Podium at final round sees Nathan Watson retain French Beach Race Championship

Nathan Watson has successfully defended his French Beach Race Championship title with a hard-fought podium result at Enduropale du Touquet.

With the infamous Enduropale du Touquet marking the seventh and final round of the CFS: Championnat de France des Sables, all eyes were on defending champion Nathan Watson to see if he could repeat his 2019 winning result.

As the 1,200 competitors lined up for the beginning of the grueling three-hour event, Watson knew the importance of making a fast start and then pushing hard during the early stages of race. A little too keen to get his race started, the Brit was later deemed to have jumped the start, picking up a 60-second stop-and-go penalty.

Unaware of what was to come, Watson exited the first corner just outside the top 10 and set about making ground on the leaders. Battling his way up to fifth during the first five laps, an efficient fuel stop after the first hour of racing moved him into third. Favoring the rougher conditions in the latter stages of race, Watson reached as high as second with just over one hour remaining.

With organisers then handing him the penalty, Nathan‰Ûªs charge was ended and he ultimately lost his chance of victory. Dropping back down the leaderboard to fourth, he eventually battled his way back into a podium position and finished third at the checkered flag.