Arsenal Crowns Jozsa Norbert Levente as Winner After Four Demanding Days in Romania. Ott Second. Hambășan 3rd!

Hard Enduro Arsenal has officially opened the 2026 Romanian hard enduro season, and after four demanding days of racing, the final overall standings are now locked in. From close fights in PRO to late podium changes in EXPERT and HOBBY, Arsenal once again proved why it remains one of the key races on the national calendar.

In PRO, Jozsa Norbert Levente (Master Bike Cluj) secured the overall win with a total time of 6:23:42. Ott Kornel Jun. (Go Racing) finished second, just 1 minute and 32 seconds behind after closing the gap on the final day, while Hambășan Vlad Casian (ACS Poiana Ruscă) completed the podium in third. Sulea Cezar Nicolae (Nordica Moto – Go Racing) finished fourth and Varga Zsolt (Nordica Moto – Go Racing) rounded out the top five. In the end, the fight for victory stayed alive almost to the finish, but Jozsa did enough across all four days to take the overall win.

Despite the victory, Jozsa was not fully happy with how the race unfolded. Reflecting on the event, he said the course did not really suit him, especially because the dry conditions made everything feel much easier than expected. He felt there were not enough sections where riders could really create a gap, and that the battle shifted too much onto the connecting parts and forest roads, which he described as dangerous at very high speed. Jozsa also said he hopes the organizers will draw conclusions from this, because in his view this is not what a national hard enduro championship should need.

“The course wasn’t really to my liking, probably also because of the dry conditions. Everything became super easy, and we didn’t really have loops where you could make a gap over the others, so the fight moved onto the connections and forest roads, which for me felt very dangerous when you’re riding at 110 km/h. I hope the organizers take the conclusion that this is not what we need. I feel bad about this race, because in the past I used to come here with a lot of excitement. Other than that, the bike worked without any problems. I had quite a long break since last August, so I still feel a little rusty, but I’ll get back to my level after a few more races and battles.”

Jozsa Norbert Levente – Master Bike Cluj – Nordica Moto

“The first round of the National Hard Enduro Championship comes to an end after four days and around 300 kilometers of racing. I managed to finish 4th overall and 3rd in the national standings — a good start to the season, but one that clearly shows me there is still room to do better. The course was faster than technical, which is not necessarily a style that suits me best, but I stayed consistent all the way to the finish. At the end of Day 3, we had problems with the bike, and after nearly 10 hours of work we managed to make it back to the start on the final day and keep our position. Thank you to everyone who supported me with parts, advice and help, especially @agapescud for the involvement.”

Sulea Cezar – Nordica Moto – Go Racing

In VET, Zdenek Cyprian (Slovacia) finished on top with 7:11:57, confirming the control he had shown throughout the race. Aleks Humar (Extrem Motors Orăștie) took second at 16 minutes and 2 seconds back, while Bart Stroișteanu (Master Bike Cluj) secured third. Vincze Stefan Daniel (Master Bike Cluj) ended fourth and Ezaru Razvan George (Lido Câmpina) completed the top five. The podium remained unchanged on the last day, with Cyprian converting his early lead into a convincing overall victory.

In EXPERT, David Ignat Ioan (Master Bike Cluj) wrapped up one of the strongest rides of the event, taking the class win with 6:25:39. David Mihai Rusanescu (Adrenaline Motorsports) finished second, 23 minutes and 42 seconds behind, while David Pop (Master Bike Cluj) climbed onto the final podium in third. Madalin Mihai Chelcea (Master Bike Cluj) ended fourth and stayed just 1 minute and 56 seconds away from P3, which means he was still close enough to fight for the podium right to the end. Koppany Svella (Go Racing) completed the top five. The biggest final-day shake-up came here, where Raul Marian Marin (Motokron Racing Team) dropped out of the podium places after being third overall heading into the last day.

In FETE, Mihaela Isabela Ioniță (Master Bike Cluj) took a clear overall win with 9:59:37, while Barabas Agoston Andrea (Master Bike Cluj) finished second. With only two classified riders, there was no podium battle in numbers, but Ioniță controlled the class from start to finish and ended the event with a commanding margin of 5 hours, 56 minutes and 13 seconds.

In HOBBY, Marin Bogdan Butiu (Black Ryders Sibiu) completed an impressive ride to take the overall win in 5:57:46. Mario Dalin Antonio Pop (Haita Deva) finished second at 17 minutes and 2 seconds back, while Matei Tudor Bortan (Crazy Bike Sibiu) secured third overall. Just behind them, Maria Grigoraș (Master Bike Cluj) finished fourth, while Nils Asmussen (Germania) took fifth. This class also saw a final-day change inside the podium positions, with Bortan moving ahead of Grigoraș to finish third overall.

“The first round of the National Championship was a very good race for me. This year I decided to move up to the Hobby class for a bigger challenge, and until the final day I was running 3rd overall with a very good pace. Unfortunately, in the last section of the course I had problems with the bike and lost the podium, but I still managed to bring the race to the finish. I’m very happy with my performance and I’m looking forward with confidence to the next round.”

Maria Grigoraș – Master Bike Cluj – Nordica Moto

With the final results now confirmed, Arsenal delivered exactly the kind of season opener Romanian hard enduro needed: long days, quite fast tracks for some riders, shifting pressure and a few decisive last-day moves. Some classes were controlled from the front, others stayed tense until the end, but across the board the race produced clear winners and strong early statements for the rest of the season.

HARD ENDURO ARSENAL 2026 – FINAL RESULTS

Source: FRM.ro