Victories for Seistola & Phillips at EWC GP of

Enduro 1 class rider Matti Seistola and Junior rookie Matt Phillips ensured a highly successful GP of Spain for the Husqvarna Factory Team by CH Racing as both riders enjoyed victory at the third round of the 2013 Enduro World Championship. For Seistola a winning ride on day one saw the Finn return to the top step of an EWC podium for the first time since 2011. For Phillips a double class win put the young Australian into the lead of the Enduro Junior World Championship. Marking the first of five Enduro World Championship events taking place in Europe the GP of Spain was for many one of the toughest EWC races for many years. With the extremely dry ground in and around Puerto Lumbreras quickly becoming heavily rutted, the incredibly fine, lose dust proved to be increasingly unpredictable, something that saw mistakes from riders in all classes. For Seistola day one went extremely well. Taking advantage of early mistake by Frenchman Antoine Meo and team-mate , Matti took the class lead and looked set to claim the win. But a costly mistake mid-way through the day pushed the Finn from the top spot. Through determined riding Matti re-took the lead and held on for a well- deserved win. With things very much going Seistola’s way on day one, for Juha Salminen it was a very different story. Despite riding well, a costly mistake on the opening special test forced him to play catch up throughout the day, claiming an eventual fourth place result. Eventually only 11 seconds behind Seistola, Juha placed one position ahead of his championship rival Antoine Meo. Day two saw a reverse of fortunes for Seistola and Salminen. Day one winner Matti made two costly errors on the second lap, which effectively eliminated him from the battle for the podium positions. Eventually placing fifth Seistola finished two places behind Salminen, who placed third. Joining Meo and Eero Remes on the podium, Juha, like many riders, was pleased to see the end of what was a demanding event.

For Matt Phillips the GP of Spain ended in the best possible way with winning rides in the Enduro Junior class on both days. Finding the event extremely difficult, and despite making some big mistakes on day one, Matt gave his all and topped day one by an eventual 27 seconds before winning day two by seven seconds. Winning the opening four tests in the EJ class on day one set Phillips up perfectly for what would become his second ever EWC win. But despite his sizeable eventual winning margin it was anything but an ‘easy’ win for the youngster. A mistake on the final extreme test ensured everything was to play for on the day’s last enduro test. Putting in a mistake free ride Matt claimed a deserved win. Locked in a three-way battle throughout the second day with Italian Giacomo Redondi and Spaniard Mario Roman, Phillips kept his cool and delivered solid performances on each of the day’s 12 special tests. Starting strongly and remaining largely mistake free, in winning the day Matt moved himself to the top of the EJ championship standings. In the Enduro 2 class Lorenzo Santolino endured a tough home GP. Placing eighth on day one Santolino improved one position to seventh on day two, but like many found it hard to master the unpredictable Spanish terrain.

Juha Salminen (Enduro 1 – TE250R): “It’s certainly not been an easy race. The conditions made it tough on everyone, and it wasn’t one of my favourite races. The ground was so dry that the tests were really unpredictable – things just didn't go as smoothly as they should have done for me. But I got a podium result on day two, so I’m pleased with that. I made a lot of mistakes during the first day, and that stopped me from finishing higher than fourth. I had some good tests, but I just couldn't find the perfect rhythm in the soft, dust. I was riding well, but the few mistakes that I made cost me a lot of time. It was great that Matti was able to win on day one, so all in all it’s not been too bad for us. Considering I’m not a big fan of the conditions I’m happy.”

Matti Seistola (Enduro 1 – TE 250R): “It was a tough, tough race but apart from some mistakes things have been good. The first day was great. To win for the first time since 2011 was amazing. The whole team has been working really hard since the races in South America, so it was great to stand on top of the podium. I made one mistake on day one but I was able to come back from it to get the win. I felt like I was riding ok on the second day but I wasn’t able to go any faster. On the second lap I crashed on the extreme and tests and that was hard to

recover from. The competition was really tight between myself, Eero Remes, Juha Salminen, and Cristobal Guerrero and after I made the mistakes I wasn’t able to fight with them anymore. It was disappointing because without those two mistakes I could have been on the podium again.”

Matt Phillips (Enduro Junior – TE 310R): “It feels so good to have won both days here in Spain. I spent some good time training with Matti Seistola before the race, and I was feeling confident. I knew what to expect from the race and the other guys in my class, but the conditions were tough. I’d say it was one of the hardest events I’ve ever raced, but to get two wins is amazing. The team did so much to help me this weekend, they really pushed me all the way to the end of the second day. I think I made as many mistakes as the other guys in my class but I just kept pushing and pushing and things worked out great.”

Lorenzo Santolino (Enduro 2 – TE 310R): “It’s not been the best race for me. I worked hard with the team before the race and was feeling good before the start, but it was so hard for me to find my confidence with the terrain. It was so difficult, and so easy to make mistakes. I pushed as hard as I could during both days and felt better towards the end of the second day, but it was a hard race.”

Results – Enduro World Championship, GP of Spain

Day One Enduro 1 1. Matti Seistola (Husqvarna) 58:16.52 2. Eero Remes (TM) 58:24.88 3. Cristobal Guerrero (KTM) 58:26.85 4. Juha Salminen (Husqvarna) 58:27.99 5. Antoine Meo (KTM) 58:51.28

Enduro 2 1. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 57:17.21 2. Alex Salvini (Honda) 57:53.36 3. (KTM) 58:02.46 4. Pela Renet (Husaberg) 58:05.71 5. Oriol Mena (Husaberg) 58:47.62… 8. Lorenzo Santolino (Husqvarna) 1:00:05.48;

Enduro Junior 1. Matt Phillips (Husqvarna) 1:00:01.83 2. Mario Roman (Husaberg) 1:00:29.48 3. Giacomo Redondi (KTM) 1:00:32.33 4. Danny McCanney (Gas Gas) 1:01:08.33 5. Nicolo Mori (Beta) 1:01:37.05…

Day Two Enduro 1 1. Antoine Meo (KTM) 56:41.81 2. Eero Remes (TM) 46:59.54 3. Juha Salminen (Husqvarna) 57:21.03 4. Cristobal Guerrero (KTM) 57:24.45 5. Matti Seistola (Husqvarna) 57:27.45; Enduro 2 1. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 55:58.40 2. Alex Salvini (Honda) 56:10.20 3. Pela Renet (Husaberg) 56:16.95 4. Johnny Aubert (KTM) 56:38.99 5. Oriol Mena (Husaberg) 58:20.35… 7. Lorenzo Santolino (Husqvarna) 58:49.81… Enduro Junior 1. Matt Phillips (Husqvarna) 58:52.77 2. Giacomo Redondi (KTM) 58:59.76 3. Mario Roman (Husaberg) 59:02.87 4. Danny McCanney (Gas Gas) 59:25.27 5. Robert Kvarnstrom (Beta) 59:29.69…