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DESALLE VICTORIOUS IN LATVIAN DOUBLE MX1 PODIUM
The Grand Prix of Latvia at the Kegums circuit was memorable for providing Rockstar Teka Suzuki World MX1 with a double podium appearance and the second victory of the year for Clement Desalle.

The Belgian went 1-2 in the two motos for his overall success and was backed up by Steve Ramon in third position for an excellent ninth round of 15 in the FIM Motocross World Championship for the Belgian team.

Dry conditions throughout the weekend meant that the loose soil of Kegums revealed a hard terrain underneath and mixed a fast and relentless course with physically-draining bumps. Hot sunshine on Sunday further increased the demands of the two 35 minute and 2 lap motos.

After earning his second pole position in succession on Saturday, Desalle made an excellent comeback in the first moto: The Belgian was outside the top 10 on the first lap but fought the entire race to reach second place and then chase Evgeny Bobryshev, who he overtook with three laps of the 20 remaining. The chequered flag represented the second win of the season for the 21-year-old. In the second moto he again ran a sterling pace on the works RM-Z450WS and kept comfortably ahead of his team-mate and behind Tony Cairoli for second position. The result represented Desalle's fourth career triumph and second in Suzuki colours.

Steve Ramon felt an improvement in the arm infection that hampered his efforts seven days previously in Germany. The experienced Belgian was holding second place in the first moto until Desalle ploughed through and thereafter rode a solid race to finish third. A similar strong performance in the second sealed the former World Champion's second piece of silverware this season after his podium finish at round three in Holland.

Desalle maintains second place in the World Championship table and trimmed four points from Cairoli's lead with the gap now at 61. Ramon is fourth and 21 points from David Philippaerts.

Rockstar Teka Suzuki World MX1 now press onwards without respite as round 10 will take place next weekend at Uddevalla for the Grand Prix of Sweden.

Clement Desalle:
"I was close to winning here last year so I am glad I could do it this time. To take the GP is really good but I wanted to win that second moto as well but Antonio was too fast. I concentrated on my lines and did not want to make any mistake. The first moto win was good and I saw Bobryshev getting tired towards the end so I pushed hard and knew that I was taking seconds on him each lap. No crashes, my shoulder feels very strong and a lot of points; it was a good weekend."

Steve Ramon:
"It gives me a great feeling to be on the podium because I have been struggling with some injuries since Portugal and have been hardly riding during the week since then. The first moto was OK. The start was really good and Clement and Bobryshev were too fast to follow. My start was not great in the second race but I passed many riders and was feeling quicker and more comfortable. I came closer to Clement but then started to get a bit of pain in my hand and had to back off because I didn't want to take any risks."

ROCZEN RACES TO SECOND PLACE AT LATVIAN MX2
After his impressive moto victory at Teutschenthal in Germany last weekend, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2's Ken Roczen was so close to another win in a thrilling spectacle at the bumpy and shallow sand of Kegums for the Grand Prix of Latvia and the ninth round of 15 in the FIM Motocross World Championship.

Watched by 17,000 captivated spectators, the flamboyant Roczen was his usual fearless self across a rippled and physically difficult terrain and the RM-Z250 coped admirably. He pursued and overtook Jeffrey Herlings for second place in the first moto and then heroically sought the rear wheel of leader Marvin Musquin in the final two laps after closing down a sizeable gap. The duel, seen already between the two protagonists several times this season, ended with a division of seven-10ths-of-a-second; Roczen just unable to edge past the Frenchman.

The 16-year-old was part of a tense three-rider chase in the second moto with Steve Frossard and Herlings involving several place changes and the trio split by no more than two seconds for the entire race distance. Despite his best efforts to seize control from Herlings and snare the moto win that would have delivered his first overall success of the season, Roczen was ultimately undone by a mistake on the final lap before the wave section that cost him drive and bike lengths to the rear wheel of Frossard. His scorecard for the day was 2-3 for second overall and his sixth trophy of 2010.

Arnaud Tonus had a reasonable day with ninth overall. The Swiss endured a tough Saturday in which arm-pump and two small falls in the Qualification Heat did not increase his feeling of optimism. However he improved his performance and revised his strategy for the races: In the first moto a mediocre start did not help his progress but a charge through to the lower part of the top-10 was admirable until being scuppered on the last lap when an electrical problem ended his participation. Due to his close proximity to the chequered flag Tonus still picked up nine points for 12th. An excellent start near the top five in the second race delivered a positive 35 minutes and 2 laps and he placed eighth.

Roczen now stares at a 74 point gap to World Champion Musquin in the standings while Tonus is seventh and 10 points from sixth. Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2 now faces the Grand Prix of Sweden at the well-established and organised Uddevalla circuit next weekend.

Ken Roczen:
"I don't think the track was as good as last year's because it was so difficult. In the first moto I came back strong on Marvin's rear wheel and tried as hard as I could to win. I made a mistake by not looking at the pit-board and wasn't really aware of how much time I had left. I was quite pleased with second however and was confident going into the second moto. We had a really good race together. There were some parts of the track where I did not have the right lines and I made a mistake before the waves so Steven came past me. I didn't win but I am keeping my head up for next weekend."

Arnaud Tonus:
"I had two consistent races. The start was bad in the first moto so I had to push hard in the beginning and then got a bit tired in the middle but fought with Paulin at the end until the bike stopped. It was quite weird to still take 12th and nine points! In the second race I think I had my best start of the year! I passed a few riders but mainly rode safe and wanted to not make any mistakes because the conditions were hard for everyone; there were some really sharp bumps out there and the track was a mix of hardpack and sand so it was hard to judge a good rhythm and keep it."


KTM RACING

KTM's youngster Herlings cracks second MX2 GP victory in Latvia
Jeffrey Herlings the 15-year-old "wunderkind" of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team broke his recent run of bad luck Sunday in winning style in Kegums Latvia to deliver a brilliant 3-1 moto result to take his second GP career victory in a style fitting of a champion.

But while Herlings was the hero of the circuit, especially in the second moto, which was anyone's race until the last seconds, team-mate Marvin Musquin finished a solid fourth with a 1-7 result and retains his stranglehold on the red number plate as the championship leader with a massive 74 points advantage. Factory team-mate Shaun Simpson was tenth.
 
Herlings was fast out of the start gates and with a maturity beyond his years, successfully fended off vicious attacks by both rival Ken Roczen and Frenchman Steven Frossard. The young Dutchman rode a tight and clever line on the tricky course that was part deep sandy burns and part hard surface and hung to deliver a thrilling finish that had the Latvian crowd on their feet.
 
Jeffrey Herlings: I'm really satisfied with my weekend. I've had my ups and downs this season. I started really good in the first five rounds then I had three bad rounds so it felt awesome to be back on top again. This was my second GP win. In the first heat I was in the lead after two corners and then I got passed by Marvin and Ken (Roczen) and I finished third. Then I took the holeshot in the second and I had a long fight with Steven (Frossard) but I fought hard and I was able to win the moto and the GP."
 
Musquin, with his usual elegant and winning style was untouchable in the first moto but fell on the first corner in the second. He then found himself dead last trailing the 27-man field and systematically picked off his opponents top finish a very creditable seventh.
 
Marvin Musquin when asked about the second moto said: "I crashed on the first corner. They had put a lot of water on the track so I crashed and stopped my bike. I was very angry but I made a good and strong comeback to finish seventh. This week I lost just three points in the championship so now I need to be very focused and try to be on the podium every weekend. I think Sweden is a good track but not so easy but like all races, I will do my best."
 
Did not gel with the track, Simpson says
Shaun Simpson said he had walked the track and had a positive impression before the race. "It looked cool,” he said. “It had nice jumps and was quite different to what we're just to. But when we started to ride it was clear there was some fast and slippery in parts. I tried many different lines but somehow I just didn't gel with the track."
  
Cairoli blasts to victory in second moto to finish 2nd overall in Latvia MX1 GP
Red Bull KTM factor rider and championship leader Tony Cairoli may have been hemmed in during the first MX1 moto at Kegums in the Latvian GP on Sunday but he certainly made up for it in the second. Cairoli rounded off his day with a 4-1 result on the sandy track and overall second place in the GP.

The Italian maestro was a close second behind holeshotter and factory team-mate Max Nagl going into the first corner in the second moto but he snatched the lead before completion of the first lap and never looked threatened from that point onwards. When Tony whipped his 350 SX-F through the finish line of the second moto he was 13.4 seconds ahead of second placed Clement Desalle, who had won the first moto and emerged as the GP winner. Cairoli continues to have his hands on the red plate as championship leader and is 61 points ahead of his closes rival.
 
Tony Cairoli: “I had problems in the first moto because I lost a lot of time trying to get past Philippaerts and I only managed fourth. So I wanted to win the second moto and to show my speed and be aggressive right from the beginning. That worked and I won and was second overall."
 
Tough guy Max
Nagl's brilliant holeshot in the second moto was another positive sign for the German rider currently hampered by a cracked collarbone and is only riding because surgeons have been able to secure it with a titanium plate and screws. Just one week after his crash, Nagl rode in the German GP and still far from healed, tackled the Latvian GP today. He finished with a 7-7 result for good championship points and is currently fifth in the standings, just one point shy of fourth place. Max, only able to ride with the help of pain killing injections, is still in the running for a good place overall and now only has to manage to pick up some more points in Udevalla, Sweden next weekend then can rest and heal his shoulder during the mid season break.  On Sunday he drew praise from KTM racing official Heinz Kinigadner who said between the two motos: "If Max makes good points again this weekend like he did in Germany, we are happy for him. He's a REALLY tough guy!"
 
Nagl still on pain killing injections
Nagl however was not very satisfied with his racing as it was not quite as good as last week in Germany. He said that the injections for the pain were giving him stomach pains and other side effects and he hopes to be able to just use regular pain killing tablets next week in Sweden. "It was better for me in the second heat," he said. "I got the holeshot and I led the race for four laps but them I got tired because I haven't been able to train. I hope to be able to train once this week so my rhythm will be better next week. I like Sweden and I won ther last year so I have good memories of going there!"
 
Rui Gonçalves, the third Red Bull KTM factory rider also had his best result for the current season after missing the first two GPs and working himself back into the competition after major shoulder surgery. The Portuguese rider finished overall tenth.
 
Rui Gonçalves: It was my best race so far this season after my injury. I had two good motos and managed to finish in the top 10. This makes me happy and more motivated to keep improving. I had consistent lap times in the second moto and I'm getting better every week. Now I am looking forward to go to Sweden.


HONDA RACING
Crowd:  17,000 (weekend figure)
Weather:
Saturday – Bright, clouds 22C
Sunday – Sunny 17C

Bobryshev fantastic for 4th in Latvia

The ninth event from fifteen in the FIM Motocross World Championship took place at the Kegums circuit for the Grand Prix of Latvia, and while Clement Desalle celebrated his second victory of the season, Honda were best represented in the premier MX1 class by the vibrant Evgeny Bobryshev who finished fourth overall on his CRF450R and tied on points for the podium.

A total of 17,000 spectators crowded a fast, sandy and bumpy circuit through the weekend with sunny and fresh conditions on Sunday creating two physical 35 minute and 2 lap motos for the riders. CAS Honda’s Bobryshev led a Grand Prix for the second time this season (and in his career) as he leapt away from the pack to front the first moto until three laps from the end. The Russian was overhauled by Desalle but still achieved a small career landmark with second place and his first top three finish. In the following sprint ‘Boby’ didn’t have such a positive start but made his way to same tally as Steve Ramon but he missed the third step of the rostrum due to the ranking of Moto2.

Eighth in the final classification was Tanel Leok; competing in front of a sizeable partisan support from nearby Estonia. The Catalan Grand Prix winner rode two steady races from lacklustre starts for ninth and eighth. His LS Motors Honda team-mate Davide Guarneri was ninth in the MX1 competition and although he confessed the track was not his preferred surface did make some trouble inside the top ten for eighth and 10th.

Bobryshev’s team-mate Gareth Swanepoel recovered from a very poor start in the first moto to rescue 15th while the South African managed 12th later in the day (despite a late engine stall) for 13th by the end of the GP. Martin Honda’s Jimmy Albertson was a little unlucky to walk away with only a final placing of 15th. The American made an excellent launch from the gate in the first moto and ran as high as third for the opening stages. Lacking full race fitness the recently-turned 22 year old took 12th but did not finish the second race due to a mechanical problem.

In the world championship standings Leok heads Bobryshev and Guarneri, in eighth, ninth and 10th respectively and split by 18 points. Swanepoel is 13th and Albertson 17th even though the latter has missed three Grands Prix.

The tenth round of the world championship will take place at Uddevalla next weekend with the Grand Prix of Sweden and the last race before a three week summer break in July.

Evgeny Bobryshev, CAS Honda:
“It was an awesome day, and yesterday also actually, so a good weekend! In the second race I did not have such a good start and the track was becoming really bumpy and it was difficult to push. I was so close to the podium but I am really happy anyway. It was so nice to be leading in the first race! I was so clean and didn’t even have to clean my goggles. I have always said to myself that I can get these results; I just needed the starts and the right feeling on the track. On sandy tracks when it gets bumpy then it gets slower but here the speed did not drop and the bumps were sharp so it was difficult. I had a few sketchy moments and you really had to hold onto the bars and use energy. I will keep training and training and try to get on that podium.”

Tanel Leok, LS Motors Honda:
“It was OK today. I had a bad starts but that was because of a difficult time on Saturday and I was in a low position on the gate. It was always going to be tough from there. The races were good and my riding was strong so I’m happy for that. If anything it was hard to come through so many riders at the beginning of the motos but I pushed all the way to the end so I have a positive feeling about this GP even if the result is not spectacular.”

Davide Guarneri, LS Motors Honda:
“I knew this was going to be a hard race for me because this is a tough track but I am quite happy with the result even if for the championship it did not turn out well because Bobryshev was so quick and took a lot of points. My speed was OK even if I could not push as much as I wanted to. Our target at the beginning of the year was to get inside the top twelve and now I am tenth. Everything can still happen and we are close to 9th and 8th in the series.”

Gareth Swanepoel, CAS Honda:
“In the first race I got a terrible start and it was tough to come back from that. I came through to 15th and it was a mediocre result and ride. The second race was a lot better, including the start and I could go with the guys a lot sooner than I have been in the past. It went well. I was in a relatively safe 10th and pushing hard when I stalled the bike with two laps to go, which was really frustrating because my speed was such an improvement over earlier.”

Jimmy Albertson, Martin Honda:
“I feel a bit disappointed because my starts were good and I was hanging it out there but knew I didn’t have the condition to go with those guys and lost a few too many places in the first moto for my liking. The second was going OK but we had a problem with the bike. Overall I feel I am coming back to something like the level I want to be. It was good to be up there in the first moto and I will take some confidence from that.”

Roger Harvey, Off-road Manager, Honda Motor Europe:
“What a great ride from Boby and so pleasing to see him perform like that. It was a shame he could not hang on for the win but his tactics were spot on twice because he put in the early pace to breakaway then assessed the situation when Desalle arrived and decided to go for a safe podium. Tanel had some eyes on him this weekend and rode well even if he was missing a bit on the starts but at least he had better luck. I’d also like to comment on the progress from Jimmy Albertson, who is clearly not yet 100% but really tried hard today.”


SHAUN SIMPSON
Simpson Below Par in Latvia

Red Bull KTM factory rider Shaun Simpson had disappointing trip to Eastern Europe, finishing the Grand Prix of Latvia in tenth position overall. The Scotsman admitted to riding “below par” in both races. Fortunately, however, the result did not alter his championship position, as fifth-placed Zach Osborne failed to finish moto one. Shaun is now three points behind the American in sixth place with six rounds to go.

Despite liking the sand track, which is situated in picturesque countryside in the centre of Latvia, Shaun struggled to get to grips with both his bike and the slick surface. The first sign of what the weekend had in store for him came on Saturday, when he could not find his rhythm and slipped back to twelfth position in what proved a forgettable heat race.

“It was important to get a good result in the heat race because the start straight narrowed into a tight hairpin,” said Shaun. “I knew that if I did not get a good gate pick I would be up against it all weekend. Unless you go into the first turn in the top three you are always going to find it hard to make up the ground. Sadly I did not ride well enough in the heat race and I just did not feel loose. I finished twelfth, which I knew would make things tricky.”

Although his gate position would not make things particularly easy Shaun approached Sunday as he does all GPs: with confidence. Aware that he could improve his bike’s setup he made a number of changes to the suspension before the morning warm-up. However, these changes failed to instil a sense of comfort and once again Shaun found it difficult to relax and find a degree of consistency.

The warm-up over, Shaun resorted back to the ‘safe’ suspension settings that had seen him well six weeks ago in Spain and Portugal. But it was perhaps too little to late; the changes unsettling the Scot and forcing him to start the first moto not knowing whether he had found a good compromise or not.

The first race was reasonably uneventful. Shaun got an average jump out of that gate and rounded turn one in the top five. In what was to become the theme of his weekend, though, he failed to gel with his bike and the flow of the relatively flat track, slipping back a few places to finish eighth.

Not one to dwell on a poor performance Shaun dusted himself down and went to the line for the second moto ready to make amends. A bad start, though, saw him behind his team-mate, championship leader Marvin Musquin, going into the first turn. When Marvin misjudged the heavily watered hairpin and went down it forced Shaun wide, and from that moment on it was always going to be an uphill struggle for the twenty-two-year-old.

“It was a bad weekend for me and naturally I am feeling really disappointed,” said Shaun. “I like the track here in Latvia and the setting is beautiful. I actually came here hoping for a good result but I found it difficult to get into any sort of rhythm. The track was fast and slippery in parts, and I just did not get my bike set up correctly for the conditions. It was my fault. I tried a few different settings but in the end I just could not get dialled in. At no point over the weekend did I feel relaxed and comfortable. I rode tense, and it shows in my results.

“I think I just need to forget about this weekend and look to the future now,” continued Shaun. “We leave Latvia and head straight to Sweden for the Grand Prix next weekend. We will be travelling for a day or two so I will use that time to analyse my performance before striking it from my memory and concentrating on the race in Sweden. There is nothing I can do about it now so it is pointless dwelling on a bad result. I like Sweden and I have had some good results there in the past, so I will travel there in a positive mood and hope to put the memories of Latvia firmly behind me.”


YAMAHA RACING

Philippaerts 6th at Latvian Grand Prix
A hot and hard Grand Prix of Latvia at the Kegums circuit, flanked by a 17,000 attendance, saw Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross Team's David Philippaerts score 5th and 6th positions for 6th overall at the ninth round of fifteen in the 2010 FIM MX-GP World Championship. The Italian is currently 3rd in the MX1-GP standings. Winner last week at Teutschenthal, Ken De Dycker took his Yamaha Monster Energy Ricci MX team YZ450FM to 12th overall and was uncomfortable in the races after tweaking his back in Saturday's Qualification Heat.

The racing at Kegums took place on a fine and powdery surface with a shifting terrain and loose berms on top of a hard base; creating a curious mix of sand and hard-pack. It was a tough course physically, simply through the demands of the pointed bumps combined with the fast speed and hefty jumps and waves sections.

Philippaerts, who had fully recovered from the effects of a cold that had left him weakened in Germany last weekend, rode hard and fought closely with Tony Cairoli for 4th in the first moto, eventually crossing the finish line in 5th. In a static second race he circulated too far from the rear wheel of Xavier Boog but far enough ahead of Max Nagl to set a comfortable rhythm.

De Dycker, so aggressive, attacking and pro-active at Teutschenthal where he picked up his first win of the season and the second for the YZ450FM had to unveil the same spirit in the first moto after a slip on the opening turn left him last. The Belgian determinedly worked his way up to 10th place. A sore back through a mistimed jump on Saturday counted against him in the second race and after another average start he completed the race distance with 14th spot.

The world championship standing is headed by Tony Cairoli, holding a 61 advantage over Clement Desalle and 86 from Philippaerts. De Dycker is 6th and 29 points from the first three.

Yamaha Monster Energy MX Teams will catch the ferry north in the coming days to land in Sweden and head to the Uddevalla circuit for the tenth round of the series next weekend. A three week break will follow in July before the final third of the campaign will take place with races in Belgium, Czech Republic, Brazil, Holland and Italy.

David Philippaerts, Yamaha Monster Energy MX Team, 6th:
"It was a difficult day and I did not like the track. There were many jumps with soft take-offs and landings. To finish fifth and sixth is pretty good because this was a bad GP for me last year so I am happy overall. My riding was good; I was slower than some other riders today but the position was OK. Now I will relax and do a bit of practice for Sweden. Uddevalla is a good circuit for me and I expect to be able to attack more there and go for more points."

Ken De Dycker, Yamaha Monster Energy Ricci MX Team, 12th:
"Yesterday in qualifying I came up short on a jump and hurt my back. It wasn't too bad in the first moto but I really felt it in the second race. I had pain and couldn't hold on anymore. I made a mistake in the first moto and the front wheel just slid away after that it was a difficult race but it went OK. There were a lot of small bumps out there but there was grip on the track and it was good."

Paulin 5th at Kegums for Latvian GP
Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross Team's Gautier Paulin registered a 5th position finish overall at Kegums for the Grand Prix of Latvia, attended by 17,000 spectators for the ninth outing of fifteen in the FIM Motocross World Championship. The talented Frenchman was the highest-ranked 2010 YZ250FM rider from three Yamaha machines in the top ten of the MX2-GP class.

The loose terrain - almost sandy and constantly shifting and churning into new bumps and ruts - presented a hard and physical outing for the riders and although the sunshine brought high temperatures, a breeze and relatively low humidity offered some relief.

Despite less than ideal starts that saw him mid-pack in both motos, Paulin marked some decent speed in the tricky conditions. He diligently rose from 15th to 7th in the first race and needed a few circulations to overtake Jake Nicholls and Joel Roelants at the beginning of the second to then lap alone in 4th.

In 7th overall for one of his best results of the season was a reinvigorated Harri Kullas who guided his Yamaha Monster Energy Gariboldi YZ250F to 6th and 12th; a brilliant start in the top four in the first moto helping the Finnish teenager to equal a personal best race result. Just behind him in the ranking was Christophe Charlier who rode quickly and sensibly in the wake of several crashes on Saturday. The Frenchman, and European Champion, was 10th and 9th in what was a good Grand Prix for the Italian squad new to the Grand Prix paddock in 2010.

Bike it Cosworth Yamaha's Zach Osborne could not stretch his decent run of form to four consecutive podiums. The American crashed on the first corner of the first moto and damaged his silencer. He entered the pits shortly after and fitted a new exhaust but lost almost two laps and was too far adrift of the rear of the field. In the second race he built up his speed slowly and attacked Roelants on the last lap to obtain 5th place (13th overall despite the DNF).

Osborne is the highest-ranked MX2 rider in the current world championship standings with 5th and trails Jeffrey Herlings by 37 points. Kullas is 10th and Charlier 12th - both riders in their rookie GP campaigns - while Paulin has dragged himself up to 13th although missed the first four events.

Round ten starts the final third of the 2010 FIM MX-GP World Championship next week at Uddevalla for the Grand Prix of Sweden.

Gautier Paulin, Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross Team, 5th:
"My best lap-time of the second moto was 0.8 away from the leaders so I know I have the pace. I lost too much time behind Roelants and Nicholls in the second moto so the first three had gone by the time I got into fourth. The track was so difficult and technical and for my style of riding it was physically very tough because you had to be so precise. My concentration, speed and physical condition was good and normally I ride very well on this kind of track but I need to improve my starts and then I will live with the leaders for sure and be going for the podium. I have been training hard to come back to the feeling I know on the bike and I am confident. I will have some rest this week and have a play on the bike to come to Sweden determined to get good results."

Harri Kullas, Yamaha Monster Energy Gariboldi, 7th:
"I am happy about this weekend because for the last few GPs I have not had much luck. In one month I had two small concussions! In the first race I had a good start and was third in the beginning. I pushed to see what I could do and had a good battle with Roelants for fourth but he was just a bit too fast. I finished sixth by the end and that was OK for me. In the second moto I was in the top ten again but I wasn't so sharp on the first lap and dropped a few places. I worked on getting my rhythm together and overtook a few people including Simpson on the last lap. Seventh overall is a good result but the second race could have been better."

Christophe Charlier, Yamaha Monster Energy Gariboldi, 8th:
"I was pushed out on the first corner of the first moto and I almost crashed. I had already gone down a few times on Saturday so I wanted to be more careful but I pushed back anyway and had some pain in my back and my arm. The second race was pretty good and I felt like my speed was decent. I had to calm down a bit after Saturday and after some bad luck recently I think this was a step in the right direction."

Zach Osborne, Bike it Cosworth Yamaha, 13th:
"The crash was my fault. I shouldn't have been in that position and someone ran over the back of the bike and broke the pipe. I stopped in the pit thinking that I could get back out and run on the track with the leaders because when people see them coming they tend to move over and that would have helped win positions but it took a bit longer to change the pipe than we thought and it would have been impossible to get near the points. It seemed pointless to grind out a race on an already difficult track. The second moto was decent. It took me a few laps to get going because I hadn't had a chance to set my pace in the first race. After twenty minutes or so I felt quite comfortable and confident and made some passes. I was not podium material this weekend and I can accept that and go on to next weekend and try to do a bit better. Sweden is a new track but I am keen to do well there."


KAWASAKI RACING

Boog again top five
Xavier Boog, the lone Kawasaki Racing Team MX1 GP rider at this weekend’s Latvian GP, continued his fine rookie season with another top five finish.

In both races the Frenchman initially took time to settle into his best rhythm on the demanding track, but, the true professional that he is, he stuck doggedly to the task and was able to regain most of the lost ground before the finish of the races.

He was rewarded for his persistence with fifth overall in the Grand Prix after crossing the line sixth and fifth in the two races and he is now even more firmly established amongst the series top seven. Xavier retains his ranking as top rookie and has also gained points on the riders immediately ahead of him in the championship; he is now just 21 points from sixth in the series with six GPs remaining.

Xavier Boog: “I couldn’t find the lines during yesterday’s qualifying race and consequently found it difficult to make passes, but in some ways it was a good preparation for today as it made me think about the solution. I actually got a good start in the first race in fifth position but I couldn’t find a good rhythm in the waves section on the first lap and dropped back to eighth. The track was pretty rough and the riders in front of me were all amongst the fastest riders in the class so it was not easy to pass, but I managed to move forward to sixth by the finish of the race. I got a really good start in the second race, but again I lost a few places in the first couple of laps. But I passed Philippaerts and Nagl to finish fifth. I couldn’t fight for the podium this week, but I learnt a lot and had two consistent races. This was my fifth weekend of racing in a row, and I am looking forward to tasking some rest after the Swedish GP and a French Elite championship race.”

Another podium for Frossard
With his fifth podium of the season Steven Frossard of Kawasaki Team CLS has moved closer to the pacesetter in the FIM World MX2 Championship.

Both the Frenchman and his Belgian team colleague Jeremy Van Horebeek had shown on Saturday that they were at home on the rough demanding Kegums track in the Baltic state of Latvia as they qualified second and fourth, and both riders anticipated a successful GP.

Frossard used his good grid position to advantage in the opening race to quickly establish himself in a four-man breakaway at the head of the pack, but stomach pains forced him to ease his pace in the later stages of the race whilst comfortably retaining his 4th position. More determined than ever to show his skills and speed in race two, the Frenchman came out with all guns firing and, after a second place start, moved into the lead on lap two and looked a probable winner until a couple of mistakes at the 25 minute stage dropped him temporarily to third. Regrouping quickly, he swept back to second place on the penultimate lap and came desperately close to victory, actually getting alongside the leader before he bobbled and had to settle for second place. But this secured his fifth podium in nine GPs so far this season and saw him close fractionally on the series leader whilst retaining third position in the standings.

Van Horebeek, who has been getting closer to his first podium of the season in recent weeks, suffered a setback when he got tangled up with other riders at the first turn and had to fight back from mid-pack. Quickly pushing forward to seventh from 12th on lap one, the Belgian had his sights on the top six until a heavy crash ten minutes from the end of the race left him with a painful neck and he was taken to the local hospital for examination. No broken bones were found, but severe internal bruising gives cause for concern and he will wear a support collar and undergo further examination on his return to Belgium this week before a decision can be made about his immediate return to racing.

American teenager Michael Leib of Kawasaki Bud Racing again faced a new challenge in Latvia, having never raced such a rugged track during his previous career, but he came through with flying colours after the inevitable initial difficulties coming to terms with the track. A mid-pack qualification gave him little chance of a good start and an early fall left him trailing the field, but, rejoining the race behind the leaders in a position where he was not inhibiting other points chasers, he quickly established a good rhythm with lap times comparable to the top ten. This put him in good stead for race two when he quickly advanced into the top ten, only losing a place to series leader Musquin in the closing stages of the race, to confirm his promise.

Steven Frossard: “My second place in yesterday’s qualification race gave me a good basis for today’s GP, but I suffered with stomach pains in the first race. I was never far from the lead during the first half of the race, but I had to let the first three go in the end. Fortunately I was able to conserve some energy for the second moto and, after starting second, I passed Herlings for the lead on the second lap and could open up a small gap. I started to make a few mistakes after twenty five minutes and both Herlings and Roczen passed me, but I told myself I wasn’t going to let myself get beaten by two teenagers. I wanted at least a podium and in the last three laps I gave it all I could; I passed Roczen and nearly caught Herlings, but one small mistake cost me the win. Still I’m pleased to be on the podium again. I really enjoyed the second race; I was having fun on the bike and I’m already focused for Sweden next weekend and the rest of the series.”

Jeremy Van Horebeek: “I was optimistic for the race after qualifying fourth yesterday, but there was a lot of confusion at the first corner which left me down in 15th place. I fought back to seventh by mid-race, but with ten minutes to go I crashed pretty hard and that was the end of my weekend. I had pain in my neck and went to the hospital for a check-up; they couldn’t see any breaks but there is a hematoma so I will need to have further examinations when I get back to Belgium this week. It is painful and I am wearing a brace for security at the moment.”

Michael Leib: “This track was a whole new experience for me. I never raced anything like it before and I struggled at first, but we got it figured out by race day. Unfortunately I got a poor start in the first race and then fell over, but my second start was better and I could battle for a top ten result. I just missed out on that when Musquin passed me in the last ten minutes; that was a little frustrating, but he is the champion and is on another level at the moment. But we’ll keep working hard and hopefully by the end of the season I will be where I want to be.”


Bike it Cosworth Yamaha
Exhaust misfortune for Osborne in Latvia

The USA’s top representative in the FIM Motocross World Championship, Zach Osborne, could not extend his impressive run of podium results and finished just one of the two motos through the fine, fast and bumpy soil of the pacey Kegums circuit for the Grand Prix of Latvia and the ninth round of fifteen in the series.

The 20-year-old, riding for the British Bike it Cosworth Yamaha team, could not pick up a fourth trophy or improve on his 5th place in the world championship standings after a fall on the first corner of the first race saw another bike clatter the rear of his YZ250F and damage the exhaust silencer. After a few valiant laps trying to regain ground he pitted for a change but reappeared on the track far behind the field and with slim possibilities to reach a points-scoring slot. The team opted to withdraw the rider with a view to a strong assault in the second affair.

The next race in hot and demanding riding conditions saw the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix winner in something like normal form as he started brightly and began a race-long plight to reach the top five; a feat he managed on the final lap by pushing past Joel Roelants. Osborne placed 13th in the final classification.

“I fell over. It was my fault and I shouldn’t have been in that position and in the chaos of the first corner,” he recounted. “Someone ran over the back of the bike and broke the pipe. I stopped in the pit thinking that I could get back out and run on the track with the leaders because when people see them coming they tend to move over and that would have helped win positions but it took a bit longer to change the pipe than we thought and it would have been impossible to get near the points. It seemed pointless to grind out a race on an already difficult track.”

“The second moto was decent,” he continued. “It took me a few laps to get going because I hadn’t had a chance to set my pace in the first race. After twenty minutes or so I felt quite comfortable and confident and made some passes. I had some help from Mel on the last lap to pass Roelants for fifth and I was happy with the result.”

“I was not podium material this weekend and I can accept that and go on to next weekend and try to do a bit better. Sweden is a new track but I am keen to do well there just as much for Kenneth who has helped me so much over the last year. I want to keep the momentum going of contending for podiums.”


LS MOTORS-HONDA
Tanel Leok claims eighth in his ‘home’ Grand Prix

The penultimate round of the fifteen-round FIM Motocross World Championship before the summer break took place at the impressive Kegums track. For LS Motors-Honda star Tanel Leok the GP of Latvia is the closest to a home GP and their was no lack of fan support this weekend for the Estonian Express! The sun-kissed Kegums track, south of Riga, presented the GP riders with a rough, sandy and challenging test. Both Davide Guarneri and Tanel Leok had disappointing starts in Saturday’s qualification heat but they retaliated to respectively take tenth and fourteenth position on the gate for the races.

With its long and wide layout the Kegums track is perfectly suited for spectacular racing and that is exactly what was on offer on Sunday. Unfortunately Davide and Tanel had to bounce back from midfield starts to make their way up. After three laps Guarneri circulated in tenth with team-mate Leok in eleventh. Both of them made steady progress to finish eighth and ninth in a very closed match field. The difference between Tanel and fifth placed David Philippaerts was only just over 10 seconds!

In the second moto the pace was once again frantic, but again the final results of Leok and Guarneri were hampered by their  starts. This time around Leok was the best of the LS Motors-Honda pairing steering his CRF 450R to eighth. The 12-second gap to fourth-placed Bobryshev was another confirmation of the close racing taking place in the Baltic Grand Prix where the Belgian team took its historical first MX1 moto win one year ago. Fittingly Clément Desalle now went on to win the event altogether.

Tanel Leok (8th overall)
“I felt happy with my physical condition and my pace throughout the race but I keep having trouble with my starts. I seem to keep getting unlucky with little things. If I can get the start then I know I have the pace to run at the front.”

Davide Guarneri (9th overall)
“It was a hard race for me, the track was really rough and I struggled a bit with the sand. Top 10 is good though, even though it could be better. I am happy with my consistent top 10 finishes in recent Grand Prix. But want to start turning them into top fives. I am always looking for improvement.”


TANEL LEOK
LEOK EIGHTH IN LATVIAN GP

If Tanel Leok were a Chinese betting man, he would surely have had a flutter after the Latvian GP. The 2009 world number 8 certainly took a stab at the infinity number, finishing 8th in the last race, 8th overall and 8th in the world standings. With the lucky eight featuring so prominently, it would be no wonder if our fictitious Oriental punter would have thought that his lucky number was up.

As we reported before, the Latvian round of the motocross world championships is as close as it gets to a home GP for the Estonian. With his native Estonia bordering Latvia, the usual horde of vocal and very visible Estonian fans poured across the border to support their country's foremost sportsman, blue-black-white flag held high. The qualifying proceedings didn't give the fans much cause for cheer, however. Tanel crashed at the start and had to pull one of his signature comeback rides out of the bag. He did enough to qualify in fifteenth position, and the fans repaired to the party tent and headed for the refreshment stands to seek solace.

The points are handed out on Sunday, though, not during qualifying. Tanel's start in the first race was again not the stuff of legend, and he slotted into 12th spot. Although the track is half sandy, the searing sun had baked it semi-hard, and the pace was laser-beam fast. Making headway was difficult, but Tanel gained a few places to move into the top 10. A fierce three way Honda tussle developed between Tanel, team-mate Davide Guarneri and American Jimmy Albertson, and this helped pull Tanel to ninth place.

The start in race two delivered much the same result as the first, and Tanel had to pull the embers from the fire from thirteenth position. There was a distinctly determined air about the Estonian Express, and he again moved forward with some authority. A few of the class heavyweights had to yield to his assaults, and the Estonian throng roared their approval from the banks. Although he would have wished more in front of his home fans, the eighth place finish represented a hard day's work for the LS motors rider.

“I felt happy with my physical condition and my pace throughout the race but I keep having trouble with my starts. I seem to keep getting unlucky with little things. If I can get the start then I know I have the pace to run at the front.”

Tanel heads home for a few days' worth of rest and recuperation in his home village of Somerpalu. In Leok language that means participating in the midweek Somerpalu race which has become the stuff of legend amongst the GP crowd and draws Estonian fans in numbers. Thereafter he will head for Sweden for the next GP at Uddevalla.


STEVE RAMON
Ramon on the Podium in Latvia

Following a tough German GP last week that was hampered by an arm injury, Steve Ramon headed to Kegums in Latvia feeling physically stronger and ready to race the 9th MX1 Grand Prix of the season. The riders were greeted by warm weather and a very rough circuit that made for challenging racing conditions.

In the opening moto on Sunday the ‘Bomb’ was super quick out the gate and was neck and neck with Bobryshev heading around the first lap. Settling into a good rhythm Ramon sat in a solid 2nd position until team mate Desalle got past on lap 9, leaving Ramon in 3rd place where he finished the moto, 9 seconds ahead of Cairoli in 4th.

In the second moto the number 11 machine of Ramon didn’t get the best start however the ‘Bomb’ wasted no time in getting through into the top 4 by the end of the opening lap. With Nagl just ahead in 3rd place, Ramon turned up the pace further and within a few laps had dispatched the KTM, as he then set chase on team mate Desalle. With around 15 minutes to go the ‘Bomb’ was posting very fast and consistent lap times that drew him closer to Desalle, but in the end Ramon was not able to get into striking distance and ultimately crossed the line in 3rd. Two solid results awarded the Belgian his 2nd podium of the season and bumped him up to 4th in the overall MX1 standings.

“It gives me a great feeling to be on the podium because I have been struggling with some injuries since Portugal and have been hardly riding during the week since then. The first moto was OK. The start was really good and Clement and Bobryshev were too fast to follow. My start was not great in the second race but I passed many riders and was feeling quicker and more comfortable. I came closer to Clement but then started to get a bit of pain in my hand and had to back off because I didn't want to take any risks," commented Ramon.


JEREMY VAN HOREBEEK
Van Horebeek suffers setback in Latvia

CLS Kawasaki Racer, Jeremy Van Horebeek has suffered a setback  in his 2010 MX2 GP campaign after a crash in the first moto of the Latvian GP held in Kegums over the weekend.

‘The Jerre’  qualified fourth in the Saturday qualification race and looked set to back up his podium finish in last week’s German GP however  as the gate dropped for the first MX2 moto on Sunday, Van Horebeek was caught up in a first turn tangle.  He was down in mid pack but quickly fought into the top ten and was making great progress. With ten minutes left on the clock Van Horebeek took a heavy tumble and was taken to hospital with a suspected neck injury.

On further examination no broken bones were diagnosed however due to swelling Van Horebeek will return to Belgium for further scans and another medical opinion. Only then will a decision be made whether the 20-year-old can take part in round 10 next week in Sweden.


KARRO BACK IN THE POINTS AT HOME GP
by Tinus Nel

It was a redemption of sorts. Not perfect, mind, but enough to lift the gloom that was threatening to envelop Matiss Karro's camp. Although his 2010 season was not spectacular, the Latvian was regularly in the points in the early world championship points. Then the dry spell came. For three heats in a row, there were no points. Nothing. Nada. The scoreboard was in danger of rusting up.

With this fact uppermost in his mind, Matiss was determined to break the spell of bad luck, especially since the next race ont he calendar was his home GP at Kegums. The Latvian crowd would be out in force, and even the Latvian prime minister set his other duties aside to come and witness one of the country's prime sporting events for the year.

The MVRD Suzuki team also felt the weight of the occasion, and after sending Matiss on a diversionary track walk, the team decked his bike out in eye-catching white livery, with the Latvian flag featuring prominently. The teenager was in good spirits as he handled the pre-race tv show with aplomb, answering questions in his usual good-natured laconic way.

Matiss had a bad start in the qualifying race, but recovered well to secure fourteenth position on the gate. In blazing sunshine, he rode up to the line and acknowledged the cheers of his countrymen as proceedings were about to get going. He narrowly avoided some serious mayhem in the first corner, but this dropped him way back. With the frenzied support of his countrymen ringing in his ears, he was all set to move forward, and he have his best. The going was not easy, but he focused on bringing the bike home in the points and he did just this, scoring good points for fourteenth position.

A much better start had Matiss inside the top 10 as race two started writing its history. He was inside the top 10, and the adrenaline buzz of this gave him wings as he held onto his position. An unfortunate crash cost him valuable time as he struggled to restart his bike. He prodded at it like crazy and it lit up, allowing him to continue in fifteenth position. Although disappointed at having lost a potential top 10 finish, Matiss again slipped into the habit of scoring points in both heats, a welcome change from the few weeks that preceded this race.

Matiss finished fourteenth for the day, but has received a challenge to his world standing, with Frenchman Valentin Teillet having joined him on the ladder on equal points in sixteenth position. He will travel to the Swedish GP at Uddevalla next weekend to try and build on the momentum that has now been generated again.


GAUTIER PAULIN
Gautier Paulin scores top 5 result in Latvian MX GP

French MX prodigy, Gautier Paulin, has powered his Monster Energy Yamaha to 5th overall at round 9 of the FIM MX World championships held in Kegums, Latvia.  A strong turnout of spectators (17.000 for the weekend) lined  the loamy and demanding circuit with great weather conditions setting the scene for exciting racing.

Paulin qualified 5th in front of fellow countryman and championship leader Marvin Musquin and going into race 1 on Sunday, Paulin was looking for a good start to set himself up for a positive result. A mediocre jump left Paulin with a mountain of work as he bunched in the middle of the pack on lap one. Picking his lines wisely, Paulin quickly charged through the pack and rocketed into 7th spot by the end of the 35 minute moto.

A better start in moto 2 saw Paulin positioned in 6th position however he took too long to pass  Joel Roelants and Jake Nicholls as the leading trio of Herlings, Frossard and Roczen checked out.   Once he had passed the Belgian and Englishman, Paulin put his head down and rode a lonely but steady race in 4th to the chequered flag.

“I have been working really hard to regain my speed and I feel that my fitness and concentration are really good, I just need to work on my starts and make sure I am up front right from when the gate drops. My goal is obviously to put two strong motos together and to get on the podium. After that I am sure I can win races so I will continue with this progress.” explained Paulin.

With little time to rest, Paulin will return to Belgium where he has been working on his sand riding, before he heads to Uddevalla, Sweden for round 10 of the 15 round series.


VAN BEERS RACING
8 World Championship points for Tom Söderström at the Grand Prix in Latvia

Tom Söderström from the Yamaha van Beers Racing Team has scored eight World Championship points at round nine of the World Championship Series in Kegums, Latvia. In the first moto he was riding in sixteenth position till the closing stages of the race. Than he got past and finished the race in seventeenth position. In the second moto he made some passes in the beginning of the race and moved up to sixteenth position. Tom had several hard battles during the race but dropped back to eighteenth position. The young Swedish rider gave everything he had and managed to pass the seventeenth place rider in the final lap. With this position he scored another four World Championship points. Tom finished sixteenth overall and sits in 25th position in the World Championship Standings.

Ceriel Klein Kromhof had bad luck at the Latvian Grand Prix. Ceriel qualified himself in twentieth position on Saturday. In the first moto on Sunday he started inside of the points. In the second lap disaster struck the rider from Daarlerveen. A rider in front of him lost control over his bike in mid-air and threw the bike away. Ceriel had nowhere to go and jumped on the bike. He crashed big time and injured his knee. The doctor told him that there was no damage inside of the knee but that it was better to sit out the second moto.


JOSH COPPINS
Further frustration for Coppins in Latvia

This past weekend saw Josh Coppins and his fellow MX1 GP stars head to Kegums in Latvia for rounds 9 of the World Championship. Dry plus hot conditions greeted the riders and as the racing progressed the circuit became very challenging for all.

In the first MX1 moto Coppins pulled a decent start, rounding the opening lap inside the top 15. Feeling good on the bike Coppins battled it out with Gonçalves, Swanepoel and Strijbos, ultimately finishing the 35 minute and 2 lap moto in 14th position.

The second moto would see another solid start for the number 6 Aprilia, as Coppins quickly settled into a good rhythm. Midway through, whilst battling with Strijbos, the chain came off the bike putting an end to the race for the frustrated New Zealander.

Josh gave his thoughts on the weekend: “The track was really good this weekend, very rough and bumpy but I enjoyed it and felt comfortable with the bike in the first race. The second moto was pretty frustrating though, I was having a decent race when the chain came off."


BODO SCHMIDT TEAM
Tonkov continues with GP points harvest

Let us spool back a year or so. Location - Kegums, Latvia. Event - Motocross world championship. In the far reaches of the paddock, a slightly-built and more than slightly nervous teenager limbers up to participate in his first motocross GP. That teenager is Aleksandr Tonkov, and after some promising results in international races, his handlers have thought the time ripe to enter him for the GP at the tender age of fifteen. He is as nervous as a freshman in a new school or a 8 week old puppy being let loose in a pack of German Shepherds, but when the gate drops, the racing adrenaline starts to course through his veins, and he astounds all and sundry by immediately opening his world championship account with four points.

Back to the present. A year down the line, Aleksandr is still as small, nearly as young, but a world of experiences richer. The Russian youngster has in the meanwhile secured backing from the giant Russian Esta concern, and under the able guidance of Bodo Schmidt he has nothing to do but concentrate on that which he does best - race motocross. He has by now established his reputation as a feisty little fighter, packing the kind of punch for the pound that would make an aardwolf jealous. Once he is on the track, reputations mean nothing to him - everyone races on equal terms. Along the way, he has kept the points meter clicking with monotonous regularity, and moved to a position very near the top twenty in the world standings.

Once you get to the race, though, history counts for nothing. What is important is the here and now, and with this in mind, Aleksandr got stuck into his work for the weekend. After qualifying 21st, he looked set to add to his tally yet again. A signature component of his racing armoury in GP's thus far had been his ability to get good starts. As the stronger and more experienced riders behind him come knocking, he can afford to lose a few positions, safe in the knowledge that he still has some points reserve in hand. On this occasion he did just that. After a decent start, he held thirteenth position in race 1. When the inevitable happened and the stronger riders came to claim their positions, he kept going steady and bagged another three points for eighteenth at the flag.

The second race was a virtual carbon copy of the first. Again the young Russian opted for the steady approach rather than a mindless, speed-above-anything approach. The latter often results, especially on a technical and difficult track such as was the case here, in tears, literally and figuratively. Aleksandr avoided all and any such drama, and again got the points clicker rolling three positions further.

With eighteenth overall on the day, the youngster had done enough to hold onto 23rd position in the world standings. He will again, as has been the case for most of the season, move onto unfamiliar territory as he faces his next challenge, the Swedish GP at Uddevalla.


Beursfoon Suzuki
13 World Championship points for Kevin Strijbos at the Latvian Grand Prix

Amsterdam -  rider Kevin Strijbos has scored 13 World Championship points at the ninth round of the World Championship Series in Kegums, Latvia. In both motos the Belgian rider started around fifteenth position. In the first moto he couldn't find his rhythm but still managed to finish in 16th position. In the second moto things went better for Strijbos and after a consistent race he finished in 13th position. Jose Butron scored World Championship points as well. He finished in 19th and 20th position in the motos and went home with three World Championship points.

On Friday the team got some bad news from Marc de Reuver. The Dutch rider developed a 40 degree fever and an infected throat on Wednesday night. The team waited until to make the final call on Friday morning, but seeing as De Reuver still had a very high fever, he decided to withdraw from the GP. Despite this bad luck the team travelled to Latvia with the ambition to score as many points as possible. Kevin was motivated to do well in Latvia. His speed in the practice sessions was OK but in the qualifying heat he had to come back trough the field after a poor start. At the end of the first lap he came by start/finish in 19th position. On the fast circuit of Kegums it was difficult to overtake riders. Kevin gave everything he had and worked himself up to fifteenth position. In the closing stages he lost a position and finally crossed the finish line in sixteenth position. In the first moto he came out of the first corner in fifteenth position. In the beginning of the race he worked himself up to 13th position but soon after he lost his rhythm and lost several positions. In the second part of the moto things started to go better and he finally finished the race in 16th position.

In the second moto he went trough the first corner around fifteenth place. In this moto his riding went better and Kevin was able to put the pressure on the riders in front of him. After several laps he moved up to fifteenth position and some laps later he passed the fourteenth place rider. In the closing stages of the race he gave everything he had and worked his way by another rider to finish the race in 13th position.

Kevin finished fourteenth overall and sits in twelfth position in the World Championship Standings. Marc de Reuver sits in 23rd position.

MX2 rider Jose Butron goes better and better. In the first moto he started the race just outside the top ten. The pace was to high for the young Spaniard and because of this he lost a lot of positions. In the second part of the race he found his rhythm and finished the race in 19th position. In the second moto he had to come back after a poor start. Jose rode his own race and worked himself back up to 20th position.

Jose finished in 22nd position overall and sits in 26th position in the World Championship Standings. The next stop for the Beursfoon Suzuki Team is the Grand Prix of Sweden next weekend.


CAS HONDA
RUSSIAN ROULETTE

Evgeny Bobryshev of the CAS Monster Honda MX1 GP team fired a warning shot against the bows of the MX1 world elite at the demanding Kegums track in Latvia this weekend when he came within an ace of his first GP moto win and only just missed the podium, scoring 40 BIG points!

The 22-year-old Russian was the fastest MX1 rider in the world this weekend, setting a record lap during the first moto and maintaining the pace for most of the moto.

The MX1 rookie wasted no time in ousting Steve Ramon from the lead in the opening moto at a hot and knarly GP in the best Baltic tradition: “I knew after the qualification race yesterday that it was important to get to the front quickly, so when I gated second I pushed really hard to pass Ramon on the first lap and make a gap. That way I could ride my own race, picking my lines without pressure from behind; it makes riding so much easier. Once I had a gap I concentrated on saving my energy. I like this track, but it is very difficult and I simply got tired in the last five laps. But I have never ridden so fast like I am this year, and that race is the longest I have ever managed to keep it going.”

His lap times sagging through the last five laps, the eight second lead ‘Bobby’ had established over Clement Desalle shrunk until the Belgian went through, but no-one else even came close to the Russian and he was back in the thick of the action in the second moto.

"I went a little too fast into the first turn second time out, so I had to battle through the pack. I almost crashed together with Philippaerts when our lines crossed on a jump so, by the time I got to 4th, the first three were too far ahead. That meant I just missed the podium, but I got 40 points today. Now I know I can do it and want more.

"Of course it was disappointing to miss my first ever GP moto win in the last three laps, but I have never been that close before”, adding defiantly, “and it will come soon, perhaps already next week!“

Bobryshev’s magnificent day has lifted him to ninth in the FIM MX1 World Championship standings after nine rounds of the 15 race series, and the Russian now has his sights set clearly on 8th place, just 18 points away.

For Gareth Swanepoel the GP did not produce the rewards which his efforts deserved.

“I paid the penalty for a bad start in the first race. I managed to make some good passes, but passing those guys takes time and after I got to 15th the gap to the rest was too far to make more places. The second race was much better until just before the end; I still felt good, but I was pushing hard to try to catch Gonçalves for 9th, made a mistake and stalled the engine.”

The lapse cost the South African two places, and he ended the GP 13th overall. He holds the same position in the standings but is just eight points away from 11th.


SHANNON TERREBLANCHE
ANOTHER SETBACK FOR TERREBLANCHE

Can You Smell That??? Its My Rotten Luck!! This was Shannon Terreblanche's own Facebook entry after his return to Holland from the Latvian GP. Just when his comeback was gaining steam and he was getting into the rhythm of GP racing again, another freak accident intervened again to put him back on the injury list.

The track at Kegums holds good memories for the South African. It was here, way back in 2004, that he participated in his first world championship event, this time in the 85cc class. On a barely run-in, untuned, unfamiliar bike he took on the world's best 85cc riders on a track that was unlike anything he'd ever seen before. He missed the timed qualifying by an agonisingly close one thousandth of a second, but in the last chance qualifier he rode like a seasoned veteran to ensure his participation.

Merely qualifying for the event was already a major achievement, but the friendly young South African went one better. After just missing out on the points in the first race, he famously raced to a top ten finish in the second, putting him squarely in the spotlight of the European media. Since then he has returned to Latvia on numerous occasions, and built up a sizeable following in the Baltic country along the way.

With all of this in the back of his head, it was a fairly happy Shanter that headed for Riga after the German Grand Prix. The signs were all good - he was getting back into the points in GP racing, his speed inexorably creeping closer to the class leaders, confidence on the up and up, bright -eyed and bushy tailed. His day started off well, with a fifteenth fastest time in the free training session, right in the company of some big names.

In the pre-qualifying session, Shannon had already set the 21st fastest time, but he went out for an even faster lap. The first split of the lap augured well, for he had already improved a second on his previous best split, but three quarters of the way through the lap, the Sturm Kawasaki rider had a small spill. It was the most gentle of crashes, and Shannon would have crashed out of his bed harder on occasion. The Merlin of misfortune was well in attendance, however, and Shannon's hand kit awkwardly against a trackside pole. This fractured the back side of his index finger where it connects to the hand, and as soon as he felt the pain, Shannon knew that he would be facing another enforced layoff from racing.

The South African will undergo a medical check up early in the week, but the early prognosis is that he will be out of action for a month or so. His spirits have not waned, however, and he has already resumed his fitness training to be in good and proper form when he can resume racing.

TEAM SUZUKI - QUALIFYING

ROCZEN RACES TO THIRD MX2 POLE OF THE SEASON
Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2's Ken Roczen sprinted away in the final stages of the Qualification Heat at a hot Kegums circuit for the Grand Prix of Latvia to seal his third pole position of the year and become the quickest Saturday rider from the nine events of 15 so far in the 2010 FIM Motocross World Championship.

The German, on his 2010 RM-Z250, defeated Steven Frossard across the fast and windy layout formed from a loose terrain that became progressively rougher throughout the day. Roczen was able to rely on the same potent engine modifications that helped him win the second moto at Teutschenthal last week and looked comfortable around the Latvian bumps.

It wasn't such a good day for Arnaud Tonus who made a decent jump out of the gate but was held up on the first corner. Some arm-pump and a crash meant the young Swiss rider was battling to come through the pack and managed 17th by the flag.

Further good weather is forecast for race-day in what is sure to be two hard and physical motos.

Ken Roczen:
"In the qualifying race I had a good start and could pass Steven after a while because I felt good on the track. I would love to repeat my second moto in Germany here with the same speed, no crashes and the same result; that would be perfect. The bike is working really well and I think the track will get rough for tomorrow but I am looking forward to it."

Arnaud Tonus:
"I had a good start but crashed on the first lap and had arm-pump which meant I couldn't make a good rhythm. I had another crash so it was a bad race! I still feel confident for tomorrow because I was riding well in the pre-qualifying and setting good times. It will be tricky tomorrow to keep consistent, and for sure it will be physical, but I am hopeful."

MX1 - DESALLE HEADS DOUBLE SUZUKI POLE IN LATVIA
Rockstar Teka Suzuki World MX1's Clement Desalle won the Qualification Heat at a sunny and hot Kegums circuit for the Grand Prix of Latvia to clinch his second pole position in the MX1 class this season with the works RM-Z450WS.

The first day of action at the ninth round of 15 in the FIM Motocross World Championship saw the Belgian head a Suzuki 1-2 as Ken Roczen took honours in the MX2 class on the RM-Z250.

The loose terrain and sandy consistency of Kegums became rougher and slower throughout the day but the elongated layout still provided a fast lap for the riders of the premier class. Desalle changed little on the set-up of his machine in sweaty conditions and made a bright start in the 20 minute and 2 lap heat race in which he led from practically start to finish. The 21 year old weathered some pressure from Evgeny Bobryshev and Tony Cairoli but was steady on the factory RM-Z to claim the victory.

Steve Ramon did not ride throughout the week after a right arm infection hindered his efforts at the German Grand Prix last Sunday. The Belgian felt an improvement in his condition at Kegums and rode to sixth place in the Heat for the same gate choice for tomorrow's races.

Clement Desalle:
"I had a good jump from the gate and kept to the inside on the first corner. I had the lead and I knew Tony was coming close at the end but I held on for the win. It is good to have pole position but the real race is tomorrow, so if I am first again then I will be happy. The track is good for racing with some nice lines. We will see if the weather changes or if it will be different for the motos."

Steve Ramon:
"I have a pretty good feeling after last week. There is still some pain in my arm but I can handle it. I didn't ride this week so I was a little bit afraid of what might happen after the first practice but it was not too bad. I almost crashed at the start of the Heat because someone came very close to the inside on the corner and I was part of a domino effect. It was a good race after that and my riding was fine but the track was getting rough and hard so it will be a tough couple of motos tomorrow."