WEEKEND KETCHUP - Massive updates - Kawasaki, French Championship, CCM, KTM UK, Billy Mac & Pioneer
March 25, 2008
Apart from eating loads of Easter eggs this weekend seemed quite quiet on the international motocross front, there was snow at the Maxxis and some Euroland racing in Belgium - so lets take a look at what went down.
Pioneer Yamaha
Freezing temperatures and snow welcomed the riders and spectators for round two of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship over the Easter weekend at Canada Heights, Kent. Pioneer Emberson Yamaha quartet of Wayne Smith (MX1) Alan Keet, Robert Hamilton and Daniel Arnold (MX2) all qualified easily for the days proceedings but race results were as mixed as the weather.
MX1
Wayne Smith was hindered from the off in the opener after a poor start into the tight first left hand corner leaving much hard work ahead but made many places up on the opening lap to come round in 12th position and up into 9th a lap later. Smith had Brad Anderson just ahead of him for the whole race but could not get close enough to mount a challenge but he did manage to make a few more passes before the race end finishing a creditable 6th place.
Race two for Smith and again another poor start after clashing with another rider off the concrete start gate but it was another good first lap for the Cumbrian and was soon into 8th. This time though the leading riders had spread out early on making catching up hard and the Pioneer Emberson Yamaha rider had a lonely ride for the entire race finishing 6th and that was his overall position on the day.
MX2
The MX2 class was an eventful affair for the Pioneer Emberson Yamaha riders with both Hamilton and Arnold both on the floor in turn one with two other riders including Mike Brown. Alan Keet came out unscathed and was leading Pioneer rider in 13th. Arnold was quickest to get going from turn on and was up into 30th whilst Hamilton took a while to get into the groove of things. 17 year old Keet was embroiled in a four way battle all race long finishing and eventual 16th with Arnold getting into the points at one stage only to make a mistake two laps from the end to finish 21st with Hamilton just five places further back in 26th.
Again it was Keet who managed the fastest get away out of gate of the Pioneer Emberson Yamaha riders but was his turn to fight from the back after a first lap crash. Hamilton and Arnold were having their own private battle outside the points with Arnold over taking his team mate and into the points at the halfway mark and just a lap later both riders had hard charging Keet on their tails and all three were having their own personal battle. It was Keet who came out on top passing both his team mates but narrowly missing out on adding points to his first race tally in 21st with Arnold and Hamilton just a few seconds behind in 22nd and 23rd respectively.
Pioneer Emberson Yamaha now have a weekend break before turning their attention to round two of the British Open and Under 21 Championships at Kingsteignton, Devon on April 6th where Wayne Smith is looking to open up a gap at the top of the standings.
Mackenzie’s dominant 2008 rolls onwards
New factory Honda motocross racer Billy Mackenzie, Great Britain’s sole works representative in the premier FIM MX1 World Championship, continued his excellent start as an HRC rider by romping away with both races at a chilly and snowy Canada Heights for the second round of the 2008 Maxxis British Championship last Sunday.
The reigning champion and Grand Prix winner – the UK’s highest profile motocrosser – extended his streak of victories to ‘4-from-4’ after an electric launch to the 2008 campaign on the CAS Honda machine. His double salvo at the Kent venue came after setting pole position and grabbing two holeshots to dominate proceedings. His second set of overall silverware came two weeks after he was equally as emphatic at Donington Park (home of the 62nd Motocross of Nations later this year) for the opening round of eight in the domestic series.
The 23 year old Scot, from East Lothian in Edinburgh, blitzed the British competition carrying his number one plate in dark Monster Energy colours and has been in sizzling form since returning from a month training and testing in the USA earlier this year.
Mackenzie will be hoping to transfer his speed and confidence to the Netherlands in two weeks time when the fifteen-round World Championship gets underway in the sand of the Valkenswaard circuit near the city of Eindhoven. ‘Mac’ finished 9th in a topsy-turvy debut season in the MX1 class (riding 450cc machinery) with Kawasaki, but became the very first British winner of an MX1 Grand Prix with his third successive victory at the Sugo circuit in Japan (an accolade to match his previous two triumphs on an MX2 motorcycle).
“This is the best bike I have ridden and being back with a British team has helped me settle immediately,” he said. “I still do not feel like I am pushing my limit yet and these results in the build up to the world championship have only assisted my confidence and the good vibes I have about my set-up for 2008.”
“That’s four motos from four, and I feel like there are many more to come,” he added. “We will make some more tests with the bike this week and have a few new bits to try but then we will move onto the sandy tracks and get ready for Valkenswaard. I don’t want to get too excited but it is clear that we are looking good and I can’t remember being this keen to get to the first GP for quite a while.”
The third round of the 2008 Maxxis British championship will take place on April 13th at Torrington in Devon. Mackenzie already leads by 22 points with a race victory counting for 30. Six meetings and twelve motos remain.
Simpson dominant at Canada Heights
Team KTM UK’s Shaun Simpson bounces back from a mixed start to the Maxxis British Motocross Championship at Donington with a double win in the MX2 class at round two of the series held at Canada Heights in Kent. Despite being held in wintry conditions that saw snow, sleet and high winds pound the popular hillside circuit, the track was just on the damp side of being perfect which made for some great bar to bar racing action in both the MX2 and MX1 classes.
Simpson was in a class of his own all day dominating qualifying and both races on his Team KTM UK 250 SXS-F from start to finish. Grabbing both all important holeshots on the power-sapping uphill Canada Heights start straight, Shaun was then able to use the advantage of riding a clear track to gap the competition early in both motos eventually winning race one by 36 seconds and race two by 46 seconds. Simpson’s MX1 teammate Alex Snow doesn’t have such a positive day but the Under-21 championship leader acquits himself well to battle on to a pair of points scoring rides after mediocre starts from the tricky concrete launch pad.
James Noble showed true Yorkshire grit on his way to a pair of top eight moto finishes for 7th overall despite suffering with a bad case of pneumonia. Riding against doctor’s orders James qualified well on his 450 SXS-F then simply concentrated on riding consistently to reach the finish in both motos in order to keep his MX1 championship hopes alive.
The next outing for Shaun Simpson and James Noble is at the opening round of the Motocross World Championship on April 6 at Valkenswaard in Holland. Meanwhile Alex Snow will travel to Whiteway Barton in Devon for the second round of the under-21 series where he’ll be hoping to increase his championship lead.
Shaun Simpson – MX2 1-1
“The perfect day. Qualifying went well and I stuck a good lap in early and took pole. I decided to start on the very inside gate which was a bit of a gamble because it was almost too far inside for the first corner but I’d noticed the ground was nice and hard over there. My gamble paid off and I took both holeshots and just checked out from there. Today was my day and I was on top of my game and now I’ve got to just keep going in the series – I’m only 14 points behind the leader now and the championship is there for the taking.”
Alex Snow – MX2 14-18
“It wasn’t the best day for me really. I had bad starts in both races and it was difficult
More valuable British Championship points for CCM Racing at Canada Heights
CCM Racing made their second outing at the 2008 Maxxis ACU British Motocross championship, with the latest round taking place at the fantastic Canada Heights circuit in Kent. Once again the sole responsibility of flying the flag for the famous British motorcycle manufacturer was left to the emerging talent of Oliver Sandiford-Smith, with his younger team mate Richie Worrall still sidelined by a pre-season injury.
Winter like conditions gripped the venue with a light covering of snow defining the track despite the meeting’s Easter date. Whilst the undulating circuit stood up well in spite of the best efforts of the British weather, conditions out on track were very difficult, with the top surface offering little grip and few chances to overtake. Sandiford-Smith used the morning qualifying session to acquaint himself with both the circuit and the conditions, posting his best time on lap four of the nine he completed. Although slightly off the pace of the leading group, Oliver qualified in a respectable twentieth position to book his place in the two main MX1 races.
The first thirty-minute plus two lap encounter proved to be an ongoing battle for the lone CCM rider as he rose and fell in the running order as a series of minor crashes throughout the moto limited his progress. Oliver’s pace should have easily netted him a top twenty finish, but his catalogue of small mistakes left him down in a disappointing twenty seventh place come the flag.
Race two brought better fortunes for the Bolton based team, with the revolutionary aluminium bonded chassis CCM MX450 emerging from the first turn in a mid pack position and the opportunity of making progress. Looking much more at home in the heavy conditions Sandiford-Smith set about his task of climbing up the leader board, with his spirited efforts taking him into the top fifteen with just one lap to go.
Unfortunately Oliver was not able to hold onto this position, and slipped one place to sixteenth as the flag was waved on the second moto. This performance was worthy of five valuable championship points, to put Oliver in twentieth place overall on the day, and to move him up into the top twenty five in the general series standings.
Team Principle Gary Harthern gave his view of the day’s events and news of Worrall’s return to riding. “ The good news is that we are making the progress, even it is a little slower than our enthusiasm would like it to be. The last three meetings have seen Oliver produce far better second race results, so we just need to focus on getting him dialled in earlier in the meeting and then I am sure we can be a lot nearer our overall goal of top ten finishes.
“Richie has got the OK from the doctor and is back riding a bike today, so should be back in racing action very soon, but not before he is fully ready. ”
SUZUKI DOMINATE TOP TEN AT CANADA HEIGHTS
Suzuki GB’s officially backed teams were flying the flag in style on Easter Sunday with top-ten results galore in both MX1 and MX2 classes at the Canada Heights track in Kent.
In the MX1 class, Team Suzuki Swift’s Brad Anderson continued his run of good form on-board the new RM-Z450 by turning his 5th place qualification spot into a fourth place in race one, and a well-earned runner-up spot in race two behind eventual round winner Billy MacKenzie. Brad would leave Canada Heights with a impressive second place overall on the day, a place higher than at the opening round a few weeks earlier.
In MX2, Suzuki’s dedication to the class would be repaid, with no-less than four riders finishing inside the top-ten in race one alone.
Race one would eventually be won by Shaun Simpson, with Suso MVR-D’s Jason Dougan just missing out on a podium position with a fourth place finish. Following Jason home was team-mate Carl Nunn in fifth and the Team Suzuki Swift pairing of Elliot Banks Browne and Pascal Leuret in sixth and ninth respectively.
By race two, Pascal would be the strongest Suzuki mounted rider, taking his Team Suzuki Swift RM-Z250 to a solid 5th place, a position he would claim in the overall rankings too. Finishing one place higher overall on the day was Jason Dougan, with Elliott Banks Browne in seventh and Carl Nunn completing the story in tenth.
Relentless Suzuki's Jamie Law have a natter with Jeff Perrett of MOTO Magazine
Leuret took his Suzuki to fifth overall
The teams will be back out in action at round three on April 13th at Torrington in Devon.
Suzuki images by Ray Chuss
Sword swoops into series lead at Canada Heights
Molson Kawasaki’s Stephen Sword takes over as MX2 British Championship series leader while team mate Tom Church holds down 5th in MX1 after Canada Heights Sword swoops into series lead at Canada Heights.
On a cold wintery day at Canada Heights in the South East of England Stephen Sword gave the Molson team plenty to smile about by taking the MX2 British championship lead with consistent 2-4 finishes on his KX250F-SR. With track conditions quite tricky due to deep ruts and a slippery surface Stephen rode smartly and smoothly to take second overall on the day and take a comfortable 10 point lead in the series.
“Although I didn’t put my fast time in during the right part of timed qualifying – I should have done it at the start but mine was set near the end – I was reasonably happy to get second position,” claimed Stephen later.
“In the first race I got a good start but by the time I got into second Simpson had a sizable lead and he was riding really well so I just concentrated on what I was doing and rode as hard as I could but I stayed in second.
“I was looking forward to the second race because I knew I could still win the overall if I won the race. But I got caught in a first turn accident and although I didn’t go down I lost a lot of time. I had to come through the pack, which was quite difficult because it’s quite tight here but I felt I was riding really well – much better than I did in the first race. My lines were good, I was attacking well and I’m generally just really happy with that race even though I only finished fourth.
“Overall it was a really good day for me. Two good consistent rides again which is what you need during the early part of the season and I also took the lead in the championship by 10 points – a really good day.”
In the MX1 division Tom Church is fast and smooth all day on his KX450F but suffers a little bit of bad luck in the opening moto. Crashing on lap one of the 30-minute plus two lap race Tom’s forced to charge hard all moto long and proves his speed and fitness is good by passing at least one rider a lap and running lap times similar to the race winner’s on his way to an 11th place finish. Moto two is much more positive for Church as he gates in the top five before moving into third place where he battles briefly with Brad Anderson for second place before settling for third after making some small rider errors late in the race.
“The first race I went down on the first lap and it took ages to get going again,” explained Tom. “I just had to put my head down and make the most of a bad race and charge hard until the end which resulted in an 11th place finish. I felt good on the bike and my pace at the end of the race was the same as the leaders’.
Sword now leads the championship in MX2
“In the second race I got a much better start but took a little bit too long to get around Smyth who was running third and by the time I had the first two had gone. I ended up third in the second race after making a couple of mistakes, which was a much better result.
“I learnt a lot today and I now know what I need to work on before the first GP at Valkenswaard in a couple of weeks time.”
Kawasaki images by Ray Chuss
First season podium for ARB Tuning Kawasaki
Snow and freezing conditions couldn't stop ARB Tuning Kawasaki from achieving one of its goals at the second round of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship this past weekend - a podium.
With Easter morning dawning with snow in the air, the team's two riders qualified in the top fifteen; Mark Jones in third and Jamie Lewis in thirteenth. The first race saw Mark remain in second behind Billy MacKenzie throughout while Jamie, riding with a suspected fractured big toe sustained in qualifying, looked to make a good impression in the top fifteen. However, his injury started making shifting difficult and painful on the rutty and tough circuit, and he slipped back to end in twenty-first.
The second race also looked to be a corker for Mark, while Jamie, very much in pain, had to pull out after the sighting lap. Good maneuvering allowed Mark to take his start and turn it into another second place, before jumping a rut and crashing. Restarting in fifth, Mark returned to fourth soon after, keeping the competition at bay for a fourth place and tying in points with Brad Anderson. Race position broke the tie, with Mark in third overall for the day.
This outstanding result means that ARB Tuning Kawasaki again is the highest-scoring Kawasaki team in the MX1 class for the day, and remains the highest-scoring Kawasaki team in the championship for the class.
A smiling Mark Jones - image by Stefan Paetow
Team owner Mark Bishop enthused: "It's been an excellent day today with a third overall. It's a shame about Jamie's injury, but I'm chuffed to bits with Mark's third overall, it's been a long time coming."
The team's next race will be Round 3 of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship at Torrington in Devon on April 13, which will include the second round of the MXY2 class and the return of the third member of the team, Vytautas Bucas.
French Motocross Championship
The Grand Prix Kawasaki Racing team slog on through the deep mud at round two of the French MX1 championship The Easter weekend was cold and wet in France, which made the second round of the MX1 French Championship very difficult as the rain and snow destroyed the layout of Thomer la Sogne, near Evreux. Sébastien Pourcel finished second overall with a heat win in the super final race while Alexandre Rouis took seventh place.
The club had prepared a nice track which included some supercross sections but the rain destroyed everything and it was a tough day for the riders and the mechanics who had no time to rest between the three motos.
The start was even more important than usual with just one good line on the track but neither Seb or Alex were in the leading group at the first corner in any of the MX1 motos. Finishing in second place in the first two races behind Nicolas Aubin, Sébastien made a couple of mistakes and even lost second place for several laps in moto two when he crashed in the fences.
Seb was finally in the top five at the last start of the day and was able to put some pressure on Aubin who crashed in a corner. Seb won the race and finished second overall.
After a big crash in qualification Alexandre Rouis was not at his best on Monday. With a 10-9-12 scorecard Alex finished seventh overall and is now fourth in the standings.
Sébastien Pourcel: “Twice I missed a good start and in the mud that’s always a problem, as you got so much mud from your rivals when you try to pass them. You also need to take other lines than the good one and sometimes you crash as I did several times.
“Finally in the last race I started in the top five and I was able to put some pressure on Nico who made a mistake in a corner. I also crashed when I was leading but the gap was big enough that it didn’t matter - it’s always nice to end the day with a heat win.”
Alexandre Rouis: “It was a tough weekend for me and after my big crash in qualification I was not at my best. I feel tired at the moment, maybe because I never trained so hard in the past and the racing conditions were pretty difficult here. I know that I must continue to work. I just hope that we’ll have at least a sunny day in Pernes les Fontaines next week’
Roger Pourcel: “It was cold and rainy again in Thomer - difficult conditions once more! Seb didn’t start well in the MX1 races, and he raced the first one without any rear brake as he got a stone in the brake pedal. His last heat was pretty good even if it is always difficult to make any jugement in these conditions. But it was a good training for him and Alex who never totally recovered from his big crash in qualification.”
Belgium Championship
Priem's persistence pays off at Wuustwezel
Manuel Priem and the Kawasaki Racing Team keep on making pre-season progress. After spending weeks and weeks testing, fine tuning and setting up the KX450F-SR to suit his smooth style of riding Manuel Priem and the entire Kawasaki Racing Team's persistence pays off with a super strong showing from the 26-year-old at the Wuustwezel international in Belgium.
After setting fastest time during the morning qualifying session in a field full of international competitors that included the reigning MX1 word champion Steve Ramon, Manuel battled for a top three position in moto one with Max Nagl and Ken De Dycker before slipping back to sixth after making some small rider errors late in the race.
Getting a much better start in moto two Manuel was able to push the race leader Marvin Van Daele all race long finally finishing just one second behind the winner after 25 minutes of gruelling race action in the Wuustwezel sand.
Moto three wasn't so good for Manuel as a small crash left him feeling dizzy. Doing the smart thing and deciding to pull out of the race rather than risk injury while riding at less than 100 per cent, Manuel's day ended early but team manager Martin van Genderen still felt very positive about Manuel's performance.
"Manuel gets better on the bike every time he rides and this weekend's race proved that all the hard work he and the entire team have been putting in is really paying off," said Martin.
There's also good news regarding the recovery of Tanel Leok. The young Estonian star is back riding his KX450F-SR again and should be ready for the first GP at Valkenswaard on April 6 if he continues to progress at his current rate.
Red Bull KTM MX1 Factory rider Max Nagl rode to second place overall in Belgium's Wuustwezel on Easter Sunday putting in another confident performance in the pre-season competition.
Nagl rode to second, fourth and second in the three heats for his overall second podium spot after taking the hole shot in all three motos. Although he took the holeshot in the first moto he went wide in the first corner, lost the advantage and had to settle for second place. He got into a tangle with Steve Ramon after Ramon crashed in the second moto and finished fourth while in the third he held his position until he was overtaken by De Dijker in the latter part of the race.
"Max has been training very hard and is improving a lot," said KTM team boss Stefan Everts. "He is putting in faster lap times, He's is going in the right direction and is developing into a good factory rider."
Riders tackled a black sandy track heavy from the previous day's rain. The weather held out with occasion sun on race day.
Jumbo Dutch Open
Dutch Open #2 24th March 2008 Oldebroek
MX1
1st Moto
1 Marvin van Daele B Suzuki
2 Sven Breugelmans B KTM
3 Bas Verhoeven NL Kawasaki
4 Aigar Leok Est Yamaha
5 Lauris Freibergs Let Yamaha
6 William Saris NL Yamaha
7 Danny Theybers B Suzuki
8 Jurgen Vannooten B KTM
9 Dennis Schroter B KTM
10 Anne Advokaat NL Honda
2nd moto:
1 Marvin van Daele B Suzuki
2 Aigar Leok Est Yamaha
3 Lauris Freibergs Let Yamaha
4 Bas Verhoeven NL Kawasaki
5 Patrick Roos NL KTM
6 Jurgen Vannooten B KTM
7 Dennis Schroter B KTM
8 Kasper Jensen DK Honda
9 Antti Pyrhonen SF Suzuki
10 Yentel Martens B KTM
DNF Sven Breugelmans B KTM
MX1 Podium:
1 Marvin van Daele B Suzuki 100
2 Aigar Leok Est Yamaha 83
3 Bas Verhoeven NL Kawasaki 79
Championship JUMBO ONK MX1 after 2 races:
1 Marvin van Daele B Suzuki 172
2 Aigar Leok Est Yamaha 149
3 Bas Verhoeven NL Kawasaki 145
4 Lauris Freibergs Let Yamaha 138
5 Dennis Schroter B KTM 131
MX2:
1st moto
1 Erik Eggens NL Suzuki
2 Jeremy Vanhorebeek B KTM
3 Shaun Simpson GB KTM
4 Rinus van de Ven NL KTM
5 Gert Krestinov Est KTM
6 Herjan Brakke NL Honda
7 Valentin Teillet F KTM
8 Josef Kulhavy SvK Suzuki
9 Shannon Terreblanche Z-A Suzuki
10 Rob van Vijfeijken NL Yamaha
2e manche
1 Erik Eggens NL Suzuki
2 Jeremy Vanhorebeek B KTM
3 Gert Krestinov Est KTM
4 Valentein Teillet F KTM
5 Rinus van de Ven NL KTM
6 Herjan Brakke NL Honda
7 Rob van Vijfeijken NL Yamaha
8 Shaun Simpson GB KTM
9 Evgeny Bobrishev Rus Yamaha
10 Pascal Brons NL KTM
MX2 Podium:
1 Erik Eggens NL Suzuki 100
2 Jeremy Vanhorebeek B KTM 90
3 Gert Krestinov Est KTM 77
Championship JUMBO ONK MX2 after 2 races:
1 Erik Eggens NL Suzuki 179
2 Jeremy Vanhorebeek B KTM 176
3 Shaun Simpson GB KTM 145
4 Rob van Vijfeijken NL Yamaha 133
5 Gert Krestinov Est KTM 131
85cc
1st moto:
1 Jeffrey Herlings NL Suzuki
2 Donny Bastemeijer NL Honda
3 Mike te Beest NL Suzuki
4 Luca Nijenhuis NL Yamaha
5 Lars van Berkel NL Honda
2e manche:
1 Jeffrey Herlings NL Suzuki
2 Robert Justs Let Suzuki
3 Jens Getteman B Yamaha
4 Donny Bastemeijer NL Honda
5 Wietse Brackman B Honda
85cc Podium:
1 Jeffrey Herlings NL Suzuki 100
2 Donny Bastemeijer NL Honda 83
3 Jens Getteman B Yamaha 75
Championship JUMBO ONK 85cc after 2 races:
1 Jeffrey Herlings NL Suzuki 195
2 Donny Bastemeijer NL Honda 169
3 Jens Getteman B Yamaha 152
4 Lars van Berkel NL Honda 137
5 Dave Versluis NL KTM 132
By: Steven van Kempen/KEMCO
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