In this episode we had the opportunity to chat with the youngest of the Brightmore brothers - Ashton. A long overdue interview with a rider who has been making waves in the hard enduro scene fr a few years now, especially in the junior championship. A very insightful episode getting to the roots of how his riding career started from a young age in trials. Ashton was a competitive rider from the beginning and as he shares in the episode, always seemed to have a liking for speed. It was no surprise then when he pushed to move to the big bikes and found himself front of the pack from the beginning. 

It was very interesting to hear how Ashton believes he and his brother differ in their approaches to riding. While their techniques are quite similar their styles are certainly different from cool and level headed to more aggressive and competitive. You’ll have to listen to the episode to find out which is which though!

Ashton has had a successful career already in both Super Enduro and Hard Enduro. Starting off with the TTR Squadra Corse team to tackle his first year as a sponsored rider and really stepping into the European riding scene. Ashton has gone on to have some standout rides especially the Red Bull TKO event in the US where he finished top 5 in the premier class on a pretty stock standard bike. It’s amazing what some riders can do even when going into a race for the experience and with no expectations. 

It was inevitable that we would see a team snatch up these two riders and what better fit than the X-Grip team? We were genuinely stoked for both the team and the riders and it seems to have been a perfect fit. Ashton’s career has not gone without a few setback with both a knee and ankle injury in 2025 resulting in him having to sit out most of the racing season but this also came with unique opportunities to learn from others on the sidelines. 

This year the 2026 hard enduro season looks like it is gong to be a tight battle against the top riders of the junior championship. We can only assume that Ashton would be aiming to follow in his brother’s footsteps for a championship title. Red Bull Erzbergrodeo is the next race and challenge coming up. Will we see him finally cross that finish line and add to the successful X-Grip riders to see the finishers flag?

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:42 Meet Ashton Brightmore 

01:19 Where it all began

03:04 Making the switch to an 85 

04:33 First taste of enduro racing 

07:31 Signing with TTR & stepping onto the European scene 

10:42 Competition between brothers 

11:57 Riding styles compared

13:34 Going full professional: Signing with X-Grip

16:35 Bike setup

20:21 Knee injury 

21:58 Ankle injury

24:27 Alestrem hard enduro

25:29 Red Bull TKO

28:43 2026 HEWC

29:07 Ashton Brightmore vs James Moore

31:38 Preparation for Erzberg

The junior championship battle between Ashton and James Moore is only just getting started. Who do you think takes the title this season? Drop your prediction in the comments below↓↓↓

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