Knight crowned Indoor champ

From KTM Racing

GENOA, ITALY -- KTM factory rider David Knight showed his true fighting spirit on a very fast Indoor Enduro circuit in Genoa late on Saturday to win the title of the 2007-08 Indoor Enduro World Cup champion.

The Genoa race was a cliffhanger for Knight. He had some difficulties in the semi-finals and was forced to contest the last chance final in which only the first two riders advance to the final. KTM teammates Taddy Blazusiask, who finished second in the World Cup, and Cyril Despres then closed ranks to support Knight in his bid for a podium place and the title. Despres won the holeshot and both he and Blazusiask worked to make sure Knight had the best opportunity of finishing among the frontrunners.

Arch rival Mike Aloha of Finland failed to make it to the final, resolving a close contest between him and Blazusiask to see who would be second in the three-event World Cup standings. Blazusiask finished second for the season just one point ahead of Ahola.

Knight rode hard in the final to finish second behind French rider Antoine Meo. The result bumped his points in the World Cup standings to 42, well ahead of second placed Blazusiask with 23. Aloha finished third with 22.

"Winning the Indoor Enduro World Cup, as well as the GNCC, Aussie four-day and the Endurocross championships, well, it's great," Knight said. "It was tough tonight though. There was one rock on the last lap that I thought was going to take the chain off, so I was a bit lucky.

"It's hard when there is a lot of pressure on you and I made things hard by messing up my heat race. I knew I could win the LCQ easily but my heat proved that things can easily go wrong. I made a few mistakes and just couldn't get into a rhythm. It was a relief to finally get into the final."

Ivan Cervantes was out for his first competition after the winter break and took third place on the night.

KTM-supported American Mike Metzger was denied a chance to start in the event due to license complications.

Whereas the World Cup events in Barcelona and Munich offered technical challenges, the Genoa event was very fast, making it a good one for riders with MX skills as well as Enduro.

Due to the popularity of the indoor events a World cup series of five to six events for 2008-2009 is under discussion.

Results
1. Antoine Meo, France, Husqvarna, 6 laps
2. David Knight, Britain, KTM, 6 laps
3. Ivan Cervantes, Spain, KTM , 6 laps
4. Bartosz Oblucki, Poland, Husqvarna, 6 laps
5. Fabio Mossini, Italy, Honda, 6 laps

Indoor Enduro World Cup Final Standings
1. David Knight, KTM, 42 points
2. Taddy Blazusiak, KTM, 23 points
3. Mika Ahola, Honda, 22 points