A Tough Weekend in Fafe: World Championship Leads Slip Away
A demanding 300 km course in Portugal saw Dagna and Cagnoni lose their red plates, but both remain firmly in contention for the title.
Round 4 of the FIM EnduroGP World Championship in Fafe proved to be the most challenging weekend of the season so far for the KTM Pro Racing Team. On a demanding 50 km loop, repeated three times each day and featuring Enduro, Extreme and Cross Tests, incredibly tight margins in the youth categories meant that every mistake came at a high cost.
Romain Dagna finished fourth and fifth in the Junior 2 class, ending the opening day less than seventeen seconds behind the winner. Valuable points were secured, but not enough to hold onto the championship lead, and the red plate changed hands.
A similar story unfolded for Simone Cagnoni in the Youth category. After claiming a podium finish on Saturday with third place and setting the fastest time in the seventh special test, he finished fourth on Sunday. His championship lead also slipped away, although the title fight remains wide open.
It was an unfortunate weekend for Gabin Allemand, returning to competition after a broken collarbone. He was forced to retire on Saturday during the second lap and did not start on Sunday in order to protect his recovering shoulder.
There were positive performances from the supported riders as well. Kacper Baklarz secured two consecutive podium finishes in the Open 2T class, Mille Söderblom improved throughout the weekend to finish fifth on Sunday in Youth, while Robin Wiss ended the event in fifth place in the Open 4T category.
