After taking the Junior title last season, Andrea Verona (TM) marked his graduation to the open-age classes by promptly winning this year’s E1 championship following a fierce season-long battle with his fellow Italian Thomas Oldrati (Honda).
• All the 2020 FIM World champions
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Verona struck first, taking a narrow win from Oldrati on day one at the opening round – the GP of France – at Requista in mid-September and then enjoying a bigger margin of victory on day two ahead of home hero and former French motocross champion Jeremy Tarroux (Sherco) with Oldrati third.
Locking horns with Oldrati on home turf at the GP of Italy at Spoleto one week later, Verona came off second best on both days behind his more experienced rival, but as the series moved into its second half in November with the GP of Portugal at Marco de Canaveses, Verona was back on top on day one before Oldrati – third on the opening day behind Belgian Antoine Magain (Sherco) – again pushed him back to second on day two.
The championship returned to Marco de Canaveses one week later for the fourth and final round and, with the title on the line, Verona showed maturity belying his tender twenty-one years as he sealed the deal with a pair of comfortable wins from Oldrati to claim the crown by ten points.
PALMARES
FIM Youth Enduro World Champion: 2017
FIM Junior Enduro World Champion: 2019
FIM E1 Enduro World Champion: 2020