The FIM Hard Enduro World Championship will not take place in 2025 following the withdrawal of its primary financial backer, KTM Group, due to ongoing financial difficulties that have affected the manufacturer for some time.
In a statement released on February 28, series promoter Winfried Kerschhaggl confirmed that despite extensive efforts to secure alternative funding, the championship could not move forward this season.
“The pull-out of our main sponsor in December 2024, for reasons that are well known, did not leave us enough time to secure alternative funding,” Kerschhaggl explained. “Since most of the potential new partners had already finalized their 2025 budgets at the time of the withdrawal, this significantly limited our options for alternative cooperation.”
KTM Group’s financial struggles had been developing for some time, ultimately leading to the company stepping back from its commitment to the series late last year. While organizers explored multiple avenues to replace the lost funding, they were unable to secure the necessary backing in time to ensure the championship’s professional execution in 2025.
“Despite conducting many promising conversations and successfully concluding several negotiations, we have reached the end of February—our self-imposed deadline—without securing the necessary financial backing,” Kerschhaggl stated.
With no viable solution in place, the difficult decision was made to cancel the 2025 season. The move is a significant setback for riders, teams, and fans of the championship, which has grown into one of the premier extreme off-road racing series in the world.
“This decision was taken with a strong sense of responsibility towards our potential new sponsors and all the partners who have supported us over the past years,” Kerschhaggl said.
He also expressed his gratitude to those who have contributed to the series’ success, including the FIM, event partners, Red Bull Media House, and KTM Group.
The FIM also issued a press release stating:
Whilst WESS have worked tirelessly over the last two-month period to recruit new partners at late notice, they have not been able to secure the finances they require and having set a self-imposed deadline of the end of February, they have rightly informed the FIM that they are not able to promote the 2025 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship.
The FIM would like to thank WESS for its work regarding the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship during the last years, and to pay tribute for the progress that the series has made under their management, with 2024 being one of the best editions to date. For this reason, the FIM is now making every possible effort to continue this path and is actively seeking and exploring alternative options that can hopefully allow the 2025 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship to take place, whilst acknowledging that amendments may have to be made to the original schedule.
Speaking about the situation FIM President Jorge Viegas stated: “Since we received the news in December, we have been in constant contact with WESS, and we understand the efforts they have made during the start of this year in order that they could continue their good work. Unfortunately, that is now not the case, and we cannot move forward without thanking them for the incredible job they have done with this series. The FIM Hard Enduro World Championship is a great championship, so we are determined to find a solution that can allow it to continue this year and long into the future.”
While the future of the championship remains uncertain, the cancellation of the 2025 season underscores the financial challenges currently facing motorsport organizers and manufacturers alike.
