BILLY BOLT WINS FIRST FIM HARD ENDURO CHAMPIONSHIP RACE

T he freshly minted FIM Hard Enduro World Championship kicked into life for the first time under its new world championship guise in the thick mud of the Extreme XL Lagares in Portugal . Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing ’ s Billy Bolt won the muddy event with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing ’ s Manuel Lettenbichler and veteran and Husqvarna teammate Graham Jarvis rounding out the podium at round one of the 2021 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship . In a shortened schedule due to last-minute COVID-19 restrictions and following heavy overnight rain , it was mutually agreed by the event organiser and the FIM that 2021 championship points would not be awarded at this first round but that racing would continue . Setting the pace around the Endurocross track , Bolt came out swinging during Saturday qualifying to top the time sheets . Frustratingly , heavy overnight rain saw track conditions severely deteriorate come Sunday ’ s racing , but Bolt continued to shine . Fast out of the gate in race one , Bolt charged his way to victory which he convincingly backed up in race two with another winning ride before an early crash in race three eventually saw him finish second . In doing so , his three combined results were more than good enough for him to claim the overall event win . “ After two good wins , the overall victory nearly got away from me in the final race ,” Bolt said . “ My gloves were muddy and it was hard to hang on and go fast , but I knew I had time to chip away and - once I got into second - I took it home for the overall win . We didn ’ t get to race in the mountains , but everyone made the