Cody Webb made his Beta race debut in the recent Indoor Enduro World Championship (IEWC) in Genoa, Italy where he qualified for the main events and scored two top-ten finishes. Webb raced the all-new 2011 Beta 350 RR - the bold new Italian racer which has yet to make its official debut in the United States.
Webb, the only American in the IEWC opener, turned quite a few heads when he topped his heat race, besting Thomas Oldrati for the pole position and first gate pick for the first main event of the evening. Webb was off to a good start but crashed twice and ended up 12th in the first main event.
"In the second main event I had the last gate pick because they reverse the qualifying order," Webb explained, "so I had a horrible start. I couldn't even jump the first jump so I was in dead last. But I passed up to ninth place."
The national trials champion had first gate pick for the third and final main event of the evening where he put in his best performance, claiming seventh in the race which garnered him 11th overall.
"I would have liked to have done better in the main," said Webb, who was coming off a third-place finish in the Las Vegas AMA EnduroCross finale. "The European tracks are definitely a lot faster and the tracks are wider. There's actually a lot more room to pass. My problem is I don't have the intensity from trials. It was a lot of fun and I had a great time, but I wasn't quite prepared for what it was like. Next time I'll be ready and hopefully put an American in the top-five."
Webb took full advantage of his trip to Italy and spent time at the Beta factory headquarters, familiarizing himself with the bikes and the team. The 22-year-old recently inked a two-year deal with Beta to contest both the AMA EnduroCross series and AMA-NATC National MotoTrial championships. After his rousing performance at the IEWC opener, Webb also looks forward to competing in more international events with the factory Beta team.
"I was very happy to make the trip to Florence and ride the event and meet with everyone at Beta," Webb said. "And I'm super impressed with the new 350 RR! I'm looking forward to progressing with the team in the next two years."
For a full race report on the IEWC opener in Genoa, Italy, visit the FIM website at www.FIM-live.com.
Webb, the only American in the IEWC opener, turned quite a few heads when he topped his heat race, besting Thomas Oldrati for the pole position and first gate pick for the first main event of the evening. Webb was off to a good start but crashed twice and ended up 12th in the first main event.
"In the second main event I had the last gate pick because they reverse the qualifying order," Webb explained, "so I had a horrible start. I couldn't even jump the first jump so I was in dead last. But I passed up to ninth place."
The national trials champion had first gate pick for the third and final main event of the evening where he put in his best performance, claiming seventh in the race which garnered him 11th overall.
"I would have liked to have done better in the main," said Webb, who was coming off a third-place finish in the Las Vegas AMA EnduroCross finale. "The European tracks are definitely a lot faster and the tracks are wider. There's actually a lot more room to pass. My problem is I don't have the intensity from trials. It was a lot of fun and I had a great time, but I wasn't quite prepared for what it was like. Next time I'll be ready and hopefully put an American in the top-five."
Webb took full advantage of his trip to Italy and spent time at the Beta factory headquarters, familiarizing himself with the bikes and the team. The 22-year-old recently inked a two-year deal with Beta to contest both the AMA EnduroCross series and AMA-NATC National MotoTrial championships. After his rousing performance at the IEWC opener, Webb also looks forward to competing in more international events with the factory Beta team.
"I was very happy to make the trip to Florence and ride the event and meet with everyone at Beta," Webb said. "And I'm super impressed with the new 350 RR! I'm looking forward to progressing with the team in the next two years."
For a full race report on the IEWC opener in Genoa, Italy, visit the FIM website at www.FIM-live.com.
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