Garcia and Verona share EnduroGP of Spain victories

2025 FIM EnduroGP World Championship
Round Two – Spain

Images by Future7Media

The Catalan municipality of Oliana hosted the second round of the FIM EnduroGP Championship over the first weekend in May. Josep Garcia dominated the opening day ahead of Zachary Pichon and Andrea Verona.

It was a very different day two however, when Andrea Verona made a late charge to claim the win in torrential rain and flooding, which saw the promoters scrambling delay the start to revise the course layout to ensure better conditions for racing. Joining a muddy Verona on the podium on Sunday was Garcia with Samuele Bernardini rounding out the top three.

Day One – Saturday

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Josep Garcia began day one primed for business. Sharp off the mark, the Spaniard quickly topped the opening GMOTO Enduro Test by almost six seconds from TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Zach Pichon.  GASGAS Factory Racing’s Andrea Verona a further seven seconds behind in third.

Fastest in the opening POLISPORT Extreme Test ahead of Sherco Racing Factory’s Theo Espinasse, Garcia extended his lead to 15 seconds over Pichon. With Verona winning the first ACERBIS Cross Test, and Garcia placing an ‘uncharacteristic’ fifth, it momentarily looked like the fight for victory was about to tighten up.

But Garcia quickly silenced those thoughts by opening lap two with an astonishingly fast time in the GMOTO Enduro Test. Gapping his rivals by 14 seconds on the special test saw him build a healthy 27-second lead with less than half of the race day complete.

From that point on, Garcia never faltered. Winning all five remaining special tests to end day one with a 49-second advantage, it was very much a statement ride from the EnduroGP champion.

Although remaining the closest rider to Garcia throughout the day, a mistake on the first POLISPORT Extreme Test and a drop in pace on the final lap saw Pichon’s hopes of challenging for the win slip away. Nevertheless, it was still a solid ride for the Frenchman in second.

Verona raced on to complete the top three, and despite taking a win on the ACERBIS Cross Test, the Italian never quite got close enough to properly challenge Pichon. The GASGAS rider will look to make amends tomorrow.

Sherco Racing Factory’s Hamish Macdonald enjoyed a strong ride for fourth. Claiming a brace of top-five test times, he kept the pressure on Verona. Ensuring two Sherco Racing Factory riders made it into the top five, Antoine Magain took fifth.

E1 / E2 / E3

The overall EnduroGP win might have eluded Pichon, but the Enduro2 victory on Saturday was his. As the closest overall challenger to Garcia, his pace pulled him clear of Verona in second to win by 17 seconds. Behind the top two of Pichon and Verona, Beta Factory Enduro Team’s Nathan Watson completed the podium in third.

Josep Garcia (KTM)

“I worked hard after the GP of Portugal to be ready for this race. I felt I came into my home race prepared and ready to fight. I made some mistakes and some crashes, but overall it went well. It’s incredible to race this close to my home, to win is amazing.”

In Enduro1, it was Garcia who raced to a clear and commanding one-minute and 43-second margin of victory. But behind him things were much tighter. In the battle for the remainder of the podium, it was a fight between Triumph Italia Racing’s Lesiardo Morgan and Triumph Factory Racing Enduro Team’s Mikael Persson. Coming down to the wire, Morgan took second over Persson by just six tenths of a second.

Backing up his pair of Enduro3 wins at round one, Macdonald won again in class on day one in Spain. The New Zealander was challenged by teammate Magain, but the Belgian just didn’t have the pace of Macdonald on the final lap to deny him victory. TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Leo Le Quere secured his first Enduro3 podium of the season with third, while home favourite WP Eric Auge’s Jaume Betriu took fourth.

Junior

The FIM Junior Enduro World Championship was all about Fantic Factory Racing Team’s Axel Semb on day one at the GP of Spain in Oliana. The young Swede was nothing short of sensational. Taking control of the race lead on the opening POLISPORT Extreme Test, Semb never looked back, racing clear to a very commanding 37-second margin of victory. This marked the Fantic rider’s first Junior class win since round two in 2024.

Axel Semb (Fantic)

“It feels great to win. It’s been a good comeback from the opening round in Portugal where I was fourth both days. It’s also been a long time since my last victory, so I’m super happy to be back on the top step of the podium.”

The remainder of the Junior class podium was decided by less than four seconds. Proving fast and consistent throughout the day, France’s Thibault Giraudon (Sherco) secured second. Stepping up to the Junior class as the reigning FIM Youth Enduro World Champion, TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Manuel Verzeroli proved he’s got the pace of his rivals by taking a debut podium result in third.

Finishing an agonising sixty-five hundredths of a second behind Verzeroli, Ox Moto Beta’s Leo Joyon had to be content with fourth. Fantic Factory Racing Team’s Kevin Cristino completed the top five. It wasn’t the best of days for round one’s double winner Kyron Bacon, with the MGR Kawasaki rider placing seventh. He’ll look to bounce back tomorrow.

Youth

The FIM Youth Enduro World Championship saw Team KTM Pro Racing Sport’s Romain Dagna return to the top step of the podium on day one at the GP of Spain. The Frenchman pulled clear during the early part of the day, stretching his advantage out to 19 seconds at the end of the second ACERBIS Cross Test.

But losing 15 seconds on the final GMOTO Enduro Test almost saw all of that hard work undone. With TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Alberto Elgari now within striking distance, Dagna had to react fast. Winning the final two special tests of the day, he secured the Youth class victory.

Although almost capitalising on Dagna’s mistake, Elgari was unable to turn the tables on the Frenchman and finished second. Fantic Factory Racing Enduro Team Specia’s Pietro Scardina completed the top three.

Romain Dagna (KTM)

“I had a great first lap and was able to open up a nice lead. I held that advantage for most of the day, but when I crashed twice on the final Enduro Test the times were tight again. I kept calm, kept my pace and was able to build again, and win the day.”

EnduroGP of Spain – Day One Top 20

Day Two – Sunday

Remaining unfazed by the changes in weather, terrain and schedule, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Josep Garcia attacked hard from the word go on day two. Fastest in the opening POLISPORT Extreme Test and ACERBIS Cross Test, he ended a revised lap one as the early leader. Closing out lap two with a win in the first timed run of the GMOTO Enduro Test, the Spaniard built up a 30-second lead over GASGAS Factory Racing’s Andrea Verona.

The battle for third was intense, with just one second separating three riders. Honda Racing RedMoto Enduro Team’s Samuele Bernardini held an eight-hundredths of a second advantage over Sherco Racing Factory’s Hamish Macdonald in fourth, with Triumph Italia Racing’s Morgan Lesiardo nine tenths of a second back in fifth. Unfortunately, TM MOTO Boano Factory Racing’s Zach Pichon proved the biggest casualty of the test. Getting stuck on a climb, the Frenchman slipped from third down to 21st.

As the day progressed, Verona made some inroads into Garcia’s lead, reducing it to 18 seconds with two tests remaining. Nursing an injured foot, Garcia lost more time on the GMOTO Enduro Test, arriving at the final ACERBIS Cross Test of the day with just sixth tenths of a second in hand over Verona.

Verona knew it was his time to attack. Placing third to Beta Factory Enduro Team’s Nathan Watson, and Pichon, on the final test, he beat Garcia by over one second to take a dramatic victory.

For Garcia, hopes of a double EnduroGP win slipped away. The lost time on the final GMOTO Enduro Test saw the majority of his good work undone. And with Verona getting the measure of him on the final test, he was forced to settle for second.

As exciting as the battle for the victory was, the fight for the final step of the podium was electric too. As the latter half of the day progressed, Bernardini and Lesiardo were joined by Sherco Racing Factory’s Antoine Magain, with Macdonald slipping down the running order.

Holding firm, Honda mounted Bernardini kept the duo at bay to claim his debut EnduroGP podium result. Magain worked his way past Lesiardo to claim fourth, with Lesiardo narrowly holding off a late push from Watson to seal fifth, in what was a career-best result.

E1 / E2 / E3

As the EnduroGP winner, Verona also claimed the Enduro2 class win. Earning his first victory of the season, the Italian put his wealth of experience to use in the tricky conditions to top the podium by 56 seconds. Behind him, Watson took the runner-up result, with Sherco Racing Factory’s Theo Espinasse securing his first podium of the season with third.

Andrea Verona

“I’m really happy to get my first overall win of the season this weekend! Day one was good with second in class and third overall. I felt like I could have been in the fight for second overall but a few too many mistakes cost me that position. It was certainly tough out there today with the conditions, but it feels great to put the 450 on the top of the box! I felt better as the day went on, so to get the win is amazing. I can’t wait for Sweden in a few weeks!”

Although disappointed about missing the EnduroGP victory, Garcia could still be happy to have won the Enduro1 class. Bernardini, spurred on by his overall EnduroGP podium, put in an excellent ride for second. Lesiardo was another rider to capitalise on the difficult conditions and claimed his second Enduro1 podium of the season with third.

Josep Garcia

“To be honest, it was a perfect weekend of racing for me. It feels great to have my fitness back and to be racing at 100%. Yesterday everything went perfectly and I was able to take the win with a big advantage. Today, I was really enjoying riding in the mud and was leading for most of the day and built up a big gap of about 30 seconds. Then in the cross test, I jumped a container and clipped my foot on the top and ended up going over the bars. It was tough not to take the win today, but I finished second overall, first in the class with good points, and now look ahead to the next round.”

Mikael Persson

“Saturday was really great! To miss out on second by 0.5 seconds was tough but I’m happy to get another podium with the team. Today was very different than that what we are used to with the delays and cancelled tests, so it was hard to get into a rhythm. I struggled with the conditions but I’m happy to still be third in Enduro1 in the standings and looking forward to my home round!”

Jamie McCanney

“This weekend was a struggle as I haven’t ridden this terrain in a while and with the uncertainty today, I found it difficult to get settled. I gave it my all and I’m pleased with some of my test results, but the plan is to keep the positive momentum in the team going, work on my race fitness and come back swinging in Sweden.”

The Enduro3 class saw Magain end his teammate Macdonald’s win streak. The Belgian made best of the difficult conditions to claim the victory. After losing time to Magain midway through the day, Macdonald fought back to close the gap, but it wasn’t enough and he had to settle for second. TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Leo Le Quere placed third for the second time in Spain.

Junior

As on day one, it was Fantic Factory Racing Team’s Axel Semb who emerged victorious on day two in the FIM Junior Enduro World Championship. Rain or shine, the young Swede proved in Oliana that he’s back on top form and riding high on confidence.

However, he had to work hard for his win today. Ox Moto Beta’s Leo Joyon was the early pace setter, winning the first four special tests to take up the lead in the Junior class. But an incredible run through the second GMOTO Enduro Test saw Semb overhaul his 14-second deficit to Joyon and take control of the race by nearly two seconds.

Throughout the remainder of the day, the duo fought head-to-head for the win. But as they cleared the final ACERBIS Cross Test, the victory was Semb’s by just four seconds. While missing the top step of the podium, Joyon could still be pleased with his strong ride for second.

Placing 42 seconds behind Semb and Joyon, Fantic Factory Racing Enduro Team Specia’s Kevin Cristino rounded out the podium in third. TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Manuel Verzeroli was fourth, with Thibault Giraudon (Sherco) fifth.

Youth

Day two in Spain saw a new winner emerge in the FIM Youth Enduro World Championship. Fantic Factory Racing Enduro Team Specia’s Pietro Scardina was quickest to adapt to the muddy conditions and duly won the opening POLISPORT Extreme Test.

Third on the following ACERBIS Cross Test, the Italian found his flow after that and was never headed. Claiming six consecutive special test wins, he raced ahead to a 29-second margin of victory.

Behind him, day one winner Team KTM Pro Racing Sport’s Romain Dagna came home in second. The Frenchman never quite got the measure of Scardina today, despite his best efforts. TM MOTO Boano Factory Enduro Team’s Alberto Elgari finished 14 seconds behind Dagna to complete the top three.

EnduroGP of Spain – Day Two Top 20

Riders and fans can now look forward to Round Three’s POLISPORT GP of Sweden in Skövde on 23-25 May

EnduroGP Standings

E1 Standings

E2 Standings

E3 Standings

FIM Junior Enduro Standings

2025 Paulo Duarte FIM EnduroGP World Championship

• Round 1: GP of Portugal – Fafe – 4-6 April
• Round 2: GP of Spain – Oliana – 2-4 May
• Round 3: GP of Sweden – Skövde – 23-25 May
• Round 4: GP of Wales – Rhayader – 1-3 August
• Round 5: GP of France – Réquista – 12-14 September
• Round 6: GP of Italy – Darfo Boario Terme – 26-28 September
• Round 7: GP of Germany – Zschopau – 17-19 October