Team Suzuki Press Office – August 7.
Kevin Strijbos finished a hot and busy Grand Prix of Switzerland at the new Frauenfeld-Gachnang circuit with 15th position today on his works Team Suzuki World MXGP RM-Z450. Round 15 of 18 saw a bumper 45,000 attendance surround the flat but jumpy and bump-ridden course a short distance north of Zurich and bring MXGP into a third event in three weeks.
Soft and grippy soil meant line options and ruts for the new-build course and hot sunshine also welcomed Grand Prix back to Swiss territory where the crowd responded to the prospect of the motocross elite battling in the final phase of the 2016 campaign.
Strijbos entered the start gate in 12h position after a goggle glitch on Saturday meant he could not ride harder in the Qualification Heat due to poor visibility. On Sunday the Belgian had no such problem but could not count on extra luck in the first moto. On the first lap he crashed losing control out of a rut and had to enter the pit lane for swift repairs to his front brake. Re-joining the race, he pushed up to 18th to secure three points. In the second moto the 30-year-old paid some of the price of his push from the first outing. He found a rhythm in ninth position and threatened to pass Shaun Simpson but finally could not relegate the Scot and settled for ninth.
Arminas Jasikonis tweaked the engine configuration of this race bike Saturday evening after struggling to find a rhythm through the deep ruts. In the first race the Lithuanian suffered two falls and was forced to retire five laps before the finish with a bent rear brake. Some more adversity followed in the second moto, especially when the youngster clashed with a backmarker and again went down. He finished outside of the points and with 23rd for the day.
Strijbos is currently 10th in the MXGP FIM Motocross World Championship standings and just two points in front of Simpson. Team Suzuki World MXGP will next be in action for the Grand Prix of the Netherlands at Assen on August 28th and the last flurry of races to close the 2016 campaign.
