De Reuver shows good speed in Loket, Czech Republic - Swanepoel escapes crash.
7/30/2006
MX GP - Round 11 - Loket, Czech Republic — Only half an hour from the German border, the picturesque town of Loket in the Czech Republic has played host to the 11th round of the FIM MX World champs.
The first MX2 moto saw Thor rider, Marc De Reuver, shoot out of the of the starting gate to take control of moto 1 with a blistering pace. The Dutchman worked hard to put a three second gap between himself and fellow KTM team-mate, Tyla Rattray. The South African pulled back the gap around the halfway mark with both KTM riders trading the lead several times but it was De Reuver who made a detrimental mistake and went down. Fellow THOR racer, Gareth Swanepoel was part of a train of riders (2nd - 8th) that that were all fighting for a podium spot as the last two laps became a free for all with five seconds separating the lot. Swanepoel unfortunately left his challenge too late and managed to salvage one position by passing Patrick Caps on the final lap to finish 7th, just in front of a recovering de Reuver.
The second MX2 moto once again had Marc de Reuver leading the pack with his second hole-shot of the day and an aggressive riding style. Slotting in behind him were championship contenders, Pourcel, Philippaerts, Cairoli and Rattray. The crowd were on their feet as positions were swapped back and forth however a mistake from de Reuver saw him lose his lead as he was relegated to fourth. Gareth Swanepoel was making the best of a bad start and fought his way back into the top ten before the 2 lap board was shown. The South African made the most of his weekend to finish seventh overall after almost being counted out when a horrific crash in Saturday's qualification session nearly put 'Swanie' out of contention.
Stefan Everts dominated the MX1 class with more of challenge coming from Coppins in the first moto and young rival Kevin Strijbos in the second moto. The Belgian legend claimed his 11th consecutive GP of the season, and only needs one point advantage on Kevin Strijbos in Namur to claim his tenth world title.
The Citadel in Namur awaits the GP teams next week for the 11th round of the F.I.M MX world championships.
De Reuver: "Two hole-shots! I think it must be more than five years since I managed that. I have not finished many races recently so I just did not have the race fitness to lead right to the end but I showed them that I have the speed again and things should be better for the next GPs. In the first moto as I headed into the corner I went to put my foot on the peg again I got my leg stuck on the radiator plastic and lost my balance and boff! I crashed. I picked the bike up but I stalled it. I am pretty happy with the GP though, especially if you look at South Africa and the other races. In Sweden I did not even have the speed to get up the front but today I could even pull away a little bit."
Swanepoel: "I am quite happy with seventh overall. I went down big time in timed training yesterday and I'm glad I even made the race today. The track was quite technical and rough and in the past has not been one of my favorites but I still managed to turn it around and score some consistent points. The racing is getting so close and there are a handful of guys who are running the same speed and who are capable of getting on the podium. My starts are improving and the team have worked hard on the bike so I'm confident that I still have a shot. It will be good to have a few days rest to let my body heal before Namur."
MX2 Race 1
- Rattray, Tyla RSA
- Philippaerts, David ITA
- Nunn, Carl GBR
- Chiodi, Alessio ITA
- Searle, Tommy GBR
- Pourcel, Christophe FRA
- Swanepoel, Garreth RSA (THOR)
- Caps, Patrick BEL
- de Reuver, Marc NED
- Seistola, Matti FIN
- Cairoli, Antonio ITA
- Goncalves, Rui POR
- Campano, Carlos SPA
- Monni, Manuel ITA
- Church, Tom GBR
MX2 Race 2
- Cairoli, Antonio ITA
- Pourcel, Christophe FRA
- Philippaerts, David ITA
- de Reuver, Marc NED (THOR)
- Nunn, Carl GBR
- Mackenzie, Billy GBR
- Searle, Tommy GBR
- Pourcel, Sebastien FRA
- Swanepoel, Garreth RSA (THOR)
- Monni, Manuel ITA
- Campano, Carlos SPA
- Caps, Patrick BEL
- Chiodi, Alessio ITA
- Goncalves, Rui POR