Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Josep Garcia is ready to race the 2022 FIM International Six Days Enduro (ISDE), being held in and around Le Puy-en-Velay, France. Leading Spain’s World Trophy team into the event, Josep will be aiming to repeat the overall individual event win he secured last year in Italy. Joining Garcia in France, FMF KTM Factory Racing riders Josh Toth, Kailub Russell, and Dante Oliveira will be representing the USA in their World Trophy team, with KTM-supported Brandy Richards looking to repeat her win from last year in the Women’s World Trophy.
The 96th edition of the ISDE will take place from Monday, August 29 and run to Saturday, September 3. From the paddock based near Loudes airport, riders will face five full days of competition, covering around 200 kilometers each day. On the Saturday, the traditional final motocross test will confirm the race winners and bring the 2022 event to a close.
Coming into this year’s ISDE, Josep Garcia has endured a mixed season of EnduroGP racing to date. Showing impressive speed from the very first round, the young Spaniard was well in the fight for both EnduroGP and Enduro2 class honors. A crash and subsequent thumb injury forced Garcia to unfortunately miss round four in Portugal, but on his return to action in Slovakia he was immediately on the pace and on the podium. A double victory at the penultimate round in Hungary proved the KTM 350 EXC-F rider is back to his best and fully ready to take on the ISDE.
Coming into the 2022 event as reigning individual champion, Josep will not only be aiming to repeat that success, but also lead his strong Spanish team to victory in the World Trophy competition.
Josep Garcia: “After my injury in Italy I think I’m back to 100%. I was able to take a double win at the GP of Hungary, so that’s really good news ahead the ISDE. Of course, the Six Days is all about the team competition and I feel we have a really strong line-up and should be in a good position to fight for the top step of the podium. My personal goal is to repeat the overall win from last year. For sure, it’s going to be tough – there are many good riders racing this year, but I think if everything goes well, and the tests suit my style, I should be in the fight. France always delivers really interesting tests, so I’m really looking forward to getting started at this year’s event.”
The United States World Trophy team includes three KTM Factory Racing riders. Eight-time GNCC National Champion Kailub Russell is joined by KTM 350 XC-F racer Josh Toth, with 2021 Junior team member Dante Oliveira moving up to the World Trophy team in France. In the women’s category, KTM-supported Brandy Richards returns to ISDE action where she hopes to repeat her individual class win from 2021, as well as leading her team to back-to-back victories in the Women’s World Trophy.