourage others to do the same. \u201cRacing\u2019s given me so much confidence in myself,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s given me some tough times as well, but that\u2019s just part of it\u2026 I want our sport to get better. Just [through] riding, I hope it encourages more women to get involved. <\/p>\n

“Us racing at Hardline doesn\u2019t mean loads of women need to come and [do the same], but I hope it encourages them to ride and push themselves. It\u2019s such a good feeling, overcoming your fears. You just feel so accomplished and your self-belief grows so much when you really challenge your riding.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Just three years on from her first World Cup race, Louise Ferguson had an incredible season in 2025,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357963,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-357962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=357962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357962\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=357962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=357962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=357962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}