For the second year in a row the incredible setting of Beto Carrero hosted a wet Grand Prix of Brazil and Monster Energy Yamaha’s Joel Roelants was able to take his factory YZ450FM to ninth position overall. 45,000 spectators filled the grandstands around one of the most impressive set-ups in the FIM Motocross World Championship and the raucous and passionate fans created a noisy and lively atmosphere for this seventh round of seventeen in the series.
The track itself was jumpy and tight and the poor weather – particularly through Saturday night – meant differing levels of grip. Some sections were slick and others muddy and rough.
Roelants was able to make a bright start in the top ten for the opening moto of 35 minutes and 2 laps distance but admitted his lack of peak race fitness prevented him from being able to attack at the pace of the leaders. He circulated on the fringes of the first group and sealed tenth place by the flag. The Belgian then took to the gate for the Superfinal with the start order determined by positions in the world championship standings. The last run for the format that mixes the top twenty of the MX1 and MX2 classes meant a busy sprint for Roelants. He fought hard in the final stages of the race to try and pass MX2 World Champion Jeffrey Herlings for thirteenth but ultimately had to follow the Dutchman across the line.
Back in France Steven Frossard had the pin removed from his fractured right foot and will now proceed with a recovery and fitness programme to try and be back on his Monster Energy YZ450FM as soon as possible. The FIM Motocross World Championship will now gather again for back-to-back events in France (Ernee) and Italy (Maggiora) starting June 9th.
Joel Roelants
“I actually managed to get one decent week of training done before this race, so finally things are moving in the right direction for me. My riding was OK today; not good, not bad and it still needs to get a lot better. At least I feel like I have made a small step with my speed and I’m happy about that but I need to be stronger in the first laps. In the coming weeks I just want to get some normality in my training because I feel like I have been playing catch-up all year, whether it is with small crashes, sickness or effects of a concussion. This season has been pretty bad for luck but I want to look ahead and focus forward now.”