2026 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship continues this weekend returning to the iconic Extreme XL Lagares in Portugal with Billy Bolt leading the series, a helluva Saturday in prospect and live broadcast on Sunday.

The Extreme Clube Lagares, the event organisers behind the Extreme XL Lagares and round two of the 2026 Hard Enduro World Championship, have entered the chat.

The Portuguese event, formerly one of the biggest hard enduro races on the calendar before slipping into obscurity, is back with a bang in 2026 and promising a challenging three-days for Championship, Junior, Women’s, Youth and Senior categories.

New format will spice-up Lagares 2026

The talking point ahead of the Lagares 2026 will be a race format set to keep riders toughing it out across the weekend and not just during the final race on Sunday. The new system means performance across the weekend reaps rewards as points are awarded for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Set on some of the notorious Lagares slippery rock and stream sections (see Billy Bolt above in 2019), Saturday especially promises to be a tough 100 kilometre-plus ride where riders must weigh-up the pros and cons of going for the points or conserving energy for the Sunday race.

Check out the championship standings from round one, the outcome of which is well-documented by now (Billy crossed the line first only for results to be counted back to a previous checkpoint and that meant Mani won). The fact is Bolt did well out of the new points system to lead the series thanks to better qualification and prologue results.

Series standings after round one

Lagares 2026 Race Schedule: Friday: Endurocode & Night Super Special

The weekend begins with a 60km Endurocode stage through technical terrain, where riders will navigate control points against the clock. The rider that has covered the most CP’S, with the shortest time of completion of the race wins. Championship Points: 1st to 3rd 3, 2, 1

The action shifts into the city with the Night Super Special. A short, intense race under lights that sets the starting order for the Saturday Race.

Saturday: Extreme Penafiel

Saturday delivers the core of Lagares. A 115km race across multiple timed sectors, combining long-distance endurance with extreme technical sections. Riders must manage fatigue one of the longest race days of the season if they want to secure points. The Rider that has covered the most CP’S, with the shortest time of completion of the race wins.

Points: 1st to 10th 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

Sunday: Final Showdown

The event concludes with a high-intensity circuit race. A 5km lap, raced over two hours plus one lap, with a Le Mans-style start and with live broadcast.

Points: 1st to 15th 20,17, 15, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

All that means Lagares has a maximum of 33 championship points across the weekend but will again mean the Saturday is important for the overall result.

Check back in with Enduro21 for live feed details closer to the weekend.

Photo Credit: Future7Media