The weekend just ended of 2 and 3 April officially opened the 2023 season of the World’s top enduro Championship at Arma di Taggia (Italy), the theatre of the long-awaited event which, as usual, attracted a large and festive crowd throughout the entire race weekend.
Report and Images by Betamotor
The Moto Club Sanremo, in collaboration with Track Inspector Maurizio Micheluz, designed for the occasion a race that was as challenging as it was spectacular, in which the riders battled it out right from the opening evening of Friday 4 March for the prologue on the beach of Sanremo, and then continued the race weekend by competing in the four laps of the three special tests scheduled on both days of the race.
A high-level race not only from a technical point of view, but also logistical and organisational, thanks to the excellent work done by the historic Motoclub Sanremo which, with its more than ninety years of experience, was able to put together an event worthy of a World Championship.
The Italian GP saw the Beta Factory riders measure themselves against a course of over 40 km, characterised by high level and very technical tests, where experience and control played a key role in the race’s success. Three special tests were scheduled, to be run four times a day, for a total of twenty-four special tests throughout the race weekend.
The race path of the Ligurian weekend opened on both days with a 2 km Cross Test on the beach of Arma di Taggia, followed by a 7 km long Enduro Test with hard terrain and plenty of natural obstacles inside a forest, and an Extreme Test at the end of the lap, as spectacular as it was treacherous due to its climbs and descents, characterised by hard and dusty terrain alternated with stones for a total of 2.4 km.
Brad Freeman impressed everyone from the start and demonstrated his current state of form with an excellent performance on both race days. The British rider literally dominated the Enduro GP Class, recording six best Overall times in the twelve special tests held on Saturday. At the end of the race weekend, Brad Freeman leads with full points in both the Enduro GP Class and the E3 Class, winning both race days.
Steve Holcombe also did well in the Enduro GP Class. The British rider collected two third places in the top class and two second places in the E2 Class, also winning several special tests. On both race days Steve Holcombe fought for the top positions, even leading the E2 Class classification for a good part of the race when, due to a mistake, he lost precious seconds that relegated him behind his direct competitor.
After the first round of the FIM EnduroGP Championship, the Enduro Circus will stop for a month to return to the race scene on the first weekend of May in Lalìn, Spain, to compete in the second round of the 2023 season.
Brad Freeman:
“It was important to start with a good result at the first round of the World Championship and I am happy with the result over the weekend. We will arrive in Spain as the leader of the Enduro GP Championship and the E3 Class but we have to stay focused until the end.”
Steve Holcombe:
“I am satisfied with the race in Arma di Taggia but I have some regrets because second place in the Enduro GP and first place in the E2 Class was always close at hand. Now maximum concentration for the next appointments because the World Championship is long, and the level of the top riders is very high.”
