All set for the WEC
At the official team presentation for the World Enduro Championship (WEC) in Arma di Taggia near San Remo, BMW Motorrad Motorsport presented its 2008 off-road team to the press. The riders, Anders Eriksson, Jean-Francois Goblet and Bert Meyer – who had already been presented at the shows in Milan and Madrid – were available for photos and also spoke at length to journalists about their sporting goals for this year.
Bert Meyer, Anders Eriksson, Simo Kirssi, Jean-Francois Goblet and Team Manager Wolfgang Fischer
As an added bonus, the team presented Simo Kirssi as an extra rider for the WEC. The factory rider will not only compete in the European Cross Country Championship series, but will also participate in the classic enduro races.
As this will be the first full year of world championship competition for the new BMW motorsports project, BMW Motorrad’s Head of Motorsport, Berti Hauser sees the 2008 season as a year for gaining valuable experience. The goal of the team, led by Wolfgang Fischer (Team Manager) and Markus Theobald (Technical Project Manager), will be to strengthen cooperation and constantly push technical development.
Junior rider Bert Meyer will try to establish his credentials among the top international riders. In doing this he will also be able to benefit from Anders Eriksson’s experience. Rookie WEC rider Simo Kirssi will aim to get as much experience as possible in enduro sports; however his focus will remain on cross-country motorcycle events. Jean-Francois Goblet will use his first year as a pro to get used to the four-stroke engine, which is completely new to him.
In the second half of the season the team wants to be strong enough to be able to score a top position here and there. In addition to the four factory riders, Joel Smets will also take part in a couple of selected off-road events, while Andreas Lettenbichler and Gerhard Forster will represent BMW Motorrad Motorsport in selected ‘Extreme Enduro’ races.
The WEC Riders 2008
Anders Eriksson
Anders (34) is married and lives in Tibro (Sweden). He has been riding enduro since 1984 and has been Enduro World Champion in 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2003. He will be competing in the E3 class in the 2008 WEC series.
Jean-Francois Goblet
Jean-Francois (26) is single and lives in Esneux (Belgium). The three-times Belgian Enduro Champion and former French Cross Country Champion (E3) 2005 and French Enduro Vice Champion (2007) will be competing in the E2 class.
Bert Meyer
Bert (20) is single and currently lives in Weißenburg (Germany). The two times European Cross Country Champion will be competing in the EJ class at in this year’s WEC series.
Finnish rider Simo Kirssi (28) is single and also living in Weißenburg (Germany). He 2004 European and German Cross Country Champion has also won the Erzberg Prologue and will be competing in the E2 class in this year’s WEC series.
The G 450 X Sports Enduro
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