It was a day of celebration in Italy, with Andrea Verona claiming a home victory on day two at round four of the 2024 FIM EnduroGP World Championship.
In wet and wild weather, the Italian narrowly beat Steve Holcombe by half a second to secure the top step of the Polisport GP of Italy podium.
After the scorching heat on day one at round four of the 2024 Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship in Bettola, Italy, day two was a contrasting mud bath. Heavy overnight rain ensured the dust of day one would be a distant memory as riders battled slippery special tests, littered with lots of mud holes.
With organisers opting to reverse the Polisport Extreme Test, riders faced an untimed run on lap one, before taking on the Maxxis Enduro Test, which would prove a crucial one for riders to get right throughout the day due to its testing conditions.
Steve Holcombe executed it perfectly on lap one. Setting the quickest time, he held an early four-second advantage over Andrea Verona, with Brad Freeman third. There was trouble for day one winner Josep Garcia when the Spaniard crashed in the trees and cost himself almost 50 seconds.
Quickly shaking it off, Garcia topped the Acerbis Cross Test to begin his charge back to the front as Verona overhauled Holcombe to end lap one of three as the race leader. Fastest on the following Polisport Extreme Test and Maxxis Enduro Test, before finishing second to Garcia on the Acerbis Cross Test, Verona ended lap two eighteen seconds clear of Holcombe in second.
Garcia had made an incredible recovery and was up to third with one lap remaining. Freeman held fourth, while Antoine Magain was holding fifth. But with the rain returning hard for lap three, positions were about to change once more.
Holcombe won the final Polisport Extreme Test and then the Maxxis Enduro Test. Also capitalising on a crash from Verona, he took over the race lead with just the final Acerbis Cross Test remaining. Could the Brit deny his Italian rival a home victory?
With it all to play for, Verona left it all on the line for his Italian fans. By the narrowest of margins, he fought back past Holcombe to secure the top step of the podium by an astonishing 46 hundredths of a second.
“To win the overall on day two at my home GP is an unbelievable feeling!” Verona enthused, “I put up a fight all day for the win and managed to make a decent gap. I nearly lost it when I crashed near the end of the day, but I went full gas on the final test and managed to get back on top! Saturday was an up and down day with some good results, but I just made too many mistakes. Overall though, I’m super happy to have won at home and the support of the fans has been incredible, it made all the difference.”
For Holcombe, it was a case of so close, but so far. Naturally disappointed, he had to settle for the runner-up result.
“It never feels good to lose the race on the last test, but I rode good today. Andrea just pipped me in the final test by half a second. Conditions today were wet and wild, so I’m pleased to have been strong in the mud,” Holcombe said.
Arguably one of the best recovery rides of the day went to Garcia in third.
“It’s been a good weekend in Italy. I’m really pleased with my victory on Saturday, and although I couldn’t repeat it on Sunday, I still rode very strong,” Garcia reflected. “The weather conditions each day were so different. Dry and dusty on day one, wet and muddy on day two. Each day my speed was good. Heading to round five I’m still leading both classes, so I hope to build on that in Slovakia and keep this good momentum rolling.”
For Belgium’s Magain it was a day to savour securing one of his best results in a long time with fourth. Zach Pichon and Hamish MacDonald took fifth and sixth respectively.
CLASSES:
In the Enduro Women’s class, it was Mireia Badia who mastered the mud to secure her second victory. The Spaniard was supreme as she made short work of the rutted Maxxis Enduro Test and slippery Acerbis Cross Test. Claiming a 56-second margin of victory, she was pleased with her efforts today.
“It’s been a fantastic weekend for me,” Badia enthused. “Winning both days is incredible. Day one was hot and dusty and now today was wet and muddy. It’s nice to be strong like this and take maximum points in the championship. I’m happy!”
Adding to the celebrations in the RIEJU camp, teammate Rosie Rowett took second. The Brit fended off a big challenge by Elodie Chaplot to beat her rival by just three seconds. Justine Martel and Emelie Borg rounded out the top five.
In Enduro1, Holcombe was rewarded with the win. The Honda rider took the top step of the podium ahead of Garcia in second with Pichon in third.
Verona added the Enduro2 class victory to his win tally on day two. With Matteo Pavoni in second and Samuele Bernardini in third, it was an all-Italian Enduro2 podium. Aussie Wil Ruprecht Racing was seventh in the E2 class on day two
The Enduro3 podium saw Sherco lockdown the top two positions. With a win for Magain, MacDonald followed him home for second. Freeman took third.
The GALFER FIM Junior Enduro World Championship saw Manolo Morettini come through to win. The young Italian was riding well in the slippery conditions and opened up an early lead. At the end of lap two, he held a 12-second advantage over Max Ahlin. Keeping his cool, he remained strong to secure his first victory of the season.
Despite a crash on the penultimate test, Ahlin ended his day in second. After a technical infringement on day one Australia’s Kyron Bacon improved from fifth on day 1 and delivered in tough conditions to finish third. Thibault Giraudon and Enrico Rinaldi completed the top five.
The Enduro Youth class saw Luca Colorio come through to secure his debut victory. The young Italian had come within eight-hundredths of a second from winning on day one, but today was his day. An exceptional ride saw him take a memorable win. Manuel Verzeroli was second, with Alberto Elgari third to complete an Italian clean sweep in Enduro Youth.
The Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship now heads to Gelnica in Slovakia for the Polisport GP of Slovakia on July 12-14.
Results: Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship, Round four – Day two
EnduroGP
1 Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 42:11.34;
2 Steve Holcombe (Honda) 42:11.80;
3 Josep Garcia (KTM) 42:33.81;
4 Antoine Magain (Sherco) 43:05.60;
5 Zach Pichon (Sherco) 43:11.91;
6 Hamish MacDonald (Sherco) 43:12.43;
7 Matteo Pavoni (Husqvarna) 43:16.64;
8 Samuele Bernardini (Honda) 43:18.05;
9 Theo Espinasse (Beta) 43:21.43;
10 Brad Freeman (Beta) 43:32.72…
Championship Standings (After round four)
EnduroGP
1 Josep Garcia (KTM) 144 Points
2 Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 134 Points
3 Steve Holcombe (Honda) 128 Points
4 Brad Freeman (Beta) 85 Points
5 Nathan Watson (Beta) 80 Points
6 Zach Pichon (Sherco) 63 Points
7 Samuele Bernardini (Honda) 59 Points
8 Jamie McCanney (Husqvarna) 55 Points
9 Hamish MacDonald (Sherco) 50 Points
10 Matteo Cavallo (TM Racing) 46 Points
