2024 EnduroGP of Italy: Friday Super Test Results – Hamish Macdonald heads Sherco one-two

2024 EnduroGP World Championship Friday Super Test results from round four in Bettola, Italy – Sherco’s Hamish Macdonald tip-toes the tricky, man-made test tight rope to go fastest.

EnduroGP Rnd 4, Italy Friday Super Test in a nutshell:

• Running in reverse order as always, tonight’s Super Test in Bettola was a warm one, evening in the eventing, with a dry course thankfully nowhere near as dusty as the tests will be tomorrow – mainly due to the fact the Super Test ran on cobbled streets.
• The Open World Cup class went first serving as a reminder the course isn’t as easy as it looks by the time the Pros arrive later. German SuperEnudro and Endurocross specialist Tim Apolle went a whopping 14 seconds fastest ahead of British rider Joel Tett and Italian Daniele Matti.
• Next up came the women and it was a rider down this weekend as local favourite, Francesca Nocera is a non-starter after injuring herself during the Italian ISDE Team photoshoot in the week…which begs the question: what was more important?
• Bad for Francesca but it was a good night for the first lady of American Enduro, Rachel Gutish. The KBS Sherco team rider clocked an easily best time for the Enduro Women class, over five seconds faster than the Rieju teammates Mireia Badia and Rosie Rowett in P2 and P3.
• Pietro Scardina showed his technical skills on the rocks and logs, the Italian took the Youth class fastest honour with a 1:23.43 on the Fantic 125.
• True to the form book of the last few years, in personally in Youth and in his new Junior category, Kevin Cristino clocked another fastest time of the night for Fantic – the first of the tumbling faster times as the pro riders tarted to emerge with a 1:22.66 narrowly two tenths faster than Leo Joyon and Enrico Rinaldi third.
• The seniors arrived next and it was Dominik Olszowy, a rider more associated with Hard Enduro and SuperEnduro until this season, ripping a 1:21.79 as a benchmark.
• That 300 two-stroke Rieju eventually got pipped by a 350 4T GG with Benji Herrera onboard and then a 250 2T TM of Lorenzo Macoritto clocking the first sub-1:20 time.
• Up the sharp end, the big hitters arrived and things got super-tight in the Super Test. A faster time was a long time coming before Hamish Macdonald signalled he was back from injury with a 1:18.16 just ahead of his teammate, Zach Pichon.
• Like everyone, we waited for Freeman, Holcombe, Verona and Garcia to take their turns but not one topped the Kiwi’s time. It was a techy course, easy to make a mistake and lose seconds or fall, as Verona did, but smooth and accurate won this night for Sherco and the Macdonald clan.  

• As we always point out, the Friday Super Test is only one test, the first of the weekend which will feature 12 per day for the main classes. It all kicks off tomorrow at 9am.

Video highlights from the Super Test here: 2024 EnduroGP of Italy: Super Test official video highlights

2024 GP of Italy, Super Test results, overall:

Photo Credit: Future7Media | Nicki Martinez