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IN THE WIND P44 WATSON, HOLCOMBE TOP ENDUROGP OF PORTUGAL T he EnduroGP crowd headed to the dry, rocky terrain of Castelo Branco, Portu- gal for the sixth stop of the 2017 Maxxis FIM Enduro World Championship July 22-23. The rough and dusty course demanded a lot from the riders and attrition was high, leaving many looking forward to the two-month break in the series before the final two stops of the champi- onship. Patience and tenacity were rewarded in Por- tugal's silty conditions, where Nathan Watson dominated the day aboard his KTM. Watson topped all but two of the day's special tests, with an unmatchable pace on both the high- speed motocross and enduro tests. "I had a really excellent day today," Watson explained. "As soon as I saw the tests I knew they would be good for me. Fast, wide and open en- duro and motocross tests really suit my riding. "The dust was pretty bad today. Other than a small slip on the going, the day was flawless. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow now and hope to bag another win." While Watson enjoyed a victory margin of nearly a minute and a half, the battle for second was much closer. In the end, Matt Phillips barely edged out Steve Holcombe by one second for the runner-up position in the EnduroGP category. Watson was looking forward to repeating his feat on day two, and from the start it looked like it was going to be a three-way battle between him, Holcombe and Charlier, but a broken shifter left Watson stranded inside the extreme test, rob- bing him of the chance to fight for victory. Watson would end up 10th on the day. This time it was Holcombe's turn to stand atop the podium, flanked by Christophe Charlier in second (Husqvarna) and Phillips in third. "I knew the rougher tests would suit me bet- ter, and I also removed the mistakes I made on the extreme test on day one," said Holcombe. "It was a tough day, three or four of us were really pushing hard. I don't think we'll see too much more dry and dusty conditions in the world championship now, so I'm excited to start preparing for my home GP. We're one step closer to the end of the championship, but there's still a lot of racing to do." CN Nathan Watson makes quick work of the rough and silty conditions in Portugal to take the overall win on Saturday. Portugal EnduroGP Day 2 PHOTOGRAPHY BY FUTURE7MEDIA