"I got to the open section at the end and heard the commentator saying 'this could be the fastest time.' I just put my head down and sprinted hard. And there you go - that was enough for the win."
His European campaign did not start so well, missing qualification for his first World Cup in Les Gets in France.
"I was sick as a dog, jetlagged and not feeling good at all," he continues.
"I wasn't focusing properly, getting irritated at myself for little things on the bike."
He knew that had to change.
"Missing qualifying in Les Gets really inspired me, upping my mental game way more," he says.
"I was stretching every night, I was eating right, focused on the process that would get me into those finals in Italy."
His renewed confidence carried over to last weekend's World Cup in Lenzerheide in Switzerland where he was third in the final tune up before the 2019 World Championships in Monte-St-Anne in Canada.
Tuhoto-Ariki is one of the MTB National Performance Hub riders.
"It's great to see him get the results," says the Hub's Sam Thompson, who is travelling with the team.
"We knew he had the talent and needed an opportunity to put it together.
"The Hub is all about creating opportunities for our young athletes to perform at their best on the world stage."
Dave Hamilton from Descend Rotorua was also aware of Tuhoto-Ariki's potential.
"The track at Val Di Sole is, arguably, the hardest on the circuit," he says. "And he won Junior Men at the Oceania Championships, this year, and was fastest, overall. This kid is on a heater."
Tuhoto-Ariki will be joined in Canada by Rotorua riders, Keegan Wright, Finn Parsons, Blake Ross and Louis Vuleta. Descend has donated $1500 to each of them to help with travel costs.
Earlier this year, Barbara Jenks from the Rotorua Mountain Bike Club and a great team organised a quiz night for Tutoto-Ariki which raised $4000.
"He's recognised as being incredibly talented and also a super young man," says Barbara.
"It's testament to how well he's liked and respected in the community that so many people turned up."
Tuhoto-Ariki's family and friends are his biggest supporters.
"I feel the love from everyone, Mum and Dad, my partner Nae, Gay and Barb, Mike Romanes for my flights and many more from Rotorua and Aotearoa," he says.
"And all my sponsors, the Performance Hub, Fox Racing New Zealand, Mountain Bike Rotorua, MDA Experiences, Hyperformance Hardware, Descend Rotorua, Taupo Tandem Skydiving, Kaitiaki Adventures Aotearoa, Southstar Shuttles Rotorua, Off Road 4X4 Queenstown, the Ihenga Trust and Ngati Tarawhai whanau.
"If it wasn't for all the help, growlings and motivation from these people I probably wouldn't have been able to follow my dreams. Kia ora."
