De Dycker Defies Pain at Mallory MX1

Team Suzuki Press Office - May 31.

Round seven of 15 in the FIM MX1 World Championship, the British Grand Prix at Mallory Park, saw a brave performance by Teka Suzuki World MX1's Ken De Dycker as the Belgian rode through the pain barrier to take seventh position overall.

Mallory Park, crowded by 35,000 spectators, provided a bumpy and spectacular test for the riders of the MX1 class with many jumps and long timing sections giving the competitors plenty of airtime among the ruts and off-cambered turns. Overtaking was extremely difficult and the physical nature of the course grew more intense as race-day wore on. The sunny conditions and high temperatures also added to the difficulty.

De Dycker started from 15th position in the gate after a troublesome Saturday practice and qualification programme in which he fell on the first corner and had to come through the field. The Belgian is still struggling with an injured shoulder and a splinter fracture of his right wrist.

In the first moto he valiantly hung on and climbed from 11th to sixth; gaining his last position on the final lap. A nudge from a rider alongside him exiting the gate for the start of Moto 2 saw the 24 year old catch a neutral and he was almost last coming around the opening turns. His rise from 21st to 11th was again commendable and his hefty set of blisters testified to the effort made to gain as many points as possible.

The World Championship standings reveal that De Dycker has dropped to fifth spot but is only 13 points away from second place. The RM-Z450 pilot has not been able to ride for several weeks as a result of injuries picked up in Spain and will try to make some kilometres on the practice track this week in Belgium.

The team will now only have to wait seven days before resuming World Championship action as the Ernee circuit will host round eight and the Grand Prix of France.

Ken De Dycker - 7th:

"This was a very tough day for me. The track was very bumpy and with all the jumps and stones it was hard to hold onto the bars and also withstand the pain. I could not have an injection so I just had to get on with it. I also felt the effects of not being able to ride for three weeks. Now my hands are covered with blisters, but if I feel OK during this week, then I might try to get on the bike before France."

MX1 Moto1: 1. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), 38:59.149; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Honda), +0:03.351; 3. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, KTM), +0:06.308; 4. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), +0:10.966; 5. Joshua Coppins (NZL, Yamaha), +0:30.006; 6. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Teka Suzuki WMX1), +0:34.966; 7. Mickael Pichon (FRA, Honda), +0:35.680; 8. Tanel Leok (EST, Yamaha), +0:37.779; 9. Gregory Aranda (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:39.483; 10. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, Yamaha), +0:41.467.

MX1 Moto2: 1. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), 39:36.111; 2. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), +0:16.922; 3. Clement Desalle (BEL, Honda), +0:27.179; 4. Joshua Coppins (NZL, Yamaha), +0:32.638; 5. Billy Mackenzie (GBR, Honda), +0:35.068; 6. Tanel Leok (EST, Yamaha), +0:38.133; 7. Mickael Pichon (FRA, Honda), +0:42.798; 8. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, Yamaha), +0:46.834; 9. Gregory Aranda (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:48.454; 10. Carl Nunn (GBR, Suzuki), +0:50.837; 11. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Teka Suzuki WMX1).

MX1 Overall Result: 1. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), 47 points; 2. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), 43 p; 3. Clement Desalle (BEL, Honda), 42 p; 4. Joshua Coppins (NZL, Yamaha), 34 p; 5. Tanel Leok (EST, Yamaha), 28 p; 6. Mickael Pichon (FRA, Honda), 28 p; 7. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Teka Suzuki WMX1), 25 p; 8. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, Yamaha), 24 p; 9. Gregory Aranda (FRA, Kawasaki), 24 p; 10. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, KTM), 20 p.

MX1 World Championship standings (after 7 of 15 rounds): 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, Yamaha), 255 points; 2. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), 221; 3. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, KTM), 215; 4. Joshua Coppins (NZL, Yamaha), 209; 5. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Teka Suzuki WMX1), 208 p; 6. Clement Desalle (BEL, Honda), 204 p; 7. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), 198 p; 8. Tanel Leok (EST, Yamaha), 190 p; 9. Gareth Swanepoel (RSA, Kawasaki), 106 p; 10. David Vuillemin (FRA, Kawasaki), 101 p; 11. Steve Ramon (BEL, Teka Suzuki WMX1), 100 p.