Dylan Ferrandis of Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki was in line for a podium finish at the British round of the FIM MX2 Motocross World Championship until one small crash spoilt his hopes.
The French teenager continues to grow in stature at the GPs and, despite a recent bout of sickness, battled all the way in the first moto at Matterley Basin near Winchester to finish a close fourth, narrowly headed by the eventual winner of the GP. A minor slip whilst racing in third place in the second moto cost Dylan a probable podium finish as he lost time restarting the bike and eventually finished fourteenth. Nevertheless his points haul on the day was sufficient to move back into the top ten in the championship standings.
Arnaud Tonus of CLS Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit made a satisfactory return to racing after a lengthy absence through injury. He only contested one moto but finished eighth to confirm that he is on course with his recovery programme.
Teammate Alessandro Lupino showed great speed during the practice sessions but found it difficult to carry the speed into racing. The Italian finished eighth in the first moto but was a retirement in the second race after holding sixth place in the early stages.
Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki Jason Clermont again showed good speed but crashes affected his results in both races and he had to be satisfied with one fifteenth place finish.
Dylan Ferrandis
“I had some good lap times on Saturday, and, even though I crashed with Charlier during the qualifying race and finished eleventh, I was confident for the GP. The track was rougher and better for the races, and, even though I was sick for a few days I did a good opening race; I had some arm pump but finished fourth, just behind Coldenhoff. My second start was again good and I was fighting for third position when I lost grip in a corner. The engine stalled and it took me some time to restart; after that it was difficult to find again the good rhythm. I have been battling for a top five result at the last few races, and I’m pleased with my progress.”
Arnaud Tonus
“I’m pretty happy with my comeback, even if I just did one race as I had some technical troubles just before the opening race. The feeling was not as great as during the training sessions, but that’s normal as we’re in a race and there’s always more stress. In the second race I had arm pump but still finished eighth. The track was pretty rough after the early showers and it was physically demanding. Everything went perfect for my first race with the team, and we’re all working already to prepare next season.”
Alessandro Lupino
“I had another difficult weekend, except for the free practice session and the warm up where I posted the fastest lap times. The track changed a lot through the weekend and we altered the settings of the bike several times before we found the right one for the second moto. I had a good rhythm and was racing for a top six result in this race, but we had a small problem and I had to stop. We learnt a lot this season, for sure it will help us for next year.”
Jason Clermont
“I got good results on Saturday, but Sunday was more difficult with a crash in the first race and a bad start in the second one. In the crash the bike was damaged and I had to retire, then in the second heat I crashed twice and finished fifteenth. For sure I was expecting better results; I had the speed to do well, but unfortunately it didn’t come together this weekend.”