Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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Kenneth Gundersen finished fourth in the first moto ond 11th overall. My OWN RACE 31 josh Co ppins 8th The Kiwi struggled with bad starts and little knowledge of his new Honda CRF4S0R. "My starts were terrible," Copp ins said. "I was like last in the first race out of the start. Same story in the next race. I felt my clutch was slipping, although because I don't have that much experience with the four-stro ke, I can't be sure what it's do ing. I've not had too much race time on th is bike, and in the next mont h I can do some races, and it willcome . I'm still having a little tro uble with my ankle injury, but by the time the season begins, I will be okay." 15 And rew McFarlane 9th The Australian also struggled with his starts , and like Copp ins finallygot it right in the last heat of the weekend. "I've bee n riding the 2S0F a lot, and wanted to come here and get some time against the top 250 guys: ' McFarlane said. "We had a problem with the bike at the start of the second heat , hit neutral and missed the drop , and in the first heat I just missed the start altogether. I managed to gate much better in the last heat and got into a battle with Marnicq Bervoets and Coppins, so it' s been good preparation, for sure . On this trac k there is only one way to pass, and it's not a nice way, but that is racing." 3 joel Sm ets DN S After winninghis heat on Saturday, the Belgian looked .-----:~-------, ready for a good weekend - except a heavy crash while chasing Cedr ic Melotte in the Tennis Match saw him rushed to the hospital with a chest injury "The . bike is great, it's fast enough, and we have done a lot of work on it," Smets said before the crash. "My biggest prob lem is, we are making progress then going a litt le in the wrong trac k, which is understandable. I'm not comfortable with the bike w hen I really have to push it, so that is going to take some time. I was surprised I won my qualification heat on Saturday. I never expected to be at that level so quickly. We can see some improvement on the bike, for sure , and while it does not handle as good as the KTM yet, I think it has the potentialto be as good or bet- ..-----------.1 te r." 8 without winning has worked for him at least seven times now. "I can't remember the last time I won a season opening race ," Everts sa id. "Today, I rode so smooth, and I just didn't worry about anything, and that is the way I am go ing to go into the Grand Prix season . I wa nt to enjoy my racing. We have the bike set up perfect. I don't have too much to worry about. I am rea lly particular about the fork setup - that gives me confidence and it's just so good , the bike is even better than last year." Everts also won a se ries of races called the Tennis Match , which featured 16seeded riders racing two-man heats against one another until only two riders remained . Everts led home Denmark's Brian Jorgensen in the final, having bea ten two forme r World 12Scc Motocross Ch ampions (Ste ve Ramon and Aless io Chiod i) on his wa y to the final. Five-time SOOcc World Motocross Champion Joel Smets ended the day in the hosp ital with a minor chest injury afte r crashing in a Tennis Match heat. The new Suzuki factory rider looked brilliant pr ior to his accident, winning his Saturday qualification heat and clocking the quickest time of Sunday-morning practice. The opening heat was a show of Everts' talent, as he blitzed out of the start and led the field around the opening lap. Andrea Bartolin i did his best to stay in contact with Everts only to be passed by Cedric Melotte for second. " I had a good fee ling," Everts said. " I made a good start and could co ntrol the race . Th is track is nice to ride, and it's difficult for th e guys who d idn't get the start. I didn't need to push hard or anything, just enjoyed myse lf. I was a little surprised by Andrea [Bart o lini]. He didn't give up, and then Melotte began to make some time on me near the end ." As for Bartolini, the veteran Italian was excited by his sho w of form in the second heat. The former World champ will race the MX2 class in 2004 and is using the Mantova race as his preparation, altho ugh Brian jorgensen 4th Jorgensen looked very good , despite some nagging injuries. Jorgensen also finished second to Everts in the Tennis Match. "I crashed pretty hard last week and injured some muscles near my shoulder, so I am having some trouble with that," he said. "Holding on at race spee d is hard, although I feel good. I am just recovering from an injury I received at the end of last year, so hopefully I am getting these little injuries out of the way before the GPs begin. I think I am ready to go to the next level and challenge Stefan, and going by this weekend, I re main confident for the season. I was 23rd in the first lap of the open ing moto and came up to seventh, so that was really good on this track. I made some good passes." 11 Steve Ramon 14th The I25cc Wor ld Motocross Champion suffered with bad starts and bad luck, although at times his spee d was good . "My speed was good ," Ramon said. "I had some bad luck and crashed in the first corner of the first race . It was difficult to pass, so I didn't make up any ground . Then I crashed again in the last race . I'm not too worried about the results here; my speed was good ." 24 Kevin Strijbos 6th Another young rider looking likely to be a dark horse for the upcoming MX I class is Strijbos. He won his qualification heat on Saturday. "First race, I got a bad start then passed some guys pretty quickly- that was nice. Igot a little tired but got some energy back near the end of the race and finis hed sixth. The second race, I could ride my ow n rhythm and felt good for fifth , and in the last race I just sucked. I never had a chance." 4 A lessio Chiodi 5th The three -time 125cc World Champion e nte red the event with little in the way of expectations yet show ed good speed against the likes of Everts and Smets. "I had fourth place in the start of the first race and rode good , then Gunde rsen passed me, and my rhythm stayed the same," Chiodi said. "In the second rnoto, I missed the start. Somebody took my gate place, and I got a gate with reallydeep sand, and I missed the drop. This trac k is so difficult to pass on, they had the up-and-down section in the trac k, and you can't pass there. The track looks nice, but it's a killer for passing. I on ly rode the 450 once last week. Because I am do ingthe MX2 class in 2004, I have been riding the 250F." www.cyclenews.com CYCLE NEWS • MARCH 3 , 2004 29