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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127798
MOTOCROSS' '. World Championship 500cc ~ocross senes Round 10: Luxembourg GP By Alex Hodgkinson REIT.., GERMANY, AUG. 11 hough series points leader Shayne King left the Luxembourg Grand Prix in firm control of the championship points lead, it was Swedish Husqvarna ace Peter Johansson in firm control on the track in Rei!, Germany. After a third-place run in the opening moto, Johansson simply found his form in the second moto and led the bulk of the race to take moto win and overall on 3-1 finishes. (Above left) For only the second time In his career, Peter Johansson took an overall Grand Prlx victory. The Swede finished third In moto one, but shot the front of the peck In moto two and never looked beck. (Above) Reigning champ Joel Smets chesss points Ieeder Shayne King. Though King finished third overall, Smets did worse and lost valuable points In the championship race. The Belgian cruhed during both motos and finished sixth overall. (Left) Bernd Eckenbach put on a command performance In moto one, leedlng the race from &telt to finish. The German rlder finished second ov.....lI. Another strong performer was Bernd Eckenbach, who led the first moto from start to finish and backed it up the second time out with a fourth place to end the day second overall. King's hold on first place in the points standings did not suffer despite his third overall finish on 2-6 moto scores, since his main challenger in the series, reigning champion Joel Smets, suffered crashes in both motos to finish the day with 6-5 scores and sixth in the final tally. With his solid performance - the second overall Grand Prix win of his career - Johansson had firmed his hold on third place in the season points race and now leads fourth-place Dietmer Lacher by 11 points. Smets, or; the other hand, leaves Germany trailir.g King by 32 points, 295263, as the series move into its final two rounds. Although ddden in Germany, the event actually was the Luxembourg Grand Prix. Because the traditional track in the Grand Duchy is no longer available and the country's new track is not yet ready, the organizers were given permission to hold the race 30 miles outside their own territory, at the Rei! track overlooking the Moselle Valley. The first moto was a start-to-finish win on home soil for Eckenbach, who has lost many points this year through mechanical misfortune. "This race wasn't without its problems either," said Eckenbach. "A clutch spring broke about halfway through the race. That's why King got a little closer, but I was determined not to let this race get away also and managed to keep him at a distance until the finish." Although King did not manage to score the win in the first moto, he was nonetheless satisfied with his secondplace performance since it ultimately helped him in the season points race. "I' couldn't push too hard early on because I got arm pump," said King. "I charged with 15 minutes to go, but Bernd (Eckenbach) countered and the track is so rough that it would have been easy to