Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler has ended round one of the 2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship in France in sixth overall. With the event marking the recently crowned FIM Hard Enduro World Champion’s return to indoor racing for the first time since 2021, Mani’s night was highlighted by two top-five results, but also marred by a number of costly crashes.
Excited to get back into the FIM SuperEnduro World Championship, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler had prepared well for his return to the series. Faced with a high-speed course in France, the German knew it would be tough to play to his strengths and use his technical riding skills to maximum effect. Nevertheless, Lettenbichler was keen to get in the mix on his 350 EXC-F.
Setting the fourth quickest time in superpole gave Lettenbichler a good starting position for race one. Reacting well to the drop of the start gate, he quickly hustled his way towards the sharp end of the pack. However, a crash on the first rock garden dropped him down to 12th. Undeterred and quickly regrouping, he battled his way up to third before a mistake on the final lap saw him slip back to fourth.
With the start order reversed for race two, Mani started mid pack. Climbing up to sixth, he then frustratingly crashed while battling for a top five result. With little time to recover, he had to settle for eighth.
Hoping to make amends in the third and final race, Mani suffered another crash in the rock garden on the opening laps. Determined to get back in the mix, he raced on to finish a hard fought fifth and ultimately ended his night in sixth overall.
After a tough start to his SuperEnduro campaign, Mani now looks ahead to round two in Krakow, Poland on December 9.
Manuel Lettenbichler: “It’s been a hard first night back in SuperEnduro, that’s for sure. It’s a while since I did this style of racing and I felt like I was definitely back in the deep end, for sure. The intensity level is crazy high, and I need a little more time to get my head around that and to adapt. I rode quite good in race one and was battling for third before finishing fourth. Race two and three I had some crashes and was always fighting to come back from that. I think I went too extreme enduro with my suspension setting. I had it too soft for the races, so I will try to work on that for the next round.”
Results – 2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship – Round 1, France
Prestige Overall
1. Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 63pts
2. Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 53pts
3. Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 39pts
4. Dominik Olszowy (POL), Rieju, 35pts
5. Alfredo Gomez (ESP), Rieju, 34pts
6. Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 32pts
Prestige Race 1
1. Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:04.244
2. Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:24.255
3. Dominik Olszowy (POL), Rieju, 10 laps, 7:36.876
4. Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 10 laps, 7:43.629
5. Will Hoare (GBR) Beta, 10 laps, 7:45.661
Prestige Race 2
1. Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 7:07.573
2. Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:21.327
3. Alfredo Gomez (ESP), Rieju, 10 laps, 7:44.980
4. Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:48.277
5. Mitchell Brightmore (GBR), GASGAS, 10 laps, 7:54.512
8. Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 9 laps, 7:09.790
Prestige Race 3
1. Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 10 laps, 6:56.880
2. Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:11.539
3. Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 10 laps, 7:25.291
4. Dominik Olszowy (POL), Rieju, 10 laps, 7:29.129
5. Manuel Lettenbichler (GBR), KTM, 10 laps, 7:38.165
Championship Standings (After Round 1)
1. Billy Bolt (GBR), Husqvarna, 63pts
2. Jonny Walker (GBR), Beta, 53pts
3. Will Hoare (GBR), Beta, 39pts
4. Dominik Olszowy (POL), Rieju, 35pts
5. Alfredo Gomez (ESP), Rieju, 34pts
6. Manuel Lettenbichler (GER), KTM, 32pts