Garcia, Freeman Split EnduroGP Opener Wins
T
he 2026 FIM EnduroGP
Championship got under-
way with the EnduroGP of Italy,
April 10-12, where KTM's Josep
Garcia kicked things off by win-
ning Friday's Akrapovic Super
Test and taking the overall win
on Saturday, while Beta's Brian
Freeman, who sat out all of last
year with a knee injury, showed
that he's back and ready to get
down to business again by win
-
ning day two. American Rachel
Gutish returned to defend her
number one plate in the Wom-
en's division.
The dry, dusty and rocky ter-
rain of Custonaci in Sicily chal-
lenged the 123 riders, with just a
few seconds separating most of
the podium finishers after over
an hour of timed special-test
racing.
Garcia carried his momentum
from his Super Test win into the
GP's first day, quickly setting the
pace ahead of Zach Pichon and
Andrea Verona, with the top 10
separated by less than nine sec
-
onds. Steve Holcombe, aboard
the Sherco for the first time,
topped the enduro test ahead of
Antoine Magain. Garcia, how
-
ever, increased his lead to nearly
eight seconds by the end of the
first lap.
Despite having a broken
thumb, Pichon stayed competi
-
tive, with Magain close behind.
WIND
IN THE
P46
Josep Garcia kicked
off the 2026 FIM
EnduroGP World
Championship with
the day-one victory
in Italy.
PHOTOS:
FUTURE7MEDIA.
