Source: Supplied.

Billy Bolt (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) has been crowned the inaugural champion of the 2018 World Enduro Super Series (WESS) following the eighth and final round at the Red Bull Knock Out in The Netherlands.

In what was the sixth edition of the Dutch beach race, Nathan Watson (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) stormed his way to a debut win on the Scheveningen shoreline, taking victory over home favourite Glenn Coldenhoff (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Belgium’s Yentel Martens (Husqvarna).

Eager to impress in front of his home crowd, Coldenhoff set the early race pace, with Watson, Martens, Camille Chapeliere (KTM) and Britain’s Todd Kellet (Husqvarna) in tow. During the opening half of the race, Coldenhoff set a blisteringly fast pace and appeared to have all under control.

However, the opening of the extreme X-Loop for the final hour dramatically changed the flow of the race and Watson – putting his enduro skills to good use – fighting his way into the lead. Continuing his fast pace during the final laps, and with the track at his roughest, Watson stormed ahead to claim a 90-second margin of victory over Coldenhoff, with Martens coming through for third.

In the battle at the head of the World Enduro Super Series, all eyes were on title contenders Bolt and Lettenbichler, who were inside the top 20 of the 750 competitors. Positioning themselves out of trouble early on, the duo were closely matched with Bolt holding an important advantage.

Despite giving his best efforts, Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM) was unable to get the better of Bolt in the deep Dutch sand, finishing a creditable 15th to take the runner-up result in the 2018 World Enduro Super Series. In the fight for the final step of the championship podium, Watson’s round eight victory saw him advance to third in the rankings.

Detailed results