IVÁN CERVANTES CLAIMS GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS TITLE FOR THE GREATEST DISTANCE ON A MOTORCYCLE IN 24 HOURS WITH A TIGER 1200 GT EXPLORER

Iván Cervantes, 5x Enduro World Champion and Triumph Global Ambassador, has officially claimed the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for ‘The greatest distance on a motorcycle in 24 hours (individual)’.

Riding a Tiger 1200 GT Explorer on the High-Speed Ring at the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, Iván travelled more than 4012km in a 24 hour period, beating the previous record of 3406km by a huge margin of more than 600km.

The record attempt was witnessed and validated by a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS adjudicator on 30th April 2023, with a final confirmed distance of 4012.53km – a distance equivalent to travelling from London to the Great Pyramid of Giza in 24 hours!

Click here to watch the full story of Iván’s incredible challenge.

THE MAN
Iván Cervantes is a 5 times Enduro World Champion, 21 times Spanish Enduro Champion, and 5 times Spanish Motocross Champion. In July 2021, Iván was announced as one of Triumph’s new Off-Road ambassadors, helping to develop the upcoming range of motocross and enduro bikes.

Since joining the Triumph team, Iván has seen great success in riding and competing on Triumph adventure motorcycles, sealing wins at the Baja Aragón, 1000 Dunas Raid, and Basella Maxi-Trail Race.

In preparation for the record attempt, in addition to intensive physical training on his own Tiger 1200 Rally Pro, Iván began carefully planning his nutrition and sleep strategy, in partnership with Professor Andrew Bagshaw at the University of Birmingham.

THE MOTORCYCLE
The motorcycle used for the attempt was a Tiger 1200 GT Explorer, chosen at random from the production line at Triumph’s factory in Hinckley, UK. No special modifications were made to the bike, other than completing the recommended running in and first service schedule before the attempt was undertaken.

The Tiger 1200 family has been designed to deliver the ultimate in adventure bike touring capability, with exceptional comfort and unbeatable character. For the record attempt, features such as the 30 litre fuel tank and excellent wind protection were invaluable in ensuring Iván could continue riding, whatever challenges he encountered along the way.

Heated grips and seats provided additional comfort during the cold early-morning hours and unexpected downpours of rain, while the powerful T-Plane triple engine and advanced electronics provided effortless power and control. High-intensity LED lights ensured Iván always had exceptional visibility when riding, even in the complete darkness of the remote testing facility at Nardò.

Underlining the excellent performance and reliability of the Tiger 1200, the only maintenance required on the bike was a single, planned tyre change half way through the attempt, where the standard fit Metzeler TOURANCE™ Next tyres were refreshed as the rain started and night began to fall.

THE RECORD
The existing GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title of 3406.17km was achieved by American Carl Reese on 26th February 2017, recording an average speed over 24 hours of 141.9km/h.

Riding consistently at speeds of over 200km/h at the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, Iván surpassed the existing record with an incredible 5 hours to spare in the 24 hour window. Not content to simply beat the record, he set his sights on defining a new benchmark for this challenge – 4000km.

In the 5 hours that followed, he proceeded to ride a further 606km – essentially matching the existing record then continuing to ride the equivalent of the width of France in addition.

The record attempt was witnessed by an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS adjudicator, who validated the final distance travelled in 24 hours as 4012.53km, with an average speed of 167.79km/h.

KEY FACTS

• Attempt duration:  24 hours         
• Total distance travelled:  4012.53km
• Location:  High Speed Ring, Nardò Technical Center, Italy
• Length of one lap:  12.649km
• Number of laps:  317
• Riding speed:  Over 200km/h
• verage speed over 24 hours:  167.79km/h
• Number of pitstops:  18
• Litres of fuel used:  520
• Number of tyre changes:  1
• Hours of sleep:  0

QUOTES

Iván Cervantes – ‘The Tiger 1200 GT Explorer was the perfect bike for this attempt. It’s very comfortable to ride for a long time. For sure, the hardest part was the weather, because it started to rain, but this bike has a very big screen and excellent protection, which helped me a lot. It is a very special bike for me. It’s not easy to ride for 24 hours in a row but, in the end, the record is mine with this amazing bike!’

Nick Bloor, CEO, Triumph Motorcycles – ‘Iván’s achievement in taking the Guinness World Records title on the Tiger 1200 is simply incredible! His determination and perseverance have led him not only to beat the existing record, but to add almost 20% to the distance travelled in 24 hours. An outstanding effort, and one that everyone at Triumph is incredibly proud to have supported.’

Victor Fenes, Official Adjudicator, Guinness World Records – ‘I am truly humbled to have witnessed Iván Cervantes's awe-inspiring achievement of setting the Guinness World Records title for the Greatest distance on a motorcycle in 24 hours (individual). Iván's unwavering dedication and Triumph's support embody the values we hold dear at Guinness World Records. It is a true testament to the indomitable spirit of human determination and the pursuit of greatness.’

Salvo Pennisi, Head of Outdoor Testing and Technical Relations, Metzeler – ‘I would like to congratulate Iván Cervantes and Triumph on this well-deserved success. We are proud to have supported this record and to have contributed with the excellent performance provided by our Metzeler Tourance Next tyres, which are the motorcycle's original equipment.’

Special thanks to our partners, without whom this attempt would not have been possible:

Metzeler

Porsche Engineering 

BBC Studios

Top Gear

Guinness World Records

– END –

For further information contact:
Lisa Jones, Global PR & Events Manager
lisa.jones@triumph.co.uk 

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Triumph Motorcycles

• First established in 1902, Triumph Motorcycles celebrated 120 years of motorcycle manufacture in 2022. For more than three decades, Triumph Motorcycles has been based in Hinckley, Leicestershire, and has produced iconic bikes that perfectly blend authentic design, character, charisma and performance.
• With more than 83,389 motorcycles delivered in calendar year 2022, and on track to reach a milestone 800 dealers across the world in 2023, Triumph is the largest British motorcycle manufacturer.
• This focus, innovation and engineering passion has today created a broad range of bikes suited to all motorcycle riders, including the stunning Speed Triple 1200 RR, Tiger Sport 660 and Trident 660, all-new transcontinental Tiger 1200 and epic Tiger 900, world leading Rocket 3 R and GT, the new high-performance Street Triple 765 RS, iconic Scrambler 1200, and the legendary Triumph Bonneville family including the Bonneville Bobber, Thruxton RS, Speed Twin 900 Twin, Scrambler 900, and the iconic Bonneville T120 and T100 and the stunning Chrome Collection modern classics.
• Triumph currently employs around 3,000 personnel worldwide and has subsidiary operations in the UK, North America, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Japan, Sweden (Scandinavia), Benelux, Brazil, India, China and Thailand as well as a network of independent distributors. Triumph has manufacturing facilities in Hinckley, Leicestershire, and Thailand plus CKD facilities in Brazil and India.
• The Triumph Bonneville, famously named to celebrate Triumph’s 1956 land speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA, was the original British superbike and a race-winner straight out of the crate, chosen by famous motorcyclists of the past for its legendary handling, style, and character. Recently updated with even more performance, capability and style, it’s that handling, character and iconic looks, married to modern rider-focused technology that makes the new Bonneville family THE authentic modern classic choice today.
• Triumph has a glorious racing history, competing in and winning races in almost every class and field of motorcycle sporting achievement. From winning the second ever Isle of Man TT in 1908, through to 1960s road and track domination in Europe and America, right up to contemporary racing achievements with the Triumph triple powered 2014 and 2015 Supersports titles and World SuperSport racing, Isle of Man Supersports TT wins in 2014 and 2019, courtesy of Gary Johnson and Peter Hickman, plus an average speed of over 130mph 2023 by Peter Hickman on his Triumph STR765, and a thrilling last-lap victory at the legendary Daytona 200 by Brandon Paasch on the Street Triple 765 in 2022.
• Triumph’s racing legend continues as the exclusive engine supplier to the FIM Moto2™ World Championship since the start of the 2019 season. Triumph Motorcycles provides all of the teams with race-tuned 765cc triples, each of which is based on the class-leading Street Triple RS powerplant. Redefining the class and breaking record after record in the inaugural year, including the first ever +300km/h Moto2™ top speed, the 2020 season got even faster with another 11 all-time lap records and seven different winners from 15 races. Reflecting these great successes, the wonderful feedback and partnerships that Triumph have had with the riders and their teams, and the incredible response from Triumph fans across the world, Triumph and Dorna, in 2021, decided to extend our relationship and sign a new contract for another three years of racing: 2022 – 2024. The 765 Triumph Triple has so far achieved 73 race and outright lap records, enabled 21 different riders to win a Moto2™ race, with 8 different winners in 2022 alone. A 300km/h top speed has been reached at least once in each season, with the bar being moved even higher during practice at the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, when both Celestino Vietti and Darryn Binder recorded the highest ever top speed in Moto2™ of 301.6 km/h.  Triumph 765cc triples have raced more than one million kms, proving the engine’s outstanding performance and reliability.
• Triumph’s racing activities are further bolstered by a return to the World Superbike paddock in 2022 with a factory-supported race team, Dynavolt Triumph, in the World Supersport Championship.
• In 2021 Triumph announced their forthcoming entry into the Motocross and Enduro worlds as well as a new factory racing effort, with a commitment to top tier championship racing in both Motocross and Enduro series.
• In 2022 Triumph revealed their partnership with Thierry Chizat-Suzzoni, one of the sport’s most experienced and successful team owners, who will field two of Triumph’s all-new 250cc 4-stroke MX bikes in the 2024 MX2 class and will add an entry into the 450cc MXGP class in 2025, and with Team Principal Bobby Hewitt and Team Manager Stephen ‘Scuba’ Westfall to field its all-new Triumph 250cc 4-stroke MX bikes in the 2024 SuperMotocross World Championship, which is comprised of the Monster Energy Supercross World Championship, and the Pro Motocross Championship, with three season-ending SuperMotocross rounds.  For the 2025 season Triumph will additionally field its new 450cc bike in the SuperMotocross World Championship.
• In July 2022, Iván Cervantes secured victory in the Baja Aragón. Cervantes dominated the 450km race and crossed the finish line 1 hour and 6 minutes ahead of his rivals in the Trail category. In the scratch classification, which included professional riders with light 450cc rally motorcycles, Cervantes achieved an even more remarkable 11th position, clearly demonstrating the Tiger’s ability to compete at an elite level of competition.
• In 2023 Triumph officially claimed the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for ‘The greatest distance on a motorcycle in 24 hours (individual)’.  Riding a factory-specification Tiger 1200 GT Explorer on the High-Speed Ring at the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, 5x Enduro World Champion and Triumph Global Ambassador Iván Cervantes travelled more than 4012km in a 24-hour period, beating the previous record of 3406km by a huge margin of more than 600km.
• In 2023, Triumph launched the Speed 400 and Scrambler 400 X: two all-new models. Designed from the ground-up with a brand-new single engine platform at their heart, these new models have been designed to deliver a fun, agile and confidence-inspiring ride for riders of all ages and experience levels. Conceived and designed in Hinckley, UK, these accessible new models represent incredible value for money and bring Triumph’s iconic style, quality and performance to a whole new generation of Triumph riders.