HONDA-ZANARDO rider and current World Champion Alex Salvini dominated proceedings in the first round of the E2 class at the Tricolore Enduro championship at Alassio.
With the support of RedMoto, Honda-Zanardo took to the field with Alex Salvini aboard the new Honda CRF450R, while young teammate Alessandro Battig competed in the E1 class with the CRF250R.
The Piacenza outfit, led by CEO of Honda-Zanardo Alessandro Tramelli and Head Coach Tullio Pellegrinelli, intended to leave Alassio with Salvini in the overall lead of the E2 classification and try for a podium position for Battig in E1.
Salvini comfortably completed his objective by dominating the race from start to finish. The Italian topped the overall standings having won the E2 class and duly taking the applause from the partizan Italian crowd. Battig wasn’t quite so fortunate as he was forced to retire with a technical issue.
ALESSANDRO Tramelli – CEO Honda- Zanardo
“It was a race in which we had to break in gently, in the sense that Salvini is still testing some details of the bike and he will then choose what will be the best set-up to start the Enduro Championship. In principle it was a positive test, Salvini had to struggle a bit more than expected against decidedly hostile opponents. It was necessary to be aggressive in the last stage and being able to retrieve the seconds that have enabled him to achieve this victory is fantastic. I’m sorry for Battig: it was an incident that happens really rarely , unfortunately this time it was his turn. Hopefully, he played all his unlucky cards in this race. In general, however, we are pleased with this day and we will prepare well for the first race of the championship, scheduled for early April in Spain. “
ALEX Salvini – CLASS E2, HONDA CRF 450R, HONDA- ZANARDO
“It’s been quite a difficult day for me. I made a lot of mistakes, falling twice. I could not express myself well. There is still work a bit of work to do on the set-up of the bike, especially on the suspension. For the most part though, I am very happy with how my CRF450R performed. The results obtained are very good: I won my class and the absolute stage, but then again, I’m not happy with how I drove, I could have done a lot better.”
Alessandro Battig – CLASS E1, HONDA CRF 250R, HONDA- ZANARDO
“I was very misfortunate! I was really motivated to start with and after taking off, I walked the 500 meters to get to the first special stage on the beach. Once I tested the engine it was immediately silenced. I tried to understand what could have happened, and when I realized that I had burned the spark plug, we were now a few minutes back and it would be pointless to continue. Today was an unlucky day, we hope that now the bad luck will begin to disappear.”