At the end of what has been a hugely challenging season David Knight has claimed victory at the final round of the '09 World Enduro Championship, the GP of France staged in St Flour. Proving that he is without question still one of the world's very best enduro racers, Knighter battled hard during both days to claim the runner-up spot in the E2 class on day one before topping the E2 podium on day two aboard his 450cc Kawasaki Superbike Racing Team machine.
Finishing fourth and third in the Enduro 2 class at the GP of Greece - his first outing for Kawasaki - Knight's second and first place results in France show that despite his mid-season change of machinery he never gave up on ending 2009 with a win. In topping the Enduro 2 class on day two David claimed his first ever E2 class victory, and with it put in one of the event's most impressive performances.
David Knight: "It's been a great weekend. With everything that's happened this season this is the first time that I've felt like I've really been able to focus on just racing an enduro. This win really means a lot. We've not had the luxury of a winter's testing so it's been a case of trying different things, guessing sometimes, to turn a standard motocross bike into a machine capable of winning at World Enduro Championship level, which we've done. Ok, Johnny Aubert wasn't racing, and everyone knows how fast he's been this season, but I'll take this victory. I had some new parts in my engine this weekend, which worked really well, but it took me a little while to get used to them. I really enjoyed day one because it was so close between myself and Juha - either of us could have won really. I was really happy to be able to fight all day with Juha. I had a really disappointing first test on day two, but after that I was able to get going and find my speed. I had a really good fight with Salminen and Rodrig Thain in the morning but I just wanted to make sure I didn't make any mistakes. I made one mistake on day one and I think it cost me the win. I didn't want to push too hard too soon. I wanted to wait and see if the others made mistakes, before staying safe on the last lap. It's great to end the season with a win and I have to say a huge thanks to my team."
Results - '09 WEC Rnd 8, GP of France
Enduro 2 class, Day 1
1. Juha Salminen (BMW) 48.55:88; 2. David Knight (Kawasaki Superbke Racing Team) 49.03:24; 3. Cristobal Guerrero (Yamaha) 49.09:38
Enduro 2 class, Day 2
1. David Knight (Kawasaki Superbike Racing Team) 55.38:23; 2. Rodrig Thain (TM) 55.51:39; 3. Juha Salminen (BMW) 56.02:95