The Catalan rider Iván Cervantes, five times Enduro World Champion, pulverized a few days ago the world record for the longest distance covered individually on a motorcycle in 24 hours. The feat, achieved on the handlebars of a fully stock Triumph Tiger 1200 GT Explorer, was carried out on the high-speed circuit of the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, and has now been officially recognized by Guinness World Records.
Cervantes, a Triumph ambassador, more than beat the previous record of 3,406 km, and surpassed it by a wide margin of more than 600 km, placing it at 4,012 km (a distance equivalent to traveling from London to the Great Pyramid of Giza). in a day. With this world record, which has perfectly combined the skill and speed of the Cambrils rider with the exceptional qualities and performance of the British mount, Hinckley’s firm has added a new milestone in the brand’s history of success.
The attack on the record, covered by the English channel BBC, was witnessed and validated by a Guinness World Records judge, who confirmed that the final distance covered was exactly 4,012.53 km, with an average speed of 167. 79 km/h. This exciting challenge has required Iván Cervantes to undergo intense physical training as well as extensive training days at the controls of his own Tiger 1200 Rally Pro. Iván carefully planned his nutrition and sleep strategy in collaboration with Professor Andrew Bagshaw of the University of Birmingham.
It is not the first time that the Catalan pilot manages to surprise locals and strangers with great feats by taking control of a British mount. Since officially joining the Triumph team in 2021, Iván has also had significant success at the wheel of the Adventure range, winning victories in the Baja Aragón, 1000 Dunas Raid and Basella Race 1 last year. Now, Cervantes has far surpassed the previous record set in 2017 by the American Carl Reese (3,406.17 km with an average speed of 141.9 km/h).
Nick Bloor, the CEO of Triumph Motorcycles, has called it “an incredible achievement by Ivan. His tenacity and perseverance have led him not only to beat the previous record, but to exceed the previous record by almost 20% more. It has been an exceptional effort, of which all of us at Triumph are incredibly proud.”
The Spaniard consistently drove at speeds of over 200 km/h at the Nardò Technical Center, breaking the previous record with a 5-hour advantage over the available 24-hour window. But not content with simply writing his name in the Guinness Book of Records, he focused on setting a benchmark in the history of this challenge: the 4,000 km barrier. In the following 5 hours, he covered another 606 km, the equivalent of a Madrid-Barcelona route, despite the rain that prevailed during the race.
Víctor Fenes, Official Adjudicator of Guinness World Records, confirmed not only the validity of the record, but also the shared admiration of those present: “Iván’s unwavering perseverance and the support he has received from the Triumph team fit perfectly with the values ??we hold most dear in Guinness World Records. He is a true example of human determination and the pursuit of greatness.”
The stock qualities of the bike with which the attempt was successfully completed were key in ensuring that the Triumph ambassador could ride for so long at such high speeds. In this sense, the T-Plane three-cylinder engine and its advanced electronics, its high-intensity full-LED lighting, the 30-liter fuel tank, the excellent protection against wind and heated grips and seats, have been key elements. to achieve this feat. The virtues of man and machine also had to overcome unforeseen challenges such as the cold morning hours or the unexpected downpours that occurred at the remote Nardò Test Center.
The record holder himself summed up the feat with these words: “The Tiger 1200 GT Explorer was the perfect bike for this attack on the record. It is very comfortable to ride for many hours straight. The hardest thing of all was, without a doubt, the weather, because it started to rain, but this bike has a very large screen and it offers excellent protection, and that is something that helped me a lot. It is a very special bike for me. It’s not easy to ride for 24 hours straight, but in the end, the record is mine and I did it with this amazing bike!”
