After two busy weekends of Enduro World Championship racing, Steve returned to Italian Enduro Championship duty in Darfo Boario for rounds five and six. Blighted by exceptionally heavy rain, riders faced a wet and wild opening day of competition before conditions thankfully dried a little for day two.
Opting not to take any unnecessary risks in the conditions, Steve maintained a comfortable pace on his Beta RR Racing 4T 350, finishing a strong second overall on day one. Greeted with drier weather on day two he opened his account with the fastest time in the day’s first special test. Losing some ground on the enduro test, he fought back in the latter stages of the day to secure third overall. With a double podium result, Steve now moves into the overall championship lead with just the final two days of competition remaining, in Arma di Taggia at the end of October.
Steve Holcombe: “That was a tough weekend on the bike for sure. The weather was crazy on Saturday and I think that was the wettest I’ve ever been to. Honestly, all credit to the organizers for keeping the racing going. The rain made it so challenging and it was very easy to make a mistake out there. I tried to play it a little safe and took second, then in drier conditions for Sunday, I finished third. Beating Thomas Oldrati both times has helped me take the championship lead, which was always the end goal here. After three hectic weekends in a row, I’m going to take a little bit of time to recover and then regroup for the final rounds of the Italian Championships and EnduroGP.”
Championship Standings (After round 6)
1. Steve Holcombe (Beta) 94pts
2. Thomas Oldrati (Honda) 87pts
3. Brad Freeman (Beta) 75pts
4. Andrea Verona (TM) 69pts
5. Matteo Cavallo (Sherco) 61pts
Full results and more information: www.italianenduro.com
