RIZE (Türkiye) 4th February 2026 – The 2026 FIM Snowcross World Championship let loose with its second round today for the Yeșilay SNX of Turkiye at the Rize Handüzü Nature Park in the north eastern region of Türkiye, pitching the competitors into their second contest in just four days near the coast of the Black Sea itself!

Conditions were much tougher for the racers today, as the first three of the four World Championship races were held under thick snowfall, with temperatures as low as five below zero, causing the racing surface to change constantly. Visibility was also difficult, this truly was Snowcross at its most extreme!

After his difficult start to the series over the weekend, Finn Aki Pihlaja followed up his strong Qualifying performance with victory in the Men’s class overall, but it didn’t come without its challenges for the Lynx rider as his countryman Aki Pesonen took the second race win away from him, with that one being run under bright sunshine.

The Women’s class saw further domination for Swedish star Wilma Jonsson, again taking both race wins on her Ski-doo to keep a perfect record for the series, although she was challenged closely by fellow Swede Hilda Öhman, who is now her closest challenger in the World Championship.

The new venue of Rize has been universally well received with amazing hospitality, despite the adverse weather conditions it often threw up! Once more the crowd was out in force to enjoy this amazing spectacle in the picturesque setting, although their hardiness was tested by the constant snowfall.

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With the ice deteriorating lap by lap from underneath their sleds due to the conditions, the pack was led into turn one by 2023 World Champion Pihlaja who took control from the outset, and marched away from the pack after taking the Holeshot. Sunday’s winner Olle Sahlström gave chase briefly, but the Swede had difficult visibility to contend with as snow quickly built up on the riders’ goggles, freezing into ice in the sub-zero conditions! The series leader come home just over eight seconds behind Pihlaja.

Sahlström had a handsome 23 second gap over another Finn, Topi Posti, who took third place behind his fellow Ski-doo pilot, while another Finn Aki Pesonen made a third lap pass on countryman Miika Lammi for fourth spot. Such was Pihlaja’s dominance that he lapped over half the field, up to seventh place, in a brilliant ride, although Sahlström just held on to the Championship lead after race one.

The sun finally broke through for the second Men’s race, as the snow stopped falling and leaving a much more pleasant setting for racing! With clear skies and sunshine, visibility improved significantly, making for an enjoyable and fast-paced race.

This race was much more hectic, as Pihlaja once again launched out front to take the Holeshot, but after passing Sahlström on lap two, Pesonen closed up to the race one winner, setting up an early battle between the two.

There were problems for Sahlström, who dropped down the order on lap three as the top two got close, with Topi Rinne giving chase in third. Pesonen set up a great run through the wave section to pass his fellow Aki, and took the lead on lap four!

Rinne had issues of his own as he fell down the order on lap seven, and third place became a poisoned chalice as Robert Lunden then moved up, before crashing out himself! Ultimately Topi Posti made it a Finnish 1-2-3 with a solid ride, and Norwegian Ingebrigt Hoelsaeter took fourth, amazingly the last rider on the lead lap, such was the pace of Pesonen who roared to a 16-second win! Sahlström was able to recover to seventh, with Rinne eighth, meaning that the teenager managed to stay second in the points behind new leader Pihlaja! Pesonen’s win bumped him up to third ahead of Rinne and Posti, while Filip Harr couldn’t match his results from the weekend, and dropped to sixth in the standings.

The switch to Scandinavia for round three should be a very interesting one as we head to Norway!

YEŞILAY SNX TURKIYE 2 – OVERALL CLASSIFICATION

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YEŞILAY SNX TURKIYE 2 – CHAMPIONSHIP CLASSIFICATION

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Wilma Jonsson, after dominating Qualifying, took another perfect haul of points despite the desperately difficult conditions. Sadly for Sunday’s runner-up Elise Jonsson, she was unable to defend her second place in the standings after picking up an ankle injury on Tuesday.

Wilma was challenged all the way through the first race by Öhman, who is returning to the sport after two years away, but her pace is steadily returning. After passing Tilde Karelius on lap three, Öhman tailed Jonsson all the way. At the end of the race, Jonsson backed off a little early, and Öhman took the lead from her! After some deliberation with the officials, the judgement was made that Jonsson had been signalled incorrectly, so the race was awarded to her once more. Finn Emma Laamanen came from the back of the pack to take third in a great ride on the sole Lynx in the field.

Race two saw no improvement in conditions for the ladies, with heavy snowfall continuing throughout the event. Wilma Jonsson grabbed the Holeshot once more and immediately took control at the front of the field.

Hilda Öhman stayed very close behind, again after passing Karelius on lap three, applying pressure and repeatedly looking for an opportunity to make a move for the lead. At several points it appeared she might be able to challenge for the lead, but despite her efforts, she was unable to find a way past Wilma and had to settle for second.

Karelius was able to hold on for third this time round, with Norwegian Mali Hoelsaeter taking fourth ahead of Laamanen and American veteran Kelly Collier. Karelius took third overall on the day, and lies ten points behind Öhman for second in the series. It’s the dominant Wilma Jonsson, however, who leads by 18 over her fellow Swede, as the action switches to Norway for the next round at the start of April!