2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship
Round Three – Riesa, Germany
Billy Bolt extended his winning streak in the 2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship with the Brit claiming the overall victory at round three in Riesa, Germany. Bolt took two race wins from three starts on his FE 350 to extend his championship lead to 16 points.
Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 59 points
Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 57 pts
Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 39 pts
However, despite ending his night with victory, it was not all plain sailing for the defending world champion in Germany. Landing awkwardly short on the finish line jump during practice, Billy injured his left knee. Initially unsure if he could continue with the night’s racing, Bolt opted to try the evening’s SuperPole hot lap to see how he felt on track. Going on to claim second place, the tough-minded Brit opted to line up for the opening race with a determination to score more valuable championship points.
Prestige Race One
Remaining tentative in his riding due to that injury, Billy Bolt worked hard to stay out of trouble during the opening couple of laps. Settling into the technical course and focusing on his line choices, he pushed on and was then able to capitalise when Jonny Walker’s handy lead evaporated after the rear brake lever on his Beta got stuck under his foot-peg after hitting an obstacle. The crowd roared as Bolt lurched into the lead and took the win.
Walker was forced to watch on in second place after what had seemed like a safe victory.
Prestige Race One Results
- Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:13.164
- Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:20.391
- Mitchell Brightmore (GBR), GASGAS, 10 laps, 7:33.261
- Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 10 laps, 7:37.913
- Eddie Karlsson (SWE), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:47.609
Prestige Race Two
Mindful of his knee injury, Billy took a measured approach to race two, which saw the start order reversed. From the outside of row two, he steadily worked his way up to seventh position on lap one. With a group of riders battling for a top-three position, he spent the next couple of laps working his way into third place before reaching second with less than two minutes to go. Pushing hard on his FE 350 to bridge the eight-second gap to leader Jonny Walker, Billy gladly took control of the race lead with two laps to go. Remaining mistake-free, he raced on to secure his second victory of the night in Riesa after Walker made a mistake and crashed, losing a few seconds and the race lead in one fell swoop.
Lettenbichler completed the race two podium just ahead of fellow German Tim Apolle (Beta) who had a very good race. Will Hoare (GBR-Beta) settled for fourth place.
Prestige Race Two Results
- Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:15.77
- Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:27.188
- Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 10 laps, 7:30.345
- Tim Apolle (GER), Beta, 10 laps, 7:47.952
- Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:49.247
Prestige Race Three
Frustrated by mistakes and misfortune, Jonny Walker totally dominated the final race of the night. Bolt appeared to want to take it easy, but he remained at the forefront regardless. In fact, if he hadn’t made a couple of mistakes shortly before the chequered flag he may well have made a pass on Walker.
Exhausted after his efforts through the pain, Bolt collapsed after the finish line and took a few moments to take stock of the new feat he had just accomplished – another overall win despite everything. Bolt will head for more medical examinations next week to determine the extent of his leg injury.
Prestige Race Three Results
- Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:09.279
- Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:20.705
- Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:35.862
- Mitchell Brightmore (GBR), GASGAS, 10 laps, 7:39.008
- Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 10 laps, 7:42.658
Billy Bolt
“What can I say, it’s been a tough night. After injuring my knee in practice I wasn’t 100 per cent sure if I could race, so to finish on the top step of the podium is beyond my expectations tonight. It was a tough track out there, but I tried to be as patient in my riding as I could. Winning the opening race was great and it gave me motivation to keep pushing through each moto. Claiming two out of three race wins for the overall victory has been great for the championship. The plan now is to get checked out and get ready to go again in Romania for round four.”
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler secured his first overall podium finish of the year at his home race to maintain fourth position in the series standings after switching to the two-stroke 300 EXC for the event.
Manuel Lettenbichler
“I’m happy to finally be on the podium, especially at home here in Germany! I feel a lot better on the two-stroke, I feel like I can push a lot more even after just two days of testing. It’s hard to make big improvements when races are so close together, but we are going to try our best and see what we can do. I tried to manage my crash on the start in the last race so I was quite happy to have got a good finish out of it. It sure sucks when you have a crash, especially at the start. Overall it’s not too bad, but let’s see what the next round in Romania brings.”
2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship
Round Three – Riesa, Germany
Prestige Overall Round
- Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 59 points
- Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 57 pts
- Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 39 pts
- Mitchell Brightmore (GBR), GASGAS, 37 pts
- Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 35 pts
Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 59 points
Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 57 pts
Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 39 pts
2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship Points
(After Round Three)
- Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 182 points
- Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 166 pts
- Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 117 pts
- Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 110 pts
- Dominik Olszowy (POL), Rieju, 95 pts
The FIM SuperEnduro World Championship next heads to Cluj in Romania for round four on January 20.
