Story: Enduro GP Press Release
July 14, 2024

After another scorching day of racing at round five of the Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Josep Garcia secured a commanding win at the POLISPORT GP of Slovakia, extending his championship points lead in the process. Beta Factory Racing’s Brad Freeman put in an impressive ride in Gelnica to take second, followed by day one winner GASGAS Factory Racing’s Andrea Verona in third. Kyron Bacon (Yamaha) emerged victorious again on day two in the GALFER FIM Junior Enduro World Championship.

• Josep Garcia extends EnduroGP lead after day two win

• Kyron Bacon wins Enduro Junior

• Enduro Youth leader Manuel Verzeroli tops the timesheets on day two

Taking on the MAXXIS Enduro Test to start the day, it was Josep Garcia who came out swinging and set the tone for the day, going fastest by seven seconds over Brad Freeman. The Spaniard didn’t hold back, winning the first ACERBIS Cross Test too, building his lead from the off.

Brad Freeman settled into a rhythm by the end of lap one, taking the win on the POLISPORT Extreme Test over JET Zanardo Husqvarna’s Matteo Pavoni. However, it wasn’t enough to close the gap to Garcia, with the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider already eight seconds ahead after the opening lap.

Lap two saw Garcia get another test win under his belt, but new contenders emerged soon after. Victory in the ACERBIS Cross Test went to Beta Factory Racing’s Nathan Watson, day one’s EnduroGP runner up.

Slowly getting into the swing of things, Andrea Verona put in a series of top-three times before topping the timesheets on the POLISPORT Extreme Test on lap two. The Italian proved that consistency is key, his impressive results moving him up to second overall ahead of Freeman after two laps.

The three-way battle between Garcia, Freeman and Verona intensified on the final lap of the day, with all three securing a convincing test win each. Ultimately, Garcia came out on top, no doubt fuelled by his below par day one result, finishing with an 18-second lead overall. Less than half a second separated Brad Freeman and Andrea Verona, with the Brit just edging out the Italian to take second place.

After a test win and multiple top-three test results, Nathan Watson steered his Beta to a fourth-place finish, with countryman Honda Racing RedMoto Enduro Team’s Steve Holcombe just two tenths of a second behind in fifth.

Not only topping the EnduroGP class, Josep Garcia also secured his sixth Enduro1 category win of the season, 30 seconds clear of second-placed Steve Holcombe. As on day one, Team Beta Oxmoto’s Theo Espinasse completed the E1 podium in third place.

Andrea Verona marked his eighth consecutive victory in the Enduro2 class, extending his lead to a remarkable 45 points ahead of Nathan Watson, who finished second on day two. Rounding out the top three was Sherco rider Wil Ruprecht who had another impressive day, clocking the third fastest time on the ACERBIS Cross Test on lap two.

Alongside his EnduroGP podium finish, Brad Freeman added another Enduro3 win to his collection with one and a half minutes to spare over second-placed CH Racing Sherco’s Hamish Macdonald. Despite struggling with an ongoing injury, the New Zealander has now clocked four runner-up E3 finishes in a row. TM Moto’s Matteo Cavallo completed the top three.

Kyron Bacon does the double in Enduro Junior

Securing six test wins on day two, it was Kyron Bacon (Yamaha) who topped the timesheets in the GALFER FIM Enduro Junior World Championship, taking his second victory of the weekend. Bacon battled with championship leader Team KTM Pro racing Sport’s Max Ahlin all day, but ultimately it was the Tasmanian who came out on top, with Ahlin finishing second.

Third place was awarded to Fantic Racing Team’s Kevin Cristino, followed by KBS Team’s Matej Skuta and Team Beta Oxmoto’s Leo Joyon, with just twelve seconds separating the three.

Manuel Verzeroli makes it two from two in Slovakia in Enduro Youth

Enduro Youth saw championship leader Manuel Verzeroli (KTM) extend his lead to an impressive 42 points with a win on day two at the POLISPORT GP of Slovakia. Hot on the Italian’s heels all day was Romain Dagna, who finished as runner-up, just eight seconds behind Verzeroli. An unfortunate injury for Alberto Elgari (TM Racing) ruled the Italian out of the battle early on.

Rounding out the top three was Fantic Racing Team’s Pietro Scardina, with Clement Clauzier (Beta) placing fourth. JET Zanardo Husqvarna’s Luca Colorio completed the top five.

With just two rounds left to contest, the Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship continues in three weeks’ time with the ForSiteServices GP of Wales in Rhayader on August 2-4.

Josep Garcia (KTM): “Today was great for me! After yesterday, the goal was to be back at the top, so from the very first test I changed my mentality and the way I rode the tests compared to Saturday, which made all the difference. It feels good to be back on the top step of the podium.”

Brad Freeman (Beta): “It’s been an up and down weekend for me with some really good test results, but a few too many mistakes too. I really tried my hardest today and I’m happy to be on the podium, but I know it will take that little bit extra if I want to top the EnduroGP class.”

Andrea Verona (GASGAS): “Today was pretty up and down as I started out too slow but then had a few good tests on laps two and three. It was super close today with Brad [Freeman] beating me by less than a second, but I’m happy to have won Enduro2 again.”

Kyron Bacon (Yamaha): “I’ve had a really good weekend! I started off strong this morning, made a few small mistakes but I have really enjoyed battling with Max [Ahlin] all weekend. I’m used to these conditions which I think played to my advantage, and it’s definitely a big confidence boost for me.”

Manuel Verzeroli (KTM): “I’m really happy to win again today because my lead in the Enduro Youth championship is even bigger now. The conditions here were hard but I really enjoyed them. I’m looking forward to the final two rounds of the season.”

Results: Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship, Round 5 – Day 2

EnduroGP
1. Josep Garcia (KTM) 1:03:46.40; 2. Brad Freeman (Beta) 1:04:04.91; 3. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 1:04:05.91; 4. Nathan Watson (Beta) 1:04:16.70; 5. Steve Holcombe (Honda) 1:04:16.95; 6. Wil Ruprecht (Sherco) 1:05:21.48; 7. Hamish MacDonald (Sherco) 1:05:23.19; 8. Matteo Cavallo (TM Racing) 1:05:31.35; 9. Samuele Bernardini (Honda) 1:05:53.46; 10. Theo Espinasse (Beta) 1:05:56.12…

Championship Standings (After round five)

EnduroGP
1. Josep Garcia (KTM) 177pts; 2. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 169pts; 3. Steve Holcombe (Honda) 154pts; 4. Brad Freeman (Beta) 113pts; 5. Nathan Watson (Beta) 110pts; 6. Zach Pichon (Sherco) 73pts; 7. Samuele Bernardini (Honda) 73pts; 8. Hamish MacDonald (Sherco) 68pts; 9. Matteo Cavallo (TM Racing) 60pts; 10. Jamie McCanney (Husqvarna) 55pts…