Mani wins 2022 Abestone Hard Enduro | Bolt retains series lead

2022 Red Bull Abestone

Round four of the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship has been won by Manuel Lettenbichler, the KTM rider topping the Red Bull Abestone of Italy, ahead of Husqvarna’s Billy Bolt and Sherco’s Mario Roman.

That makes it three-in-a-row for Lettenbichler following wins in Serbia and Austria, and the KTM rider kept that momentum rolling.

Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Billy Bolt topped the standings on day one and was fastest in the morning qualification before going on to win the evening’s JUST1 Straight Rhythm over AG Racing Team 89’s Alfredo Gomez. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler edged out Sweden’s Eddie Karlsson (KTM) to complete the top three in Val di Luce.

Bolt then led the field away for the LIQUI MOLY FINAL A, starting 1953 metres above sea level at the Abetone gondola. AG Racing Team 89’s Alfredo Gomez was next to leave the start line 30 seconds later, with Lettenbichler the third rider flagged away a further 30 seconds behind Gomez.

Between high temperatures and a brutally tough course, the two-lap race would prove 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.

Controlling the pace, Mani steadily built up a cushion that he would work to his advantage on lap two. Managing the race superbly, Lettenbichler pushed on in the final stages to claim the win by over eight minutes.

Manuel Lettenbichler – P1

“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 organisers 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.”

Despite a powerful performance on Saturday, winning both the morning qualifier and JUST1 Straight Rhythm, Bolt was unable to hold off Lettenbichler in the LIQUI MOLY FINAL A. An ongoing wrist injury wasn’t helping him on the steep technical downhills and Bolt ultimately managed second place to keep his championship lead intact.

Billy Bolt – P2

“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. 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.”

Behind the top two, the fight for the final step of the podium was exciting. Gomez held third for the majority of the race, but a late-starting Roman was charging. The Sherco rider was picking off riders left, right, and centre as he worked his way up the leaderboard. Ending lap one inside the top five, he knew a podium result was on the cards. Leaving it all on the track, he caught and passed Gomez to get the job done and claim third.

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Mario Roman – P3

“I had my work cut out for me today. 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.”

With no answer for his fellow Spaniard on the final lap, Gomez saw his hopes of a podium dashed and he had to settle for fourth.

Rigo Racing’s Matthew Green is a rider going from strength to strength in 2022. The South African has made the Junior category his own by remaining undefeated so far. But at Red Bull Abestone he pushed his own performance even further again. Racing to a career-best fifth, he headed off high profile Hard Enduro names like Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna) and Michael Walkner (GASGAS) in sixth and seventh respectively.

Matthew Green – P5 (Top Junior)

“It was an insane race and was really brutal with hard section after hard section. I felt good and tried to pace myself, which helped me stay strong on the final lap. I knew Graham Jarvis was behind me, so that was motivation to keep pushing. To get fifth overall is incredible. The team and I have been working hard behind the scenes and now the momentum is building.”

Michael Walkner – P7

“That was a hard race. My qualification on Saturday wasn’t too good, so I knew I had a bit of work to do for Sunday. I hoped the technical sections would play in my favor and they did at times, although it wasn’t easy. I’m happy with seventh although I hoped for more. Red Bull Romaniacs is next, so I’m excited for that.”

The FIM Hard Enduro World Championship continues with round five at Red Bull Romaniacs in Romania on July 26-30.

2022 Red Bull Abestone Results

2022 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship Standings