Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128376
n another turbulent set of circumstances, the World MX I Championship is running in the favor of defending champion Stefan Everts. The Grand Prix of Portugal was very similar to the first two Grands Prix of the year, with many riders crashing out or having mechanical problems. This time it was Everts who stood tall as the sun settled on Agueda, Portugal, for round three ofthe 17-round series. Everts was able to score the victory despite crashing in the second moto. Having taken a solid victory in the opening moto, the Belgian legend again led the second race, only to slip over in a comer and hand victory to his major rival, Mickael Pichon. Everts, who had dropped back to fifth place after his fall, was able to move into third place behind Pichon and CAS Honda rider Josh Coppins by the race's end, which was enough to give him victory. "The first race was great. I really enjoyed it and could pass Jussi Pekka Vehvilainen straight away to lead the entire race," Everts said. "In the second heat, I finally had the holeshot; I was looking for it for a long time, and we did a good job with the team on the bike. I made a small mistake later, and it cost me some places. Then I passed back Joel Smets and tried to catch Josh Coppins, but he was riding really fast, and I had trouble with some lappers. I'm really happy with my results; it's good for the championship. I want to thank everybody in my team, and I look to get my 82nd win in Narnur." The Agueda track, with its distinctive red mud, was a changing beast over the weekend, as heavy rainfall turned the dirt into a slushy, rutted mess. Intermittent sunshine broke through the Portuguese clouds in the afternoon to dry the terrain, so the second motos of both classes offered a technical and far less swampy test. Everts has now taken over the lead of the MX I standings by 16 points on Pichon. With its predominant single racing line, overtaking was at a premium, and Everts enacted the perfect race strategy in the first moto by hitting the front and pulling out a substantial margin inside three laps. His championship rivals had a race to forget, as both Suzuki's Smets and Honda's Pichon retired with mechanical problems. Yamaha-JK Racing's Luigi Seguy rode his YZ4S0F to an excellent second place, behind Everts. Everts tried to repeat his performance in the next race and actually stole a rare holeshot. The eight-time World Champion hit the deck briefly on lap four, and that allowed the chasing Pichon through to win the race. Everts harried Coppins in second place, but, with the overall still on the plate thanks to third position, he backed off in the final circulations to ensure victory. In the MX2 class, it was Italian Yamaha rider Antonio Cairoli who proved to be the quickest of the young guns. Taking II victories, the teenager not only took the I rs out as rivals falter