Image: Matty Macalpine.

Hard enduro regular Mitch Harper dominated the inaugural Enduro-X powered by Monster Energy Enduro-X event at the weekend’s Clipsal 500 V8 Supercars opening round in Adelaide, South Australia.

The 24-year-old Victorian on the MotoGC Husqvarna FE350 featured prominently in Friday’s and Sunday’s Enduro-X support events, but dominated the weekend’s crowning two-wheeled event, the Enduro-X Cup on Saturday.

Harper fought off four challengers in the head-to-head one-lap battles to stamp his authority early, then went on to win all three Enduro-X Cup motos, raising the glass Enduro-X trophy in the company of Red Bull KTM’s runner-up Toby Price and third-placed Husqvarna charger Lachy Stanford.

“I’m pretty stoked! I haven’t done that much racing in the last couple years, so it’s pretty good to win an intense race against those top boys,” Harper said. “I love the two-stroke for the races like Wildwood, but the 350 power was perfect for this stuff. Unreal.

“I was probably the only rider here all weekend with a full stock bike barring the exhaust. I won one on Friday, all three yesterday and one today after Palmer crashed in front of me and his rear guard ended up going through my spokes, so I came from last to about fourth, and then I won that last one. It was a great weekend!

“I got great starts all weekend on the 350, against some top motocross riders and Toby Price and Peter Boyle who aren’t exactly new to the sport. It had perfect power over all the obstacles and was really smooth and the stock suspension was surprisingly good for this level.”

The Enduro-X was a popular addition to the high profile Clipsal 500 weekend, showcasing a selection of the country’s top off-road racers for the first time alongside a frantic V8 Supercars round this year.