'06 World Enduro Championship
By TMX Archives on 31st Jul 06
Cervantes wins Extreme Lumezzane, Knight wins BEC Rnd 3 (31.07.2006) Just one week after returning to Europe following their participation in rounds five and six of the '06 World Enduro Championship held in Canada and New York State KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli riders Ivan Cervantes and David Knight were back in action and continuing their winning ways during the last weekend of July with Ivan winning the fifth running of Extreme Lumezzane and Knighter topping the third round of the '06 British Enduro Championship.
Claiming his first win at the event staged in the Italian town of Lumezzane in '05, reigning Enduro 1 world champion Ivan Cervantes returned this year determined to win again. Mounted on a 250cc two-stroke machine, and not a 250cc four-stroke like in WEC competitions, Ivan won 11 of the event's 15 special stages to claim the win by close to 50 seconds. But Ivan didn't have things all his own way as his team-mate Alessandro Belometti lead after one hour of special test action only to fail to finish the event after coming together with a slower rider and injuring his fingers. With Cervantes claiming his second consecutive win Italian Andrea Belotti claimed second to make it a KTM one-two while Giovanni Sala placed in fifth.
At the third round of the '06 British Enduro Championship Ivan's KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli team-mate David Knight continued to dominate his domestic championship in much the same way he is currently dominating the world championship taking overall wins on both days one and two. With the first day long and extremely challenging Knight topped all but one of the six special tests to finish 25 seconds ahead of his nearest rival. On day two David increased his winning margin and despite there being just five special tests he placed 50 seconds ahead of the second placed Championship class rider.
Both Ivan and David, along with the rest of the KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli riders, will be back in World Enduro Championship action at round seven of the '06 WEC series in Slovakia during the first weekend in September.
Ivan Cervantes: "It's great to win the Extreme Lumezzane race for the second year. After two weeks in the States I was a little tired before the race but the atmosphere here, and the support of the spectators was incredible — they have supported me like I was an Italian. Riding a 250cc two-stroke was fun. It's always nice to spend some time on a bike different to my world championship race bike. I was only beaten on three of the 14 special tests and despite receiving a one-minute penalty I was still able to win by over 50 seconds. It's been great to race without the pressure of the world championship. I have really enjoyed the Extreme Lumezzane race.”
David Knight: "The Tywi Enduro was another good weekend for me. After the two races in Canada and the US I was bit tired but I didn't have any problems during the event. The tests on the first day were really slippery, especially on the first lap. I couldn't push as hard as I wanted to, which was frustrating. It was hard to pull ahead and open up a good gap like I normally try and do. It did get a little more grippy at the end of the day.
"I enjoyed day two much more. Having a test right after the start was good and because it was a lot more cut up than it was on day one I was able to attack it more. They tests did get slippery when it rained hard at the end of the lap but they were perfect for the two runs at the end of the day. All in all it was a good event and the club clearly put a lot of effort into it.”
Results: '06 Extreme Lumezzane
1. Ivan Cervantes (KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli) 1.27:37.72
2. Andrea Belotti (KTM Farioli) 1.28:28.75
3. Alessandro Botturi (Aprilia) 1.29:14.00
4. Simone Albergoni (Honda) 1.30:14.40
5. Giovanni Sala (KTM Farioli) 1.30:36.73
6. Mario Rinaldi (Husaberg) 1.31:25.20
7. Tulio Pellegrinelli (Honda) 1.32:24.56
8. Maurizio Micheluz (Yamaha) 1.33:10.34
9. Thomas Oldrati (Husqvarna) 1.35:44.26
10. Maurizio Casartelli (Sherco) 1.37:11.73
Results: '06 British Enduro Championship, Tywi Enduro Day 1
1. David Knight (D3-Racing KTM / KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli) 1530.48
2. Euan McConnell 1555.65
3. Paul Edmondson 1557.42
4. Jake Stapleton 1585.41
5. Juan Knight 1634.44
6. Tom Sagar 1643.91
7. Si Wakely 1680.81
8. Daryl Bolter 1689.63
9. Richard Hay 1695.89
10. Rowan Jones 1729.61
Results: '06 British Enduro Championship, Tywi Enduro Day 2
1. David Knight (D3-Racing KTM / KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli) 1291.54
2. Paul Edmondson 1344.62
3. Jake Stapleton 1373.95
4. Si Wakely 1401.23
5. Tom Sagar 1402.71
6. Daryl Bolter 1406.05
7. Greg Evans 1413.52
8. Rob Jones 1424.48
9. Darren Wheeler 1431.53
10. Juan Knight 1434.56