MX1, MX2 and Veterans’ Series Hit Latvia This Weekend for the First Time in History

FUNCHAL (PORTUGAL), 24 June 2009 – The tenth Grand Prix of the 2009 FIM Motocross World Championship season will see the MX1 and MX2 series head to Kegums for its maiden appearance in Latvia.

A new young generation of riders is currently dominating both classes, with 23 year old Cairoli sitting on top of the MX1 class after Teutschenthal’s win and teenager Musquin leading the MX2 class. German Roczen took a home victory in the latest MX2 Grand Prix becoming the youngest GP winner ever at the age of 15 years and 53 days only.

The penultimate round of the FIM Veterans’ World Cup will also take place in Latvia. Current leader Iven is out with an injury and runner up Nilsson is ready to snatch the red plate.

MX1

Coming back to victory in Teutschenthal last weekend, two time MX2 World Champion Tony Cairoli of Yamaha Red Bull De Carli built on his Championship lead to enter Kegums with the red plate and 41 points more than defending Champion Philippaerts, who follows his Italian countryman from the second spot.

Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross’ Philippaerts missed the podium in Germany where he finished fourth overall. With only six Grand Prix’s remaining in the 2009 season, Philippaerts will be hungrier for victories in order to close the gap from Cairoli and prevent Nagl from snatching the runner up spot in the forthcoming rounds.

The German, who took his third consecutive podium at home last weekend, has worked his way up through the standings as the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing man sits in third with a small gap of four points from Philippaerts.

The latter’s team mate Coppins is fourth in the series but a fast Desalle is a potential danger to the Kiwi’s ambitions. The youngster of LS Motors Honda remains close to Coppins who has to watch out also for Teka Suzuki WMX1’s De Dycker, coming back to the podium in Germany and being sixth in the points standings.

With this being the closest Grand Prix to their home country Estonia, the Leok cousins Tanel and Aigar will be looking for a strong result to please their supporters. Tanel Leok, at his first year with the Yamaha Red Bull De Carli family, held the red plate in Bulgaria courtesy of Faenza’s victory. During the course of the season he has dropped down to seventh while Factory TM rider Aigar Leok is ninth.

In Latvia Honda will not see two of its major players in the likes of Billy Mackenzie and Mickael Pichon. The British is back home to have a troublesome hand operated while multiple World Champion Pichon ended his Martin Honda three GP experience last weekend.

With this being their first ever home GP, youngsters Kempelis and Steinbergs of Honda Latvia Elksni will look for a strong result in front of their home crowd.

Tanel Leok will chase his second season win at Kegums

MX2

Despite interrupting an incredible winning streak of four moto wins, KTM mounted Musquin retained the MX2 Championship lead and could step on the podium courtesy of his fifth moto win out of the last six heats. A crash in the opening heat stopped the Frenchman’s ambitions of remaining unbeaten since the moment he joined the factory KTM squad as it was young gun Roczen winning his home Grand Prix with two runner up finishes in the heats.

At 15 years and 53 days of age and at only his fifth Grand Prix appearance, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2’s Roczen wrote his name in the Motocross history books as the youngest GP winner ever. Roczen is eighth in his first ever GP campaign and with other 12 heats to be run from Kegums until the final round in Brazil the youngster can even aim at a top five finish in the MX2 Championship.

CLS’s Frossard, who won heat one, was sandwiched in between the two at Teutschenthal to collected another podium at the German venue where he opened up his podium account in 2008.

The trio will be surely up for another podium finish at Kegums, with Frossard being the hungriest for an overall win which he has not yet collected in his career.

Finishing fourth in Germany, Bud Racing Kawasaki PSM’s Paulin continues to give Musquin chase for the MX2 Title as the former was the first to clinch the red plate this season and now sits in second in the Championship.

Guarneri and Goncalves are also racing a solid championship as the duo completes the top four right behind Musquin and Paulin with Frossard in fifth.

Racing his first ever home GP, Latvian Karro of MVR-D Suzuki looks forward to the weekend. Karro is currently 25th in the Championship despite having missed four GP’s due to injuries.

Karro looks forward to his home GP

More photos available at www.motocrossmx1.com/galleryinfo.aspx.

VETERANS

A crash during training will force Iven off the penultimate round of the FIM Veterans’ World Cup which he was leading on his way to reconfirm last year’s Cup victory.

Being currently second in the standings, Nilsson will try and move up to first as Lhertiteau and Blancquaert follow in third and fourth. Nilsson was actually the only rider capable of beating Iven this year courtesy of the Swedish’s win in Valkenswaard.

Hendrickx rounds off the top five ahead of Puzar.

Puzar will be back to action this weekend

More photos available at www.motocrossmx1.com/galleryinfo.aspx.

TIMETABLE

Saturday: Veteran Motocross World Cup Free Practice 9:00-9:30; MX2 Free Practice 10:00-10:40; MX1 Free Practice 10:50-11:30; Veteran Motocross World Cup Time Practice 12:00-12:30; MX2 Pre Qualifying Practice 13:30-14:10; MX1 Pre Qualifying Practice 14:30-15:10; MX2 Qualifying Race 16:00; MX1 Qualifying Race 17:00; Veteran Motocross World Cup Race 1 18:00.

Sunday: Veteran Motocross World Cup Warm Up 8:45-9:05; MX2 Warm Up 9:15-9:35; MX1 Warm Up 9:45-10:05; Veteran Motocross World Cup Race 2 11:15; MX2 Grand Prix Race 1 12:10; MX1 Grand Prix Race 1 13:10; MX2 Grand Prix Race 2 15:03; MX1 Grand Prix Race 2 16:03.

LINKS

Youthstream
FIM
Grand Prix of Latvia

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