The World Enduro Super Series’ mix of Hard Enduro, Classic Enduro, Cross-Country and Beach Racing will bring together an exciting, new multi-discipline offroad motorcycle championship for amateurs and professionals alike. Starting with round one in Portugal with Extreme XL Lagares on May 11-13, the series is set to combine some of the world’s leading enduro races as it searches for the ULTIMATE ENDURO CHAMPION.
WESS keeps a clear focus on quality, well-established competitions with seven events in 2018. Portugal’s Extreme XL Lagares holds the honour of opening this year’s championship with three days of Endurocross, Urban and Hard Enduro racing in May. From there WESS will travel to Austria and the iconic ErzbergRodeo Red Bull Hare Scramble during the first weekend of June. Providing a true test of adaptability, competitors then switch from Hard Enduro to Classic Enduro for the prestigious Trèfle Lozérien AMV in France the following weekend. An important stop on the calendar, the Trèfle Lozérien AMV embodies the original spirit of enduro with its format of timed special test racing.
From the idyllic French countryside to the wild, mountainous wilderness of Romania, July’s Red Bull Romaniacs marks the halfway point of WESS with the longest event on the calendar. Five days of racing await the 450-plus competitors from over 35 different nations. Early September and Europe’s largest coal mine in Poland opens its gates to round five when Hard Enduro meets Cross-Country at the Red Bull 111 Megawatt. With the finish line coming into view, the penultimate stop of the series takes in Sweden’s Gotland Grand National in October. Now in its 35th year, the Cross-Country race is also one of the world’s largest with up to 3000 riders expected to compete. Set to sign off the inaugural WESS season on a high, the epic Dutch Beach Race Red Bull Knock Out will see 1000 riders go head-to-head in November where the ULTIMATE ENDURO CHAMPION will be crowned on the shoreline of the North Sea.
Already confirmed, both Red Bull KTM Factory Racing and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing have committed to the World Enduro Super Series. Fielding some of the world’s best Enduro riders, those competing for KTM top honours are Taddy Blazusiak, Jonny Walker, Cody Webb, Josep Garcia and Nathan Watson. Under Husqvarna’s awning Graham Jarvis, Billy Bolt, Colton Haaker and Alfredo Gomez (currently injured) all have their sights set on victory. Adding excitement to round one in Portugal, KTM and Husqvarna will have a fight on their hands for the top step of the podium with Wade Young (Sherco), Mario Roman (Sherco), Paul Bolton (KTM) and Travis Teasdale (Beta) all entered.
Ensuring maximum visibility of the World Enduro Super Series, Red Bull Media House will be the Exclusive Media Partner, capturing the best video content during each round while also producing a 26-minute show exclusive to RedBull.TV. Acting as Official Communication Partner Future7Media will provide all essential media communications and photography.
Winfried Kerschhaggl – WESS Racing Manager: “With just 50 days to go until the World Enduro Super Series begins it’s exciting to see things really taking shape behind the scenes. As we close in on the opening round in May, we’re now just a short step away from establishing a world-class multi-discipline championship. Despite receiving a very high-level of interest from many well-established events it has been decided that for 2018 WESS will be a seven-round series. This will enable us to deliver a greater quality of events and allow us to focus more attentively on each round. Recently we have met on site with several event organisers and have seen first-hand the quality work being undertaken to ensure that their events will be of the highest possible standard. It’s also really rewarding to see both KTM Motorcycles and Husqvarna Motorcycles commit fully to WESS and combined with the extensive entry of world-class talent confirmed for round one, it’s clear that we can be sure of a truly competitive start to the series.”
WORLD ENDURO SUPER SERIES – 2018 SCHEDULE
Rnd 1. Extreme XL Lagares (Portugal) May 18-20
Rnd 2. ErzbergRodeo (Austria) May 31 – June 3
Rnd 3. Trefle Lozerien AMV (France) June 8-10
Rnd 4. Red Bull Romaniacs (Romania) July 24-28
Rnd 5. Red Bull 111 Megawatt (Poland) September (Date TBC)
Rnd 6. Gotland Grand National (Sweden) October 26/27
Rnd 7. Red Bull Knock Out (The Netherlands) November 10
