Verona Italy, January 23-25, 2026
Words and pictures by Horst Roessler- The ' Motographer '
Internationally popular, Motor Bike Expo( MBE) Verona / Italy, January 2026, drew the usual large crowds and slew of stunning custom builds. Central to the show ' s custom bike awards structure is its prestigious ' King of Custom ', selected from an invited 10-bike selection with this year ' s win going to Joost ' Joe ' Gazendam of El Lobo Cycles in the UK. Along with ' Flaco '- a radical one-off chopper featuring spectacular engine work and a long Harman-Holland girder style front fork- his ' Royal Blood ' winning entry- a super-clean ' Chop-to-Ride '- was one of two custom bikes that the El Lobo team built in a 10-day ' build-blitz ' to be ready in time for the show. Traditionally Motor Bike Expo is the ' season starter ' for the custom bike scene ' South of The Alps ' in Europe and a showcase for South-East European customizers and neighboring markets such as France, Switzerland and Austria. In the 10-years since its inception the ' Top Ten List ' has seen four Italian ' Kings ' crowned, one from Japan, and Switzerland ' s Stéphane Grand. Grand ' s latest creation, and a new bike by Gallery Motorcycles ' Mirko Perugini( Brescia, Italy) were El Lobo ' s primary competitors, with Chicano Specialist Pepe Lazzara from Belgium also in the
running with ' La Trinella ', his hottest Chicano so far. The judging team, this year were Cristian Sosa / Sosa Metalworks, Mike Rabideau / Majik Mike ' s Designs, Satya Kraus / Kraus Motor Company and Winston Yeh of Rough Crafts. After close inspection of the 10 selected custom bikes of all styles, their unusually quick decision was equally unusually unanimous- a rare thing indeed at custom bike shows- in favor of the Brit built ' Royal Blood '. MBE is, theoretically, an ' All Market ' show, with sports bikes, race bikes( of course, we are talking Italy after all) and even MX, Enduro and Scooters all having their share of the available eight halls. But with three of the largest dedicated to the custom scene the V-twin market especially is what dominates the headlines at the show and what is undoubtedly the biggest international draw. The " newer " halls are mainly dedicated to the major Japanese, Italian, and Chinese manufacturers, and, together with indoor trials, a second-hand bike market, and official exhibitors from the Italian army, police, and emergency services, general motorcycle suppliers and themes account for over 70 % of the occupied space, with the ' older halls ' providing an atmospheric ' shabby chic '
Based from East Germany, Mario Kyprianides of Chopper Kulture has become one of the best engine tuners for high-performance Harley- Davidson twins.
industrial vibe for the custom bike market. The Italians are still ' motorcycle crazy ' and Italy is Europe ' s largest market in annual new model registration terms.
Walking the complete expo at least once does pay off, as you find ' hidden jewels ' like the idiosyncratic but no less passion driven Moped & Scooter exhibition- proving that Big Inches
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24 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER- MARCH 2026 www. AMDmag. com