An important race for both Renet and Husaberg, the French ace placed as runner-up on day one before fighting his way to the top of the results on day two having delivered a determined and mistake free performance.
Competing in front of many thousands of Swedish enduro fans, for Joakim Ljunggren the GP of Sweden was a very special occasion. Cheered on during each and every special test Joakim secured an impressive double podium result but had hoped for a little more. Wanting to secure his first win of the championship on home soil, Joakim found himself off the pace at the start of day one and with work to do in order to secure a podium result. Improving as the day progressed he eventually closed to within 12 second of runner-up Aigar Leok.
Day two was a similar story for Ljunggren. Needing to give his all to keep pace with his E3 rivals he again placed third, much to the delight of his Swedish supporters. Spain’s Oriol Mena used the GP of Sweden to debut Husaberg’s 2013 FE501 and despite limited time testing his new machine prior to the race delivered some impressive special test times. Up against seriously tough E3 class competition, Mena placed sixth on day one and seventh on day two.
Claiming a double Enduro Junior class win Mathias Bellino took a decisive step towards securing his first enduro world title. Now able to secure the EJ championship at the penultimate round of the series in Finland, Bellino delivered two more dominant performances to secure a maximum points haul.
Bellino was joined on the podium on day one by home rider Johan Edlund, who claimed his first ever EWC top three result by finishing third and just 13 seconds from the runner-up position. Finally, in the 125cc Youth Cup class a second Husaberg rider claimed their maiden EWC podium as Jamie McCanney placed third on day two to complete a hugely successful GP of Sweden for Husaberg.
Pela Renet: “I’m very, very happy with my results this weekend,” explained the E2 championship leader. “I wasn’t able to be as fast as Juha Salminen on the enduro test on day one but on day two everything came together, it was great to win. I felt good on both days so I don’t know what the difference was, maybe I was pushing harder than the other riders on Sunday. I really like the sandy and muddy conditions and have really enjoyed the race. The fight for the E2 championship continues and after this race I’m looking forward to racing in Finland next weekend.”
Joakim Ljunggren: “It’s been a mixed weekend for me but with two third place results, and moving into second in the Enduro 3 championship, it’s been a good one”. It’s been amazing racing in front of my home fans, the support I’ve received has been incredible. I had hoped for a little better result if I’m honest. I was surprised by the speed of my rivals in the enduro test at the start of day one. I felt good – smooth and finding all my lines, but I don’t think I pushed enough. Finally things went well and I worked my way back to the podium. Christophe Nambotin and Aigar Leok were both really fast again on the second day so I was happy to get third again. Two podium results at my home GP is great, it’s been a fantastic weekend for the team.”
Mathias Bellino: “It’s been a really hard race but a good one for me. There were many very muddy sections on the track, which I don’t like so much but things went well. I had a very good first lap on day one and was able to stay ahead and win by almost one-minute. I was very happy about that. I was expecting the race to be hard but it’s great to win both days. My goal is to win the Enduro Junior title so to win both days takes me one step closer to that.
Oriol Mena: “This has been the best event in the championship so far this year. It was great to ride the 2013 bike here at Husaberg’s home GP and although my results weren’t as good as I hoped I set some really good times in all special tests. With only two weeks of testing before the race I’m really happy. Everyone in the E3 class was really fast this weekend, which made finishing inside the top three really difficult. But I was setting good times so I know my results will improve.”
