Only a couple of weeks after being sliced and diced on the surgeon’s operating table to treat a stomach injury, Knight was back to his winning ways at the fourth and final round of this year’s BEC series to claim a commanding double win in Aldershot.
Quickly finding his rhythm in the soft, sandy forestry terrain, Knight posted the fastest time in each of day one’s eight timed special tests to secure a comfortable 46-second margin of victory over fellow Manxman Danny McCanney (Gas Gas).
Jamie McCanney (Husaberg), brother of Danny, chased the duo home to finish third, with KTM’s Daryl Bolter and Husaberg’s Simon Wakely completing the top five.
There was no stopping Knight in Aldershot... © Edmunds / Enduro21.com
Needing only one-point to secure his 10th BEC title, Knight began day two in confident spirits. Taking an early two-second lead over Husaberg’s Alex Rockwell on the opening special test, he steadily increased his advantage as the day progressed to secure the final win of the season by 22 seconds over Rockwell and with it claim the 2012 BEC title.
After his disappointing non-score on day one, Rockwell bounced back to end day two as runner up to Knight.
Although able to match the pace of the leading duo during the latter half of the day, it was his crash in the first special test that ultimately pushed McCanney back to third overall.
Finishing just two seconds behind McCanney, Bolter ended his BEC season on a high to place fourth, while the newly crowned E1 4T champion, Jack Rowland (Husqvarna) completed the top five.
In only his debut ride in the Championship class, the 2012 BEC Expert champion, Steve Holcombe (KTM) impressed all with his speed and determination to place sixth overall both days.
David Knight: ‘It’s great to have claimed a 10th British Enduro Championship title. I was confident that I would win here this weekend but I had no back-up plan if things didn’t go to plan because I missed the fifth round of the series. I really needed everything to go well here, which it did. After a good first day I just needed a few points from day two, which I got. Getting a 10th BEC title means a lot to me, and over the years I’ve really enjoyed competing in the championship. It wasn’t a bad weekend at all this weekend. I really enjoyed the course. It wasn’t long, but doing so many laps made it hard work because it got really rough. The test was short, and got really rutted, so instead of being able to go absolutely flat out you were just focused on not making mistakes. It’s always the same with short tests. The first test on day one went well, and with a bit of an advantage I was able to relax and pick different lines, which meant I started going faster. Day two also went well with no problems at all. The other good thing is that I felt good, my stomach didn’t give me any problems. I know the final world championship race will be a lot tougher, but I’m looking forward to it. I hope I can bring the season to a positive end.’
Day 1 – Championship class overall
1. David Knight (KTM Enduro Factory Team) 1502.59; 2. Danny McCanney (Gas Gas) 1545.93; 3. Jamie McCanney (Husaberg) 1577.00; 4. Daryl Bolter (KTM) 1589.98; 5. Jamie Lewis (Husqvarna) 1601.20; 6. Si Wakely (Husaberg) 1606.81; 7. Steve Holcombe (KTM) 1620.36; 8. Lee Edmondson (Honda) 1632.45; 9. Ashley Wood (KTM) 1672.62; 10. Andrew Edwards (KTM) 1717.09
Day 2 – Championship class overall
1. David Knight (KTM Enduro Factory Team) 1255.51; 2. Alex Rockwell (Husaberg) 1278.07; 3. Danny McCanney (Gas Gas) 1293.72; 4. Daryl Bolter (KTM) 1295.89; 5. Jack Rowland (Husqvarna) 1324.90; 6. Steve Holcombe (KTM) 1326.18; 7. Jamie Lewis (Husqvarna) 1331.34; 8. Si Wakely (Husaberg) 1334.73; 9. Lee Edmondson (Honda) 1351.36; 10. Jamie McCanney (Husaberg) 1364.17
