Jonny Walker wins 2nd Red Bull 111 Megawatt

After months out with injury, the Brit returns to win his second Red Bull 111 Megawatt in a row

By Jonty Edmunds on 19 September 2016

The British rider piloted his KTM around three laps of a wet and, in places, incredibly challenging Red Bull 111 Megawatt course laid out in an open-cast cola mine in Belchatow, Poland.

Hot on his heels was Spain’s Mario Roman who crossed the finish line on his Husqvarna with three seconds separating the two riders after nearly three hours of racing.

“It feels so good to be back racing,” Jonny Walker said at the finish. “The last few months have been rough coming back from my Superenduro leg injury. I’d have been pleased with a podium finish, so to win is just amazing.”

The third running of Red Bull 111 Megawatt was a wet one. For the first time ever heavy overnight rain ensured a very different track from previous years, with the opening lap catching more than a few riders out.

“It was so wet in places,” added Walker. “The sand hills were unbelievably soft, it was kind of a lottery at times. I wanted to push on and try and open up a lead, but being the first rider onto the hills wasn’t the best place to be.

“The first lap was pretty chaotic, but after that, when there were lines on the track, things settled down. On the second lap I just rode smart, then I pushed hard during the second half of the final lap. I managed to open up a small lead, but I knew that

Heavy downpours overnight created in what some riders referred to as a Hard Enduro beach race. The power-sapping wet sand meant that the climbs could be all but impassable.

Arriving at the bottom of the event’s final hill Walker was no more than 100m ahead of Roman, who rode an impressive final lap to put himself in with a chance of the win. Powering his way two thirds of the way up the climb with no problems, as he pushed his bike up and across the finish line Jonny could see Roman closing to within no more than a few bike lengths of him.

“I knew I had a bit of a lead, but I also knew that Mario wasn’t too far away,” said Walker. “I didn't realise he was as close as he was until I saw him right behind me. I knew the final hill would play a big part of the race. Being the first rider onto it was important, but also a bit of a disadvantage. Anyway, it worked out great for me. I’m made up with the win.”

 

Mario Roman could be forgiven for having mixed emotions about finishing second, but it was a hugely impressive performance from the Spaniard. With riders swapping places on a hill-by-hill basis in the opening lap, Mario kept himself in touch with the lead to emerge as a possible race winner during the closing stages of the race.

“Second is a great result with all the top riders here. It came down to a fight to the finish between myself, Jonny and Wade. I had a good start but then crashed with some other riders. The difficult hills were so, so soft. But I managed to not get stuck too much and, well, second is very good for me.”