Hoping for top results in what was the team’s home race, both Rodrig Thain and Simone Albergoni narrowly missed out on podium finishes in Enduro 1.

With temperatures scorching to 35 plus degrees, the competitors of the EWC faced two tough and extremely demanding days of racing.

Making his first return to EWC action since his horrible crash during the GP of Portugal, Albergoni fought hard for fifth on day one before slipping back to sixth on day two. Although hampered by two crashes in the enduro test and then tiring due to the intense heat, the Italian acquitted himself well.

On day one, Thain struggled to find pace on the hard rocky terrain and could only place eight overall. Determined to secure a good result for his team, he held second place during the early part of the day two. Unfortunately, his only costly error came in the third extreme test when a crash made him lose almost twenty seconds, pushing him back to fourth overall.

Simone Albergoni – Enduro 1: “It’s been a hard race for me. I tried to do my best but at the moment I’m not at my normal physical condition. The heat was very tough and I began to tire towards the day’s end. I made a lot of mistakes and crashed too many times. I still need some more time to regain my feeling with the bike. Although my injury is healed, the movement in my elbow is still a little stiff and I’m lacking agility. But with almost two months to prepare for the GP of Sweden I hope to improve my results there.”