2023 World Cup DH Race Format - B Practice Podcast

In December last year, Warner Bros. Discovery announced fairly monumental changes to the format of UCI World Cup downhill racing. The introduction of a third points-paying race per round that will result in less elite riders in finals quickly stirred up a commotion. On today's episode, the crew sits down to discuss the details of these changes and the possible implications they will have when the season kicks off in June. Enjoy!

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0:00 Dakotah Norton's initial reaction as a World Cup racer

4:51 Breakdown and discussion of new semi-final and finals format

9:45 Impact of the new format on US DH racers

11:38 Why did Warner Bros. Discovery implement these changes?

16:27 Broadcasting top 30 vs. top 60 

17:30 Points breakdown per round  

19:07 How will more points per round affect racing? 

26:55 The dynamic of doing three race runs in a weekend

33:52 How to watch World Cups in 2023

36:05 Third-party media changes 

39:55 New protected rider rules  

50:09 The stresses of being a top 10 racer OR top 30-40 racer in semi-finals

52:10 Rumors of track standardization

53:40 Why not a B Final or last-chance qualifier?  

55:05 How season-long storylines could change with less racers in finals 

1:00:02 Will wildcard racers still be a thing?

1:00:14 Updates to replacement rider rules 

1:02:04 2023 Schedule breakdown 

1:08:04 Are all these changes just TV broadcasters taking over our sport?