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UFO Corse Yamaha rider Stefan Merriman claimed a highly impressive day one win at the third round of the \'04 World Enduro Championship in Matelica, Italy. Merriman\'s team mate Bartosz Oblucki made it a great day for the UFO Corse Yamaha team as the Polish rider rounded off the E1 top three claiming the third position. Petteri Silvan (KTM) won the Enduro 1 class on day two, Merriman finished fifth but maintains the lead in the Enduro 1 world championship. Silvan now trails by 18 points, Albergoni is third and Oblucki is fourth in standings.
Round three of the Enduro World championship was largely influenced by the weather conditions. Saturday\'s competition took place under clear skies, day two saw some of the worst conditions the World Enduro Championship has seen in years - making the course and all of the events four special tests incredibly challenging for all competitors. The WR250F mounted Stefan Merriman finished close to half a minute ahead of his nearest competitor overall and over one minute ahead of second placed Enduro 1 rival Roberto Bazzurri. Twenty-three year old Bartosz Oblucki scored his second podium of the season. UFO Corse Yamaha\'s veteran Mario Rinaldi scored a credible fourth in his home Grand Prix.
With Merriman unable to repeat his event topping result from day one, two-stroke rider Silvan Petteri bagged the win in the Enduro 1 class. Larsson (TM) and Albergoni (Honda) completed Sunday\'s podium. Stefan Merriman struggled with the slippery conditions and came home fifth. Oblucki finished sixth.
Stefan Merriman (Ufo Corse Yamaha) - first and fifth:
\"Everything went really well on day one. Apart from one crash in the mud on one of the special tests I couldn\'t have asked for a better day really. The tests started off wet but then tried out quite a bit, which made things a lot easier. I was a little bit surprised that I was the fastest overall rider on day one. I thought that because the tests were quite fast in places that the bigger bikes would do better. I guess it just goes to show that my Yamaha is really working well. Day two wasn\'t any where near as good. I think I need to go to Wales and train in the mud and ruts there like I did a few years ago. The conditions were really difficult. It was that muddy that I was struggling to stay on the bike. You really didn\'t have any feeling at all. It\'s disappointing that I didn\'t have two good results but considering the conditions it\'s not the end of the world.\"
The fourth round of the Enduro 1 world championship will take place in Thiers, France, on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 May.
Results are @ Latest on Whibs:
