Fred Kyrillos, Chris Meyer Will be 2017 Red Bull X-Fighters Novilleros in Madrid

FMX fans and the Red Bull X-Fighters sports committee have made their choices: Fred Kyrillos from Brazil and Christian Meyer from Spain will be the two Novilleros for Madrid, finalizing the rider roster for the 2017 Red Bull X-Fighters.

After the hungriest FMX riders from around the world submitted their entry videos for a chance to ride in the prestigious Red Bull X-Fighters, the videos have been watched and both the public and the judges have spoken. Get the full story in the press release from Red Bull Below: 

In the end it came down to a tight battle between two Brazilians, Fred Kyrillos and 37-year-old Claudio “Claudinho“ Rocha. But it was Kyrillos, a two-time Brazilian FMX champion, who came out on top as he mobilized his fans to the max and picked up 13,841 fan votes. The 31-year-old rider from São Paulo has been riding Freestyle Motocross since 2005 and has performed well in high level competitions in the past. His latest success was taking a solid second position at a competition held by Red Bull X-Fighters legend and Las Ventas hero Travis Pastrana just a few weeks ago. Pastrana won four Red Bull X-Fighters stops and Madrid twice.

The Red Bull X-Fighters sports committee selected Spanish wild child Christian Meyer as the second Novillero for this year’s Red Bull X-Fighters event in the legendary bullfighting ring Plaza De Toros De Las Ventas on July 7th. The 20-year-old from Alicante duly impressed FMX followers with a wild riding style and some of the biggest tricks at his debute at the Red Bull X-Fightersstop in Athens in 2015. This year\s competition will be his first Red Bull X-Fighters appearance in Madrid’s Plaza De Toros de Las Ventas and his bag of difficult tricks has been expanded in the past two years.

More than 20 FMX riders from 11 nations and four continents have sent in their videos and pictures for the Novilleros competition. For Kyrillos it is a dream come true to win the fans’ voting. Madrid’s sports director Patxi Larrea is pleased with the fans’ selection: “His level and skills are enough to be able to perform in Las Ventas, although he will have to work hard to adapt to such a demanding course. It’s very exciting for the event to have a rider coming from a different continent and ride with the top guys.“

Chris Meyer is highly motivated to ride in front of his home crowd and feels honored to be selected from the talented field of Novilleros. Patxi Larrea offered a glimpse of insight into the sports’ committees choice: “We decided to have Chris Meyer as the second Novillero for several reasons such as his riding level, young age, skills and talent, and future possibilities. He will also have to work hard in order to adapt to all the different ramps in Madrid, but we hope he will grab this unique opportunity and make the most of riding together with the best riders worldwide.“

Novilleros Entry video | Fred Kyrillos: 

Novilleros Entry video | Chris Meyer: 

 

With these two Novilleros, the amazing rider field for this year’s X-Fighters competition in Madrid has now been finalized. Tom Pagès (FRA) is leading the pack, trying to win for the fifth time in a row in front of more than 20,000 ecstatic fans. But former Red Bull X-Fighters champions Clinton Moore (AUS), Josh Sheehan (AUS), Levi Sherwood (NZL) and local heroes Dany Torres and Maikel Melero are determined to beat him and are practicing hard to be in top form on July 7th. Former Red Bull X-Fighters’ event winners Rob Adelberg (AUS), Taka Higashino (JPN), Adam Jones (USA) and Australia’s latest trick machine, Harry Bink, round out the field of the ten qualified athletes besides the two Novilleros Kyrillos (BRA) and Meyer (SPA).

Red Bull X-Fighters Madrid 2017 Rider List:

Tom Pagès (FRA)

Clinton Moore (AUS)

Josh Sheehan (AUS)

Levi Sherwood (NZL)

Dany Torres (ESP)

Rob Adelberg (AUS)

Maikel Melero (ESP)

Taka Higashino (JPN)

Adam Jones (USA)

Harry Bink (AUS)

Fred Kyrillos (BRA) (Novillero voted by the fans)

Chris Meyer (ESP) (Novillero selected by the sports committee)

Red Bull X-Fighters Madrid will broadcast live on redbullxfighters.com and Red Bull TV at 10 pm CET on July 7th