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KTM’s MX Factory Teams Discover a Place In The Sun

2007-03-14T12:42:00.000Z

KTM MX1 and MX2 factory teams have had a dynamic launch into their 2007 professional activities with a special training session in Spain. There they could enjoy temperatures of 20 degrees and get down to business on one of the best MX training facilities around.

The four factory team riders for 2007 – David Philippaerts and Johathan Barragan for MX1 and Tyla Rattray and Tommy Searle for MX2, along with mechanics and other team members gathered at Stephan Evert’s Motocross School 80 km north of Valencia for three weeks of activities. Everts, MX supremo and 10-times world champion, ended his amazing 18-year active career in 2006 and has now joined KTM as the Motocross Race Director.

Stephan said the pre-season gathering had been a good start to the season and that the team spirit was very positive. "Of course being the race director is still a learning experience for me after ending my active career," the MX maestro said. "I will try to give the team 100% and to help them as much as possible. I have some good expectations but I always take the down-to-earth approach at the beginning of the season. I am quite relaxed about it."

Pit Beirer, KTM Motorsport Director also said it was an excellent pre-season launch and one that KTM will pursue in the future. As well as creating the perfect opportunity for the entire team to get to know and work with each other, Evert’s facility presents everything they need to prepare for the racing season. Team members were not only able to get better acquainted with team boss Stephan; they could revel in the comprehensive facilities that include a training circuit, water systems, full fitness facilities, a pool and excellent accommodation.

"This was a perfect base for the pre-season," Pit Beirer said. "The guys could do their training but also relax, have fun and get to know each other. It was a great opportunity for riders and mechanics to work together and to learn more about each other’s responsibilities." This builds trust and team spirit, according to Beirer, both essential components of any successful KTM factory team.

The training session was also a perfect chill-out time before the season gets underway with the accompanying stress of continual travel and a demanding race program that Pit says is getting tougher and tougher.

"As always we set our sights on a world championship title," Pit commented looking ahead to the motocross season. "But it is a very tough competition. Let’s say we want to be competitive and we want to fight for the title."

HOME GP AWAITS SUZUKI MX1 TEAM

2006-09-25T20:04:00.000+01:00

The daunting and historic setting of the Citadelle, located directly in the centre of the city of Namur in Belgium, awaits Team Suzuki and the RM-Z450 motorcycles this weekend in the squad’s home Grand Prix and the 12th stop of 15 in the 2006 FIM MX1 World Championship.

With Kevin Strijbos and Steve Ramon in second and third positions respectively, the team will now be focussing on securing those places in the ranking. Series leader Stefan Everts, who has won every event this year, needs only one point over Strijbos to confirm a record 10th world title at his favourite circuit.

What more can be said about Namur? The narrow, dark and very ‘enduro-esque’ path through the park, in-and-around the Citadelle fortress, is unique. Parallels can be drawn to the Isle of Man TT course for road racing or the Monaco F1 circuit for car racing. While spectacular, charismatic and steeped in tradition, the course also verges on being dangerous with the tree-lined layout and near vertical drops a formidable test for the modern motocross motorcycle.

Strijbos missed the 2005 edition of the event due to thrombosis but placed fourth in 2004. "I can’t say that I am a big fan of Namur. I don’t like the track," he asserted. "The event itself is a little bit special but the course is thin and dangerous being flanked by all the trees. I just hope that I can get a podium there and stop Everts from winning the title. It is a little bit out of my hands now because even if I win he only has to finish in the top 20. Even as a Belgian, I do not want to see Everts win in Namur!"

Ramon is a fan of the track and finished third in the first moto in 2004 as well as shining in the 125cc class. "It is a unique track and when you race there for the first time it is difficult to get your head around the course; local knowledge can really help," remarked Ramon. "I like it though. It is very technical and I have made some good results in past years so I am looking forward to it. There are a lot of trees and roots as the mud becomes worn and that makes it a little bit dangerous but the fans and atmosphere is unlike any other GP."

Said Team owner and director Sylvain Geboers: "As a team, going to Namur is another Grand Prix for us. We are on home turf and of course we are proud if we do well in front of our supporters but there are so many Belgians going for those podium places.

"It will be something special for Stefan Everts to win his 10th title there," he added. "It is unlikely that anyone will achieve what he has again and it gives us satisfaction to know that Suzuki were a part of his career. He was with us for five years and won his first title on a Suzuki, so to know that we set him on this path is a proud thing for the team and also the company.

"The season has been good so far," he summarised. "We would like to be a little bit more secure in second and third but the results have been positive. We always want to win first but this year it has been difficult. There are a lot of good riders behind Stefan and we understand what we have to do in order to be successful next season. We believe completely that the bikes are ready to win and that can also be seen by the success of Ricky Carmichael."

CARMICHAEL WINS IN COLORADO

2006-09-25T19:54:00.000+01:00

Team Makita Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael claimed his sixth-straight overall win of the year with a double victory at Sunday’s seventh-round AMA Motocross Championship at Thunder Valley Motocross Park in Lakewood, Colorado.
The victory was Carmichael’s 141st in AMA competition and gives him a 69 point lead in the series standings over Team Yamaha’s Chad Reed with five rounds to go. Said Carmichael: "It’s always tough coming here to Thunder Valley. There are a bunch of elements you have to contend with. Number one is the elevation, obviously, and that takes a toll on you and the bike, as far as power goes. And obviously fitness is a factor and I have to give it up to my trainer, Elden Baker. But it’s still fun to come to a new venue and the track is good. There are several different lines and it’s a good race track overall."

In the Motocross Lites class, Team Makita Suzuki Racing’s Broc Hepler improved his performance significantly. The young rider charged hard on his Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 in both 30-minute motos to take second position in Colorado to move from 13th position overall into eighth position in the points chase.

Said Hepler: "I got a poor start in the first moto, but I was catching the guys in front of me at the end. I felt pretty good and the Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 was running good so I started picking up my time and my last lap was my fastest. In the second moto, I got a good start. It was the best start I’ve had all year and then I took the lead. Unfortunately, Ryan Villopoto was faster through some of the rutted sections and he got past me, but I was able to keep second."

De Reuver Notches Second Career Win In Bulgarian Mud Bath

2006-08-30T17:31:00.000+01:00

Marc de Reuver claimed only his second career Grand Prix victory at a wet and muddy Sevlievo circuit in Bulgariathis afternoon. The Red Bull Champ KTM rider went 6-1 in the two motos to tie on points with David Philippaerts and Christophe Pourcel but earn the top step thanks to his better ranking.

After some hot weather during qualification on Saturday, where Philippaerts won the second MX2 heat and Jonathan Barragan registered the second best time in MX1, grey skies greeted the 25,000 spectators (weekend figure) on Sunday. The first motos of each category took place on a dry and quick layout, but over an hour of intense rainfall turned the track into a greasy and difficult prospect. High speed was prevalent in the opening sprints while an element of luck, survival and caution applied to the final sections of the race programme.

The conditions did not suit MX1 representative Barragan who could not convert his second position in the gate into a pair of decent starts. The Spaniard had to chop through the pack and his attacking style carried him to 10th place and past countryman Javier Garcia Vico but he came unstuck on a very late challenge to Tanel Leok for 9th and crashed on the whoops. The spill gave the youngster a sore head and a painful right knee, both of which contributed to his early retirement in the second moto. He is currently 6th in the series and 27 points away from Steve Ramon.

De Reuver crashed in his qualification heat and took the best time in the Last Chance session. It is unlikely that another rider will win a Grand Prix by entering the gate down in 25th position.
Tyla Rattray was 4th overall and pushed De Reuver hard for the win in the closing stages after the pair had overtaken early leader Pourcel.

Carl Nunn finished the Grand Prix with 7th and was a steady performer. KTMs dominated the top ten in MX2 thanks to Manuel Monni and Rui Goncalves helping towards a total of six 250SX-Fs on the leader-board.
De Reuver now stands 2 points away from the top of the series table after an impressive period of consistent results. Rattray trails Pourcel by 17 points.

The Red Bull team will drive down to Italythis week for the seventh stage of the Grand series where the Montevarchi circuit, just south of Florence, will play host to the Italian round.

Tyla Rattray:
"In the first race I was riding a bit too cautious. I was pushing a little bit at the beginning to try and get a rhythm and by the time I got into a comfortable speed I had lost a little bit of ground. Those guys were riding really well and I couldn’t match their speed. I sat down and had a think before the second moto but my tactic went out the window because of the rain and it was a total mud race. I am really looking forward to these next few GPs. It is time that I started putting the hammer down a bit more and taking some wins. I also need to work on my starts and I will be doing that with the team this week so that we can get the best possible bike out of the gate."

Marc de Reuver:
"My start was amazing. I came from far on the outside and had a position inside the top ten. On the first lap I passed a lot of guys. I have the intuitions of riding on a sand track, meaning I take the berms and different lines where the dirt is tacky and has a bit more grip. I had to slow down a little bit halfway through the second race to catch my breath and relax. I attacked Pourcel near the end and passed him. I made a few mistakes when I was in the lead and Rattray came very close but I could keep first place, so that was good."

David Philippaerts
"The bike is now perfect for me. Claudio and Georges have helped with the suspension set-up and some other modifications and I feel good on the KTM. Today the races were really fast and I had two decent starts which helped. I enjoyed the muddier conditions more than the harder track."

Jonathan Barragan:
"I crashed twice in the first moto after a bad start. I saw that Leok was close so I pushed to pass him but it had started to rain hard and I was caught out by the ground and hurt my right knee. I had a bump on the head also and I wasn’t feeling too great for the second race. I made a small mistake because I wasn’t concentrating and stopped."

Double MX1 Podium For RM-Z450

2006-07-18T12:42:00.000+01:00

The potency of the RM-Z450s in contrasting weather conditions was aptly demonstrated when Kevin Strijbos and Steve Ramon both finished on the podium today in front of 25,000 spectators at an overcast and very wet Sevlievo circuit for the sixth round of the 2006 FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship.

The Grand Prix of Bulgaria was a success for the Belgian team and the works RM-Z450s - carrying minor modifications in the wake of the Japanese round a fortnight ago - that had to negotiate dry and fast conditions in the first moto of 35 minutes and two laps race distance before torrential downpours flooded the track and created a slippery messy test for the riders in the second outing.

Kevin Strijbos walked away with his third set of silverware this season by finishing runner-up twice behind double victor and currently untouchable World Champion Stefan Everts. The 20-year-old Belgian was confident on the long hills and steep drops in both sets of track conditions and pulled through from mid-top 10 starts to secure the second step on the podium. Strijbos, now in his fourth season with the team, was particularly impressive in cutting through a four-rider tussle for second spot early in the first moto and was only really threatened in the closing stages of Moto two when Steve Ramon decided to make his presence felt from third place.

Ramon had earlier beaten Tanel Leok and Brian Jorgensen to follow his team-mate to the chequered flag and wanted a closer bite of the cherry in the second race despite having to ditch his mud-splattered goggles and traverse the slime with limited vision. The puddles and gunk meant that the smallest error could prove costly while also pushing the limits of the machines to the maximum.

The Suzuki-dominated podium represents the best overall result of the season for the Belgian crew and now brings the total of top three appearances to six from six Grands Prix. Strijbos is third in the World Championship standings and only two points from a now-familiar second place. Ramon is fifth and just six points from further elevation.

The seventh round of the series now follows hard upon in the most intense period of the campaign. Team Suzuki will head to the Montevarchi circuit near Florence for the Grand Prix of Italy next week before then making their way to Great Britain seven days later.

Kevin Strijbos:"In the first race my start was not so bad; I was around 10th but I could make up some places easily on the first few laps. When I reached second, Stefan had gone. I tried to close the gap but it was not easy and I had to be content with second place. In the second heat I messed up my start and was almost last. I pushed hard and when the rain arrived the track became even more rutted with large puddles everywhere. I was still able to overtake and again arrived to second. On the last few laps, Steve came pretty close and I had to pick my speed up to make sure of the result."

Steve Ramon:"Yesterday I was struggling to get a good lap in Timed Practice but already in the warm-up I felt better and that made me confident for the races. I started well in the first heat and was around fifth or something. I got into second and could follow Stefan but in the middle of the race Kevin passed me; third wasn’t too bad. In the second moto the rain came and I had to ditch my goggles. I almost had to stop a few times and clear my eyes because following people was very difficult. There was so much water but I was able to get into third and challenge Kevin. I almost got him. Kevin took four points on me but overall for the Championship I did a good job today."

Sylvain Geboers - Team Owner:"This is the kind of result we expect from these guys. They have the potential to do this race after race. Finally they are both settled with the bikes and with the dry and wet conditions in both heats those kinds of positions are very difficult. They were getting close to Stefan in both races and that was very encouraging. It seems like the small improvements have helped, especially mentally. We expect to continue this way. The Suzuki worked very well in those wet conditions which can really test the engine as well as the chassis."

Business as usual for Everts in Bulgaria

2006-07-18T12:40:00.000+01:00

Career win number 93, six Grand Prix in succession, the third double on the trot and nine consecutive moto victories fell to Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross team's Stefan Everts at the fast Sevlievo circuit for the Grand Prix of Bulgaria and the sixth round of fifteen in the 2006 FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship. 25,000 spectators (weekend figure) witnessed the 33 year old Belgian and absolute series leader own another two motos in vastly different weather conditions in which the YZ450FM excelled once more.

The wide expanse of the Sevlievo track, situated in the modern and impressive infrastructure of the circuit, was quick and dry for the first moto but then the heavens opened and dropped a plethora of rain onto the venue creating a difficult and technical test, as well as constituting the first wet race of the season.
Despite insisting that a repeat of his Japanese domination would be unlikely Saturday afternoon, Everts faced little opposition in both races after taking the lead within the first two laps of both sprints. He controlled the distance assimilated both times over Kevin Strijbos and his superiority has now translated into an 81 point advantage from Kawasaki's Tanel Leok in the World Championship standings meaning that he can afford not to finish three motos and still be in front.

Cedric Melotte completed only three laps today during the first outing. The Belgian fell heavily on Saturday and hit his head. Feeling dazed and unable to concentrate he elected to retire frustrated instead of risking further mishap. The 27 year old did not take to the line for the second race. Melotte has also been suffering from reduced energy and stamina possibly brought on by over-training. He had several tests after arriving back from Japan and his body was found to be lacking certain minerals. "Cedric had been training quite hard, as normal but has been feeling bad after the races, which is unusual for the condition he should have," said Team Manager Carlo Rinaldi. "The season has been up and down for him. Portugal was bad but then Teutschenthal was better after he had some rest. Japan was again not so good, so we rested him before this GP. The blood tests said he was low on iron and some B12 among other things in line with the symptoms of over-training. Cedric needs to rest and renew his levels and we should see an improvement."
The trip to Bulgaria represented the first of three consecutive meetings. The teams now travel directly to Italy and the Montevarchi circuit before then heading to Matterley Basin and the British Grand Prix.

Stefan Everts, Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team: "Any race is a new race so anything can still happen but I have managed to keep the pace up and not make any mistakes. The second moto was difficult because of the conditions and I had to lose my goggles after a few laps. I had to slow down because of all the mud in my eyes but overall I am happy with the day. Coming here I was unsure because this is not the best track for me to try and win like Japan but I was consistent with my speed. The bike has been great on the starts and being able to push hard in the first ten to fifteen minutes really makes a difference."

Cedric Melotte, Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team: "I had a big crash on Saturday and I found that I could not concentrate on my riding today. I tried to make some fast laps but it was getting dangerous so I decided to stop. I am having very little luck at the moment."

Carlo Rinaldi, Team Manager Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team: "It was two different races today because of the track conditions and Stefan proved that it doesn't matter what weather or demands he faces. He made two very consistent and error-free races. The rhythm was strong at first but he could deal with it. The bike came through very well because there was a lot of water and you can sometimes have a strange problem like with the electrics. We made some changes between the motos to cope with the changing terrain and they worked out fine."

Suzuki MX1 Men Head To Bulgaria

2006-07-18T12:38:00.000+01:00

A trip to Bulgaria and the Sevlievo circuit awaits Team Suzuki and their works RM-Z450s this weekend in what will be the sixth round of the 2006 FIM MX1 World Championship.

The Belgian crew have seen one of their two riders finish on the podium at the last four Grand Prix including a runner-up position for Kevin Strijbos in Germany and then for Steve Ramon two weeks ago in Japan.

Suzuki are the only manufacturer with two riders in the top six of the series standings as Strijbos currently lies fourth and Ramon fifth. The Belgian pair banished the effects of jetlag returning from Sugo 10 days ago by claiming podium results at Kester for the fourth round of the Belgian Championship last weekend behind current World Champion and MX1 standings leader Stefan Everts.

Strijbos was second overall and Ramon was third.The impressive Sevlievo circuit has all the facilities and infrastructure required by a modern motocross venue. The fast and hilly course with 100% views for spectators has apparently been adjusted to comply with FIM rules and to lower the speed ahead of its third World Championship event this weekend.The inaugural Bulgarian Grand Prix took place in 2002 and was run again in 2003 before vanishing off the calendar for more than two years.

Prior to the ’02 edition at the regenerated Sevlievo location, the FIM competition had not visited the country for almost two decades. The course was popular with the riders but perhaps is notoriously remembered for being the track on which the career of 250cc Grand Prix winner Pit Beirer ended 36 months ago.

If the MX1 class can be counted as an evolution of the blue ribbon 250cc category then Suzuki have enjoyed past success in Sevlievo as Mickael Pichon owned proceedings in 2002 upon the potent RM250."The track is fast, maybe a little too fast," said Ramon who last competed at Sevlievo in his 125cc title-winning campaign of 2003 and scored sixth position after a first lap crash had left him down in 26th. "I have had some decent rides there on the 125 in the past and it will be different for sure this time around with the Suzuki. I am looking forward to it though. I enjoyed the track in 2003 although I am sure there will be a few changes for this weekend."I really need to start being consistent and close the gap in the standings.

The podium in Japan was good but I need to be there regularly," he added.Also concerned about the standings is Strijbos. "I don’t know what happened in that first moto in Japan but things were not working right for me," the 20 year old said. "I need to get back on the podium and take third position again in the Championship. I have to start chipping away at second and I can’t afford many more races like Japan."Sevlievo is not a bad track it is just an easy one," Strijbos, who claimed 12th position on the RM 250 in 2003 as a fresh-faced 17 year old, continued. "There are many up and downhill straights and some nice jumps.

It is fast but not that technical. The important thing is that in the past there have been quite a few passing opportunities." Warm but wet and stormy weather is predicted in the region for the weekend.MX1 World Championship Standings (after 5 of 15 rounds): 1 Stefan Everts 242, 2 Tanel Leok 181, 3 Ken De Dycker 168, 4 Kevin Strijbos 165, 5 Steve Ramon 151, 6 Jonathan Barragan 150, 7 Cedric Melotte 105, 8 Sebastien Tortelli 99, 9 Manuel Priem 99, 10 Pascal Leuret 93.

Double Win For De Dyker - Landrake 28th May 06

2006-07-18T12:36:00.000+01:00

CAS Honda’s Ken De Dycker confidently increased his British Championship lead by 33 points at the half way stage of the Championship at Landrake on Sunday. With the unpredictable British weather no-one was sure of track conditions prior to this event however the rain stayed away on race day and the circuit had been well prepared for this event.

Ken took his time in qualification, getting familiar with one of the many British tracks that he has not previously seen. By the end of the session his fastest lap time put him in 4th position.

As the gate dropped for the first race Ken took the holeshot closely followed by Noble, Bill, Jones and Bradshaw. By the 6th lap he had pulled away from the rest of the pack with a comfortable 9.7 second lead which later increased to 10.6 seconds. Ken cruised to the chequered flag under no pressure whatsoever giving the crowd some excitement with a little freestyle over the table top by the finish to end the race.

Race 1 – Results
Ken De Dycker
James Noble
Julian Bill

Race two started out very differently when Ken found himself back in 9th position around the first corner. The CAS Honda rider pushed hard to take 4th place by the second lap, 2nd place by the third lap and into the lead by the 4th lap. Second place Julian Bill tried to keep up with the Belgian but Ken continued to increase his race lead lap by lap and after 22 minutes had a 9 second advantage.

Race 2 – Results
Ken De Dycker
James Noble
Mark Hucklebridge

On the podium at the end of the day Ken said that he had been working very hard every day to help with his speed and stamina and that he would be looking for more podiums both at the British and World Championships. He is also looking forward to team mate Josh Coppins getting back on his bike and going practising together where the Belgian can hopefully learn from the World number 2. The CAS Team are starting the long trip to Bulgaria for this weekends GP.

Overall Results on the day
Ken De Dycker
James Noble
Mark Jones

Championship Standings after 4 Rounds (4 Rounds to go)
1. Ken De Dycker 231 points
2. James Noble 198 points
3. Mark Jones 158 points

AMA National Motocross, Sacramento, CA: Round One: Alessi Flawless

2006-06-16T12:41:00.000+01:00

The first round of the AMA Outdoor National Motocross Championship started out with a bang for Mike Alessi as the young Red Bull KTM rider collected a 1-1 in both motos.

In Sacramento, CA dark skies hovered over the track while the Red Bull KTM team prepared for the MX season opener. 40 riders lined the gates for moto one and as the gate dropped, Alessi grabbed the holeshot and checked out, while Zach Osborne, in his first pro motocross race showed maturity and determination, pushed his way to the front finishing a solid sixth. Nathan Ramsey was shoved to the back at the start but moved his way up to eighteenth where he finished. As the skies opened up and the rain came down, Jay Marmont was battling in the top ten until a rock smashed into his goggles, breaking the lens and giving him a severe black eye. Not one to give up he tried to continue but his eyesight was too poor, forcing him to pull off the track.

Moto two, Alessi was second off the line, closely trailing the leader to capitalize on any mistakes. That time came shortly when leader Josh Grant bobbled and fell at the end of the first lap and Alessi took over the lead, never to look back. On the wet and slippery track, Ramsey moved up to third place while Osborne was ninth and Jay Marmont was in the top twenty. With the rain now pouring down, the track was deeply rutted and treacherous. Ramsey crashed going up an uphill double, but continued on and finished ninth. Osborne ran into some bad luck as his clutch level broke off, forcing him to retire from the race.

"I had a perfect day today and led every lap in moto one," said an ecstatic Mike Alessi. "I’m trying to ride consistent and be patient because I learned last year that I have to be patient. It’s not smart to try to do it all in the first five laps."

RAMON TAKES 2ND PODIUM IN JAPAN

2006-06-16T12:39:00.000+01:00

Team Suzuki rider Steve Ramon claimed runner-up position in the fifth round of the MX1 Motocross World Championship at a hot and sunny Sugo circuit for the Grand Prix of Japan this afternoon.

The Belgian lifted his second set of silverware for the squad after just five events and extends Suzuki’s podium streak to four successive races. He was fourth and second in front of 17, 500 sun-tanned spectators at another impressive Japanese Grand Prix.

23, 600 fans in total travelled to the venue located a few kilometres from the road racing circuit used in the past for World Superbike events and were treated to some riveting action facilitated by the excellent course. The Sugo soil had been meticulously prepared and the soft terrain soon carved into numerous racing lines. Rough and bumpy, the two MX1 motos were a fast but technical test in which speeds were similar and small mistakes ultimately costly.

Ramon was third at the end of the first lap after briefly passing Cedric Melotte for second spot but was reeled in by Ken De Dycker and Tanel Leok. The Belgian eventually managed to obtain fifth from Melotte on the last lap. After qualifying in fifth position, Kevin Strijbos had a nightmare start by getting boxed in around the first bend of the tight initial ‘S’ section. He then struggled to thread his way through the pack of riders ahead of him and finished a frustrated 12th.

Ramon tried to follow the escaping Stefan Everts in race two after having taking second position from KTM’s Jonathan Barragan but the World Champion proved superior in both events today. Ramon completed a fairly lonely ride but his second place represented his highest moto result of the year so far and assisted towards the same standing on the overall classification sheet. Strijbos was unlucky to get tangled with a falling Leok going through the tricky first corners but unveiled a completely contrasting performance to the first race by rising from last to fourth with an impressive rally. He emerged victorious from a spectacular four rider battle at one stage and sealed seventh overall with his efforts.

Strijbos has slipped to fourth in the World Championship standings and is only three points behind his team-mate. Suzuki is currently second in the Manufacturers points table.

Shinichi Kaga was 19th and a decent 11th, for 15th overall on the fuel-injected RM-Z 450.The team will visit the Suzuki factory on Monday before beginning the long trip back to Europe. The sixth round of 15 in the World Championship will take place at the Sevlievo circuit for the Grand Prix of Bulgaria on June 4th.

Steve Ramon:"My start was not so good in the first moto but I made some good positions in the first two corners. My riding was not great after that because I could not get into a rhythm and I saw that Stefan was pushing very hard at the beginning. I lost two places in the middle of the race but towards the end I was improving and could close the gap to Ken and Tanel, although there was no time to attack. Fourth was ok but it could have been better. "In the second moto I was hanging third and the whole race was tough for me; I had to work hard on the bike. To finish second overall is a good result. Stefan was too fast today and we will try in the next GPs to beat him but at this moment it is really difficult. I want to give many thanks to Suzuki and the team because they worked very hard to give me the best bike they can. This runner-up position also feels a little bit special because we are here in Japan. It has been a nice trip."

Kevin Strijbos:"The day was good and bad. I had my worst and my best races of the season. In the first moto I could not find my lines and was too slow and I was not happy at all. My second moto start was pretty bad. Tanel fell in front of me and because I had my rear braking foot off the peg I could not turn the bike and I hit him. It was bad luck because I had a decent race after that and came back from last to fourth. My riding was better and the lines came to me whereas the first heat was just terrible."

Eric Geboers:"It is another podium for us but I am never enthusiastic until we are on the highest step. It is going to be difficult this year to get that win from what we have already seen so far! We had great support from Suzuki this weekend and the atmosphere around the team was much better after the second race compared to the first!"

Battle of the Champions

2006-06-16T12:36:00.000+01:00

It was Polisport supported rider, Martin Barr Bike it / Dixon Yamaha who took the overall win at Round One of the Polisport / MCCNI Supercross series in Ireland on Wednesday evening.

The top rung on the podium was a hotly contested affair, with Wayne Garrett, Moto-One KTM, Gordon Crockard, Wulfsport Honda and Barr taking a win apiece.

The large crowd that was in attendance were treated to an evening of sunshine and handlebar bashing, highflying action, in both adult and youth classes.

The final race of the evening was the Russell’s Motorcycles Dash for Cash.

A La Mans style start saw local ace Phillip McCullough take the lead, the KTM rider held of Crockard and Barr for what equated to £100 per lap prize fund.

Round two of this series will be held at Tandragee Moto Park, on June 21st.

The full results will be posted on UlsterMotocross.com soon, although results alone will never relay the atmosphere, excitement and adrenaline fuelled racing throughout every class. Motocross recruited a large number of new fans on Wednesday evening at Ballymoney - well done each and everyone of you. Roll on Round two.

MX1 : Unstoppable Everts scores GP win 91

2006-06-06T12:44:00.000+01:00

Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross team's Stefan Everts extended his run of victories at a hot and hard day of racing at the Talkessel circuit in Teutschenthal for the Grand Prix of Germany. The reigning number one boasts a perfect record this season and has now accumulated 91 career GP wins.

Everts had qualified in second position, only three tenths of a second away from pole position and used his decent pick in the start gate to make an effective start in moto1 and seized the lead on the opening lap. For the next 37 minutes the Belgian was unflinching and ignored pressure from Kevin Strijbos and his team-mate Cedric Melotte to record his fourth successive moto win. The Talkessel mud was dry and dusty after a long and sunny weekend. Overtaking opportunities were limited away from the main fast line but Everts had little need to worry as he showed his rivals the quickest route in front of 31,000 spectators.

The second moto was a similar affair and this time Tanel Leok was the challenger but Everts proved resolute. The 33 year old has now achieved four heat wins in a row and six Grands Prix. Cedric Melotte was unlucky not to confirm third position in the first race after holding the slot for eighteen of nineteen laps. The Belgian, who is still not 100% fit after a pre-season wrist injury, crumbled under pressure from Jonathan Barrgan and his gesture of frustration over the finish line, after losing his first top three finish five corners from the flag, aptly told the story. In the second moto he crashed on the second turn and another fall signalled the end of his afternoon. Special mention must go to Bike it Yamaha Dixon racing's Julien Bill who scored his best ever MX1 result after only four Grands Prix in the class with seventh position. Everts has extended his lead in the Championship by thirteen points and now heads Leok by forty. Melotte is currently 12th but only ten points away from fifth place.

The Grand Prix also represented the opening round of the FIM Women's World Cup. Yamaha's Livia Lancelot claimed second position overall after winning the first race and then taking the runner-up spot in race two. The French teenager claimed an exciting first moto of 20 minutes and 2 laps duration from main rivals Katherine Prumm and reigning Champion Stephanie Laier. Lancelot led the race from start to finish but endured bouts of sustained pressure from Laier and then Prumm. The 18 year old picked her way through backmarkers more efficiently on the last lap and took the chequered flag. Later in the day she had to follow a more ruthless Prumm but equalled the Kiwi's points total, only losing the top step due to the second race ranking.

The second and final stage of the Women's competition will take place at the Grand Prix of Sweden on July 2nd. The World Championships meanwhile will travel to Japan, Bulgaria, Italy and Great Britain before arriving in Scandinavia. The fifth round of the series will take place in two weeks time at the Sugo circuit in Sendai.

Stefan Everts: "I rode really fast today and I had to because Kevin chased me in the first moto and Tanel was right there in the second. It is better for me when I have some pressure and quick riders around. The young guys are getting better and physically stronger. They want to beat me for sure so I have to keep on working hard during the week. I am doing my best. It is good for the racing that we have these guys at the front and it makes it more interesting. The new Yamaha is so strong, not only for riding but also on the starts; I am making a lot of holeshots and this makes it so much easier to win the race."

Cedric Melotte: "The first moto was pretty good for me in comparison to the second. I took a good start and could keep the rhythm with Strijbos and Stefan. In the next race I crashed on the second corner and I tried to come back but the track was really fast. I fell again and hurt my neck. I stopped because I was not feeling too good. It is a pity because for the second GP I have made one decent moto and one bad. I am disappointed about this but I tried my best. I have to be more focussed for the next GP."

Carlo Rinadli: Team manager: "After the first moto we were optimistic of a good result for Cedric because we saw that he had the speed, even from Saturday's sessions. He was feeling good and proved it in that first moto so we were hoping for a strong result from both riders but unfortunately he crashed twice in the next race and he had to pull out. It is a pity for him because he needs some good results to get back his confidence. On the other hand, Stefan did very well again and established his pace over the other riders. It was difficult for him because the youngsters are pushing hard. He made two good starts and was very consistent with his speed; there is not much more to say! We made hardly any changes to the bike this weekend; just a few tweaks to the suspension and carburetion but nothing major."

MX2 : Mackenzie top finisher with fourth in Germany

The MX2 class of the Karcher Grand Prix of Germany was dominated by Christophe Pourcel who achieved his maiden overall success and Bike it Yamaha Dixon Racing's Billy Mackenzie was the top YZ250F pilot with fourth place after two hot and demanding motos.

The sunken-bowl landscape of the Talkessel circuit just outside of Teutschenthal presented a bumpy, sunshine baked and fast prospect for the Grand Prix stars. The track was typically rough and quick meaning that the starts largely determined the ranking and Pourcel enjoyed two holeshots that carried a significant advantage. 22 year old Mackenzie, from Edinburgh in Scotland, took results of sixth and fifth in the two 35 minute and two lap motos after battling with fellow Yamaha representatives Antonio Cairoli and Davide Guarneri in both heats.

World Champion Antonio Cairoli was fifth overall but his finishes of fifth and seventh hid a strong vein of courage. The Sicilian crashed in the warm-up and needed treatment for a sore back and neck. He could not maintain his usual pace and was effective only in fits and spurts. A poor start in the second moto prevented a better classification.

The Ricci Racing team were left lamenting their poor luck. Alessio Chiodi had taken his best finish of the year so far with a solid third in the first moto (after Tyla Rattray had crashed) and used all of his experience to make life hard for the works KTMs, who would eventually scale the podium. However a mechanical problem ten minutes from the chequered flag later in the afternoon meant a second DNF from eight motos run so far this season. His team-mate Kenneth Gundersen was seventh in race one. The Norwegian had recovered from the virus that affected him in Portugal but, like Cairoli, was restricted by bad starts. In the second race he was manfully diverting the attentions of Mackenzie from fifth position before a crash near the end of the moto, followed by another tangle one lap later, relegated him to 15th. The third member of the team, Guarneri - competing at the venue where he scored his first ever moto victory last year - was sixth in the same race where his compatriots foundered after an earlier DNF.

Mackenzie has finished in the top eight for the last six motos and this consistency has seen him rise to fifth in the World Championship standings just 14 points behind Cairoli.

The fifth round of fifteen in the 2006 FIM World Championship will take place at the Sugo circuit in two weeks time for the Yamaha-backed Grand Prix of Japan.

Billy Mackenzie, Bike it Yamaha Dixon Racing: "This is such a big improvement over Portugal and I am pleased to be the first Yamaha rider home. We have been testing a lot over the last few months and now we are at a place with the suspension whereby the bike is working really well. I have steadily moved up in the Championship and I really want to win a couple of races now; some of my favourite tracks are coming up."

Antonio Cairoli, De Carli Yamaha: "I had a lot of pain out there, especially in the second heat. My vision was also affected so I was taking a lot of risks. My neck and arms really hurt after a big crash this morning. Luckily for me nothing is broken and to take some points today was good."

Alessio Chiodi, Ricci Racing: "The bike started to make a funny noise with ten minutes to go and I suspected something was wrong. Three laps before the end it lost power and stopped. It is very disappointing to lose the podium because I was having a good race in that second moto. I also threw away some good points."

Kenneth Gundersen, Ricci Racing: "Today was crap. I was fifth in the second moto and made a stupid crash two laps before the end; it was bad luck again. In the first race I had a bad start and came back from 20th to seventh. At least my body feels better and I can only improve from here."

SUZUKI MX1 DUO ON FORM FOR GERMANY

2006-06-06T12:42:00.000+01:00

Team Suzuki MX1 riders Kevin Strijbos and Steve Ramon head to Germany this weekend for round four of the FIM MX1 World Championships at Teutschenthal, both on form and set to improve on their top-seven positions.

A Suzuki rider has been present on the podium at the last two Grands Prix and both Kevin Strijbos and Steve Ramon have both collected silverware. Strijbos is currently fourth in the series, one point from third and 16 from second spot. With Sebastien Tortelli out injured for two months, there is a real possibility that the team could leave eastern Germany with a top-three berth prior to the trip to Japan in three weeks.

Strijbos is enjoying some good form at present after his runner-up position in Portugal and victory last weekend at a Belgian International in his home town of Wuustwezel with 1-3-1 scores in the three motos. "It was a good race. I had some arm-pump in the first moto and although I won, it was not easy," the 20 year old said. "We changed the suspension for the rest of the day and we did not have any more problems. I crashed at the start in the second race and came from last to third and then in the last moto I holeshotted and was gone. I was happy to win because I had a lot of fans there.

"After the podium in Portugal and the race in Belgium, I am feeling confident for this weekend," he continued. "Teutschenthal is a fast track and it is not that complicated. We should see quite a few riders grouped together and I don’t think it will be that easy for Everts this time. Again it will be important to take a good start to be with the front guys."Steve Ramon is back to full fitness after his high-speed crash in Portugal that caused him to DNF the second moto and leave the circuit with a damaged shoulder and bashed head.

"I had to rest for a week after hitting my head but I went practicing last Sunday and everything is fine now, " he commented. "I was disappointed about the GP in Portugal mainly because I lost a lot of points and dropped to seventh in the Championship. With Tortelli crashing out, I could easily have been third now."I want to be ready for Teutschenthal and take a good result to be right back up there. The track is nice to ride and there is more grip when it is a little wet. Everybody is fast around that circuit so the start is crucial again; we’ll see how it goes," he added.

The Talkessel circuit in the small town of Teutschenthal houses a grippy and fast course that features many undulations and inclines within its ‘bowl’ setting. The German circuit holds the rather unusual honour of hosting two Grands Prix for different countries; specifically the East German GP in 1971 (250) and West German 500cc race in 1993.The team gained a podium result at the venue 12 months ago thanks to Joel Smets but Strijbos missed the event due to injury. Steve Ramon was 10th overall but came third in the second moto.

The weather forecast for the weekend predicts sunny and warm conditions although there is a chance of showers on Friday.

MX1 World Championship standings (after 3 rounds of 15): 1. Stefan Everts, BEL 142, 2. Tanel Leok, EST 115, 3. Sebastien Tortelli, FRA 99, 4. Kevin Strijbos, BEL 98, 5. Jonathan Barragan, SPA 97, 6. Ken de Dycker, BEL 97, 7. Steve Ramon, BEL 83, 8. Cedric Melotte, BEL 66, 9. Pascal Leuret, FRA 65, 10. Manuel Priem, BEL 53.

DE DYCKER STRENGTHENS HIS GRIP ON MAXXIS BRITISH MOTO X CHAMPIONSHIP

2006-06-06T12:39:00.000+01:00

CAS Honda rider Ken De Dycker scored a resounding double win this afternoon (30 April) at round three of the Maxxis British Moto X Championship at Matchams Park, Hampshire.

De Dycker, who now has a resounding 13 point lead over his nearest rival Stephen Sword, demonstrated his superior riding skills at the 1.4km track. In both races the Belgian rider got away with the top six and smoothly made his way through the pack to win both races.

Wulfsport Honda’s Gordon Crockard was unfortunate in the first moto of the day when he got tangled up with the pack on the opening lap, however Crockard rejoined the field and finished in sixth place. In the second moto Crockard got a clean start and finished on the podium in third.

James Noble finished on the podium in the first race with a third place finish, but was unable to duplicate the result in the second. He was knocked off his bike and landed the other side of the bales, however, undeterred the RWJ Honda rider fought back and finished in fifth place.

PAR Honda rider Mark Jones just missed out on a podium when he finished in fourth place in the first moto.

In the MX2 class Wayne Smith scored a well-earned fifth and sixth place finish at the demanding track and now lies in fifth in the Championship standings.

Honda Off-Road Manager – Roger Harvey: "We have had a good day today and we are delighted that Ken won both races. Hopefully we can now keep the results rolling and see another Championship come our way."

KTM Factory Rider Sebastien Tortelli confident despite serious injury!

2006-05-24T13:06:00.000+01:00

Sebastien Tortelli faces a two month pause after his serious fall during the MX1-Grand Prix in Portugal. But despite his injury, the factory rider has still expressed confidence after the first world championship race and is looking forward to his comeback.

Sebastien Tortelli is currently being treated in the surgical department of the Lyon hospital. The Frenchman suffered a nasty fall and dislocated his hip while fighting for victory in the second run of the Portuguese Grand Prix. Despite receiving quick medical attention, the Motocross professional is out of competition for two months to allow the overstrained ligaments in the hip area to recover. A scan has indicated that there are no other ligament or bone injuries.

"Of course on the one hand I am bitterly disappointed — especially for the team. They’ve always give me their full support. They’ve protected me from negative situations and thanks to the unbelievable dedication of the technical staff, they’ve always supplied me with the best possible bike," said the 28-year-old Frenchman. "We were totally on track in Portugal and right up to my fall we were absolutely competitive. Fortunately I don’t have any pain and I want to get back to my team and racing as soon as I can," he added. Tortelli is scheduled to leave the hospital today.

Despite the setback, Georges Jobe, team boss for the KTM MX1 Factory Team also takes a positive view concerning the quest for victory in the world championships.

"Even though we were shocked about Sebastien’s accident and injury, working constantly to be up front and achieving a top result in Portugal means that we were right there where we wanted to be. Sebastien’s injury is a setback but the current situation will bond the team and make us stronger," Jobe explained. "Even after Sebastien’s accident, which can happen to any rider in any race, the whole KTM team still totally dedicated to the coming races. Jonathan Barragan made a huge improvement in Portugal on his new bike and celebrated his first podium place. In particular, the development of the new 450 SX-F delivered excellent results and this was a big success for the whole team.

Mickael Pichon, who unfortunately is out at the moment with some health problems is receiving full support from all the KTM team. Meanwhile the MX2 and MX3 Teams have more than demonstrated that we are on the right track and have been setting one record after another in their classes. And of course we are already looking forward to Sebastien’s quick return to the team and racing," the experienced team boss and five-times world champion reported.

The KTM MX1 team will hit the racing circuit next at the German Grand Prix in Teutschenthal on May 6-7

GP of Portugal, Agueda

2006-05-24T13:02:00.000+01:00

Red Bull KTM rider Jonathan Barragan celebrated his first ever podium with an excellent second position taken in front of 15,500 fans (weekend figure) at Agueda for the Grand Prix of Portugal today and the third round of the FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship.

The Spaniard also gave a further excellent demonstration of the 2007 450 SX-F with 2nd position in the second moto, that complimented his 5th place from race one and afforded his first spray of champagne.
While one corner of the MX1 team had reason to rejoice the other half were shocked after Sebastien Tortelli’s second race crash resulted in a dislocated right hip.

The Frenchman had confirmed his first pole position since 1998 on Saturday and was looking strong in a reduced practice programme due to persistent rainfall Friday evening had threatened to flood the track. The weather conditions could not have been better for Sunday as hot sunshine and clear skies helped transform the dark orange Portuguese dirt into a fast and bumpy prospect.

Tortelli took part in one of the best Grand Prix motos in recent years after a fantastic duel with Everts in race1. The pair were never more than a second apart for virtually the whole 35 minutes and 2 laps. Tortelli was frustrated by Everts’ defensive strategy and made a mistake and fell on the last lap while all over the back of the Belgian. He slightly injured his left foot in the spill but was able to start brightly in the second moto until Everts attacked midway around the opening lap. Before another scrap could begin the former World Champion crashed and needed medical attention by the side of the track.

His hip was reset under general anaesthetic within an hour at the medical centre but he travelled to the local hospital soon afterwards. He will fly back to France tomorrow and further news of his condition and expected recovery will be announced soon.

Tortelli’s misfortune means that the gap to World Championship leader Stefan Everts lies at 43 points. Barragan is currently 5th and 2 points away from his team-mate in 3rd.

The Champ KTM team had a decent day within the MX2 class as Tyla Rattray scored his third consecutive Grand Prix win with 3rd and 1st positions. The South African has won two from six motos and has not finished outside of the top five.

Marc De Reuver was 4th and 5th and just missed out on a third podium of the season. The Dutchman maintains his 100% top five result record nonetheless after a determined fightback in moto 2 from a dodgy start.

David Phillpaerts suffered some mechanical trouble in each moto while Carl Nunn produced an excellent performance in race one to grab 5th spot despite a poor qualification position of 23rd.

Rattray, riding at the venue where he dislocated his shoulder twelve months ago, toasted win number three but also a 20 point lead over Christophe Pourcel and team-mate De Reuver in the series standings. Nunn is 6th (his highest World Championship standing since joining KTM) and Philippaerts is 7th.

The Karcher Grand Prix of Germany represents the next stop for the World Championship team and riders. The fourth round of fifteen will take place on May 7th at the Teutschenthal circuit.

Jonathan Barragan:
"I was close to the top three at Bellpuig but I am so happy to finally take my first podium. My start was not very good in the first moto but my speed and riding was strong and 5th position was a positive result. In the second race I was quickly into second behind Stefan and I was watching his lines. Behind me Strijbos was pushing hard but I was also going for it because I could see that podium. We are working hard with the new bike and it is going very well at the moment."

Tyla Rattray:
"Winning three in a row has given me a lot of confidence and I feel good at the moment. It is still a long season and with a lot of races to run but I am looking forward to racing the whole series. Last season I was injured and only did a few rounds so hopefully I can stay injury free and keep on winning some races."

Marc de Reuver:
"Yesterday I was 14th and I thought I was riding really well! I was only 1.3 seconds off the pace so it was very close. In the first heat I got a really good start but struggled a little bit in the first three laps. I was in eighth position and slowly came up to fourth behind Rattray. I was doing the same times as Tyla and I could not narrow the gap between us.
In the second moto I got out of the gate well but Guarneri came across a group of us and almost caused a big pile-up. Cairoli went down so I had to avoid him. It has been a while since I’ve had to come through the pack and I got unlucky because Goncalves’ bike stopped and so did Pourcel’s. I lost points to Tyla but there is still 12 GPs to go."

Kurt Nicoll, KTM Motorsport director:
"Sebastien’s right hip is dislocated and they put it back in here at the track. He will have a scan made at the local hospital and tomorrow he will fly to France. We can’t say anymore yet. A dislocated hip can mean anything from three weeks to three months. They did not give an indication at the track but the fact that it went back in quickly is very good. We came into this season with high hopes but we have lost Pichon to an illness and Sebastien to injury so it has been a bit of a disaster. The only good news is that Jonathan, with the 2007 bike, is riding well above expectations."

Open Letter from Philip McCullough:

2006-05-24T13:00:00.000+01:00

Hopefully by now you have all made it home from Ballykelly after a very enjoyable 2 days of racing. As you will all have seen or heard the racing on Easter Monday and Tuesday was once again very aggressive in grade A between myself and Robert Hamilton. Unfortunately though there have been a lot of rumours floating around the paddock of a fight between myself and the Hamilton crew after the 1st race on Easter Monday whereby there was physical action taken. It’s for this reason I feel it necessary to put the record straight and to inform you ALL that this is totally untrue. Yes there where words said but that is where it ended. In Touch / Moto One Racing Ireland are a professional outfit and do not under any circumstance tolerate this kind of action.

Anyway guys I hope you all enjoyed the racing and I hope to see you all this weekend at Desertmartin for the 1st round of this years Irish Championship.

Pichon Withdraws From MX1 Title Chase

2006-05-24T12:54:00.000+01:00

Red Bull KTM representative Mickael Pichon has pulled out of contention for the 2006 FIM MX1 World Championship after a virus has necessitated an indefinite break from the Grand Prix series.

The former double 250cc number one was unable to complete either moto at Zolder for the season-opener two weeks ago after a course of antibiotics failed to rectify his weakened condition. Demoralised by the news the 29 year old is taking his time to recover and regain his strength.

"Everything was great until a few weeks before the 2006 season started and then I fell ill with a virus that would not respond to antibiotics," he said. "I am really disappointed as this was my big chance being back in a factory team and for the MX1 crown. My health is the most important thing however and I have to be fit before starting to think about riding again. I will still do whatever I can to help KTM to win the MX1 title and also to develop the 2007 race bike," he added.

KTM will continue with Sebastien Tortelli, who won the first race and claimed second overall in Belgium, and young Spaniard Jonathan Barragan as their main spearhead for MX1 success.

"This is a big disappointment for Mickael and all the team," said Head of Motorsport Kurt Nicoll. "It has been a tough time for him because the medical advice to rest after Zolder would have meant missing another two Grand Prix and effectively losing any chance of the title he had worked hard for over the winter. It is obviously a blow for us to lose someone with Mickael’s calibre but we want to stress that he is very much still a KTM rider and will help with further development on our race bikes once he is ready to ride again."

CARMICHAEL WINS AT DAYTONA

2006-04-10T12:55:00.000+01:00

Team Makita Suzuki Racing’s Ricky Carmichael won his third consecutive AMA Supercross of the season and regained the Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross points lead at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida on Friday night.

This victory is Carmichael’s sixth win of the season and his fifth Daytona win, making him the only rider to have won five races here. It also marks Suzuki’s first Daytona victory since 1981.

“When I was at the gate I heard the announcer say that the last time Suzuki won here was in 1981 and I was two years old,” said the defending AMA and World Supercross Champion. “I’ve got to thank Makita Suzuki - it’s great to win a race here on a Suzuki. I’m happy to get the win, but I’m really, really happy for my Makita Suzuki team.”

The Supercross class heat races saw Carmichael come in second in his eight-lap qualifier and team mate Ivan Tedesco take the win in his qualifier. “I’ve been working really hard, training on my Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 and I’m just happy to get the win and I hope to get on the podium tonight. This is my first time racing Daytona and I feel good. I’m still learning and trying to run with the big boys. Hopefully I’ll get up there tonight and we’ll see what I’ve got,” said Tedesco.

In the 20-lap Daytona main event, Carmichael got a good jump off the gate and was running in second place. He was battling for the lead when the competition went down. Carmichael began to create a gap and then quickly pulled away from the field, eventually winning by more than 30 seconds over second place.

“My goal was to come here and do better than I did last year,” said Carmichael, who finished second at Daytona in 2005. “In the Main, I felt super-comfortable on the Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 and I just rode my own race. I’m glad to get out of here with the points lead.”

Tedesco didn’t quite get the start that Carmichael did, going down in the first turn. But the aggressive Supercross rookie put his head down, charged hard and moved quickly and consistently through the field. By the end of the race, Tedesco had moved up to seventh place.

“I got a bad start and then I tried to make something happen in the first corner but obviously that didn’t work out for me,” Tedesco said. “But I felt really good and that I rode a really good race. You can’t really start 20 seconds back and expect to get on the podium.”In the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP, Carmichael still leads the points chase and Tedesco remains in fourth position overall.

Supercross Main: 1 Ricky Carmichael (Suzuki), 2 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 3 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 4 Travis Preston (Honda), 5 Nick Wey (Honda), 6 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 7 Ivan Tedesco (Suzuki), 8 Tim Ferry (Honda), 9 Billy Laninovich (Honda), 10 Heath Voss (Yamaha).

Supercross Points (after 10 rounds): 1 Carmichael 215, 2 Reed 213, 3 Stewart 189, 4 Tedesco 158, 5 Byrne 152, 6 Wey 149, 7 Fonseca 125, 8 Preston 121, 9 LaRocco 108, 10 Clark 76.

Another Victory for Everts at Hawkstone Park

2006-04-10T12:47:00.000+01:00

Yamaha News 6th March 06'
Rinaldi Yamaha rider Stefan Everts claimed his third victory in four weeks after winning both MX1 heats of the Hawkstone Park International in Shropshire, England.

The nine times World Champion dominated the first of two heats in bright and sunny but cold conditions. A packed crowd attended one of the more prestigious pre-season events of the winter calendar and the dark Hawkstone sand was in its usual rough and demanding state. The circuit is dwarfed by the large hill section that sees the riders climb a near-vertical 100m slope and the gradient caught out a number of top riders as the International once again boasted an array of Grand Prix stars.

For the third time since the motocross schedule began to crank into life during February, Everts beat the likes of the factory backed Honda team and the works Suzuki and KTM efforts, all housing his main rivals for the 2006 MX1 World Championship.

Everts escaped the clutches of fellow Belgian Kevin Strijbos in the opening sprint and was just as masterful in the second heat as he glided past Strijbos and his team-mate Steve Ramon. A mistake on the last lap gave Strijbos more impetus to close the gap but the race was already won.

A 'hatrick' could not be taken later in the afternoon as a rare fall in the 'Grand Final' (mixing the best finishers from the MX1 and MX2 classes) allowed Yamaha MX2 representative Billy Mackenzie to streak head on the YZ250F. Although he fronted the pack for the majority of the distance Mackenzie was slowed by backmarkers with just two laps to go and was caught by Strijbos and a charging Everts who plagued the Suzuki rider to the flag and was only a second behind over the finish line.

Contrary to reports stating that he would miss the pre-season race programme Cédric Melotte
from an injured wrist, but was able to wrestle the YZ450FM over the sandy terrain for eigth and fifth positions. He picked up a DNF in the Final after a collision with another rider robbed him of his rear brake.

Bike it Dixon Yamaha's Billy Mackenzie produced a good performance in his first race meeting of the season. The 21 year old slipped from second place to third in the first heat after suffering some arm-pump but confidently claimed the next heat by over twelve seconds from main British Championship rival Carl Nunn. Only a hold-up with backmarkers prevented the Scot from marking a historic triumph over the 450s in the 'Grand Final'.

Stefan Everts:
"I will miss this place. It is the sixth year in a row I have come to Hawkstone. I've had some great moments here and unfortunately I never got the chance to ride in the Grand Prix. I think it is a great track with a lot of potential. I enjoyed the races today and it was difficult to make the lap of honour for the last time."

Cédric Melotte:
"The result is not so bad because I wasn't expecting to finish all three races. In the last heat I hit someone else's wheel and the brake pedal bent under the footpeg so I could not continue. I am quite satisfied. I could not push too hard because my wrist was giving me trouble but I am confident and now need to go step by step to reach my best level. We are still working on the bike because I missed a lot of testing time."

Billy Mackenzie:
"I feel like I have an overall win because I managed to produce that good last race. That heat was awesome; it was such a buzz to be leading those guys. With two laps to go I was thinking about what celebration I could do over the finish line, but it never comes that easy when you are racing against the best! Just to be in front of them for that length of time felt good. I also set the fastest lap. This meeting will keep me going for a few weeks. The first race was pretty muddy and I got some arm-pump, but it was the first one of the year so that was expected. I got a top three though and I know I need to work on my consistency so I am pleased. We tweaked the bike and got rid of some of the niggly problems we would have had at Lyng for the British Championship next week."

Nunn pumped after Hawkstone Park victory

2006-04-10T12:44:00.000+01:00

Red Bull KTM rider Carl Nunn owned the MX2 class of the Hawkstone Park International event in England yesterday.

The reigning British Champion looked fit, fast and assured over the rough English sand, under some winter sunshine in low temperatures. A large crowd travelled to the renowned pre-season meeting in Shropshire, just west of the city of Birmingham.

Nunn blasted away from main rival Billy Mackenzieand young Kawasakirider Tommy Searle to win the first moto of 25 minutes and 2 laps and then took a steady 2nd position later in the day to confirm the overall victory. In the last race of the meeting, the ‘Grand Final’ between the best classified riders of MX1 and MX2, Nunn was holding a top six position before he crashed on the long, steep hill section and struggled to restart his machine. He did however manage to complete the race and was ranked 6th from the MX2 group.

Champ KTM team-mate Marc de Reuver was making his first tentative competitive outing of the year but was unable to place within the top ten.

The MX1 team of Mickael Pichon and Sebastien Tortelli were also in attendance. Pichon, who was ill during the week, was easing his way into competition and continuing to work on the set-up of the SX450F. The Frenchman scored a brace of 4th positions for 3rd place overall and was also 4th in the ‘Grand Final’. Tortelli had a crash-filled introduction to the Hawkstone sand with three falls in the first moto. The former World Champion’s best ranking was a 7th in the ‘Grand Final’.

Carl Nunn: "This was good because I felt that my pace was there last week in Francebut my results did not really show it. I think a lot of people looked at that as if I hadn’t been working this winter when the complete opposite is the real truth. I am way ahead of my condition and readiness of last year; all I can do is build on this. My training is going great. I have lost a bit of weight to be lighter for the starts and it is working well. We are working on the starts as a team and it has been really effective, like we saw today. KTM have worked hard on the 250 and I feel really comfortable on the bike."

Mickael Pichon: "Today was not so bad because I had been sick after Pernes for three days. I am in fact quite happy with the result because the track was not that easy! My motos were consistent, no DNFs or big mistakes. I don’t feel that I am at 100% yet physically when it comes to my riding; so I am satisfied. The bike was running well. I want to keep on working because we only have another three weeks before Zolder."

Sebastien Tortelli: "There was some good and some bad today. We finished the three motos which was a positive thing but I was not that used to the nasty conditions and had a bad first race with a lot of crashes. I had been training in sand but this was much deeper! I was very happy with the bike and we have made a big step forward compared to the two last races. Now we just need to train and focus on the Championship."

DE DYCKER LEADS THE WAY AT HAWKSTONE INTERNATIONAL

2006-03-28T20:57:00.000+01:00

Ken De Dycker and Josh Coppins headed up a strong showing of Honda riders at the Hawkstone International motocross meeting this weekend (5 March).

CAS Honda rider De Dycker was placed the highest in the MX1 class with a third place finish in the first outing of the day. In the second, the Dutchman experienced a poor start and finished the twenty-five minute and two-lap race in ninth place.

Team mate Coppins had a steady start to his season and scored a fifth and a sixth place at a track where, last year, the New Zealander dislocated his shoulder.

RWJ Honda’s James Noble, who was making his 2006 UK debut, finished ninth in the first race and went one better in the second with an eighth place finish.

Gordon Crockard showed good early season form at the demanding venue. The Wulfsport Honda rider scored a 14th and then a solid tenth place finish ahead of his first British Championship round next weekend.

Multitek Honda’s Pascal Lauret put in an impressive performance. It was Lauret’s first visit to the respected British track and the Frenchman, a good hard track rider, adapted well to the sandy venue and finished 15th and 13th.

In the MX2 class, 15-year-old Steve Clarke scored a memorable fifth place finish in his first-ever International appearance. The talented teenager looked on course for another solid finish in the second race but for an unlucky off when running in the top ten. His team mate Wayne Smith showed good early season form with eighth and fourth place finishes.

Elliot Banks Browne felt the full might of the infamous Hawkstone Hill, spectacularly crashing when running in a strong third place. This sidelined the RWJ Honda rider for the remainder of the day, while team mate Jason Dougan finished the first race in seventh but was caught out in the second and failed to finish.

Wulfsport Honda Shaun Simpson scored a disappointing 29th place in the first race but turned his fortunes around in the second, finishing in a well-deserved sixth place. His team mate Scot Probert’s day drew to an early close when he came off in the first race; he injured his knee and was forced to retire from the meeting.

Honda’s Off-Road Manager Roger Harvey commented: “Hawkstone is a notoriously soft track which always catches a fair few riders out so, it was good to see the Honda lads out there having a positive meeting before the first round of the British Championship next week.”

The opening round of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship takes place at Cadders Hill, Lyng Norfolk Sunday 12th March.

CARMICHAEL WINS AT INDIANAPOLIS

2006-03-28T20:54:00.000+01:00

Team Makita Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael raced to his fifth win of the season at Saturday night’s Indianapolis Supercross to close within one point of the Amp’d AMA Supercross series lead.

The reigning World and AMA Supercross Champion took the lead on lap two of the Supercross Main event from Ernesto Fonseca (Honda) to win by three seconds.

Said Carmichael: “To be honest, it was pretty uneventful for me. I got a really good start on my Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 and then I got up front and I just tried to keep an eye on Chad Reed and James Stewart and mark them on the track. Then I just tried to do the best that I could and put in some good laps.”

This Indianapolis victory follows the announcement that Carmichael regained the 25 points that he’d lost when the AMA penalised him for use of illegal fuel at the recent San Diego round. The AMA rescinded the points penalty earlier in the week.

“I’m happy to get the points back,” said Carmichael. “Now I have a chance at the Championship. I think that this experience will help everyone in the long run and as the defending champion, I want to help the sport.”

Carmichael started the night by taking the holeshot in his eight-lap heat race and then finishing second. In the 20-lap main event, he again got a great start and was in the lead before the end of the second lap and rode flawlessly. Although he lost some time among the lapped riders, he charged hard to the chequered flag.

“I don’t go out and try to be aggressive. That kind of riding only gets you so far. Tonight with the state of mind I had, I just wanted to get a decent start and let it come to me.”

Makita Suzuki team mate Ivan Tedesco, meanwhile, got a mid-pack start in his qualifying race and eventually finished fourth to advance to the main event. Like Carmichael, he got a pretty good start in the Main Event and had worked his way up to third place before settling into fourth.

“I struggled with the track all weekend,” he said afterwards. “It seems like for the past two weeks I’ve had a rough time in practice and the heat races and then I’m able to pull it together in the main - not where I’d like to be, but all right. Tonight the track was really hard to pass on, but I managed to get into fourth.”

This week, the Makita Suzuki crew travels to Florida to prepare for next weekend’s race at Daytona International Speedway. For Carmichael, this is a hometown race and for Tedesco, a brand-new venue.

“I’ll definitely put more time into training for Daytona this year,” said Carmichael, who finished second there in 2005. “I don’t want to go out there and get my ass kicked. I’m looking for a little revenge.”

Added Tedesco, “It’s supposed to be the toughest race but I’m feeling really fit right now and I’ve never raced there, so I don’t have any real expectations. But I’m looking forward to the race.”

In the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP, Carmichael still leads the points chase and Tedesco remains in fourth position overall.

Supercross Main: 1 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 2 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 3 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 4 Ivan Tedesco (Makita Suzuki), 5 Nick Wey (Honda), 6 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 7 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 8 Travis Preston (Honda), 9 Tim Ferry (Honda), 10 Jeff Gibson (Honda).

AMA Supercross Points (after 9 rounds): 1 Reed 191, 2 Carmichael 190, 3 Stewart 174, 4 Tedesco 144, 5 Wey 133, 6 Byrne 132, 7 Fonseca 125, 8 LaRocco 108, 9 Preston 103, 10 Gibson 70.

World Supercross Points (after 11 rounds): 1 Carmichael 242, 2 Stewart 233, 3 Reed 231, 4 Tedesco 191, 5 Wey 179, 6 Byrne 179, 7 Gibson 127, 8 Thomas 123, 9 Clark 122, 10 Evans 105.

HONDA RIDERS OUT IN FORCE AT HAWKSTONE INTERNATIONAL

2006-03-28T20:52:00.000+01:00

This weekend (5th March) Honda riders will be out in force as the gates drop on the International motocross meeting at Hawkstone Park, the biggest pre-season meeting held in the UK.

Leading the way will be CAS Honda pairing Josh Coppins and Ken De Dycker. Coppins will be looking for a solid result while his team mate hopes to make a strong impression at the sandy venue, which is ideally suited to his riding style.

Joining them will be Yoshi Atsuta. The official Japanese HRC rider will be rejoining his old team at selected events throughout the year starting at Hawkstone this Sunday.

Irishman Gordon Crockard makes a welcome return to Honda. It is the first time in two years that the Wulfsport Honda rider has been free from injury and he will be looking forward to a positive outing on his Honda CRF450R machine.

Multitek Honda’s Pascal Leuret also enters the fray while PAR Honda’s Mark Jones, who showed good form but encountered some bad luck at the recent British Masters meeting, joins the action on his Honda CRF450R. While RWJ Honda’s James Noble makes his 2006 UK debut.

In the MX1, class the competition is certain to be fierce; the International has attracted some of the best riders in the world. Nine-times World Champion Stefan Everts will be waving goodbye to Hawkstone Park this weekend, as part of his farewell tour, as will his fellow countryman Joel Smets, with fourteen World Championship titles between them they are certain to attract the crowds. Also making the trip over to this demanding and respected track will be former World Champions Seb Tortelli and Mikael Pichon from France.

Honda also welcomes a host of riders in the MX2 class. Making their first outing of the year are Wulfsport Honda’s Shaun Simpson and Scott Probert, while RWJ Honda field Jason Dougan and Elliot Banks Browne. Lining up alongside them is PAR Honda’s Wayne Smith and a warm welcome is extended to his team mate, 15-year-old Steve Clarke. The 85cc World Champion makes his International debut at Hawkstone.

BACK STRAIN HINDERS RAMON IN FRANCE

2006-03-28T20:50:00.000+01:00

Team Suzuki completed their second pre-season event at the weekend at the Pernes Les Fontaines International meeting in France, but Steve Ramon was unable to post decent results due to a back strain.

The former 125cc World Champion had pulled a muscle in his back while training several days before the race and although he elected to take to the start line in sunny and good conditions, he was far from fully fit.

Ramon, who was eighth and 12th in the two MX1 motos - won by current World Champion Stefan Everts - has been undergoing physiotherapy this week and will only ride once, this Thursday, in the sand in preparation for Suzuki’s next trip to Hawkstone Park in England on Sunday.

Kevin Strijbos scored 10th and ninth positions. The 20 year old started badly in the first heat and although he gated better for the second moto, he was unable to establish a good rhythm.

"Steve was unable to ride at his normal speed in France but we have told him to rest and he should be fine for Hawkstone," said Team Co-ordinator Eric Geboers. "Kevin had a poor start but made some good moves in the first moto and, to be honest, I think he was tired in the second race. His condition is very good and we are happy but we have been doing a lot of testing and practicing just recently and I think it caught up with him on Sunday."

The International event at Hawkstone Park will take place on March 5th and will include another stellar line-up with many Grand Prix regulars in attendance.

Everts Maintains Winning Pre-Season Form

2006-03-28T20:48:00.000+01:00

Rinaldi Yamaha rider Stefan Everts clinched his second victory of the 2006 pre-season motocross period last weekend with a comprehensive display at the Pernes Les Fontaines International meeting in France.

Under sunny skies and good racing conditions the nine times world champion and factory Yamaha star claimed both MX1 motos onboard his 2006 spec YZ450FM, defeating a number of his world championship peers including Honda's Josh Coppins, KTM's Mickael Pichon and Sebastien Tortelli and Suzuki's Steve Ramon.

The 33 year old has won the MX1 World Championship for the last two seasons and will be pushing for a tenth career title in his final Grand Prix campaign this term. Everts hole-shotted the first race and kept a healthy distance over Coppins. The Belgian was forced to hold off Pichon in the second moto and also overtook Coppins who had started very quickly. A battle raged until the flag with Everts able to defeat the 2005 MX1 runner-up by less than three seconds at the finish.

After his triumph at Mantova in Italy two weeks ago Everts will now try for a 'hatrick' by travelling to Hawkstone Park in England for another star-studded meeting. The first Grand Prix of fifteen in the 2006 FIM World Championship is now a month away and is scheduled to take place at Zolder in Belgium on April 1st/2nd.

CARMICHAEL WINS ALTLANTA SUPERCROSS

2006-03-28T20:45:00.000+01:00

Ricky Carmichael raced to overall victory in Saturday evening’s Atlanta Supercross at Georgia Dome despite being told days earlier he’d been stripped of his victory in San Diego over an alleged rule infringement.

The Makita Suzuki rider took the 20-lap Supercross Main event by 2.9 seconds from series leader Chad Reed (Yamaha) and James Stewart (Kawasaki) as team mate Ivan Tedesco put his RM-Z450 into fourth place.

For Carmichael, the win was bittersweet. On the one hand, the Atlanta race is close to his Florida home and the defending Supercross Champion was racing in front of friends and family. It was also his fourth career win at the Georgia Dome and his 100th career Supercross-class start. But all of this came on the heels of the AMA docking Carmichael 25 points for allegedly using illegal fuel at the San Diego race, which knocked Carmichael out of the points lead.

"It was a race win," said Carmichael matter-of-factly after the race. "I don’t have much to say. It’s a shame and unless a miracle happens, I’m just out here racing to race. I’m disappointed for my team because we put in too much work, too much training and way too much money to sit on the sidelines and watch two other guys go at it for the championship. But life goes on and we’re gearing up for the Outdoors season."

As usual, the Makita Suzuki riders’ evening began with the Supercross-class heat races. Both riders finished in second place in their respective eight-lap qualifiers, each advancing to the Main.

In spite of the circumstances, Carmichael put his head down in the 20-lap main and rode for all he was worth. He got a pretty good start and used the first half of the race to move into position to take the lead. Once he was out in front, he rode smoothly and consistently to the chequered flag.

"It was a great race," acknowledged Carmichael. "I saw James Stewart go down in turn one and I saw I could catch Chad Reed. I knew I could get up there. I got into second and put in some good hard laps and when I got around Chad, he was right on my tail. As the track got worn out, it was harder to go faster and harder to pass. I gave it my all and tried to run consistent laps. Even so, no championship for me."

Tedesco got a tremendous start and was in second place from the start. He held on to that position for the first several laps before being passed by Carmichael and settling into third. Eventually, however, he was overtaken by the competition and finished just behind the podium-finishers in fourth

"I struggled with the track all night and I’m pretty happy with fourth considering how the weekend went," admitted Tedesco. "I felt pretty strong at the start and I tried to run a good pace, though it wasn’t good enough for the top three tonight. I’m just looking forward to racing my Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 at Indianapolis next weekend."

In the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP, Carmichael still leads the points chase and Tedesco remains in fourth position overall.

Supercross Main: 1 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 2 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 3 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 4 Ivan Tedesco (Makita Suzuki), 5 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 6 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 7 Nick Wey (Honda), 8 Mike LaRocco (Honda), 9 Ryan Clark (Honda), 10 Travis Preston (Honda).

AMA Supercross Points (after 8 rounds): 1 Reed 171, 2 Stewart 152, 3 Carmichael 140, 4 Tedesco 126, 5 Byrne 118, 6 Wey 117, 7 Fonseca 110, 8 LaRocco 108, 9 Preston 90, 10 McGrath 67.

World Supercross Points (after 10 rounds): 1 Carmichael 217, 2 Reed 211, 3 Stewart 211, 4 Tedesco 173, 5 Byrne 164, 6 Wey 163, 7 Gibson 113, 8 Clark 112, 9 Thomas 110, 10 Evans 94.

TEDESCO TAKES BEST SX RESULT AT ST. LOUIS

2006-03-28T20:43:00.000+01:00

Team Makita Suzuki’s Ivan Tedesco raced to his best 250 Supercross Main Event position at Saturday’s drama-packed St. Louis seventh round as team mate Ricky Carmichael and arch rival James Stewart both crashed out.

Tedesco led for half the 20-lap race at the Edward Jones Dome until former Champion Chad Reed forced through to take the race win and the series lead

But reigning World and AMA Supercross Champion Carmichael pulled out on the opening lap following a crash, then case-out on the whoops.

Said Tedesco: "I felt really good for the first half of the race then I started riding really tight and making mistakes. But that’s the only way to learn to win - to lead the race. Things really turned around for me a couple of races ago and I feel like I’m being more aggressive and riding more like myself."

While Tedesco was out front, Carmichael got caught up with another rider at the start and was forced to retire. Makita Suzuki Team Manager Roger DeCoster blamed no one for the unfortunate result, saying: "We think that some suspension parts were damaged when Ricky tangled with another rider at the beginning of the race. There was no error on anyone’s part and no one was at fault. It was a fluke and that’s just racing."

Said a disappointed Carmichael: "It’s a shame that things turned out this way because my lap times were really good in practice and I think this would have been a good race. But next week we go to Atlanta and that’s always a special race for me because a lot of my friends and family come out to watch."

Heading into the Atlanta round, Tedesco looks forward to racing in a new venue and Carmichael aims to regain the lead in the points chase.

"It’s a long season and we still have a lot of races to go," said an upbeat Carmichael. "We’ve just started the East Coast rounds and nothing has been decided yet."

250 Main Event: 1 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 2 Ivan Tedesco (Suzuki), 3 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 4 Nick Wey (Honda), 5 Travis Preston (Honda), 6 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 7 Mike Brown (Suzuki), 8 Tim Terry (Honda), 9 Ryan Clark (Honda), 10 Jason Thomas (Honda).

Championship Points (after 7 rounds): 1 Reed 149, 2 Carmichael 140, 3 Stewart 132, 4 Tedesco 108, 5 Wey 103, 6 Byrne 103, 7 LaRocco 95, 8 Fonseca 94, 9 Preston 79, 10 McGrath 67.

World Supercross Points (after 9 rounds): 1 Carmichael 192, 2 Stewart 191, 3 Reed 189, 4 Tedesco 155, 5 Wey 148, 6 Byrne 148, 7 Thomas 110, 8 Gibson 101, 9 Clark 98, 10 Evans 81

Team Wulfsport – Racing News

2006-03-28T20:41:00.000+01:00

Round 1 of the KWS British Masters Championship got underway today at Matchams park under terrible weather conditions. Race 1 saw young Shaun Simpson spin off the concrete start and collide with Brad Anderson leaving him back in 10th position. As the race got underway Scott Probert Team Wulfsport’s newest edition gated in 4th position and quickly set about taking over 3rd. Unfortunately for Scott a stalled engine quickly relegated him back down the field as he tried to get his Honda machine fired back into life.

Race 1: 1st McKenzie, 2nd Keet, 3rd Shaun Simpson - - 23rd Scott Probert

Race 2: 1st Anderson, 2nd McKenzie, 3rd Smyth, 4th Simpson, 5th Whatley, 6th Probert

Overall – 1st McKenzie, 2nd Shaun Simpson

AMA SX Series: 6th round San Diego, CA (14.02.2006)

2006-03-28T20:40:00.000+01:00

At the seventh round of the Amp’d Mobile Supercross, Red Bull KTM Supercross riders, Nathan Ramsey and Mike Alessi got off to a good start in their heat races. Mike Alessi was in heat race 1, and pulled the holeshot right out of the gate. He led for a lap before getting passed and settled into third, advancing to the main. Nathan Ramsey was in heat 2 and was in the top four when the gate dropped. He worked his way to the front of the pack when he suddenly fell in a corner. He made up a lot of ground and finished third, also advancing to the main.

As the riders geared up and the 30 second sign turned, the riders blasted off the start and history repeated itself, as Alessi grabbed the holeshot and lead for the first lap. Ramsey wasn’t far behind in fourth. Andrew Short crept up behind the Red Bull KTM riders and made a pass, moving Alessi to second and Ramsey to third. On the eighth lap, Grant Langston had made his way to the front and was chasing down the leaders. He also made passes, moving Alessi to fourth and Ramsey to third, finishing the Supercross Lite Class in that order.

GH Racing Ireland – Team Update

2006-03-06T19:58:00.000Z

Having just returned back from Anaheim III GH Racing Ireland are pleased to announce the latest edition to their 2006 line-up. Dan Johnston in association with Poole Motorcycles will be contesting this season on board Yamaha 250f machines under the GH Racing Ireland awning. Throughout 2005 Dan was competing in the under 21 British Championship and at the seasons end had climbed to a very convincing 4th in the series – be sure to watch out for this kid as the season progresses. A special thanks must go out to all the sponsors; Ron & Riley from SoCal / DeCal, Gary Carter – Pro Wheel Racing, Davy Kimmy – Pro Clean 1000 & Debs from C.I.A. It is only through their help the GH Racing Team has been made possible.

On the Anaheim III trip, George Hoy would like to thank on behalf of GH Racing Ireland Ltd everyone who made the journey so enjoyable; namely Kevin Merit from Tamer for arranging the trip and for his kind hospitality – photo’s of the trip will be available on UlsterMotocross.com in the coming days.

In addition to our previous press release on the teams schedule for 2006 we are pleased to announce that the GH Racing Ireland Team have been invited by Gary Carter, owner of Pro Wheel Racing to compete in this years AMA Washougal National in July where Richard McKeown will get the chance to further his professional Motocross career by racing against some of Americas best.

Dewalt - Corona Extra - Alstare Suzuki GP Team

2006-03-06T19:52:00.000Z

The new-look Suzuki MX1 World Championship motocross team begin their 2006 assault on the FIM series and national Belgian Championship with the first of several pre-season ‘warm-up’ races this weekend.

Riders Steve Ramon and Kevin Strijbos (pictured), together with their works RM-Z450 motorcycles, are currently testing in southern France and will head down to Mantova in Italy on Friday for the opening International event of the winter period that allows the Grand Prix stars to get up to speed and complete final technical adjustments to their race machines.

Former 125 cc World Champion Ramon is set for his first competitive outing with Suzuki after signing for the Lommel-based crew towards the end of 2005.

"We have been down in France for more than a week and everything is going well," said the 26 year old who has completed two seasons in the MX1 class, finishing fourth both times in the Championship. "I have been riding the bike at home in the sand a lot but this has been my first chance to get serious kilometres on hard tracks. I think we still have some work to do but I am happy with our progress. The Suzuki has a strong engine and we have been experimenting to get it working how I would like. I have not had the chance to practice many starts but I am sure it will be quick off the line. The bike’s handling is a very positive aspect. I can turn it short whenever I want and it feels stable.

"I am ready to go for Mantova," he continued. "It is still early in the year but it will be good to see how we are doing and the speed. We will be taking it easy because it is stupid to take risks at this stage but of course if there is a chance of victory then I will chase it."

Kevin Strijbos gave the four-stroke RM-Z its first Grand Prix victory last year in the Czech Republic. The 20 year old is fully fit for 2006 having missed chunks of the previous season due to injury problems that involved damaged ankle ligaments, a dislocated shoulder and thrombosis in his left arm.

For team owner Sylvain Geboers the line-up of Ramon and Strijbos represents a youthful and renewed push for further Suzuki success in 2006. The former 250cc Grand Prix winner will also adopt a more hands-on role this year together with his brother and ex-five times World Champion Eric Geboers.

"We have a new rider who is preparing himself well," he remarked. "Steve’s presence has also motivated Kevin because they are both young and Strijbos seems to be responding more to Ramon as a team-mate. It will be a different situation for Kevin because he is not struggling with an injury this time and hopefully will make it to the first Grand Prix in top condition."

"In terms of the motorcycles not a great deal has been changed because the overall base of the bike is very good," he added. "Suzuki has made some small improvements and I think the riders will be able to show these in their lap-times and comfort on the RM-Z. I am confident that the bike it good enough for the job and I am happy with how Steve has adapted so far."

Regarding the switches to the team structure, he said: "Eric is now onboard and although this was already planned before Jens moved on, I think his experience as a rider and World Champion will be of enormous benefit."

Past winner of the 125, 250 and 500cc World Championships, the first 875 rider, Eric Geboers has been enjoying his time working with his two young countryman and taking a more in-depth involvement in the team where he as acted as a consultant in past years.

"So far I am really pleased with how things have been going, although I like to remain a little cautious because I know as a past rider that when you are happy with the bike and your riding you can still get a smack in the face the next week at the racetrack!" he confessed.

"Mantova will be hard for our riders but it will also be difficult for everybody else because it is the first race after the break. We are preparing more for the first Grand Prix in Zolder than any international race. The attitude of the riders has been good and we all know that the team is professional. We have a productive atmosphere here and it is great to see the creativity, the understanding and an open spirit for suggestions. I think we have a lot of potential to do well this season," he offered.

Team Suzuki will also be racing in France, Belgium and the United Kingdom before the first round of 15 in this year’s Grand Prix series at Zolder, Belgium on April 2nd.

Carmichael Enters San Diego with Points Lead

2006-03-06T19:49:00.000Z

AURORA, Ill. (February 7, 2006) – Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael put himself in an enviable position Saturday night when he collected his third Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series win of the season and extended his points lead from two to 13 over Yamaha’s Chad Reed. This Saturday night, racing returns to San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium for the 23rd year where seven-time supercross champion Jeremy McGrath will race his final race of the 2005-’06 season.

Carmichael, the 13-time AMA National champion, has gone on to win the championship every year he won the highly touted Anaheim 3(’01; ’02; ’03; ’05). Saturday night’s race was the third time in as many races that Angel Stadium sold-out all 45,050 seats. Heading into San Diego, Carmichael has the largest points lead of the season (117-104 over Chad Reed) and exhibits control over the points race. Interestingly enough "It’s just a test," said Carmichael said on his 2006 campaign.

"It’s a test between Chad, James and myself. Fortunately, I’ve been the only guy to be up here. I don’t think every race that I have won hasn’t been on just raw speed. It’s been a little bit of luck, a little bit of patience and a little bit of being strong. I think this is probably the first year that I really haven’t looked too far ahead of me." has never won a race at Qualcomm Stadium.

"It’s just a test," said Carmichael said of his 2006 campaign. "It’s a test between Chad, James and myself. Fortunately, I’ve been the only guy to be up here. I don’t think every race that I have won hasn’t been on just raw speed. It’s been a little bit of luck, a little bit of patience and a little bit of being strong. I think this is probably the first year that I really haven’t looked too far ahead of me."

Kawasaki’s James Stewart trailed Carmichael by two points last week but a crash in the first turn and two subsequent crashes put the 20-year-old Floridian in third place with 103 points. Reed’s second place finish moved him into second place but a world away from where he wants to be.

"I gotta win, that’s about it," said Reed "Getting seconds, thirds and fifth isn’t really cutting it. So, I know I just gotta get it done. I have a great package, fitness wise. I feel good on the bike and my bike’s good. It’s just up to me to put it together on the weekend and that’s all I’m lacking. "

In front 53,595 fans at a wet Qualcomm Stadium, Reed, of Dade City, Fla., won his first Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series race of the season last year. KTM’s Nathan Ramsey, who won the opening race of the 125cc season in Anaheim, Calif., won the 125cc Western Regional Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series main event.

Dirt MX - On Sale Now

2006-02-22T12:26:00.000Z

06 NATIONAL MX PREVIEW
‘06 YOUTH MX PREVIEW & AWARDS IMAGES
DIRT MX AWARDS PICS
‘06 GP PREVIEW
NEIL THOMPSON INTERVIEW
MICHAEL SINTON INTERVIEW
TEAM WULFSPORT COLUMN
WINTER SUPERMOTO R’UP
PHIL MCCULLOUGH COLUMN
PRODUCTS 2006
and our famous eye candy

DOUBLE PODIUM FOR SUZUKI AT ANAHEIM

2006-02-22T12:24:00.000Z

Suzuki’s RMZ450 raced to its first double podium at Saturday night’s AMA Supercross fifth round at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California as reigning champion Ricky Carmichael grabbed a 10-second win and team-mate Ivan Tedesco his first 250 Main Event rostrum.

With the victory, Carmichael moved into the lead of the World Supercross series ahead of James Stewart - who crashed three times during the 20-lap event - and extended his advantage in the Amp’d AMA Supercross series over Chad Reed.

Carmichael led from turn three of the opening lap with Tedesco second as Stewart, Reed and David Vuillemin all fell. The Makita riders kept out front from there on in, although Reed recovered from his fall and closed right up on Tedesco by the half-way point and passed him on lap 11.

Carmichael continued to up the pace and with three laps to go held a commanding 11.5-second lead over Reed and Tedesco and was never challenged.

Said Carmichael: "It’s a shame that James fell as I think it would have been a great race between us again. I felt good and wanted to put on a good show for the fans and I’m glad to come away from here with the win. I’m really happy for my team mate Ivan – I’m really pumped for him – as he’s been working real hard and deserves it. I like to see people achieve their goal."

Said Tedesco: "Tonight was the night. It’s been a goal of mine all season to make it onto the box and I achieved it. I tried to latch onto Ricky, and I learned some good lines, but I couldn’t stay with him. I felt real comfortable on the bike and it’s all coming together."

250 Main Event: 1 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 2 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 3 Ivan Tedesco (Makita Suzuki), 4 Mike LaRocco (Honda), 5 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 6 Travis Preston (Honda), 7 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 8 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 9 David Vuillemin (Honda), 10 Nick Wey (Honda).

AMA Supercross Points (after 5 rounds): 1 Carmichael 117, 2 Reed 104, 3 Stewart 103, 4 Byrne 74, 5 LaRocco 73, 6 Wey 72, 7 Tedesco 71, 8 Preston 62, 9 Fonseca 62, 10 McGrath 49.

World Supercross Points (after 7 rounds): 1 Carmichael 161, 2 Stewart 157, 3 Reed 144, 4 Tedesco 115, 5 Byrne 114, 6 Wey 114, 7 Thomas 86, 8 Clark 83, 9 Gibson 74, 10 Evans 61.

Catastrophic Crash takes out Series Leader – Garrett!

2006-02-22T12:22:00.000Z

Round two of the Speedway Karting Winter Mini Supermoto series was a resounding success, for both organisers and racers.

With structure in place, including new race bibs, the event was running like clockwork until the computer crashed just before it added up the scores for the semi finals to take place.

Some one hundred and fifty spectators enjoyed a fine evening’s entertainment, which was to serve up a few new names in the winners enclosure.

Both adult and youth racers battled throughout four heat races, providing numerous winners, as they fought for a place in the semi ‘s. The pace was notably faster than the previous round and the slippery surface claimed quite a few riders during the early heats.
As the adult final blasted of it was Motocross rider and series leader, Jason Garrett who made the running with Darren Gawley, hounding the tail of the race leader. Gawley ran out of patience and Garrett then ran out of track!

At the half way stage of the final both Gawley and Garrett were all – but out of the race following a somewhat optimistic passing manoeuvre at the end of the start straight. Surprise of the evening goes to Jonathan Eadie who was in prime position to take over the leading position. At chequered flag it was a smiling Eadie who crossed the line 1st with an equally pleased Andrew 'O, Show" O’Brien 2nd and Philip McCammond collecting the runner up medal and champagne for their efforts.

In the Youth class it was the consistently fast Greame Irwin who recorder his second series win from Steven Arnott who claimed another runner up position. A fine third place went to young Stuart McLarnin who mixed it up with the leaders throughout the final race of the evening.
A great nigh of fun and racing, still room for improvement, but I think everyone will agree things are on the up for Mini bike racing in Ireland.

Round three, and the updated overall series positions will be available on ULSTERMOTOCROSS.COM & MINIBIKERIDER.co.uk on Monday morning.
(Pic – supplied by Steve Mills - Surprise winner, Jonathan Eadie enjoys the moment, as O'Show and Phil McCammond contemplate spraying champagne over the crowd)

GH Racing Ireland

2006-02-22T12:20:00.000Z

Having spent this past few months importing some of the best known American products, George Hoy founder of GH Racing Ireland has taken his company to new heights by putting together a Motocross Team for the 2006 season. This exciting new addition to the racing scene here in Ireland will consist of Richard McKeown who’ll be racing in selected Grand Prix’s and British Championships on board a Honda 450 f. Also in the team is the hotly tipped Adam Clifford who’ll be piloting his 85 b/w Honda throughout the season on the British Championship circuit. On home soil Alex Hoy, George’s son will complete the line-up by competing throughout the season in the MCCNI Championships, one of which will be supported by none other than Tamer; one of GH Irelands leading brands. More details on the MCCNI Tamer Championship will be announced at a later date.

Naturally Motocross Teams cannot survive racing at such high levels as World Grand Prix’s and British Championships without getting support from somewhere. On this front GH Racing have been in the fortunate position to be one of the 1st European Teams to run with some of the Americans biggest names when it comes to Motocross products. The products to date are Tamer – Who’s currently running their own Motocross and Supercross Teams in the AMA Championships, So Cal / De Cal – Motocross Clothing, Concepts in Aluminium – C.I.A as their known in the States, Pro Wheel Racing – Top quality racing wheels and hubs, Pro Clean 1000 – Not to be mistaken by the UK brand; Pro Clean 1000 will help keep the bikes and helmets looking their best, Sisam Fifam – A lesser known brand within the UK but these guys will provide the backbone of products / finance when it comes to the running of the Team throughout the season.

At the time of going to press GH Racing Ireland are in talks to bring another rider into the team. As the details emerge we’ll let you know.
Brought to you by GH Racing Irelands PR team

CARMICHAEL 2ND AT MUDDY SAN FRANCISCO

2006-02-22T12:17:00.000Z

In one of the best races of the season so far, Team Makita Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael raced to a close second place at Saturday night’s rain-lashed AMA Supercross fourth round at SBC Park in San Francisco, California.
The reigning World and AMA Supercross Champion had led the shortened 12-lap, muddy 250cc Main Event from lap nine but lost out to arch rival James ‘Bubba’ Stewart in the closing stages.

Carmichael’s RM-Z450 and Stewart’s Kawasaki clashed on the gate and took the first turn in fifth and third respectively behind holeshotter Nick Wey (Honda). But before the lap had finished, Stewart had moved into the lead and Carmichael to third.

By the half-way stage, Stewart had increased his lead to 3.8 seconds ahead of Carmichael as the pair lapped up to sixth place, then Carmichael took the awkward double jump and closed right up on the Kawasaki rider. From there on they were locked together until the Suzuki man forced ahead three laps from home.

But Stewart fought back as the pair hit backmarkers – both lapped up to third-placed Nick Wey – and Carmichael eased off for fear of crashing.
He said: "That was a real exciting race and ‘Bubba’ deserved the win! We both rode our hardest tonight but he was prepared to give that little extra whereas I wasn’t. I had a few scary moments but I achieved my goal tonight – not to crash.

"It’s a long season and it’s better to get second than risk crashing," added Carmichael, who continues to lead the Amp’d Mobile Supercross series by two points over Stewart.

"I don’t really enjoy mud races, I don’t know who does," added Carmichael. "I think I’ve gotten a little older - this is my 10th season - and I’ve learned to ride in the mud. But I just don’t take the chances that I used to. What really bums me out is that the track looked so good before the rain. If it had been dry, we would have been flying."

Meanwhile Carmichael’s team mate Ivan Tedesco struggled for most of the night. He got a great start but got tangled up with other riders in turn one and was never able to recover from a crash with Mike LaRocco on lap six.

"I got a great start and I felt comfortable and was really happy with how I was riding at first," said Tedesco.

250 Main Event (12 laps): 1 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 2 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 3 Nick Wey (Honda), 4 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 5 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 6 Tyler Evans (Suzuki), 7 Jeff Gibson (Honda), 8 Travis Preston (Honda), 9 Ryan Clark (Honda), 10 Jason Thomas (Honda).

Championship Points (after 4 rounds): 1 Carmichael 92, 2 Stewart 90, 3 Reed 82, 4 Wey 61, 5 Byrne 58, 6 LaRocco 55, 7 Tedesco 51, 8 Fonseca 48, 9 Preston 47, 10 McGrath 44.

World Supercross Points (after 6 rounds): 1 Stewart 140, 2 Carmichael 136, 3 Reed 122, 4 Wey 98, 5 Byrne 96, 6 Tedesco 95, 7 Gibson 74, 8 Thomas 73, 9 Clark 69, 10 Evans 51.

Rikki Priest - Irelands #1 Motocross Training Academy

2006-02-22T12:15:00.000Z

For the 2006 racing season SIXSIXONE/MSR are proud to announce the launch of the new MX training Academy.

Rikki Priest has focused his coaching on being the Manager/Coach throughout 06. In brief the academy consists of a yearly on bike training program, physical training program and a full race clothing sponsorship package which is also covering the correct mental approach on aiming and achieving certain goals in your chosen sport. Something many other training academy's don't even take into account.

The academy has already been launched and proving to be very successful in the UK.

I will now be focusing and passing on my experience to riders in the whole of Ireland. Some of the riders already signed up are Jody Hurley (65cc) Micheal McGinn (85cc) Ian Jones (85cc) Robert Lyons (125cc) and Stuart Edmunds.

A yearly membership will consist of the following......

1. On bike training program.One years on bike training which will be held twice a month throughout Ireland. All aspects of motocross will be covered from basic techniques through to advanced technical training and of course the physical and mental approach to racing MX. 2. A fully calculated fitness program.
Riders will attend a fitness training day where a fully qualified instructor will asses your fitness level and also pass on his experience to educate both riders and parents the importance of diet, nutrition and fitness.
You will then receive your training program calculated for the first quater of the year. After then your instructor will fly back to visit you during the year to re-asses your fitness level and give results on your strength's, weaknesses and hopefully prove that you are achieving your physical goals.

3. Sponsorship package from SIXSIXONE and MSR.

Team race clothing from SIXSIXONE and MSR Racing (www.sixsixone.com / www.msrracing.com) will be supplied to each team member along with personal bike graphics in order to look and feel part of a dedicated and professional team.

The academy will be launched in February and will work through until November.

If you would like to work with and feel part of a professional training academy and be kited out in the best SIXSIXONE and MSR team clothing plus have your race bike personally designed by BLINK Graphics please feel free to contact us for any further information. Good luck to all for 2006. 07974 641913 UK.
Website www.mxcoach.co.uk

CARMICHAEL WINS AT ANAHEIM II

2006-02-22T12:14:00.000Z

Reigning World and AMA Supercross Champion Ricky Carmichael increased his lead in the AMA Supercross series after taking victory at Saturday night’s Anaheim Supercross third round in California.
The RM-Z450-mounted Makita Suzuki rider reeled in race leader James Stewart after gating in fifth place and passed him on the 18th of 20 laps when the Kawasaki rider fell.
Carmichael now holds a four-point advantage in the Amp’d Mobile Supercross series over Chad Reed and trails Stewart by just one point in the World Series after five rounds.
He said: "It’s always good to win but I would have preferred to have beaten James fair and square rather than take the win because he crashed. I’m more excited about how fun and exciting the race was – that is what we need.
"I had a couple of opportunities to pass James but made a couple of mistakes and left it pretty late – when he went down, I thought we were only 10 laps in, not 18…"
Carmichael’s team mate Ivan Tedesco raced to fourth place after holding an early lead on the opening lap.

250 Main Event: 1 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 2 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 3 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 4 Ivan Tedesco (Makita Suzuki), 5 Jeremy McGrath (Honda), 6 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 7 Mike LaRocco (Honda), 8 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 9 David Vuillemin (Honda), 10 Nick Wey (Honda).

AMA Supercross Points (after 3 rounds): 1 Carmichael 70, 2 Reed 66, 3 Stewart 65, 4 Tedesco 46, 5 LaRocco 45, 6 McGrath 44, 7 Fonseca 44, 8 Wey 41, 9 Byrne 40, 10 Vuillemin 34.
World Supercross Points (after 5 rounds): 1 Stewart 115, 2 Carmichael 114, 3 Reed 106, 4 Tedesco 87, 5 Byrne 78, 6 Wey 78, 7 Thomas 61, 8 Gibson 60, 9 Clark 56, 10 Bucklew 44

Mini Supermoto Round 1

2006-02-13T12:41:00.000Z

Wednesday evening at Doagh proved that “FUN” has not completely gone out of motorcycling. Road and tarmac riders joined their Motocross compatriots in what turned out to be a “Night to remember”The Speedway Karting team, marshals and race officials were excellent throughout the evening, although no one is under any illusion that there are procedures that could be put in place to ensure things could run better.

Ten junior racers battled throughout four heats trying to earn a place in the final.Both Graham Irwin and Steven Arnott won heats apiece, but it was Graham who run in consistent lap times throughout the final. Steven Arnott filled the runner up spot, while the battle for third was hotly contested, with local rider Robert Donaldson claiming the Bronze “Durographix.com “ Medal.
As the evening whittled through to the fastest adult races for the Final, it was looking like the Road Racers were going to fill the top three places.

Ulster Motocross was well represented with DG Williamson teamster, Tommy Merton riding the all- new Monster machine. Tommy looked at home on the little machine taking a heat win on the way to the Final. The slick racing surface proved challenging catching out even the more experienced racers, it was a tough call; slicks or Motocross tyres, both fell foul of the Speedway Karting track.

As the final got the green light, it was Jason Garrett who firmly claimed the leading role; one which he was reluctant to give up. Despite the pain scrapping efforts of Marshall Neill and Darren Gawley, Jason went home with the gold medal and a big grin on his face.Tommy Merton recovered from a bad start to join in the battle at the front, finishing forth in his first ever outing on a mini bike.

UlsterMotocross.com will be the media, which will keep you informed of any future events. There will be an announcement on Friday 20th January.

40 And Not Out!!!

2006-02-13T12:38:00.000Z

As the teams for the 2006 season are all nearly finalised, I'd like to take a quick look at one of the best privateers this country has ever produced. Several rumours have been around that Peter Trevor Woods McCready (what were your parents thinking when they named you that!!) or Fred as some of his mates call him (its a long story) will once again be mounted on a new 250f Kawasaki supplied by ‘Normy’. The talented rider from Hillsborough is reported to be back in training. We heard that he ran to his brother in laws house on Christmas day for his lunch. Even though the house was only about 2 miles away, it took him 3 days to recover!! But at least he's putting in the effort.

Pete is a well-known rider amongst the older generation; he was winning races in Ulster before Martin Barr was in nappies. He has even got his name on the illustrious Tommy Stewart memorial trophy, with names like Morrison, Crockard, Lyons, Merton and McCullough etc.

Several injuries wrecked championship seasons for the quiet Hillsborough man. Breaking both his collarbones several times and breaking his shoulder to name a few. But this never deterred the talented Pete from trying to qualify for a GP in Ireland. Just to be Pete he tried to ride a stock 2-year-old 125 in the qualifying session. As the bike was a bit slower than the rest he decided to only put a bit of fuel in the bike so it would be lighter an thus go faster. According to Pete he was on a flying lap and sure to qualify when disaster struck and the kwacker ran out of fuel!!! These experiences never seemed to faze the likeable man, in fact the only time I’ve ever seem him angry in the last 10 years was a Donemana a few years ago. Some crazy rider rote Pete off in a turn and he hit the ground hard giving him a mild concussion. He couldn’t even remember what way the track went!!

In 2005 Pete finished 15th in the Semi-Expert Ulster championship, even thought he did sand bag a few races to not get moved up again!! (That was our thought on the thing anyway!) For 40 the man can still ride and when he wants to just seems to find plenty of extra speed. He may just need this extra speed next season when his nephew James Kennedy (leaky) moves up to the semi-experts as the grade c 125 champ, and I’m sure Uncle Pete won’t want the 17 year old beating him on a regular basis.

It’s surprising that even at 40+ the man is still motivated enough to get out of his bed at 6ish in the mornings and bring the family to the races. I don’t think he would have had such a long career if it hadn’t been for his lovely wife Vicky, who I think loves the races more than Pete sometimes. Vicky and the children Joshua and Erin just love the crack at the races and the family day out. And maybe one day Joshua will go on to beat his dad and manage to qualify for a GP and maybe even win one!!.

So watch out for Fred when the season kicks off in full swing in March. He’ll be the blonde haired man with the big grin on face. After all that’s why he races motocross, for the fun. At the end of the day were not all going to be the next Stefan Everts. And if he wasn’t out having fun he wouldn’t have stuck at it for so long.

Team Suzuki Press Office – January 8, 2006

2006-02-13T12:35:00.000Z

Reigning World and AMA Supercross Champion Ricky Carmichael raced back from a crash to take third place in Saturday night’s opening Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Championship round in Anaheim, California

In front of 45,000 fans, the Makita Suzuki rider and his RM-Z450 four-stroke got buried in the pack at the start of the 20-lap Main Event but he pulled through to take the lead from former champion Chad Reed on the ninth lap before making a mistake in the whoops, which put him into fifth position.

The Florida rider fought back into a rostrum position behind overall winner James Stewart (Kawasaki) and Yamaha-mounted Reed.

Said Carmichael: "Unfortunately it didn’t work out the way we wanted it tonight but we had a good race. Chad made a mistake and I got the drive to get by him but then I made a mistake and went down. It was survival after that and I don’t know how I got back on the podium! The guys were riding real well tonight. I need to get better."

Carmichael’s team-mate Ivan Tedesco raced to fifth position overall and continues to hold fourth overall in The World Supercross standings behind Stewart, Carmichael and Reed

250 Main Event: 1 James Stewart (Kawasaki), 2 Chad Reed (Yamaha), 3 Ricky Carmichael (Makita Suzuki), 4 Mike LaRocco (Honda), 5 Ivan Tedesco (Makita Suzuki), 6 Ernesto Fonseca (Honda), 7 Nick Wey (Honda), 8 Travis Preston (Honda), 9 Michael Byrne (Kawasaki), 10 David Vuillemin (Honda).

250 Points: 1 Stewart 25, 2 Reed 22, 3 Carmichael 20, 4 LaRocco 18, 5 Tedesco 16, 6 Fonseca 15, 7 Wey 14, 8 Preston 13, 9 Byrne 12, 10 Vuillemin 11.

World Supercross Points: 1 Stewart 75, 2 Carmichael 64, 3 Reed 62, 4 Tedesco 54, 5 Byrne 46, 6 Wey 45, 7 Thomas 37, 8 Gibson 36, 9 Bucklew 33, 10 Lewis 29.

SEBASTIEN TORTELLI VS. STEFAN EVERTS: SHOWDOWN IN FRANCE!

2006-02-02T12:45:00.000Z

On February 25th and 26th the Moto Club Pernois will celebrate his 80th birthday, and a lot of GP riders will be there to contest one of the biggest MX pre-season event. With two separate classes (MX1 and MX2), a 85cc support race and a Free Style show, this second edition of the International MX No Fear will attract fans and medias in the sunny Provence.

Coming back in Europe eight years after clinching his second World Title, Sébastien Tortelli will race against the GP stars for the first time since the 1999 US Grand Prix. Sébastien who will compete in the MX1 GP’s this season had an opportunity to race against Everts, Coppins or Pichon during the last MX of Nations, but he was aboard a 250 KTM while his main rivals raced with their usual 450. It will be the first 2006 appearance of Tortelli in Europe, and as most of his GP rivals will be also in Pernes this race will be a ‘mini’ GP.

Sébastien Tortelli (left) and Stefan Everts were happy to meet in Ernée during the MX of Nations. They will race together for the first time this season in Pernes.

Leading Tortelli’s opponents, Stefan Everts will do his first and last appearance in Pernes as 2006 will be his last racing season; the Belgian legend will use his new 450 Yamaha for this meeting, eight years after his legendary duel against Tortelli in the 250 World Championship. Belgian Cedric Melotte, teammate of Stefan in the Rinaldi Yamaha squad will be involved too, for his comeback in the MX1 class.

The Red Bull KTM Factory team selected Pernes as one of his pre-season race, and alongside Tortelli we’ll find Frenchie’s Mickael Pichon and Yves Demaria, Belgian Sven Breugelmans and Spaniard Jonathan Barragan. The factory Kawasaki team with British Stephen Sword and Estonian Tanel Leok, as well as the Factory Suzuki team with Belgian’s Steve Ramon and Kevin Strijbos will be there for a ‘live testing session’ and will be involved in the MX1 race. A total of forty riders will line-up in this class, including Swiss Julien Bill (Yamaha Dixon) and Frenchman Pascal Leuret (Honda Multitek), and of course New Zealander Joshua Coppins (Honda CAS); winner last year on this track, Josh will be one of the main favourite of the event

In the MX2 class the French Team will be impressive with Christophe and Sébastien Pourcel aboard their factory Kawasaki’s, Anthony Boissière (Yamaha Casola), European Champion Jeremy Tarroux and Nicolas Aubin (Kawasaki TSM). The factory KTM team will be involved in this class too, with South African Tyla Rattray, Italian David Philippaerts, Dutch Marc De Reuver and British Carl Nunn. Among the other riders already engaged are young Estonian Aigar Leok (Yamaha Van Beers) and German Max Nagl (KTM Sarholz), while many other teams continue to negotiate an entry place with the organisers.

Christophe and Sébastien Pourcel will do their first appearance on the factory Kawasaki's. They will race in the new team built by their father Roger (left) and Belgian Patrick Gelade (in the middle)

Two heats for the MX1 riders, two others for the MX2 riders (with practice sessions on Saturday 25th), two races for the 85cc support race and a Free Style exhibition will offer a great show to the fans. More than 10000 spectators attended last year the 1st International MX No Fear, and with such a strong entry list there’s no doubts that Pernes 2006 will be a huge success. Pernes les Fontaines is located close to Avignon, and for more details or information’s please visit http://www.motoclubpernois.org/.

HODGSON IS STAR GUEST AT SELL–OUT RACER AWARDS

2006-02-02T12:43:00.000Z

Neil Hodgson, the former World Superbike Champion, will be the special guest for the forthcoming Irish Racer & Dirt MX Motorcycle Awards on Friday, January 27th 2006, at the Ramada Hotel on Belfast’s Shaw’s Bridge, where a whole host of local talent from all our motorcycling disciplines will also be on show.

The event now in it’s third year and regarded as the premier motorcycling awards ceremony in Ireland, is already a 530 seater sell–out and organiser, Paul Lindsay – Publishing Editor for both Irish Racer and Dirt MX magazines told us: "Yes the response to the event for 2006 has been phenomenal and all 530 seats are now completely sold out with six weeks still to go. This just proves how strong the support for motorcycling is in Ireland, with all the seats sold before we even to get announce our star guest! We have also added some exciting new sponsors for the 2006 event, which we will be announcing along with a short list for each category in early January."

Other star guests who have already pledged their support for the January extravaganza are: Eddie Seel the former World Supermoto star who will fly in from Belgium; British Supersport Champion Leon Camier and TAS Suzuki’s Tom Sykes; and from British Superbikes, the Red Bull Honda team, Ducati’s Leon Haslam along with Michael Rutter and team boss Paul Bird from the Stobart Honda team.

Where there is glitz, there surely must be glamour, so the organisers will also be flying in MotoGP racing’s very own diva, Suzi Perry, new girl on the grid and former model Fran Robinson of Men & Motors fame; the fastest women around the mountain circuit Maria Costello – not forgetting our very own Claire McCollum from UTV Sport and Christine Bleakley the face of entertainment at BBC NI.

The event will be hosted by Stephen Watson BBC NI & Claire McCollum UTV Sport.

Mike Alessi wins in England

2006-02-02T12:40:00.000Z

The 2005 Wulfsport Future West British Supercross went off with a bang, with Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium rocking to live bands, pyrotechnics, celebrity minibike racing and the return of the “oh” so loud air horns – it turned out to be a very memorable and enjoyable night.

Three hundred riders were on hand to show that British supercross is alive and well and this will only increase in years to come from the tiny guys in the auto’s to the top pro riders like Mike and Jeff Alessi – racing was at its highest level and the British fans loved it.

The main event was the 250 open race, right from the start you knew the race could go so many ways, with tension building on the start line the gate dropped and mayhem followed – super quick Canadian Colton Faccotti and current British supercross champion Jordan Rose collided off the gate putting both riders at the back of the pack, this gave Martin Barr the young Irish flyer the chance to steal the show and lead for the first three tense laps, then out of nowhere came Kiwi Scott Columb who stole the lead and looked in full control for a possible surprise victory – in the meantime Colton Faccotti was picking off riders one by one and creeping up to the now tired looking Columb and Barr, on lap nine Faccotti swept passed both riders and took the lead and went away for a momentous victory from dead last to first – sweet victory indeed.“I had a real bad start which put me dead last, I just ran my own race and tried not to get caught up with the backmarkers, it was a fun race and by lap nine I was leading, I just didn’t realise it until the last lap flag appeared, it was pretty good”, explained the jubilant victor Colton Faccotti.

Mike Alessi is showing why he’s fast becoming one of the hot favourites for next years AMA supercross championship, aggressive off the start, super quick in the corners and hungry to win, it sums up young Mike to a tee – just awesome!Mike led from start to finish, only Colton Faccotti stayed with him for the first six laps but just couldn’t handle the consistency of Mikey, Jeff Alessi took over the job of chasing Mike but suffered a rear wheel puncture and had to settle for third come the end of the race – what would of it been like to see both young guns head to head – man that day I feel is getting closer!

Mike had this to say after, “I took the holeshot; I checked out pretty good, Colton was right there for a few laps but he went down and I was in cruise control for the rest of the race.”

KTM dominate Supercross Genoa

2006-01-09T12:35:00.000Z

Mike Alessi is proving to be a very tough competitor in Supercross. Having already shown what a talent he is in motocross the young KTM rider will go into the 2006 AMA Supercross season with high hopes of victory. In Genoa, Italy he won his second european Supercross event this year and is looking a heavy favourite going into the Bercy Supercross next weekend.

Alessi went 2-1 for the two nights, with fellow KTM factory rider Sebastien Tortelli finishing with 3-3 and Billy Laninovich went 1-4, while Jeff Alessi finished with 4-5.The first night of the IP Supercross of Genoa was a great non-stop mix of SX and Freestyle. The race was sold out and, in a typical Euro fashion, the crowd was so noisy and warm all race long. The Genoa SX is the race that, before anyone else in the early ‘80s, brought the American SX concept to Europe. Georges Jobe, who is here for KTM, reminded me that he won the first edition (circa 1980) ahead of Danny “Magoo” Chandler (I still remember watching that race on TV and remaining with the mouth open for the tricks Chandler was able to do on his bike—that day I understood that I was in eternal love with SX).

The race is pretty carefully organized. Here the sponsors display the biggest banners ever seen in a supercross race, and the presentation is great and impressive. The lineup is pretty good in both SX and FMX.

Laninovich won an exciting main event. Alessi immediately took the lead and kept it for most of the race. Billy came strong from behind, put pressure on Alessi, and made the pass with just a lap or a little more to go. Third was a really good Tortelli, here debuting on a KTM in SX. Despite a little mistake in the second lap, he was consistently in third place and enjoyed it a lot. In the press conference he gave us many details about his testing process on the 450cc prototype he’ll use next year in the MX1 GP class. (The bike has been sent to the U.S., where he’ll test and ride it till March, when he’ll travel back to Europe before coming back to U.S. for a few Nationals.) He’s pretty happy with the way things are going, and it’s always great to see the smile on Seb’s face, considering the troubles he had to deal with in the recent seasons.

Josh Hansen crashed and Jeff Alessi finished fourth. Good speed for French Antoine Meo, who debuted on the Martin Honda (he crashed in the main event but was fast). The FMX contest was really good, with two ramps. Jeremy Stenberg won the best-trick contest, and the crowd went crazy for him. He deserved the first-night win for sure. Nate Adams (“Feels weird being back here,” he commented regarding the “crime scene” of the bad crash he suffered last year over here with the broken femur), Kenny Bartram, and friends offered a good show as well. It’s not over yet; there is one more day of racing at Genoa.

The second night Alessi just cleared off, winning ahead of Josh Hansen, and Tortelli.Genoa Supercross Main event results.

Friday nights Main Event

1. Billy Laninovich - Honda

2. Mike Alessi - KTM

3. Sebastien Torelli - KYM

4. Jeff Alessi - KTM

Saturday nights Main Event

1st Mike Alessi - KTM

2nd Josh Hansen - KTM

3rd Sebastien Tortelli - KTM

4th Billy Laninovich - Honda

5th Jeff Alessi - KTM

World Motocross GP Suzuki Team Profile

2006-01-09T12:32:00.000Z

Suzuki is the most successful name in the history of the FIM Motocross World Championships with an unprecedented 28 rider World Titles spread across all three classes; 29 Manufacturers World Titles and numerous national titles around the world.
Suzuki was the first Japanese manufacturer to win a Motocross Grand Prix and the first Japanese manufacturer to win a Motocross World Title.
It was also the first Japanese motorcycle manufacturer to bring production motocross bikes onto the market, thus opening the sport to a wide variety of people. GEBOERS RACING

PROMOTION:
BVBA Geboers Racing Promotion was founded by Suzuki's former Motocross World Champion Sylvain Geboers in 1984.
The company is based in Belgium and operating under the Belgian law.
Geboers Racing Promotion managed Eric Geboers until 1990, bringing home five FIM Motocross World Titles. That same year, it also launched Suzuki’s comeback in the FIM Motocross World Championship, immediately putting Suzuki on top of the competition.
Since 1992, GRP has concentrated on the 250cc class, a wish of Suzuki Motor Corporation in Japan, and has won the quarter-litre crown on three occasions thanks to Greg Albertyn (1994) and Michael Pichon (2001 and 2002).
Located in Lommel, the crew have the responsibility of launching and developing the RM-Z450 and continuing Suzuki’s excellent standing and reputation within World Motocross. TEAM

STAFF:

General Manager: Sylvain Geboers

Team Manager: Jens Johansson

Riders: Joel Smets and Kevin Strijbos

Mechanics: Luka Vesel, Luc Piccart, Werner Dewit

Administration: Ann Geboers

Logistics: Pierre Hooyberghs, Johny Fransen, Ward MermansPhysical trainer: Yves Demeulemeester

Motorcycles: Suzuki RM-Z450 WS

Technology: Suzuki Motor Corporation

Media management: Adam Wheeler / Team Suzuki Press Office

Photography: Ray Archer / Team Suzuki Press Office

Team Wulfsport

2005-12-19T12:45:00.000Z

Following weeks of speculation, rumour and counter – rumour, we are pleased to announce the formation of Team Wulfsport for the 2006 Motocross season. This Team name will replace the hugely popular Team Lizard and is due to the substantial increase in sponsorship from Bill Brown and his company Wulfsport who has come in this year as the title sponsor of the Team.

Bill has been involved in Motocross for many years – both in business and as a competitor. He regularly competes in twin-shock races throughout the UK on his trusty Maico and this year also raced – and finished! – in a famous long-distance enduro in Finland.

In 2006 Team Wulfsport will consist of the following riders:-

MX1 – World and British Championships – GORDON CROCKARD
MX2 – World and British Championships – SHAUN SIMPSON
MX2 – World and British Championships – SCOTT PROBERT
MX2 – British, Irish and Ulster Champs – ADAM McKEE
MX2 – Irish and Ulster Championships – GARY MAGEE

All riders will be provided with CRF450 or CRF250 Honda machines thanks to Honda UK namely Mark Davies and Roger Harvey.

Team Wulfsport intends to make a significant impact in the MX1 and MX2 Championships in 2006 with such a strong Team. However, the Team is not just made up of the 5 riders. For a serious attempt at World level you also need the experienced and competent support members. To this end Team Wulfsport have enlisted the expertise of a number of quality and highly experienced mechanics: -

MX1 for GC – Ian Bishop – currently mechanic for WRC Subaru and Peter Solberg. Ian also regularly rides his own motocross bike to stay fit !

MX2 for SS – Willie Simpson – a regular competitor himself in World and British Championships from the 1970s to the 1990s. Willie has been Shaun’s mechanic since he started to compete and is assisted by Shaun’s younger brother Stefan at most events.

MX2 for SP – Steve Henderson – again a vastly experienced mechanic, having worked for a number of riders including the American Mike Brown and the UK’s Jamie Dobb.

Following the very successful Irish Motocross Grand Prix held in September 2005 – Promoted by Schism and the Northern Ireland Events Company – negotiations have taken place with Team Wulfsport to form a ‘partnership’ so that the 2006 and 2007 Irish Motocross Grand Prix and the 2007 Motocross of Nations will be promoted at World level at ALL GPs.

Superbiker Mettet

2005-12-05T20:15:00.000Z

Ireland’s Gordon Crockard played his part in the annual 'Superbiker' race in Mettet, Belgium.

The legendary Superbiker is one of the world's most important non-championship supermoto races. A 25.000 strong crowd witnessed the clash of styles with stars invited from supermoto, motocross and racing categories. Crockard had participated in the Irish Supermoto GP earlier this year and finished respectively 33rd in the first final and 35th in the second. Yamaha mounted colleague Jeremy McWilliams finished a disappointing 38th and 43rd.

MX legend Stefan Everts, fresh from a dominant supermoto win in the Belgian championship last weekend, showed probably his best speed ever at Mettet. Unfortunately Everts had bad starting positions in both finals and finished ninth overall. However the Belgian was the best placed motocross rider. The young German supermoto star Bernd Hiemer won the event ahead of S2 world champ Jerome Giraudo.

Sunny weather and dry conditions provided excellent conditions for both the seasoned supermoto stars and the occasional riders. French Supersport star Stephane Chambon won the Starbiker, the qualifying race between road racing and motocross stars. MX1 runner-up Josh Coppins finished fifth behind Superbike world champion Troy Corser. Both Superbiker finals saw many interesting battles within the race, where the supermoto regulars were leading the pack and a mixed bag of riders was trying has hard as they could.

Gordon Crockard (Yamaha UK Racing Team)
"It’s not easy to hang with the supermoto guys who do this every weekend and who have their bikes properly set up for the job. However I had a good time this weekend, and I definitely enjoy supermoto in general. The atmosphere in Mettet is just amazing and there are always a lot of Irish amateur riders who come and race here as well"

Stefan Everts (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team)
"I really enjoyed the racing this weekend and I was pretty dialed in here. I had to start from the 10th line in the finals after we encountered a small problem during the Starbiker race, but in each final race I easily worked my way up. My bad starting position was a bit frustrating, because with a normal result during the qualifying race I would have been on the front row. Anyway I think I have proved to be the best allround rider here, because all the guys in front of me are fulltime supermoto riders."
Article supplied by yamaha-racing.com

TORTELLI HEADLINES IN BELFAST

2005-12-05T20:00:00.000Z

Former double World Champion Sebastien Tortelli (France) headlines a star-filled list of World Class riders at the International Supercross at Belfast’s Odyssey Arena on November 25th & 26th.

Tortelli’s career highlights include becoming the youngest ever 125cc World MX Champion at the tender age of 16, two years later he destroyed the 250cc competition by taking his second World Championship ahead of current Champ’ Stefan Everts.
The French flyer then took on the biggest challenge of his career – moving to the USA to race against all time legends Jeremy McGrath and Ricky Carmichael. He took no time at all to adapt to the incredibly challenging Supercross Stadium circuit winning his first ever US Supercross at the LA Coliseum in 1998. Since then he’s been constantly at the front of the US Motocross and Supercross scene.

In 2006 Tortelli has made the decision to come home and race the MX1 World Championship aboard a Factory Red Bull KTM – he’s going to be Stefan Evert’s biggest threat in years!
"We have to remember that Sebastien has won at every level in the World – Motocross and Supercross both in Europe and more recently in America" explained event organiser Matt Bates. "We’ve worked incredibly hard to secure some of the best riders in the World, and I firmly believe Belfast plays host to one of the best Supercross events in Europe. "Sebastien is truly one of today’s heroes from our sport, and I can’t think of a better welcome back to the UK than racing at the Odyssey in November".

Tortelli will be racing aboard a Factory KTM in the SX2 class against last years winner Mike Brown (USA) and current World Championship race winners Carl Nunn (UK) and Billy Mackenzie (SCO).

With Freestyle Motocross bringing the first ever live Back-Flip seen in Ireland and Mini Bike GP action starring Jeremy McWilliams, Ryan Farquhar, Leon Haslam, Michael Laverty, Adrian Archibald and Jonathan Rea….

The Odyssey is set to Rock on November 25th & 26th!
Tickets can be purchased via usual outlets:
Box Office: 028 9073 9074
www.belfastsupercross.com

2005 Motocross Des Nations – Yamaha News

2005-11-15T13:01:00.000Z

The 2005 Motocross of Nations in Ernée, France did a lot more than just live up to the expectations. Excellent weather conditions for most of the weekend, a crowd of 45,000 fans and a three-way battle between home country France, title defendants Belgium and the American team made Ernée an instant classic and a true promotion for the sport.

Stefan Everts and the Belgian team reached the podium, but the MX1 world champion had a disappointing day with bad starts in both races. David Vuillemin, who rode his last race with Yamaha in Ernée, helped team France coming second. An impressive Ricky Carmichael (Suzuki), won the two races he participated in and led the Americans to victory. MX2 world champion Antonio Cairoli, from team Italy, showed excellent speed on Saturday in what was his first outing in the MX1 class. Unfortunately Cairoli DNF'd twice and the Italian team only finished a lowly 13th.

American legend Ricky Carmichael made his intentions very clear from the first race of the day. Carmichael led from start to finish and was never challenged. However the enthusiastic crowd never got bored because the nature of the MX of Nations format meant there was always more than one race to follow, with the mixed class line-up again made for a great show. The French crowd cheered Mickael Pichon (MX1) and Sebastien Tortelli (MX2) to respectively third and seventh. Both Belgian riders had a difficult task recovering from bad positions at the start of the race. Everts suffered arm pump and could not make his mark on the scenic track that had been kind to him before (recording three GP wins there in 2003). Stefan finished fifth in the end, while Billy Mackenzie was the second best Yamaha rider in 10th position.

Race two saw a turn of fortune for Everts and the Belgian team as both USA and France got into trouble, following crashes of respectively Ivan Tedesco and Tortelli. Vuillemin rode a consistent and carefree race and placed his YZ450F second behind Ben Townley (New Zealand). In the tradition of the event the third race would determine the outcome of the Motocross of Nations, the Americans finished the job with Carmichael claiming another win and Kevin Windham coming second. Everts had to make his way through the pack from dead last after a first turn crash and went on to finish ninth. The French team rode to a well-earned second overall with Pichon coming fifth in the combined MX1 and the open class, while 'Le cobra' Vuillemin came home seventh.

After what has been one of the most successful editions of the Motocross of Nations in recent history, 2006 host country Great Britain will try to the top the event on the 23rd and 24th of September at Farleigh Castle. Next year's Motocross of Nations will mark the 60th birthday of the legendary 'Olympic games' of motocross.

David Vuillemin (Team Yamaha PSM Casola- MX1 - Team France) - 2nd in race 1 and 7th race 3 "I got a good start in my first race and everything went pretty good. I was running in third and I tried to conserve some energy for my next race, but I got a little bit lucky when Windham crashed and I was handed second on a plate. The second race was a bit harder for me because I had to go through traffic after a bad start, but I was happy with seventh. I think the end result for the French team was still very good and overall the weekend has been an amazing experience. I think that I did the best I could today considering that I crashed on Saturday and I hurt my knee, and that I ran almost on a stock bike here."

Stefan Everts (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team - MX1) - fifth in race 1 and ninth race 3 "I always knew that it would be difficult to win today, for me the American team was absolutely hands on favorite for the event. And of course circumstances did not help us. I had two crashes in the start today but the most disappointing was that I could not run with the top guys. However I'm happy for the Belgian team that we made the podium. It is my 13th podium out of 13 MX of Nations. And that's already quite special by itself."

Andrew McFarlane (Team Ricci Racing - MX2 - Australia) - 17th in race 1 and 14th in race 2 "The first race was quite difficult, I was suffering arm pump and it was hard to compete with the 450s on this power track. Especially the acceleration out of the corner makes a huge difference. My arm pump was not so bad in the second race and I got off with a good start. The riding was getting more hairy in the last race of the day because the track was awfully rutted in many places. Generally, it's been a bit sad that Australia was not here with its A team. But hopefully we can give it a shot next year with Chad (Reed) and Michael (Byrne)."

Brian Jorgensen (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team - MX1- Team Denmark "Already yesterday I was having serious headache caused by bad toothache, but my qualifying race went not too bad. I climbed up from 10th to finish fifth and Denmark qualified for the A-final so that was good. I went to see a doctor for painkillers and he gave me something to get sleep on Saturday, but it did not help. Again I got the strongest painkillers on Sunday to try and at least be ready to race, unfortunately I did not make it. The pain was unbearable, and it just turned out impossible to race. I'm very disappointed, because my Danish team mates did a good job and my riding was quite ok. This is not the way I wanted to end my season."

Billy Mackenzie (Yamaha UK Race Team - MX1 ) - tenth in race 1 and twelfth in race 3 "Seeing that big crowd out there today made me more nervous than in any race I've ever done before and I am not happy with the performance I put in today. I've been ill with the 'flu all week and although I was feeling better today it still affected me. It's the first time I've ridden the 450 in a year and we had problems setting up the suspension, which in turn gave me arm pump and caused me to slip back from fifth to 10th in the first one. In the second race I was having a good battle with Vuillemin and Vico but all through the race I had an intermittent problem with the front brake sticking on. That caused me to crash and lose a few places which was a disappointment."

Antonio Cairoli (Team Yamaha De Carli - MX2) - DNF in race 1 and DNF in race 3 "It was not a good day today! I did not make one complete lap because in both races I arrive in a dangerous situation and have a very big crash each time. My wrist was sore after the first race although it feels more calm now. It is a shame because yesterday I was happy with my speed in the qualifying race. My style suits riding the 450 and when I make a good rhythm I thought I can ride well. It has been a good season and a nice experience riding here, so I look forward to next year."

RACE 1: MX1 AND MX2 1. Ricky Carmichael (USA - Suzuki), 2. Joshua Coppins (NZL - Honda), 3. Mickael Pichon (FRA - Honda), 4. Tanel Leok (EST - Kawasaki), 5. Stefan Everts (BEL - Yamaha) , 6. Ivan Tedesco (USA - Kawasaki), 7. Sébastien Tortelli (FRA - KTM), 8. Marc De Reuver (NED - KTM), 9. Steve Ramon (BEL - KTM), 10. Billy Mackenzie (GBR - Yamaha), 11. Carl Nunn (GBR- KTM), 12. Joaquim Rodrigues (POR - Honda), 13. Aigar Leok (EST - KTM), 14. Julien Bill (SWI - KTM), 15. Garreth Swanepoel (RSA - Kawasaki), 16. Kazumasa Masuda (JAP - Honda), 17. Andrew McFarlane (AUS - Yamaha), 18. Tyla Rattray (RSA - KTM), 19. Davide Guarneri (ITA - Yamaha) , 20. Maximilian Nagl (GER - KTM)

RACE 2: MX2 + OPEN 1. Ben Townley (NZL - KTM), 2. David Vuillemin (FRA - Yamaha), 3. Steve Ramon (BEL - KTM), 4. David Philippaerts (ITA - KTM), 5. Kevin Windham (USA - Honda), 6. Kevin Strijbos (BEL -Suzuki), 7. Javier Garcia Vico (SPA - Honda), 8. Marc Ristori (SWI - Honda), 9. Yoshitaka Atsuta (JAP - Suzuki), 10. Matti Seistola (FIN - Honda), 11. Carl Nunn (GBR- KTM), 12. James Noble (GBR - Honda), 13. Juss Laansoo (EST - Honda), 14. Andrew McFarlane (AUS - Yamaha), 15. Joaquim Rodrigues (POR - Honda), 16. Tyla Rattray (RSA - KTM), 17. Ivan Tedesco (USA - Kawasaki), 18. Carlos Campano (SPA - KTM), 19. Rui Goncalves (POR - Yamaha), 20. Bas Verhoeven (NED - Honda)

RACE 3: MX1 AND OPEN 1. Ricky Carmichael (USA - Suzuki), 2. Ben Townley (NZL - KTM), 3. Kevin Windham (USA - Honda), 4. Joshua Coppins (NZL - Honda), 5. Mickael Pichon (FRA - Honda), 6. Marc De Reuver (NED - KTM), 7. David Vuillemin (FRA - Yamaha), 8. Kevin Strijbos (BEL - Suzuki), 9. Stefan Everts (BEL - Yamaha), 10. Tanel Leok (EST - Kawasaki), 11. Javier Garcia Vico (SPA - Honda), 12. Billy Mackenzie (GBR - Yamaha), 13. James Noble (GBR - Honda), 14. David Philippaerts (ITA - KTM), 15. Rui Goncalves (POR - Yamaha), 16. Neville Bradshaw (RSA - Suzuki), 17. Kazumasa Masuda (JAP - Honda), 18. Maximilian Nagl (GER - KTM), 19. Juss Lanssoo (EST - Honda), 20. Bas Verhoeven (NED - Honda)

Final Team results

First: United States (Carmichael, Windham, Tedesco) - 16
Second: France (Pichon, Tortelli, Vuillemin) - 24
Third: Belgium (Everts, Ramon, Strijbos) - 31 points
Fourth: New-Zealand (Coppins, Townley, Cooper) - 32
Fifth: Great Britain (Mackenzie, Nunn, Noble) - 56
Sixth: Estonia (Tanel Leok, Aigar Leok, Laansoo) - 59
Seventh: Netherlands (De Reuver, Verhoeven, Van Hastenberg) - 82
Eighth: Portugal (Rui GonÇalves, Paolo GonÇalves, Rodriguez) - 83
Ninth: South Africa: (Rattray, Swanepoel, Bradshaw) - 86
Tenth: Spain (Garcia Vico, Barragan, Gonzalez) - 99

Luke to the Future

2005-11-15T12:25:00.000Z

Newly crowned Irish Youth 125 Champion, Luke Wilde will ride under the GOMX365 / Russell’s Motorcycle's banner for 2006.
The fast fifteen year old has turned many heads this season; with his all action riding style. Winning the Irish series was the icing on the cake to a successful season. Luke impressed GOMX365 boss, Steve Mills at the recent British Youth Championship meeting at Desertmartin where he carded 3rd place against some of the fastest riders in the UK.

"We are pleased to have Luke on board for next season, I believe that with the correct guidance and structured preparation, this young man has a future in this sport" said Steve.It is anticipated that the Donegal rider, will run his full rookie season concentrating on the MX2 Irish National Championship, although he will race the MX1 Ulster Championships on-board a 250 two stroke Suzuki.

Matchams set to host tense season climax

2005-11-15T12:21:00.000Z

The eighth and final round of the 2005 Maxxis British Motocross Championship, the premier off-road national motorcycle racing series in Europe, will take place next weekend (October 8th/9th) at Matchams Park, site of the ’05 British Grand Prix. The MX1 class sees three riders in contention for the title. With eight points separating the main protagonists the competition is set for one of its closest finishes in the modern era.

Reigning Champion Josh Coppins, the 2005 FIM World Championship runner-up, took control of the class (250cc two-stroke machines up to 450cc four-strokes) at round seven with his eighth consecutive victory and is very much favourite to successfully defend his crown. The New Zealander of the CAS Honda team has a lowest result of second place in the twelve motos and six rounds he has contested. Coppins missed the season-opener due to a dislocated shoulder and has been slowly gobbling back the 60 points he conceded to Paul Cooper at Canada Heights.

Coppins lies just three points ahead of RWJ Honda’s James Noble who scored a win at Lyng for round three and has dropped out of the top three only four times from fourteen races. "That first moto is going to be crucial," said Noble. "Anything could happen and then there could be all-to-play-for in the last race. I just want to try and get a good start so I can get in the lead early. Josh is good in the sand because he lives and trains in Belgium. We will have to see how it goes; it should be exciting though!"

In third place and eight points adrift is former multi British Champ Multitek Honda’s Paul Cooper who has been struggling with his physical condition throughout the campaign due to a mysterious virus. The 34 year old veteran is staring at possibly his last serious chance of grabbing the title and will push to the maximum on Sunday, stamina restrictions or not. "When you don’t have anything to lose then you just get out there and go for it," he said. "I don’t think I will feel any pressure at Matchams. It will be hard to win the Championship but I will just try to attack the race the best I can and see what happens."

Fittingly the 2005 campaign will culminate at one of the best circuits in the United Kingdom. After an extensive redesign earlier this year Matchams Park, near Bournemouth, drew numerous plaudits and acclaim back in June for the seventh round of the World Championship; an event that was attended by over 25,000 spectators. The loose and sandy terrain will again offer a technical and physical challenge to the best riders in Britain as they face a slew of Grand Prix regulars for the last time this season. Matchams’ ample parking facilities and hard-standing surrounds mean that the location is essentially an all-weather venue and is bound to attract a generous crowd before the winter period.
The MX2 Championship has already been decided after factory KTM rider Carl Nunn celebrated an overdue success at Whitby several weeks ago. The 25 year old from Bury St Edmunds will still be keen to preserve the 100% podium record he has accumulated from fourteen races and travels to Matchams with memories of the emotional and emphatic victory at his home Grand Prix fresh in the mind.

"I am going to go into the last round really pumped," said Nunn who has already inked a deal to remain as a works rider for the large Austrian manufacturer in 2006. "I love the track at Matchams and it was my favourite of the year. Going back to Matchams for the British Championship is perfect for me because I know I will be on a high as soon as I walk in the circuit."

As per usual this term Nunn will face opposition from Billy MacKenzie, who earned his first overall 2005 win three weeks ago in the North-East. The Bike it Yamaha representative is the top rider in the UK after winning three GP motos this season (Spain, Japan and England) and finishing the ’05 MX2 World Championship in sixth spot (two places higher than Nunn). MacKenzie lives just down the road from Matchams and has used the track plenty of times for testing, so he knows the curves, jumps and lines better than most.

Innovate Honda’s Wayne Smith needs to score just six points to rise to third in the standings (Kawasaki’s Tom Church is injured), which would represent his best ever Championship placing. Church’s team-mate, South African Gareth Swanepoel, will again be on the pace after grabbing his first podium of the year at Whitby.

The weather forecast for the weekend is good with cloudy but bright conditions predicted.
Matchams Park is located just down the road from Ringwood on the A31, which runs from Southampton to Ferndown. As well as practice and timed qualifying Saturday morning, the programme of six races will start at noon. Entrance is £15 per adult with concessions for children, students and OAPs. A full colour A4 size programme will give details of all riders and times of races.

MX1 Championship standings after 7 of 8 rounds
1. Josh Coppins, Honda 354. 2. James Noble, Honda 351. 3. Paul Cooper, Honda 346. 4. Yoshitaka Atsuta, Suzuki 294. 5. Jussi Vehvilainen, Honda 246. 6. Neville Bradshaw, Suzuki 219. 7. Mark Jones, KTM 214. 8. Glen Phillips, Yamaha 171. 9. Mark Hucklebridge, Honda 144. 10. Jody Smyth, Honda 122. 11. Jordan Rose. 116. 12. Alex Rach, Honda 114. 13. Martin Barr, Yamaha 103. 14. Gordon Crockard, Yamaha 101. 15. David Campbell, Honda 93

MX2 Championship standings after 7 of 8 rounds:
1. Carl Nunn, KTM 390. 2. Billy MacKenzie, Yamaha 310. 3. Tom Church, Kawasaki 292. 4. Wayne Smith, Honda 286. 5. Brad Anderson, Yamaha 227. 6. Tommy Searle, Kawasaki 221. 7. Eric Eggens, Honda 184. 8. Jason Dougan, Suzuki 153. 9. Shaun Simpson, Honda 144. 10. Lewis Gregory, Suzuki 142. 11. Gareth Swanepoel, Kawasaki 123. 12. Ben Saunders, Honda 115. 13. Jim Murro, Honda 97. 14. David Willett, Honda 82. 15. Graeme Gowland, Kawasaki 72.

Grand Prix of Ireland 2005 - KTM News

2005-11-15T12:12:00.000Z

Factory Red Bull KTM rider Ben Townley signed off his Grand Prix career with second position today at Desertmartin for the Grand Prix of Ireland, the seventeenth and final round of a long 2005 FIM Motocross World Championship.

The red and fine Irish sand provided a very rough test for the riders in the season curtain-closer although compared to the sweaty and stuffy conditions in Holland two weeks ago the weather was cold, windy and extremely grey. Almost 15,000 fans braved the sunken temperatures and were rewarded with four tense motos to close the 2005 MX1 and MX2 competitions.

After passing countryman Josh Coppins for second in the first moto, Townley shadowed World Champion Stefan Everts, constantly probing for a way past the Yamaha rider for the second half of the 35 minute and 2 lap distance. Despite several near attempts the 20 year old could not make a solid overtaking manoeuvre and was beaten to the chequered flag by less than a second. Steve Ramon did not enjoy a decent start and had to battle with Mickael Pichon and Kevin Strijbos to earn sixth place. Kenneth Gundersen was feeling the effects of an incident during Saturday practice when a heavy landing caused the Norwegian to damage both of his wrists.

In the second moto, Townley, who leaves next week to attempt the AMA series in 2006, produced a rare holeshot and began assembling a sizeable lead over Everts. The 2004 MX2 World Champion could not sustain his pace however and his Belgian rival closed him down and eventually took the lead. Townley was able to confirm second while Ramon again found himself in a tussle with Strijbos and another Honda rider in the form of Coppins. The Belgian performed a daring move on the final lap to grab third and assume fourth place in the final classification. Jonathan Barragan was eighth overall in his last Grand Prix before moving across to the works KTM team for 2006.

The MX2 class provided a bevy of results for KTM and highlighted the potency of the SX 250F. Tyla Rattray proved that his intentions to win the final three Grand Prix of the season were not hollow claims as he added the Irish trophy to the English and Dutch silverware locked in his cupboard. The South African went 2-1 to round-off the year very much in the same manner that he started with a comprehensive victory at Zolder for the season-opener.

Five KTM riders claimed positions in the top six of the first moto. American wild-card Mike Alessi holeshotted and lead the opening four circulations but was swiftly caught and passed by Marc de Reuver who set the best lap by almost two seconds over any other rider for the remainder of the duration. Alessi then fell into the clutches of a charging Rattray and the duo entertained the wind-beaten crowd with a close tussle until the South African took control and pulled away. David Philippaerts defeated new World Champion Antonio Cairoli for fourth position and Aigar Leok enjoyed one his better motos for sixth spot.Carl Nunn crossed the finish line in tenth after a poor start and then struggling to pass Alessio Chiodi.

Rattray swept past Cairoli and KTM Kosak rider Leok in the second moto while an early crash by De Reuver ruled the lanky rider from Amsterdam out of the running for the overall triumph. He did manage to come back to an impressive third, from twenty-third, in his last MX2 race before switching to the MX1 class for 2006 and the placing was enough for second overall. Leok’s pursuit of Cairoli paid off when the Yamaha rider was forced to pull into the pits with a bent gear lever and the Estonian was able to notch his maiden career podium and form a KTM 1-2-3 for the first time this season. An unhappy Carl Nunn lost any chance of moving up from his eighth position in the Championship when he fell and knocked his head, prompting an early retirement several laps before the end of the race.

Mike Alessi hit the ground twice in the second sprint. He was bumped around at the start and then was chasing David Philippaerts for fourth and a chance of the podium when the two collided and both went to ground. Philippaerts, furious believing the incident to be the American’s fault, pulled out of the race while Alessi restarted to pick up four points for seventeenth. His younger brother Jeff actually finished 5th overall despite allegedly riding with a broken collarbone.

In an active MX1 World Championship for KTM four Grand Prix and six motos from a possible thirty-four were won. Townley and Ramon finished third and fourth in the Championship with the firm taking third place in the manufacturer’s standings. Townley was the first rider in the class to own four motos in succession (Italy and France).Tyla Rattray and David Philippaerts contributed towards KTM’s haul of six Grand Prix wins in MX2 (nine motos from thirty-four). Carl Nunn, Marc de Reuver, Aigar Leok and Manuel Monni also registered podiums as the firm was second in the constructors Championship.

Ben Townley:“I finally got a hole-shot in the second moto and built up a lead of about eight seconds. I don’t think that I went much slower, just that Stefan really picked up his speed. He had better lines than me, especially where he moved through. I pushed so hard but Stefan was just better. I was happy with my riding today. There were a lot of people on the last lap who were clapping me and it was great to see the crowd at the finish line like that. I have built up some great friendships here in Europe and I am going to miss everyone. I really hit me today that I am going.”

Tyla Rattray:“I worked really hard towards winning these last three GPs and I’m really happy to see that the work has paid off. Marc was quick to pass Alessi in the first heat and although I got into second after a while I did not have the same speed to follow Marc. The second moto was good. I took the lead and pulled out a big margin quite quickly. I think it was around fourteen seconds at one point. In the last five or ten minutes I was just cruising around. I am really happy to win today and I think my recent form shows that I could have been in the title chase for sure.”

Marc de Reuver:“The first moto was awesome. Alessi took the holeshot and for the first two laps he was quite quick. I waited for the right moment to pass and then waved at him that he had to come with me but he couldn’t! I won quite easily and was pumped for the second heat. I was aiming for the overall but struggled with Alessi on the start straight. Tyla and I caught up really quick but then I made a mistake like an amateur and crashed. It was in a bad place because I had to waste time turning around and starting the bike again when all the riders were flying past me. I came back to third which was OK but people couldn’t understand that I am disappointed with second; I really felt I was fast enough to win the GP.”

Aigar Leok:“My goal at the beginning of the season was to get into the top five but it went wrong for me pretty much from the first race. I had a good start in the second moto but Tyla was too fast. Switching to the 250 was hard for me in the beginning but it is great to finish the year like this and go into next season on a positive note.”

Mike Alessi:“The first moto was really good. I got the holeshot ahead of my team-mates De Reuver and Rattray and felt pretty comfortable. I got third and was pretty stoked with that. Somebody hit me off the gate in the second moto and at the end of the first lap I went down because someone stalled in front of me. I got up and was catching the people in front of me. A lot of guys went down and I moved up to fifth and was trying to pass Philippaerts for fourth and was on for the podium. On one of the 180 degree turns he was on the outside and I went up the inside and I passed him and then I don’t know what he was thinking but he pinned it right into the back of me and we both went down causing us both to lose the podium. There were two laps to go and there was nothing I could do after that, I was so far back. I thought the Grand Prix was pretty good; the riders are fast. I liked it a lot and enjoyed my time in Europe. I just need a break now. My body says that it is tired and this year has been a lot for a seventeen year old.”

Steve Ramon:“My start was not so good in the first moto and I pushed hard to come to the front but the leaders were already gone. I came up to the back of Pichon but I lost my rhythm slightly. The end result was not so bad. In the second race the start was better but my riding was not that great. I haven’t been feeling too well these last couple of days and the cold did not help. I kept at my own speed and did not take any risks. I followed Coppins and coming up to the last lap I knew a place where I could try to pass and it worked. Third was good but overall I wasn’t that pleased with my riding.”

Carl Nunn:“I knew it would be difficult today because of my bad qualification yesterday but I believed I could do it. I only needed nine points in the second race but I got the worst start ever and although Billy was right there with me I just didn’t have anything left to give after having to work so hard from a bad position in the first moto. I only gained two places in the first race but I rode as hard as I could and maybe should have backed off to save some energy. I felt pretty demoralised with that start in the second moto I thought, ‘I’ve got to come back all over again now’. I was riding terrible. I saw Mackenzie’s position was somewhere in the top ten and I thought that it would not be possible. It was one of the worst races of the year. I could not get a rhythm and was not doing the easy things correctly. I wasn’t getting the best out of the bike and was fighting myself. I eventually had a big crash out the back of the circuit and that was it. I finished eighth in the championship which was the same as last year and that is disappointing. I need to be making my bad days into top ten results instead of DNFs. I need more consistency for next year and that is something I shall be working on.”

Kenneth Gundersen:“It was not a good day. Yesterday was fine in practice but in the chrono I got a rock in my rear brake and went maybe 25 metres too far on one of the big jumps. The landing took both of my hands off the bars. Today I tried my best but it was really painful.”

Roger Magee - Team Lizard Honda - Interview by Geoff Meyer

2005-11-15T12:04:00.000Z

Roger Magee is a man who has been around motocross for many years. He is also one of the men who runs a privateer team (Lizard Honda) in the Grand Prix paddock. We thought it might be a good idea to find out how he ventured into the sport and what it takes to make a Grand Prix team run. With a strong Northern Irish background in the sport and with the Grand Prix of Ireland just two weeks away it was a good time to chat with the likable Magee.

Q: So how did you get into the sport?
A: We started off racing in 1973 along with Lawrence Spence, Stephen Russel and Dave Watson. That was when the schoolboy thing got going in Northern Ireland. My brother also raced for the Irish team in the Motocross of Nations in 1982. We have been involved in the sport since then.

Q: You also worked with the famous Killinchy club in Northern Ireland?
A: I was also involved with the Killinchy Motocross club of which I am currently the chairman. The Killinchy track ran from the 1960's and we had the International John Donnelly until 1985, then we had Grand Prix 125 until 86 to 91 and then in 1992 we had the 250cc GP. Because of the poor crowds run in some Grand Prix at that time Killinchy decided not to run another Grand Prix. The track is still there, there are some houses near the track, but the track is still there. The guy who owns it does not want to have any events on the circuit and I don't see another race being run there.

Q: It is expensive to run a motocross team, what type of work do you do?
A: Our main business is electrical and plant hire contractors. We cover a lot of street lighting and that type of thing. We also have a pub in Northern Ireland. My grandmother was the oldest licence in the whole of Ireland, she lived until one month after her 100th birthday. The pub is one mile from the oldest Motocross circuit in Ireland, which is the Tommy Stewart. The circuit has been running for 54 years, and we had riders like Dave Bickers, Roger Harvey, guys from the 1970's racing there. I think Willie (Shaun Simpson's dad) won our big race once. We are going to run the event on the 15th of October this year, and it's a typical old school type scrambles track.

Q: How did it come about signing Shaun Simpson?
A: I have known Willie (Shaun's father) from the old days, he rode for me when I was team manager of the Irish team in 1994 and 1995 when he rode with an Irish license. Although we didn't qualify for the main A final, Willie won the B final. I have been keeping in touch and watching Shaun's progress. I decided to start a team when the Chambers Honda team folded. I talked to Shaun at the Dublin Supercross and then got talking with Roger Harvey from Honda. We came to an agreement with Honda for some 250F's and we also support another rider Adam McKee, and Gary Magee. The team has snowballed. We bought the ex-RTT Honda truck, which is the set-up you need to do the Grand Prix. I got talking with Marc Pauwels from Youthstream about getting into the GP for 2006. Thanks to Youthstream for allowing us into the series, and after Namur Youthstream upgraded us, so I am very thankful for that.

Q: What about the future of the team?
A: Next year we are looking at running Shaun once again in the MX2 class and a top class rider for the MX1 class. We are having negotiation with some manufacturers, but we would like to stay with Honda.

Q: How has the first season been, have you enjoyed it?
A: It's been a learning curve really, we were late in, so we had to work hard to get sponsors. People like Street lighting have come in with some cash for diesel, which has been great. We are looking at a major sponsor for next year, and we will announce a big sponsor at the Grand Prix of Desert martin. It's been hectic, you don't spend much time at home. My wife and daughter are giving out flyers for the Grand Prix of Ireland today (at the Isle of Wight). My daughter has a quad and loves motocross. She has made a lot of friends in the paddock.

Q: How can you improve the team, or go to the next level?
A: To get to the next stage you need product support, and a major sponsor. Obviously we have put nearly all of it in this year, but if we are to do it better, then we need to have financial support. This year we also have support from SOBE (energy drink), we are the importer in Northern Ireland, and hopefully they will go bigger in 2006.

Shaun Simpson - Interview

2005-11-15T12:00:00.000Z

There are privateer riders who are working hard in this years World Motocross championships. Making little money and enjoying their charge through the ranks. Shaun Simpson is one of those riders who can see steady progress and has possibly a bright future in the sport. Being the son of former GP racer Willie Simpson is without a doubt an advantage as his father gives him advice from his days at the GP.

"First time I can remember, I think 1995 when there was a Grand Prix at BallyKelly I remember him riding a 500cc Maico, I was just a small kid playing around on my pushbike in the paddock. Later on when he was doing the Scottish championships in 1998/2000 I can remember those results and stuff. By then I was riding often during the week."
The father/son relationship can be a stressed affair, although Willie and Shaun work well together and make the most of their weekends away from home. It also helps that Simpson senior has been there before, having raced the Grand Prix series some 20 years ago.
"Dad has always been good help, giving me little tips and letting me know where I am going wrong. Most of the time we get on good, we stay in the truck together and do everything together, we are more like mate, sometimes we might fall out, but it does not last long, a few minutes later it's okay again."

Simpson was part meant to be part of the Chamber Honda team for the 2005 season, only to find out last in 2004 that the team would not compete in the World championship, leaving riders like Mark Hucklebridge, Chris Burnham and Simpson without a ride.
"At the beginning of the year I was going to ride for Chambers Honda. I was going to do just the British championships as a privateer. Then Roger(team manager of the Lizzard team)contacted us decided to just go full on with the Grands Prix. I broke my shoulder at the Hawkstone International, which set me back a bit. We missed Zolder, but did Spain and Portugal."

For Shaun it's been a life around Motocross and one he wants to continue in his own career. At youngster has the fighting qualities to make it in the sport, and like all young MX riders he is doing it the hard way, making his way through the last chance races and turning heads on the odd occasion.
"My first ever Grand Prix was Isle of Wight in 2004, I didn't qualify, but then I also did BallyKelly and I was second reserve. I also did South Africa and scored seven points. South Africa was mega, but it was an easy Grand Prix because some riders where not there. We went to Spain, got the call on Tuesday night that we were allowed into the GP. We trucked down there and it was a good experience. I was laying eight in my heat race and crashed out. I then went to the last chance and I was laying sixth for ages, but a couple of guys got me. I qualified for Portugal the next weekend, that boosted my confidence. We went to Namur and Germany and I qwalified for both of those. The next one I didn't qualify was Italy, it was so hard packed and the Italians and French guys were really quick."

The brightest moment of the season so far came at the Grand Prix of France, when Simpson held down a top three place for some laps, eventually finishing in 14th place for seven points.
"The highlight was in France I got a good start in the first moto, I was third. I thought I got an average start, but the first couple of corners I did a really good job and felt great. I felt good, France was good, a lot of lines and bumps and it was a little more technical, plus a little slower and technical. I like that, dad has always said train on hard tracks, with big bumps. When I ride tracks that are fast and one lined I struggled a little."

Time away from home means he is building his character and learning enough about the world and his place in it. Shaun Simpson is not about to sit back and wait for his future to come to him, instead working hard and looking for his time to shine. Making money from this years series is possible, although it's a hard grind.
"We have been away from home a lot this year. We train during the week, and this year has been really good. I have 14 points up to date, so I am happy with that. Bill Brown from Willsport helps me out with bonus points at the Grand Prix and stuff, that is kind of what we are doing this year. Roger has given us the chance to ride the Grands Prix, so we have to live it as it is."
Surpringly Simpson also like sand tracks, and is looking forward to racing Lierop this weekend and also his teams home Grand Prix in Ireland. Look out for him to make his mark on the series around the DesertMartin circuit.
"We have some sand tracks coming up and I want to end the season on a high, the sand it better for me, rough and bumpy. I want to prove myself as the season end and see what happens in 2006."
As the 2006 season comes around Simpson hopes to be challenging for series points and making the progress he needs if he is ever to reach his goal of becoming a World champion, like his hero's Joel Smets and Stefan Everts.

"Next year I want to qualify for all the Grand Prix and score points at every race. I want to be top 20 next year. In England I have been getting into the top five this year, so next year I want to be on the podium. Everyone wants to be world champion, so that is something I want, but you have to try as hard as you can, and if you make it great."