Press Release | July 11, 2022
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler claimed victory at Red Bull Abestone in Italy, July 9-10, his third straight victory in the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship.
Following wins in Serbia and Austria, Lettenbichler was keen to keep his momentum going as he started Sunday’s race in third place, behind Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Billy Bolt and AG Racing Team 89’s Alfredo Gomez.
Between high temperatures and a brutally tough course, the two-lap race proved a hard task for all. Bolt opened the course, but after 45 minutes Lettenbichler had already disposed of Gomez and was closing in on the Husqvarna rider. Despite pushing hard, Bolt had no answer for Lettenbichler and midway through lap one, the German got out in front.
Mani Lettenbichler made it three straight wins in the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship, the latest coming at the Red Bull Abestone in Italy. Photos: Red Bull Content Pool
Controlling the pace, Lettenbichler steadily built up a cushion that he would work to his advantage on lap two. Managing the race superbly, he pushed on in the final stages to claim the win by more than eight minutes.
Lettenbichler, 24, said, “To get three wins in a row has come as a big surprise, it wasn’t something I expected happening at the beginning of the year. But I feel good in my riding and it’s showing in my results. The organizers did a great job this year with the track. It was hard the whole way through. I think I got into the lead after about 45 minutes. Although Billy was never too far away, I rode on my own for quite a lot. But the gap never felt too big, so I had to keep pushing on.”
Bolt, who triumphed in the morning qualifier and JUST1 Straight Rhythm on Saturday, managed to hang on for second place to keep his championship lead intact.
“I was managing the difficult sections pretty good, but my wrist was hurting on the downhills, and it was hard to keep the pace with Mani,” Bolt said. “I’m happy with second, to be honest. When he came past, I made a small mistake and lost touch with him. He pulled away a bit and I pulled a gap on third place, so the final lap was about trying to manage that and bring it home safe.”
Billy Bolt gave chase but couldn’t quite catch Lettenbichler.
Behind the top two, the fight for the podium went down to the wire, but it was Sherco Factory Racing’s Mario Roman who took third, with Gomez in fourth and Rigo Racing’s Matthew Green in fifth.
“I had my work cut out for me today,” Roman said. “I started quite far back in 13th and had a lot of guys to overtake to get near the front. On the first lap I just tried to keep steady and chip away at the positions. On the final lap I was into the top five and felt strong, so I gave it everything to catch Alfredo and got third.”
(L-R) Bolt, Lettenbichler and Mario Roman made up the Abestone podium.
The FIM Hard Enduro World Championship continues with round five at Red Bull Romaniacs in Romania, July 26-30. CN
OVERALL RESULTS
- Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM)
- Billy Bolt (Hus)
- Mario Roman (She)
- Alfredo Gomez (GG)
- Matthew Green (KTM)
Click here for more off-road news.
