2018 Sprint Enduro Series Wrap-Up

A look back at the 2018 Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro series

Josh Strang used consistency and a win at the final round to wrap up his first Sprint Enduro title. “It feels great to win the title, especially as good as Stew was riding this year,” Strang said. “I did what I had to do this year and the rest took care of itself.”Shan Moore

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's Josh Strang came into the final round of the Kenda AMA Full Gas Sprint Enduro season sitting just two points behind Tely Racing KTM's Steward Baylor. Strang's stellar performance on Saturday, consisting of four test wins, set him up so that all he needed was a third-place finish on Sunday to claim the series title.

At the end of the weekend, Strang finished second on Sunday, which was more than enough to give him the 2018 title. Meanwhile, Baylor came up five points short in his bid for a second Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro title.

In the final series standings, Strang finished the season with 363 points, compared to 358 for Steward Baylor. Grant Baylor was third overall with 317, while Layne Michael (304) and Ryan Sipes (290) rounded out the top five.

Steward Baylor ended up second in the series standings, but finished off an up-and-down season with an exclamation point at the Hidden Valley event with his dominating win on the final day of the last round. “It would have been nice to have won the title and I’m bummed I didn’t get it, but I’m happy to come away with some wins,” Baylor said.Shan Moore
Grant Baylor finished 24th at the final event of the season when he broke a rear hub, however the Tely Energy KTM rider still managed to claim third overall on the season.Shan Moore
Layne Michael, fourth overall on the year, finished off the season strong with three-straight podium finishes. “The season started off kind of slow. I just wasn’t riding good, but I adjusted a few things for the second half of the series and things started to work for me,” Michael said.Shan Moore
Ryan Sipes, who won more rounds than anyone in 2018, had a chance to win the Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro Series title. However, the Rockstar Energy/Leatt/Maxxis Husqvarna rider missed the series finale to compete in the Red Bull Straight Rhythm in California.Shan Moore
Jordan Ashburn finished off the season in sixth overall. The Beta USA-backed Tennessee rider excelled in the enduro tests throughout the year.Shan Moore
Former pro Supercross and motocross racer Broc Hepler competed at the Pennsylvania round and won the first two tests before a crash put him on the sidelines for the remainder of the day.Shan Moore
Thad Duvall made an appearance at the Wade Farm round in Indiana and came away with second behind Josh Strang. Duvall used the race to evaluate his wrist, which he had injured a few weeks before.Shan Moore
Mike Witkowski was a solid performer all season. The Beta USA rider earned eighth overall for the season.Shan Moore
Liam Draper topped Braxton McGee and Billy Schlag for the Pro 2 championship title.Shan Moore

2018 Pro Class Championship Point Standings

Position Rider Brand Points
1 Josh Strang Husqvarna 363 |  
2 Steward Baylor KTM 358
3 Grant Baylor KTM 317
4 Layne Michael Husqvarna 304
5 Ryan Sipes Husqvarna 290
6 Jordan Ashburn Beta 252
Evan Smith Husqvarna 252
8 Mike Witkowski Beta 128
9 Craig DeLong Husqvarna 49
10 Thad Duvall Husqvarna 41