Team Suzuki Press Office – September 4.
Team Suzuki World MXGP left the impressive Charlotte Motor Speedway Saturday evening with Kevin Strijbos obtaining 11th in the overall MXGP standings for the Grand Prix of Americas. The first of a USA ‘double bill’ saw the FIM Motocross World Championship inaugurate a new build at one of the meccas for NASCAR and a spectacular course around The Dirt Track zone of the complex was home to 15,000 fans for what was the penultimate round of eighteen in the 2016 series. Arminas Jasikonis was forced out of action towards the end of the first moto with a twisted right ankle.
Charlotte entertained a somewhat unconventional fixture on the Grand Prix calendar with the vast speedway venue welcoming motocross for the first time and under lights for a Saturday evening race programme. The fixture got off to a wet start with the edge of Hurricane Hermine causing a full day of rain on Friday and forcing cancellation of practice and qualification for both MXGP and MX2 classes.
Due to the night scheduling there was ample time to run the sessions earlier on Saturday and with the track still boggy and difficult to judge Strijbos and Jasikonis ran to lap-times that allowed them to enter the start gate in 10th and 23rd positions. The track crew had worked comprehensively to drain and repair the clay-like soil and the racing surface was prime on Saturday and under blue skies and hot temperatures for the most part.