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Stefan Merriman and the Aprilia RXV 5.5 were protagonists of the second round of the Italian Enduro Championship. On Saturday, the Australian flirted with victory on the day as he finished just five seconds behind the Frenchman, Aubert. On Sunday, he closed out in 5th after a nice comeback. Both days, he was the fastest rider atop a Over 4t motorcycle.

Team Aprilia Enduro traveled to Sardinia for the second round of the Italian Enduro Championship on April 26-27th in Dorgali (Nuoro). It was a very positive trip for the Noale Production House; beginning with a bang as out-of-this-world Stefan Merriman (Aprilia RXV 5.5) was in the hunt for absolute victory right up until Saturday's final special race. At the end, the Australian finished just five seconds behind Johnny Aubert (Yamaha), the international E2 leader, and six seconds ahead of the international E1 leader Mike Ahola (Honda). The trio really made a difference, it seemed more like an international grand prix than a race of the Italian Championships. Merrimam said he was very satisfied with his Aprilia RXV 5.5, particularly the great equilibrium the powerful twin demonstrated at the settings level of the suspension and mapping. During Saturday's first four laps, the distance between him and Aubert was never more than six seconds. It was constant equilibrium for the ever-steady Merriman who won the Enduro Test twice. In the final special (the Extreme Test), he did everything he could to steal the day's victory from Aubert. However, the Australian gambled too much and made a small mistake that cost him what would have been his first absolute success of the season. On Sunday, Merriman wasn't able to immediately find the right rhythm. After the first of the three programmed laps, he found himself in 8th place overall before making his way up to 5th. Even in Sardinia, Merriman and the Aprilia RXV 5.5 demonstrated to be among the big enduro protagonists. In the classification of the two days or racing, Merriman finished in 3rd place overall, 3rd in the Foreign Class, and first in the Over class.

Italian Enduro Championship - April 26-27th, Dorgali (NU)

FIRST DAY Overall: 1. Johnny Aubert (Yamaha); 2. Stefan Merriman (Aprilia RXV 5.5); 3. Mika Ahola (Honda); 4. Maurizio Micheluz (Yamaha); 5. Simone Albergoni (Yamaha). Foreigners' Class: 1. Johnny Aubert (Yamaha); 2. Stefan Merriman (Aprilia RXV 5.5); 3. Mika Ahola (Honda).

SECOND DAY Overall: 1. Johnny Aubert (Yamaha); 2. Mika Ahola (Honda); 3. Simone Albergoni (Yamaha); 4. Maurizio Micheluz (Yamaha); 5. Stefan Merriman (Aprilia RXV 5.5). Foreigners' Class: 1. Johnny Aubert (Yamaha); 2. Mika Ahola (Honda); 3. Stefan Merriman (Aprilia RXV 5.5).