Kawasaki Riders Prepare Themselves for the 2011 GP Season

More Photos! Check out the full eight-photo gallery of the 2011 Kawasaki GP crew here.

Looking ahead to a fresh start of the Motocross World Championship season, it’s safe to say that Kawasaki will be one of the strongest forces in the motocross paddock.

No less than three teams will represent the brand in the MX1 and MX2 World Championships, which will kick off on April the 10th in Sevlievo, Bulgaria.

Last season has been pretty tough for the Kawasaki Racing Team, which was so unfortunate that the three riders of the team missed a couple of GPs due to injuries. But with a podium at the final round in Italy the team ended the season in a very positive way, and the team are currently working hard to achieve more podium finishes in 2011.

Since January 1st, Yves Demaria has joined the team as sports manager, and both Sébastien Pourcel and Xavier Boog are training in Demaria’s native Southern France area where the weather is perfect to prepare the season. The conditions are also very good for Jonathan Barragan, who is training in California, like the past years, before coming back to Europe in the beginning of February. Then, the three riders will start testing the 2011 model that they will be using during the pre-season races.

The Valence International MX on February 20th will be the first race for the team, which will then split up temporarily, as Jonathan and Xavier entered respectively the Spanish and French series, while Sébastien will be doing selected British events including Hawkstone Park on March 20th.

Team CLS will enter its second season with the US company Pro Circuit, and on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean technicians and engineers are working hard to develop the KX250F. With three new riders involved in both classes, the team expects more than a GP win this season in the MX2 class, as well as good results in the MX1 category.

Both racing in the US last season, Tommy Searle and Max Anstie spent winter time in California, close to the Pro Circuit headquarters, and in the best possible conditions. They both will be back in Europe for testing sessions in early February. The first races are scheduled in France the end of February, with an International event in Lacapelle Marival and then selected rounds of the French Elite championship.

Foreign riders are allowed to participate, but can’t score points for the series. Both Tommy and Max will have the opportunity to meet their fans in Hawkstone Park, the last Pre Season International race before the opening GP in Bulgaria.

Working at home in New Zealand and recovering well from his rib injury, Ben Townley will join the team mid-February and will be racing only a few selected events to finalise his preparations for a comeback in the MX1 World series.

Team Rockstar Bud Racing Lovemytime Kawasaki started the new season with a strong result as Dylan Ferrandis won the junior class in the French enduro of Le Touquet, and after the European SX title of Grégory Aranda the team is strongly motivated for the new season.

All the team members are currently training and testing in the vicinity of the team’s workshop in Hossegor, where Grégory and Davide have arrived in the end of January. Greg had a short winter break after his successful Supercross program, while Davide has had a minor knee surgery and had to rest for a couple of weeks.

Both riders are now working with Jacky Vimond and the team staff, alongside Dylan Ferrandis and Livia Lancelot, in order to prepare the Valence International MX race. Then Davide will race the International series – four races between February 27th and March 27th – in Italy, while Greg and Dylan will enter the French Elite championship with four rounds – between March 6th and April 3rd – prior to the GP of Bulgaria.