Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128231
World Enduro Champion Anders Eriksson ma rk - th e other being Finn ish legend K ar i T i a in en - Erikss on is o n the verge of beco m ing t he sport 's most successful rider eve r. He knows it, his competi t ors know it, and his spons o rs kn ow it. Th e '03 seaso n has been a hug el y im po rta nt year fo r the 30 -y ear-o ld Swe d e. A definite "bi g -bore" sp ec i a l i st f ro m sea so n s past , t h e switch to the sm aller 450cc cla ss was to bring new cha lle nges , new c o m petitors and new motiva t ion for Erik sso n - eve n if it wasn't his decision to sw itch classes. " i t was p u rely t he facto ry' s de c i s i o n , " recalls t he b ur l y Swed e in near-perfect En g lish . " Beca u se of th e fi n anc ial prob lems th at the compa ny had bee n sufferin g wi th, Husqvarn a wanted to pr omote the new bike - the 4 50 - and its new chassis. It was a real c h a llen ge fo r me. Havin g a new bike and having to race it in a new class w ith new competitors was real ly good fo r me ." Bu t before Eriksson was told tha t he' d be chas ing the 4 5 0cc titl e t hi s ye ar, he had a decision of his own to make. A d ec is io n bigg er th an a ny other he 's m ade during his ca ree r and o ne that wou ld ha ve a profound and def in it e eff ect o n his future. Sho ul d he stay wi th th e then -f ina ncia lly troubled Husqvarna bran d or st art fresh else w he re? Wi t h five of hi s tea mma te s from '02 hav ing all signed elsewhere fo r ' 0 3, E rik sson h ad t o th in k long a n d ha rd ab out t he po s s ibi li ty o f eit her st arti ng fre sh or rem ain ing with a co m pany m any at the ti me co ns idered to be a sinki ng ship. He decided to stay . ~ y goal has always been to .RVlJ tr y and w in W or ld titles : And ers Eri k sso n t old me , ju st before claim ing hi s rec ord -eq ualing seventh Wor ld crown in June of thi s ye ar. "If it means breaking rec ords , th at's g reat, but I j ust w a n t t o k e e p i m p r o vi n g as a ride r. " Need ing j ust o ne mo re Wo rl d t i tl e t o bec o m e t h e W E e ' s most suc ce ssful rid er ever an d ha v in g walked away as c ha m p io n from a seas o n that was argua bly h is m os t c h a ll e ng i n g eve r, the 3 0 -ye a r -o l d Swe de is onc e ag ain look ing to w ard th e future with foc us a n d d etermi n a D e spit e t i on. needing two han ds o n which t o count his FIM g old medals, Eriksson ce rtainly isn 't finished with winning j ust yet. At face val ue , Er i k s so n is a reserved , polite, eve n pla c id ty pe of guy, like so m any Sw edes are - one wh o k e eps h is t houg h t s t o hims elf a nd h i s f ee t plante d firml y o n t h e g round . Wit h a physique every bit as sta b le and well deve lope d as t ha t of hi s fac to ry Husqvarna , he is a rid er wh o fits the ph rase " frie nd l y giant " bet ter tha n most. Bu t b en ea th h i s ca lm a nd coll ec t ed ext eri or li e s a deep ly pass io na te, huge ly dete rmined a nd we ll -oi le d W or ld tit l e - winnin g machi ne . O ne tha t h as been t here a nd done it m ore tim es t h at mos t co uld ever dr eam of. As one of only t wo rid ers to have reac hed the m ag ic sev en World titl e 44 SEPTEMB ER 10, 2003' cue I e n e vv s "I th ou ght about leaving, yeah, bu t bec aus e I' m Swedish, it means a lot to m e to ride a Husqva rna." Er ik sson said. " I fe~ very prou d to be ra c ing fo r the m. It was a ve ry difficult situatio n for me at the end of last ye ar. I bas ically sat down , thought about it a nd d eci ded that I wo ul d sta y. I' m reall y g lad that I d id ." W it h th e d ec isio n t o st ay m ad e , E riksson b ec am e th e o n ly offic ial Hus ky t e am rid er w ith a re a l i st i c chanc e of w inning an off-road World t itl e. With littl e m ach in ery to t est and knowing th at 2003 was the now -it alian -owned m ar que's ce nte nnia l birth day, the pressure bega n to m ou nt for Er iksson, as t he n ew season d rew eve r c lose r. Not k now ing h ow h e wo uld fare awa y from his co m petitive home of th e past five yea rs - the half-