Wedge out to create another first in ice cross downhill

There have been four different champions in the four-year history of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship and it's been impossible for anyone to defend their title because no one has been able to stay on top for long of the rapid-fire advancements of the fast-growing sport. Derek Wedge hopes to become the first Red Bull Crashed Ice overall champion to win back-to-back titles.

Switzerland's Derek Wedge will be the man to beat in the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship this year after the fleet-footed skiing instructor dethroned the 2012 world champion Kyle Croxall, of Canada. Croxall and 2010 world champion Martin Niefnecker, of Germany, who is also hungry to get back on top, agreed with Wedge that there are many special factors about Red Bull Crashed Ice that prevented anyone from winning back-to-back titles so far.

"There are so many things that can happen – the ice changes, someone can fall on you," said Wedge. "That's why it's such an interesting sport. Everything has to fall in the right place to win the championship even once. Everyone wants to beat me now, everyone comes up to me and says 'I want to kick your ass'. There's pressure. Everyone really wanted to beat Kyle last year. Sure I want to defend my title but I don't feel the pressure."

Croxall, who finished second in 2013 to Wedge, second in 2011 to Arttu Pihlainen, of Finland, and second to Niefnecker in 2010, said that it's so hard to defend the championship title because ice cross downhill is a sport filled with ambitious newcomers and there are also an infinite number of things that can go wrong when four men on skates are battling it out down a bump- and obstacle-filled ice track at speeds of up to 60 kilometres per hour.

"Every race is different and it's really difficult to get used to every different track – and sometimes you stumble," Croxall said. "I fell twice last year so if I hadn't fallen in one of those races I'd have won the title again. There are also a lot of really good riders out there." Croxall believes that he has good chances this year because the spotlight will be on Wedge: "I'd say Derek has more pressure on his shoulders than me. It's the same feeling I had last year. It's more laid back for me this year, which is nice. Coming in second overall there's definitely a lot less weight on my shoulders but it'll make me want to win this year."

Niefnecker said that he also hopes to get back on top of the world after having a couple of disappointing seasons after winning the first world championship in 2010.

"There are just so many ambitious racers out here and there are about 15 to 20 who can win any given race," said Niefnecker. "You need a bit of good fortune to stay on top and if you don't have that you won't have a chance."

Niefnecker said that in a sport where you're hurtling down an icy track at blinding speeds while navigating through obstacles against three other rivals there are also mental hurdles that make it hard to win back-to-back championships. "If you don't have a clear head all the time you're not going to win," he said. "I had one race where I just couldn't get my head into it. My head wasn't even there. It's not easy to come up with four top performances in four races."

Watch it LIVE!

Catch all the action from Red Bull Crashed Ice in Finland live on February 1:

Webcast: We will stream the entire competition live right here on redbullcrashedice.com and on redbull.tv. Please note that the live webcast is geo-blocked in the US. The event will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 on Sunday, February 2, at 8.30am (ET) / 5.30am (PT).
TV: The main event will be broadcast live on several TV stations. Please check your local listings.
Live Results: To get results and standings in real-time, hit redbullcrashedice.com/results.