After the discovery of Israel during the last two seasons, the MotoZ FIM SuperEnduro championship will add a new destination to its catalog of countries visited. This time, heading to Romania and the city of Cluj as the new date on the calendar. 2024 is reaching the halfway point of the season. Shaken during the last German round, Billy BOLT arrives as a solid leader to tackle the rest of the season.
Words and Images by FIM SuperEnduro
Billy BOLT (GBR-Husqvarna) is a very secretive man. The Briton has not officially given any updates on his state of health following the painful race he had in Germany at the Riesa round. Injured in the left knee, BOLT nevertheless managed to win the 3rd round of the season. The world championship leader left Germany visibly suffering from his left knee. According to the latest information, he seems ready and ay 100% for Romania. Jonny WALKER (GBR-Beta) came very close to victory during the last race, even if once again it was BOLT who won. The private Beta rider proves that he still has it for the second part of the season. There are still 12 finals to go and the gap between BOLT and WALKER is only 17 points. This leaves a lot of room for possibilities for WALKER. He can’t waste any more time. He must succeed in defeating his compatriot if he wants to obtain this world crown that he desires so much.
Manuel LETTENBICHLER determined to improve
The German rider, double HardEnduro world champion, is currently in 4th place in the general classification. He is 7 points behind Will HOARE (GBR). The KTM rider reached his first podium of the season during his home Grand Prix. Making progress with each of his outings, he really hopes to be able to bridge the gap that separates him from BOLT and WALKER. For this he redoubled his efforts in training to assimilate even more the sustained pace required by SuperEnduro races. Accustomed to more endurance efforts, Letti suffers during the heats. Technically up to standard, he must, as he himself says, switch to “sprint mode”. To do this, he will have to put HOARE under pressure, the Briton who posted two very good performances in France and Poland (third in the scratch twice).
The Prestige category promises great battles in the three rounds which will be contested for the first time at the BTArena in Cluj. Usually used for major sporting events and expanded for Euro Basketball 2017, the arena can accommodate up to 10,000 spectators. Bastien BLANCHARD, the promoter of the MotoZ FIM SuperEnduro championship, hopes that a large crowd of enthusiasts will meet here to follow the exploits of all the heroes of the season.
SELLA/BRIGHTMORE the battle continues
Suff SELLA (ISR-KTM) took back control of the Junior world championship during the Riesa round. He leads the standings by 2 points ahead of Ashton BRIGHTMORE (GBR-GASGAS). The two young men largely dominate the category at the green plate for the moment. They have to watch out for the Hungarian Roland LISZKA (KTM) who will still have his word to say in Romania. Milan SCHMUESER (GER-Sherco) and the Spaniards Marc FERNANDEZ SERRA (KTM) and Raul GUIMERA (KTM) will also be present to seize the opportunity to get on the podium.
Europe: LEON SOLE on the way to the title
The Iberian rider is heading towards the SuperEnduro European Cup title. He is ahead of the Italian Alessandro AZZALINI (GASGAS) by 14 points. LEON SOLE will nevertheless have to ensure and score as much as possible if he wants to perfectly seal the final victory during the final round in Budapest. Mathematically Maciej WIECKOWSKI (POL-GASGAS) and Hubert ZBIKOWSKI (POL-KTM) are still in the running for the European crown. The European Cup will also be followed at the heart of an evening and competition which promises its share of emotions and strong sensations.
The Romanian Grand Prix, 4th round of the MotoZ FIM SuperEnduro world championship, can be followed live and in full on: www.superenduro.tv Saturday January 20 from 6 p.m. CET.
