You couldn’t ask for a much better race than that of Christophe Nambotin. The Red Bull Factory KTM rider won all 11 special tests and was the fastest rider overall at the Spanish round of the Enduro World Championship. Photography by Future 7 Media/KTM Images
The World Enduro Championship traveled to Spain for the second stop of the 2015 series where KTM riders continued to rule. E1 rider Christophe Nambotin and E2 competitor Antoine Meo both took double victories in Jerez while Mathias Bellino piloted his Husqvarna to the Enduro 3 overall win.
In the E1 division, Nambotin conquered the dry, slick conditions with ease, not only topping the small bike division, but carding the quickest overall time of the day aboard his Factory KTM 250 XC-F.
“It’s been a perfect day – I can’t fault it,” Nambotin said. “I managed to win all 11 special tests – I don’t think I’ve done that before in E1. I had a great feeling with the bike and it allowed me to make the difference in the Enduro Test.”
Meo was nearly as dominant in the Enduro 2 division, claiming the top spot on both days, but only after battling tooth and nail with Pela Renet on Day One. The duo was separated by sixth tenths of a second going into the penultimate test, but a crash from Renet handed the win to Meo.
“It was so close and was anybody’s race to win,” said Meo, who described his battle with Renet as “incredible.” “Unfortunately for Pela he made a mistake and crashed. But we were both riding on the very limit.”
“Antoine [Meo] was pushing really hard and I made some small mistakes, which I don’t normally do,” Renet lamented. “When I need to be strong I am not yet able to give 100%. Of course I am always looking to try and win, but I can’t be too unhappy with a second- and third-place result. It’s good championship points.”
On Day Two it was Alex Salvini’s turn to challenge Meo. The Italian kept the pressure on Meo, but he couldn’t stop him from sweeping the E2 class.
Bellino also had a fight on his hands in the open bike [E3] class, where he had to battle Matt Phillips and Matti Siestola throughout the weekend. But Bellino managed to pull off a double victory, and secure the points lead in the E3 division.
“It’s been a crazy GP for me and the other riders fighting for the win,” Bellino said. “From the start of Day One, it was clear that there were several riders that had the speed to win. Things were tight but I got the win. Day Two was good, but a crash in the third test put me back to fourth. I knew I had some work to do then, and things went well. I had a big fight with Matti Seistola for the rest of the day, but I pushed as much as I could. It was great to win a day like this. It’s been a great weekend for me.”
Husqvarna’s young gun Jamie McCanney topped the Enduro Junior division, despite coming into Spain feeling “under the weather.” McCanney wasn’t even sure he was going to ride, but dug deep to pull off a double victory.
“I honestly can’t believe I won both days,” McCanney said. “I felt terrible before the race so I just decided to take things steadily and ride smooth. To say things turned out well is a massive understatement. I certainly wasn’t expecting it.”
In the Women’s division, Laia Sanz dominated aboard her Factory KTM. The Spaniard, who finished an impressive ninth overall in the 2015 Dakar Rally, was able to take a big win in front of her home crowd in Jerez. In what was her first ride with the new Red Bull KTM Factory team, Sanz was able to take another step in defending her world championship.
