Enduro Holten: Thierry Pittens wins, Matthew Vanoevelen best Belgian
The end is off for the new Belgian and Dutch enduro season 2019. Holten turned out to be a nice duel between Thierry Pittens (Husqvarna) and Matthew Vanoevelen (GasGas). However, Pittens made it, his first E3 and scratch victory!
The Belgian Prestige, Inters, Beloften and Nationals classes rode the first round of the Belgian Enduro Championship yesterday in Holten, the Netherlands. For the other categories, the season starts on March 31 in Mettet.
No fewer than 405 Dutch and Belgian participants were registered in advance for the competition in Holten. Three rounds of 70 km each, including 3 specials, were on the program. With the amount of rain in recent weeks, several riders left for Holten with a lot of fear. Nothing turned out to be further from the truth. The 3 tests were in perfect condition and on the competition day itself it remained dry until the start of the last round. Then the heavens opened completely and the specials, especially the last one of +/- 15 minutes, turned into a real battle. Arriving became a challenge in itself for many pilots instead of setting a good time on the specials. With a total time of more than 1,5 hours against the clock, it became a true battle of attrition.
Belgium Vs. Netherlands 1-2
Both Matthew Vanoevelen and E3 debutant Thierry Pittens performed excellently. In the Belgian classification, Matthew managed to win no less than 8 of the 9 tests, ultimately taking the victory with more than 2 minutes ahead of Antoine Magain, the reigning champion. Magain ensured the only Belgian scratch victory in the E1, although the difference with Rik Vierhuizen was minimal. Both ended in the same second!
Lucas Dolfing caused a surprise in the E2 KNMV class by beating top rider Hans Vogels. However, Hans could look back with satisfaction on his impressive recovery. In the first round the Brabander crashed twice.
The Belgian podium was completed by the experienced Cedric Cremer. Jeff Goblet finished a neat 350th on his new Husky 4. It ended up being very exciting for places 5 to 8, with barely 5 seconds difference at 1h 40 'special time' it was a great battle. Kevin Gauniaux came out on top. Shortly followed by the rookie Roel Geurts who did excellently with a 6th place. The two young Flemish people Mathias Van Hoof and Axel Roelants finished excellently in places 2 and 7. The top 8 was closed by Jeremy Herinne and Dimitri Vanhoenacker. The other Flemish at the start of the Inter class was Andy Truyts. He was in a very good overall 10th place in the standings after 4 rounds. However, due to a technical problem, Truyts had to abandon the fight prematurely.
Unfortunately, the injured Jilani Cambre had to watch from home due to his heavy fall during training a few weeks ago, resulting in a double spinal fracture. There are also more and more 'well-known' MX riders among the participants. In Holten we saw, among others, Ceriel Klein Kromhof, Kornel Nemeth and Junior Decouter, who finished eighth in the E3.
Full results here
Top 10 scratch rankings BK Enduro
1. Matthew Vanoevelen
2. Antoine Magain
3. Cedric Cremer
4. Jeff Goblet
5. Kevin Gauniaux
6. Roel Geurts
7. Mathias Van Hoof
8. Axel Roelants
9. Jeremy Herinne
10. Dimitri Vanhoenacker
Photos: MXE NO
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