SEEWER ALMOST LAPS THE FIELD ON HIS WAY TO A PODIUM

Courtesy of Team Suzuki Press Office

Jeremy Seewer – 7-1 for 2nd
Hunter Lawrence – 4-11 for 6th
Bas Vaessen – 5-19 for 12th
Zach Pichon – 16-13 for 17th 

Jeremy Seewer was just a few seconds away from lapping the entire MX2 field at the MXGP of Russia, as torrential rain hit the track early on in the afternoon. That moto victory was good enough to give the Suzuki World MX2 rider second overall as the championship moves past the halfway point of the season. Team-mates Hunter Lawrence and Bas Vaessen also put in good results in the treacherous conditions, both finishing inside the top five in the first moto. In the EMX250 class, Zach Pichon returned to action after his collarbone injury and put in two solid motos as he gets back to race shape. 

Seewer had this say about his performance: “The whole weekend I felt good, the track was cool but then the rain started to fall a lot more than we expected, which made the whole race a bit of a lottery. It’s always like that in the mud and luck is a big part of the result. In the first moto I had a bad start and some google issues and while it was ok to ride, it was tough to catch up as once you got behind a rider you got splashed and it’s not very healthy for your eyes. In the second moto I just tried to survive and luckily got a good start and came around the first corner in third before the guys in front made some mistakes. The track was so bad, especially in front of the pit lane so it was hard for me to read what was written so I didn’t even know I had won. I wasn’t sure if Benoit Paturel had crashed out or not because I couldn’t see that and I was just so focused on my riding and then they told me that I nearly lapped everyone. I was pretty shocked with that. 

“Second overall is decent enough, we didn’t lose too many points but of course the goal is to gain points against Pauls Jonass but he did well today and it’s not easy to beat him, but we’re not giving up and we’re going to try our best to make it happen in the next rounds.” 

At times Lawrence was the fastest rider on the track on his RM-Z250 but after a great fourth in race one, he just wasn’t able to keep it on two wheels in the extremely difficult conditions in race two, as the wet mud started to dry off and stick to everything it touched. “The first race wasn’t too bad,” said Lawrence “the skies opened up before the race and we were getting hammered on the track; the rain really was unbelievable. I was able to finish fourth though which after starting off well down the field is really a positive thing. The speed is definitely there, and I didn’t mind the conditions, but then it got much worse for the second moto.

“Again, I wasn’t off to a good start. Thomas Kjer Olsen hit me from behind in the first corner but it’s always chaos in the first turn so I can’t really blame him. After finally getting going, I got back up to fourth very quickly and was riding well. Then another rider was crashed in the main rut that I was using and it was just unbelievably muddy and sticky out there. I dropped it there and then had to pick up my bike which was just so, so, heavy with all the mud on there. I finally got the bike up but it was just so hard to twist the throttle with all the mud on the bike. I kept riding though and eventually came home in 11th place, but I definitely feel it could have been better.” 

Despite last gate pick, Vaessen also had a great first moto, getting a great jump and battling it out in the top five for the whole moto. “The first moto was amazing; I had a really good start and was running in third position for quite a while, but made a mistake and lost a couple of positions near the end. I still came fifth though, so I was really happy with how I rode on my RM-Z250. Unfortunately the second moto when the conditions were worse was a completely different story. I didn’t have a great start, then I had a couple of crashes on the first two laps, before eventually getting in the mud and having to DNF. The track was a bit of a lottery at that stage and unfortunately I was out but I was definitely happy with my first race performance. My speed seemed good, I made some good passes and it was nice to fighting at the front of the field.”

Team Manager Stefan Everts excelled in the conditions like today had this to say about his riders’ performances: “It was a fantastic second moto from Jeremy, almost lapping the field. We had to change some things around after the first race and he responded well and did what he had to do by taking that moto win. It disappoints me that we dropped a few more points in the title race but there is still a long way to go in the championship. 

“For Lawrence, it was a bit like Indonesia because he rode super-fast today and obviously knows how to ride mud. In the second moto he came from dead last to get up to fourth place in just a few laps, but then unfortunately he dropped it and it made it very hard to continue at the same pace. After his fourth place in the first race he was in a position to get on the podium again and possibly take the overall, he was just missing a small piece of the puzzle today to make it happen. This is his first season though and he’s doing his best and he’s showing a lot of potential. He will do it eventually I’m sure of that. 
“And the same for Bas really, he was riding so well today in the first race. He was in third for a long time before making some mistakes right near the end. He was close to a podium spot but fifth was still a great result for him.”

In the EMX250 class, Pichon rode his second moto just before the worst of the rain hit but the track was still suffering and was extremely slippery in places. “It was a muddy race today which isn’t very fun,” said Pichon. “The start wasn’t very good, I got a kick just after the gate and I think I was dead last coming into first corner. The first 15 minutes were pretty good, I passed some guys and got all the way up to 12th. Then near the end I got a kicker off one of the downhills and hurt my shoulder, which was still in a little bit of pain after my crash yesterday. After that I just tried to finish the race as best I could, and ended up 13th. In the beginning of the race my speed was good and I think if I could have got a better start I would have been challenging with the guys up front.” 

The Motocross World Championships now take a weekend off before resuming at another new venue in Ottobiano, Italy on June 24, where the Suzuki World MX2 riders will continue their assault on the podium positions.

MX2 Moto 1: 1. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), 36:17.027; 2. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), +0:02.099; 3. Benoit Paturel (FRA, Yamaha), +0:05.608; 4. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, Suzuki World MX2), +0:30.777; 5. Bas Vaessen (NED, Suzuki World MX2), +0:33.877; 6. Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), +0:34.998; 7. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki World MX2), +0:35.367; 8. Alvin Östlund (SWE, Yamaha), +1:49.785; 9. Thomas Covington (USA, Husqvarna), +1:52.532; 10. David Herbreteau (FRA, Kawasaki), +2:12.487; 

MX2 Moto 2: 1. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki World MX2), 36:56.146; 2. Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), +2:32.284; 3. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), -1 lap(s); 4. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), -1 lap(s); 5. Julien Lieber (BEL, KTM), -1 lap(s); 6. Alvin Östlund (SWE, Yamaha), -2 lap(s); 7. Ben Watson (GBR, KTM), -2 lap(s); 8. Magne Klingsheim (NOR, Kawasaki), -2 lap(s); 9. Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, Husqvarna), -2 lap(s); 10. Giuseppe Tropepe (ITA, Husqvarna), -3 lap(s); 11. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, Suzuki World MX2), -3 lap(s); 19. Bas Vaessen (NED, Suzuki World MX2), -11 lap(s);

MX2 Overall: 1. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 42 points; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki World MX2), 39 p.; 3. Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), 37 p.; 4. Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 29 p.; 5. Alvin Östlund (SWE, YAM), 28 p.; 6. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, Suzuki World MX2), 28 p.; 7. Julien Lieber (BEL, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 26 p.; 9. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), 24 p.; 10. Ben Watson (GBR, KTM), 23 p.; 11. Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, HUS), 19 p.; 12. Bas Vaessen (NED, Suzuki World MX2), 18 p.;

MX2 Points Standings: 1. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 414 points; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki World MX2), 369 p.; 3. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 317 p.; 4. Julien Lieber (BEL, KTM), 308 p.; 5. Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 294 p.; 6. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), 230 p.; 7. Thomas Covington (USA, HUS), 225 p.; 8. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, Suzuki World MX2), 199 p.; 9. Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), 184 p.; 10. Brent Van doninck (BEL, YAM), 174 p.; 19. Bas Vaessen (NED, Suzuki World MX2), 74 p.;

EMX250 Moto 1: 1. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Honda), 30:14.276; 2. Simone Furlotti (ITA, Yamaha), +0:06.977; 3. Marshal Weltin (USA, Kawasaki), +0:38.461; 4. Alberto Forato (ITA, Honda), +0:45.168; 5. Morgan Lesiardo (ITA, Kawasaki), +0:53.063; 6. Mike Stender (GER, Suzuki), +1:00.670; 7. Dylan Walsh (GBR, Honda), +1:14.540; 8. Jere Haavisto (FIN, KTM), +1:18.777; 9. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), +1:24.383; 10. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), +1:25.990; 11. Ken Bengtson (SWE, Yamaha), +1:33.421; 12. Nick Kouwenberg (NED, Yamaha), +1:35.148; 13. Jago Geerts (BEL, KTM), -1 lap(s); 14. Roni Kytonen (FIN, KTM), -1 lap(s); 15. Ignatii Lopatin (RUS, KTM), -1 lap(s); 16. Zachary Pichon (FRA, Suzuki World EMX250), -1 lap(s);

EMX250 Moto 2: Tristan Charboneau (USA, Kawasaki), 29:14.223; 2. Pierre Goupillon (FRA, KTM), +0:04.554; 3. Simone Furlotti (ITA, Yamaha), +0:20.350; 4. Jed Beaton (AUS, Honda), +0:32.679; 5. Dylan Walsh (GBR, Honda), +0:49.336; 6. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Honda), +0:49.923; 7. Jago Geerts (BEL, KTM), +0:52.796; 8. Jere Haavisto (FIN, KTM), +0:53.113; 9. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), +1:36.156; 10. Alberto Forato (ITA, Honda), +1:51.506; 11. Mike Stender (GER, Suzuki), +1:53.278; 12. Ignatii Lopatin (RUS, KTM), +2:02.837; 13. Zachary Pichon (FRA, Suzuki World EMX250), +2:11.247;

EMX250 Overall: 1. Simone Furlotti (ITA, YAM), 42 points; 2. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, HON), 40 p.; 3. Dylan Walsh (GBR, HON), 30 p.; 4. Alberto Forato (ITA, HON), 29 p.; 5. Jere Haavisto (FIN, KTM), 26 p.; 6. Tristan Charboneau (USA, KAW), 25 p.; 7. Mike Stender (GER, SUZ), 25 p.; 8. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), 24 p.; 9. Marshal Weltin (USA, KAW), 24 p.; 10. Morgan Lesiardo (ITA, KAW), 23 p.; 11. Pierre Goupillon (FRA, KTM), 22 p.; 12. Jago Geerts (BEL, KTM), 22 p.; 13. Jed Beaton (AUS, HON), 18 p.; 14. Ignatii Lopatin (RUS, KTM), 15 p.; 15. Nick Kouwenberg (NED, YAM), 15 p.; 16. Ken Bengtson (SWE, YAM), 15 p.; 17. Zachary Pichon (FRA, Suzuki World EMX250), 13 p.; 

EMX250 Points Standings: 1. Morgan Lesiardo (ITA, KAW), 163 points; 2. Simone Furlotti (ITA, YAM), 146 p.; 3. Jago Geerts (BEL, KTM), 128 p.; 4. Alberto Forato (ITA, HON), 126 p.; 5. Ken Bengtson (SWE, YAM), 106 p.; 6. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), 101 p.; 7. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), 99 p.; 8. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, KAW), 96 p.; 9. Nick Kouwenberg (NED, YAM), 88 p.; 10. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, HON), 87 p.; 20. Zachary Pichon (FRA, Suzuki World EMX250), 41 p. 


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