LS HONDA RACING
De Dycker dominates Dutch Open in Gemert

LS Honda Racing’s Ken De Dycker scored his first overall win of the 2011 season at the opening round of the Dutch Motocross Championship in Gemert, North Brabant, close to famous GP tracks Lierop and Valkenswaard. True to form the 26-year-old Belgian dominated all day long by qualifying fastest by more than two seconds and claiming two undisputed wins. One week after his comeback victory at the Maxxis British Championship in Little Silver Shaun Simpson again showed great speed. The MX1 rookie guided his Honda CRF450 to second in qualifying practice but was unlucky in both races.

Due to the mild and damp weather conditions leading up to the event the traditional Dutch sand track was demanding and deep as only you can imagine in Holland. Working his way to the front from a fourth placed start in moto one, Keeno made spectacular passes on both Verhoeven and Strijbos before claiming the lead on the second lap. Ken was consistent and fast and never seemed bothered with the deep ruts and tricky holes. After nearly 35 minutes of racing De Dycker had pulled a gap of over 36 seconds on second placed Kevin Strijbos. Despite some clutch adjusting problems Simpson blitzed through the field from 19th to 4th when he came in the pits where his clutch got dialled in properly. Undeterred by his setback Shaun went to work and put in one fast lap after the other to bounce all the way back from 19th to 4th behind Verhoeven. Testimony to the friendly Scot’s shape he put his fastest time on the tables in the ultimate lap of the moto.

It was Verhoeven who claimed the holeshot in race two, but the 5.000 strong crowd saw the LS Honda Racing duo quickly gaining control with Simpson leading the race after one lap. When De Dycker passed his team mate and the two of them started to pull away from the pack it seemed an exciting race between Ken and Shaun was on. Unfortunately an awkward landing left Simpson with a twisted, painful knee. Nothing too serious at first glance but Shaun decided to pull out. Whilst Ken’s playmate was out of contention De Dycker focused on his lines and maintaining his momentum. He eventually won with a margin of nearly 33 seconds over Steve Ramon, third placed Yentel Martens was already over 1 minutes and 4 seconds behind.

Ken De Dycker: "My starts were not up to par today, but all in all it was a pretty good day. Everyone knows I like my sand tracks, still even I have to admit Gemert was pretty gnarly today! Whatever I tried there was no way of getting around smoothly. The second moto was definitely the best. In each race I tried to produce some killer laps first, and then I wanted to keep a nice rhythm which was tough to keep up because of the backmarkers. I still made some silly mistakes here and there, suffered some sore arms although that’s what you’re bound to encounter in these pre-season races. In terms of bike setup I’m quite pleased with where were at now, we just need some more testing with the suspension."

Team manager Luc Piccart on Shaun Simpson: “I feel a bit sorry for Shaun today. He certainly carried over the speed he has been showing in the last couple of weeks. There’s no use getting into whats and ifs, but given his pace Shaun should have been on the podium really. A silly adjustment problem on his clutch ruined his first moto, however he charged back through the pack nicely. Things were looking great in the second moto when De Dycker and Simpson had a six-second gap over the third guy after only two laps. Shaun hurt his knee on the third lap and limped back to the camper. It didn’t seem too big a deal at first, but we’ll have to wait for the doctor’s examination to get a better idea of the situation with his knee.”


SHAUN SIMPSON
Simpson has a birthday to forget

LS Honda Racing’s Shaun Simpson had a disappointing start to his twenty-third year thanks to a below par day at round one of the Dutch Motocross Championship in Gemert. The Scot, who was hoping to celebrate his birthday with a victory in the MX1 class aboard his factory-supported CRF450R, finished the first moto in fourth place before crashing out of the second heat and “tweaking” his knee.

The result was in stark contrast to qualification, as Simpson recorded the second fastest lap time behind his team-mate, Ken De Dycker. The deep sand track was tight and got rough very quickly, so it was important that Shaun got a quick lap in early to secure a good gate position. In the end his time was two seconds adrift of De Dycker’s. However, he felt confident that over the course of two thirty-minute motos he could keep pace with the Belgian.

Feeling good, Simpson went to the gate for the first moto in high spirits and intent on showing his team-mate what he could do. When the five-second board was raised he was ready, but the organisers did not hold the start for very long and it caught Shaun plus many other riders unawares. Having missed the jump Simpson exited the first corner in fifth place and had his work cut out around the confined track.

Matters were made much worse when, still on lap one, Shaun’s front wheel dropped over a big berm at slow speed. The Honda pilot laid his CRF flat and by the time he got it vertical again he was dead last. Annoyed, Simpson charged through the pack and made light work of hunting down the leaders, he got back up to sixth position before his clutch starting slipping. With no adjustment left on his handlebar-mounted quick-adjuster he was forced to pull into the pits for running repairs.

Simpson rejoined the race in sixteenth position yet still managed to finish fourth, and come the end was just a few yards from securing a podium position. With everything taken into consideration his performance helped put his mind at rest between motos, as he knew full well that he had the pace to contest for victory in race two.

Determined to do well, Shaun started the second heat well, slotting in behind Honda’s Bas Verhoeven. He followed the Dutchman for three-quarters of a lap before making his move and passing him for first place. Simpson led for a further circulation, but was swiftly overtaken by De Dycker. Feeling relaxed and undeterred he shadowed his team-mate for a lap before, on lap three, disaster struck.

Simpson misjudged a turn and his front wheel slipped from beneath him. His bike’s action prompted him to stick out his left leg, which dug into the soft sand and his Honda pivoted around it. Shaun felt his knee pop and, worried about the severity of his injury, crawled off the track to seek medical assistance.

“I’m gutted,” said Shaun. “All things considered it was a pretty rotten birthday. It is a real shame because I was feeling good and qualifying went well. I was a couple of seconds off Ken’s pace but I was confident that over the course of a moto I could stick with him and fight for the win.”

“Given that I missed the jump out of the gate in the first race I still got a half decent start,” continued Shaun. “I was in fifth place and I just laid it flat in a tight berm. After that I recovered fairly quickly and had it not have been for the clutch I think I would have been on the podium for sure.”

“I was really fired up for race two and I got a good start, then sneaked into the lead. Ken came past a lap later and I followed him for a lap. At that point I was feeling comfortable, and I thought I should just follow Ken as we were pulling away from the rest of the pack. However, my front wheel slipped in a slow turn and I stuck out a leg to correct it. I twisted my knee and heard it pop, so naturally I feared the worst.”

“I spoke to a doctor at the circuit and he examined my knee. It was good news, he reckons I have just tweaked it, he thinks the ligaments are fine. I am going to visit the doctor that operated on my leg recently for a second opinion this week. Hopefully I have just over stretched it, so I should be fine for Hawkstone Park this coming weekend.”


YAMAHA VAN BEERS RACING
Top three position for Petar Petrov at the Dutch Open in Gemert

Petar Petrov of the Yamaha van Beers Racing Team has scored a top three moto finish at the first round of the Dutch Open Championship Series at Gemert. Petrov rode a strong race in the first moto and finished in third position. In the second moto he was forced to retire from the race because of a burst brake line. Herjan Brakke had to come back from outside of the top ten in both motos. In the first moto he finished in seventh position and in the second moto he came home in sixth position. Brakke finished fourth overall in the MX1 class and scored good points for the Dutch Open Championship standings.

Petar started the day with a seventh position in time practice. In the first moto he took a good start and came out of the first corner in fifth position. In the beginning of the race he moved into fourth position and before the middle of the race he took over third position. He gave everything he had to pass the second place rider as well. In the final lap he found his rear wheel but he ran out of time and had to be satisfied with third position. In the second moto he was forced to retire from the race because of a burst brake line. Overall he finished in tenth position.

Herjan Brakke couldn’t find his rhythm in practice and set the 19th fastest time. In the first moto he didn’t took a good start and went into the first corner in 16th position. Herjan started a charge trough the pack and before the middle of the race he already had worked himself up to eight position. Herjan kept pushing and managed to pass the seventh place rider in the final lap. Brakke held on this position and crossed the finish line in seventh position. In the second moto he started in twelfth position. His riding was better in this moto and already before the midway point he moved into seventh place. In the second part of the race he passed the sixth place rider and finished the race in sixth position.

Herjan finished fourth overall in Gemert. Next weekend the second round of the Dutch Open Championship Series will be held at Halle.