The 2025 FIM International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) in Bergamo delivered a classic six-day showdown in rugged, sometimes wet terrain, with Italy triumphant on home soil. The host nation claimed both the World Trophy and Junior World Trophy team titles, a repeat of their Bergamo success in 2021. Meanwhile, the Women’s World Trophy was won by the United States, marking their sixth ISDE win in that class, which puts them level with Australia in all-time Women’s Trophy wins. On the individual side, Josep García continued his dominance, taking his fifth consecutive scratch win.
Throughout the event, certain days stood out as turning points: Day 2 for intense pressure from the Australian Junior team (led by Kyron Bacon) challenging Italy; Day 4 when Andrea Verona claimed the day win, breaking García’s streak in one special test; and Day 5, where weather and tricky conditions pushed many riders to their limit as Italy cemented its lead in the World Trophy competition.
For Australia, it was a strong showing across the board. The Women’s World Trophy team (Jess Gardiner, Danielle McDonald, Madison Healey) finished second, while the Junior World Trophy squad (including Kyron Bacon, Angus Riordan and Korey McMahon) grabbed third. The Senior team ended up sixth in the World Trophy, in what was a challenging campaign given the terrain and competition.
And Kyron Bacon was one of the breakout stars. He rode consistently, helped drag the Junior team into podium contention, and individually finished sixth overall in the scratch (outright) classification. Not only that, he had several days near the front – including a top-4 on the final day’s tests – which as a young pup, puts him squarely in the conversation with some of the more experienced riders in the EnduroGP fuel right onw.
We caught up with the Baconator to see how it all went down.
ADB: So, mate, You guys land in Italy – you’re living in Europe, well, in Italy specifically, you’ve got Aussie racers flying in from the US and the Aussies flying in from here. How does the team dynamic work when you all get together for the first time?
Kyron Bacon: Yeah, it’s pretty special, actually. When everyone comes from all over the world and Team Oz gets back together, it’s a pretty cool moment. It’s good to catch up with all the riders I’ve been with the last few years, and the same with everyone else. It’s a big social thing.
ADB: And everyone gets along pretty well? I mean, you’ve got different ages, different manufacturers, different parts of the world – there’s good unity within the team?
Kyron Bacon: Yeah, really good. We all get along really well. Obviously, we’re very competitive as racers, but when we’re here representing our country – and just in general – we get along really well and we’re good mates. No hard feelings if someone wins against each other at home – it’s always “good job,” you shake the hand. There’s only one winner, so it’s good to get along with everyone. It’s pretty special.
ADB: Does it feel more like a team event at the Six Day, or an individual event?
Kyron Bacon: A bit of both. Obviously, you’re racing for yourself, but you’re also racing for your country and the team. I think it’s more of a team event. Even with my team, I’ve got a follow rider and a mechanic, but they’re also helping the other riders in the junior team – carrying their bum bags if they can. It’s not always just about me; it’s about all of us. We’ve all got to get through the race. It’s more of a team thing. Obviously we all want to do well individually, but we focus on ourselves, ride how we always ride, and it ends up working out quite well. It’s definitely a team thing.
ADB: Explain the setup of how the Six Day works. There are you guys in the Trophy teams, but then there are club teams that come from Australia, and I believe they’re there to support you as well. How does that follow rider role work at a Six Day?
Kyron Bacon: It’s very similar to the GPs. The follow rider sits on the road and everything – they’re always with you. If something happens, they’ve got my back. Even if we make a wrong turn, sometimes they rev the bike and go “boom – this way, this way.” It makes riding a lot easier, especially out on the trail. We’re Australian, so we’ve got no idea where we’re going half the time, and they know the roads better. It’s easier, especially if things go wrong with the bike. They’re not allowed to work on it, but they can tell you what to do, give advice, that sort of thing.
ADB: You mentioned it’s always special representing Australia, putting on the green and gold. Tell us what that’s like – especially the parade day before the Six Day.
Kyron Bacon: Yeah, it’s really cool – no experience like it. You get to wear the green and gold down the main street of Bergamo, which was pretty cool, and sing the “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie – oi, oi, oi.” There’s no feeling like it. It’s pretty cool – especially in Italy – because they’ve never seen anything like it. It’s cool to show everyone what our country’s a bit like. It’s pretty special.
ADB: And were Aussies well accepted in Italy? Give us a feel of the Italian vibe at a Six Day.
Kyron Bacon: I’m sure they liked the Aussies being there, but Italy’s quite difficult with the language barrier and stuff like that. Not many people speak English, so that’s probably been the biggest thing for me personally this year. It’s cool to see, though – Italy at the moment is, I’d say, the best in the world, and the Six Day proved it. They won the Juniors, they won the Seniors, and their Women’s team is very strong too. Even with the Italian season I’ve been doing this year, it’s almost like doing a GP season – sometimes harder than the actual world rounds – it’s crazy.
Kyron Bacon: For me, I was pretty buggered after six days this year. I was actually quite tame. The last few Six Days we let our hair down a fair bit – there were still a few guys who did – but I’d knocked myself out a few weeks before the Six Day and my health’s more important. For me it was about getting the body back to 100% and focusing on the GP this weekend.
ADB: Did you come into Italy 100% fit?
Kyron Bacon: Nah, definitely not 100%. I got knocked out at Wales, which was two or three weeks before the Six Day. The first week I didn’t ride or do anything. Then the week before heading to the Six Day, I rode three times – that’s literally all I’d done. The first time back on the bike felt like riding with a hangover – I couldn’t focus or ride ruts. The second time was better, and the third time better again. I didn’t do much off-bike training either – pretty much gave it all up for three weeks to let the head recover, kept the body moving with walks and getting the blood flowing. I didn’t do hardly anything the weeks before, so I wasn’t sure how I’d go. My first test wasn’t great – pretty average – but after that I pulled my head in and tried to get some decent times down.
Day 1 definitely had an impact. I felt good, but a bit flat – because I hadn’t been riding and didn’t feel ready to go. But the last two tests I got two third overalls, which was pretty cool, and when that hit it almost felt easy again. I could ride like myself, and it followed on like that for the rest of the week.
ADB: Day 2 – you guys jumped into second behind Italy. What clicked on Day 2?
Kyron Bacon: I don’t know – everything went really well, especially for me. I pretty much started how I ended Day 1. We had the same tests and familiarity. With my bike at the moment – dunno why – but I’m usually a really good mud rider. Over here in Europe, a lot of guys are good in mud and wet, so it’s not really an advantage for me. This year I’ve been struggling a little with the sub conditions on the 300 – I’m not sure why. It’s gentle off the bottom, but in the mid it spins a lot, so we’ve been working on that. The track wasn’t so slippery or wet on Day 2 and it really suited me. The bike handled unreal, conditions were perfect, and the tracks suited me.
ADB: It looked slippery – off-camber, hard-pack grass. Was it as slippery as it looked back home?
Kyron Bacon: Yeah, definitely. If you touch the brake, the back wants to slide. Even the tyres – we have to run road-legal tyres like what come standard. You can’t lean the bike; you’ve got to keep it straight and slide with it. It’s a different type of riding – nothing we really have in Australia.
ADB: Day 3 – you had new tests, and we’d heard people were cutting lines or breaking tape. Any rumours about sneaky lines on Day 3 with the new tests, or just fresh tests and nothing unusual?
Kyron Bacon: For me it wasn’t so bad – I struggled on Day 3. We had all new tests. I started first in the front row with Verona and García, so I was pretty nervous. Leading out a test – I started one test first – and I had no idea: no lines, no idea where I was going. We had one test in the rocks and I struggled – I didn’t remember it quite well and misjudged a few corners. Hats off to García and Verona – when they’re leading the test with no lines it’s completely different to when we go out and have their lines to follow. I didn’t have anyone in front, so I didn’t see shortcuts. It was very slippery, so a lot of people were taking bunting out and stuff like that. The rain definitely played a big part for Day 3.
ADB: What’s it like leading out in front of García and Verona?
Kyron Bacon: It was a pretty cool experience – a bit of a dream come true. I’ve always looked up to those guys, especially García and Verona. They’re the two best in the world at the moment. To be lined up against them, especially as a Junior, is very cool. I get along with them really well. They’re always good to chat to – they talk to anyone. They might be the fastest guys in the world, but they’re always willing to talk, no matter how good you are. It’s cool to line up and have a chat – they’re your mates.
ADB: Alright, Day 5. More rain leading in? How were you feeling – body and headspace?
Kyron Bacon: Usually Day 5 is the hardest. Your bike’s getting a bit destroyed – grips worn out – little things like that. The bike has a few hours and starts to feel used. The body too – you’ve had four days racing before. But Day 5 this year, other than the weather, was probably one of the easiest Day 5s we’ve had. We had a lot of road riding this year. The last two Six Days I’ve done, we had lots of trail – like the GPs – always in the mountains on single trail. This year we dealt with traffic – battling through the middle of lanes between cars – going down highways. A lot of road riding. So the bikes didn’t take as much abuse as normal, and same with bodies. Even blisters were nothing compared to previous years. With the rain, they cut the day shorter. We only had four tests, and I think the first one they cut bits off where it was too slippery and sketchy. One on top of the mountain was cut in half too. So two tests were pretty much cut in half and shorter, and then we had two rocky Enduro tests from Day 4.
ADB: You mentioned skipping through traffic. When you’re splitting traffic, are there rules around what you can and can’t do on public roads?
Kyron Bacon: There are rules, but it’s really strange over here – it’s not like home. Everyone’s speeding – shouldn’t be – but it seems like everyone does it. Riding up the middle between cars is crazy. If you did this at home, the road rules are completely different. Especially after a day – was it Day 4? – we had to rush back a bit, and it was crazy going through the middle of lanes, cars and trucks, especially with trucks coming the other way. It gets very sketchy. I had the follow rider with me – when we need to rush, he’ll go “follow me,” and I’ll follow him. He’s Italian, knows the roads. Pretty sketchy, for sure.
ADB: Do you prefer racing against the clock to get to the next test, or the special tests themselves?
Kyron Bacon: The special tests are really cool – that’s probably the highlight. You rock up and there are people from all over the world with air horns and chainsaws. It’s a feeling you don’t really get at GPs – pretty cool. But yeah, behind the scenes, getting to the next test can have hiccups and dramas no one sees. Some people hit cars – crazy stuff. A few dodgy things happen we never hear about with other countries. It is what it is – everyone’s trying to get to the finish line and they’ll do whatever it takes.
ADB: Okay, the final motocross test. The Covo test, did you feel like you still had a shot at taking down Italy in the Junior?
Kyron Bacon: We were in third position. Korey – not many people knew – got very sick during the Six Day. He had what I had in the Spain GP – pretty much gastro – spewing and, yeah. That took a toll on the team, especially end of Day 2 when he started feeling pretty average, and he took a knock to the head as well. He was going through wars all week – super tough just to make the finish. All the boys are very proud of what he did. To still get Team Australia on the podium at the end was really cool. Going into the Final Moto, we felt pretty good. We could catch a little, but Italy had a decent lead. France had over a minute on us. We had nearly seven or eight minutes over fourth, so we just had to get through and finish – which we did. We all had a really good final moto, decent starts, and I ended up third in the final, which was really cool.
ADB: So, a minute to France in second – that’s a big gap, almost impossible in a motocross to make up?
Kyron Bacon: Yeah. Well, it is but it isn’t – it is the Six Days. Anything can happen – a bike malfunction or whatever. There were a few rules things going on. Italy did something they shouldn’t have in the Junior team at the final. They didn’t end up getting penalised for it. I don’t know if you remember the Four Day a few years ago when Andy Wil got penalised a minute. At the start, you go into the work period, and if you go in early that’s a minute penalty. Two of the Italian juniors did it this year – going into the final day they went in one minute early. The French were blowing up – they had video. It didn’t affect us too much because we were a fair bit behind. We did our own thing. The French protested – nothing happened. I don’t know – Italy being Italy, I suppose. They really should’ve got a four-minute penalty, both riders, because they went on their same minute after going in early. We would’ve ended up second. You’d think the FIM being French would push the penalty through, but there you go. We also protested – Chris Gray went up – but nothing happened. We can’t do anything. Hats off to Italy – they rode well all week and deserved the win – but they did go in a minute early and should’ve got the penalties. Nothing happened.
ADB: Huge thanks to Kyron Bacon for taking the time to chat and give us the inside line on Italy’s ISDE. Appreciate the honesty, mate, and we’ll be cheering you on for what’s next
World Trophy
- 1st – Italy
- 2nd – Sweden
- 3rd – France
- 6th – Australia
Junior World Trophy
- 1st – Italy
- 2nd – France
- 3rd – Australia
Women’s World Trophy
- 1st – United States
- 2nd – Australia
- 3rd – France
