In the Junior World Trophy Team classification it’s Italy that have established themselves as the early leaders. The Italian’s are seventy seconds in front of Great Britain with third placed Australia a further one-minute and 45 seconds behind. The biggest surprise of the day came from the French Junior squad. Kevin Rohmer (Yamaha) was one of the first riders to exit the event when he crashed heavily, while Husaberg’s Mathias Bellino developed a mechanical problem during the second cross test of the morning and lost almost four minutes pushing his bike out of the test. As defending champions they have work to do if they wish to retain their title.
Here’s the summary of how the top ten countries in the World Trophy Team faired on day one.
1. France – 5:37:01.50
France that look set to dominate this year’s ISDE. Grabbing an early lead on day one, the French World Trophy Team placed over four minutes clear of nearest rivals Australia. With four of their riders holding the top six positions in the outright individual classification, Antoine Meo (KTM), Pela Renet (Husaberg) and Christophe Nambotin (KTM) swept the E1, E2 and E3 classes respectively while Renet enjoyed the added bonus of finishing as the absolute fastest rider on day one.
Glenn Kearney rode hard for Australia... © Edmunds / Enduro21.com
2. Australia + 4:13.29
Ending day one second Australia have quickly signalled that they are very much intent on collecting silverware in this year’s event. Helped by two strong top ten overall rides from the KTM duo of Josh Strang and Toby Price, the Aussies are right on pace. Danny Milner (Yamaha) placed sixth in E1 while Husqvarna mounted Glenn Kearney came home 16th. With Strang placing fifth in E2, Matthew Phillips (Yamaha) chased him home for seventh. The biggest surprise was Toby Price in E3. Held back by a damage wheel on the final lap he still ended his day second and only four seconds from Nambotin.
3. Finland + 5:34.42
Although not quite a winning start for the defending ISDE champions, day one was still a solid one for Finland. Edging out Spain by four seconds to claim a top three result, the Finnish team have room to improve for the rest of the week. Third overall for KTM’s Eero Remes and fifth for Husqvarna’s Juha Salminen – Finland will be looking for stronger results from Marko Tarkkala (Beta) and Jari Mattila (KTM) to bring the fight to Australia.
4. Spain + 5:37.31
Although missing out on a top three result by less than four seconds, Spain is in a prime position to fight for a podium spot. Hampered by numerous crashes in the enduro test, which cost him a lot of time, Gas Gas mounted Ivan Cervantes still placed 15th overall and ninth in E2. However, the team’s strongest results came from both KTM’s Cristobal Guerrero and Husqvarna’s Lorenzo Santolino. As expected, Guerrero placed at the sharp end of the results in E2 and ended his day in fourth, but it was Santolino that delivered the surprise result. Quickly getting to grips with the terrain, the young Spaniard secured an excellent third overall in E1.
Alex Salvini didn't have the best start but still helped Italy to fifth overall on day one... © Lynn / Enduro21.com
5. Italy + 7:49.05
Glad to get day one safely out of the way, Italy complete the top five. Enduro 2 class rider Alex Salvini (Husqvarna) had a mixed day when he got cross rutted trying to avoid one of the many mud holes in the enduro test and crashed. Later on in the day he stalled his bike and lost further time trying to restart it. In E3 Manuel Monni also had problems with a damaged front brake calliper. He recovered well to place fifth in class.
6. USA + 8:15.13
Spearheading USA’s assault in the ISDE, Kawasaki’s delivered the team’s strongest result to place 18th overall and tenth in E2. Although not the best start to the ISDE that he had hoped for, KTM’s Kurt Caselli was 32nd overall and 13th in E2. Caselli commented that he struggled early on with crashes due to set up issues but began to feel a lot more comfortable during the latter half of the day. The race is a long one and with USA known to get up to speed as the week progresses expect their pace to lift.
7. Sweden + 8:49.70
Husaberg’s Joakim Ljunggren was the top performing Swede finishing 14th overall and third in E3.
Excellent start for ISDE rookie Jamie McCanney... © Edmunds / Enduro21.com
8. Great Britain + 16:53.50
In what is his debut ride in the ISDE, 18-year old Jamie McCanney (Husaberg) was the standout performer for Great Britain on day one. Entered as a last minute replacement for the injured David Knight (KTM), McCanney blasted his 125 two-stroke to 35th overall and 12th in E1. Impressive stuff.
9. Netherlands + 18:17.36
Husaberg’s Hans Vogels delivered a notable result of 19th overall and 14th in E2 on day one in Germany to lift the Netherlands to ninth overall in the World Trophy Team competition.
10. Czech Republic + 24:55.94
Getting their ISDE assault off to a good start, the Czech Republic completes the top ten.
