DOUBLE ENDURO1 CLASS WIN FOR ANDREA VERONA AT ENDUROGP OF PORTUGAL.
ITALIAN ENDURO ACE STEPS CLOSER TO 2021 E1 WORLD TITLE WITH SPIRITED RIDES AT PENULTIMATE ROUND OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP.
With the 2021 EnduroGP World Championship nearing its close, Andrea Verona has delivered the goods at the penultimate round of the series to top the Enduro1 class on both days of the EnduroGP of Portugal! Ensuring he arrives at the final round of the series in France next weekend both on form and 16 points ahead in the E1 class standings, Verona battled hard in Santiago do Cacem in southern Portugal to earn his seventh and eighth day wins of the series.
Andrea Verona:“It’s been a tough two days in Portugal, but to get two Enduro1 class wins and some good overall results in EnduroGP has been great – just what I’d hoped for ahead of the final round of the championship next weekend. Overall, day one was a good one for me. I made a few mistakes on the first two laps, but I managed to improve my speed throughout the day. I’m happy, it was fun to race in the sand. Day two was hard. I wasn’t feeling so strong after a tough opening day. But I kept pushing and finally on the final test of the day I was able to get the E1 class win. I needed to ride a little harder than I would normally, but I got the job done and I’m happy with the result. Now it’s onto France. Conditions will be very different, but I’m looking forward to the final round of the series.”
Returning to Portugal for the second time in 2021, the sandy, southern special tests at the GP of Portugal meant it was two long and demanding days in the saddle for our EC 250F mounted Italian. In complete contrast to the conditions in which he excelled at the recent International Six Days of Enduro in Italy, Andrea needed little time to get up to speed on day one, posting the fastest E1 time during the Friday night Super Test before topping the first two special tests on day one. Never placing lower than third in class, and only doing that once, he marched to an impressive win, 40 seconds clear of his nearest challenger.
On day two Andrea was made to work much harder for the win. Starting well and winning three of the opening four special tests, a costly mistake at the end of the second lap saw him with a real battle on his hands. Re-grouping to post the fastest time on each of the three tests on the third and final lap, Andrea topped the results by less than two-and-a-half seconds, winning the day and earning the maximum 20 points.
With just one round remaining, the 2021 EnduroGP World Championship will head to France next weekend, October 16-17, where both Andrea Verona and Laia Sanz will continue their respective quests for the Enduro 1 and Enduro Women World Championship titles.
Results – 2021 EnduroGP World Championship, Round 5, Day 1
Enduro1
1. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 53:28.49
2. Davide Guarneri (Fantic) 54:09.34
3. Matteo Cavallo (TM) 54:50.04
EnduroGP
1. Josep Garcia (KTM) 52:29.53
2. Brad Freeman (Beta) 53:23.99
3. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 53:28.49
Results – 2021 EnduroGP World Championship, Round 5, Day 2
Enduro1
1. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 52:44.45
2. Davide Guarneri (Fantic) 52:46.77
3. Davide Soreca (Husqvarna) 54:39.71
EnduroGP
1. Josep Garcia (KTM) 51:42.52
2. Brad Freeman (Beta) 51:45.28
3. Nathan Watson (Honda) 52:15.85
4. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 52:44.45
Championship Standings – 2021 EnduroGP World Championship, (after Round 5)
Enduro1
1. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 192 points
2. Davide Guarneri (Fantic) 176 pts
3. Samuele Bernardini (Honda) 131 pts
EnduroGP
1. Brad Freeman (Beta) 180 points
2. Josep Garcia (KTM) 164 pts
3. Andrea Verona (GASGAS) 130 pts
Text/Bild: GasGas