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/1537523
Coenen, De Wolf Fastest at MXGP of Finland T he FIM Motocross World Championship entered an all-new venue at the KymiRing facility near the city of Kuovola, Finland, for the 13th round of the series, July 12-13. An overnight thunderstorm soaked the sandy circuit, but the track absorbed the rain nicely and created ideal con - ditions for Sunday's racing. Two riders swept all four motos, with Lucas Coenen and Kay de Wolf showing their sand expertise en route to the overall victories. MXGP Lucas Coenen has finished in second place in the last five consecutive Grands Prix, but the Red Bull KTM Factory rider was out for blood after the scheduled break. The Belgian native made his move to the lead at the end of lap one and was clearly the fastest man on the track. His best lap was a full five seconds quicker than anyone else's, and the MXGP rookie looked comfort - able up front as he sprinted away to win by more than 10 seconds. Glenn Coldenhoff grabbed the early holeshot but settled into second ahead of his Fantic team- mate, Andrea Bonacorsi. Points leader Romain Febvre got off to a poor start and only salvaged fifth at the checkers. Race two saw Coldenhoff again strike first as he crossed the holeshot line first. Coenen quickly overtook him in turn two, and the KTM rider again stretched a 13-second gap in the opening laps. A big crash and a series of mistakes dissolved Coenen's race lead and allowed Yamaha's Calvin Vlaanderen to sneak by for the lead. Vlaan - deren's time at the front was short-lived as Coenen passed him back one lap later and crossed the line first, sweep- ing the day with 1-1 finishes. Febvre passed for second late in the moto and earned second overall while maintaining the series points lead. Vlaanderen's podium in moto two earned him third on the day. "That second race wasn't easy, but I'm pumped with how it turned out," Coenen said. "I got out front early and just took off. Saturday was a bit of a struggle, but today we made some good changes, and it all came to - gether. Super happy with the 1-1 and how I rode: let's keep this momentum going!" MX2 It's been over two months since the defending MX2 cham- pion Kay de Wolf stood on top of the overall podium. A string of poor results has dropped the reigning number one to third in WIND IN THE P38 Lucas Coenen scored maximum points with a 1-1 sweep after a string of second-place results.