Intense racing dominated Lacapelle-Marival France EMX250 Championship

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Intense racing dominated proceedings at the sixth round of the EMX250 Championship in Lacapelle-Marival, France, today. Riley Yamaha Racing’s Hakon Fredriksen celebrated his first race and overall win of 2021, while Hutten Metaal Yamaha Official EMX250’s Andrea Bonacorsi went a step higher than last weekend, securing a career-best second overall.

 

After a challenging start to the season, Bonacorsi proved the performance of his GYTR kitted YZ250F, as well as his own riding and tactical prowess, by grabbing pole position – the first of his EMX250 career – in spectacular style. He posted a 1’48.331 lap, 0.373 clear of Fredriksen in second.

 

In the opening race, Fredriksen and Bonacorsi emerged from turn one inside the top-eight and impressively used the power of their YZ250Fs mixed with some creative lines to move quickly to the front of the field.

Fredriksen took the lead before the end of the first full lap and then went on to take an emphatic race win – his first of 2021. Meanwhile, Bonacorsi had to fight for second position and eventually secured it after a thrilling bar-to-bar battle with another Yamaha rider, Cornelius Toendel.

 

In the final race of the day, Fredriksen rocketed to another fabulous top-three start, while Bonacorsi had to weave his way through the pack after starting outside of the top-10. From there, Fredriksen put in a stellar performance to finish behind the championship leader, Nicholas Lapucci, in second position, as Bonacorsi stormed through the pack to finish third.

 

A 1-2 scorecard gave Fredriksen his first-ever EMX250 overall victory, while Bonacorsi toasted a career-best result from the second step of the podium.

 

Hutten Metaal Yamaha Official EMX250’s Jeremy Sydow got a fantastic start in the opening race but was shuffled back to 14th and in the final race, the German managed to score a point for 20th after a poor start.

 

Meanwhile, Dave Kooiker struggled to find his rhythm out on the hard-packed and narrow circuit. He finished 29th in the final classification.

 

After collecting another piece of podium silverware, Bonacorsi remains fifth in the EMX250 Championship Standings and has moved within 7-points of Liam Everts in fourth. At the same time, Fredriksen gained six positions today and is now eighth. Kooiker remains 10th in the championship chase. After missing the first four rounds due to injury, Sydow is 25th.

 

The next round of the EMX250 series will take place in Pietramurata, Italy, on Tuesday, October 26th.

 

 

 

The tight and compact Lacapelle-Marival circuit was also the setting for the fourth round of the EMX125 Championship, where all three MJC Yamaha Official EMX125 riders, Ferruccio Zanchi, Karlis Reisulis and Ivano van Erp finished inside of the top-nine.

 

Zanchi set the pace in timed practice and claimed a second consecutive pole position with the fastest lap, 1’51.371. Teammates van Erp and Reisulis also qualified strong inside the top-10. Van Erp was eighth and Reisulis was 10th.

 

In the points-paying races, Zanchi was again the star performer. The young Italian battled with the leaders for 12 of the 17 laps in the opening race before catching his gear shifter in a deep rut and falling from fourth. After losing a lot of time trapped under his bike, the ‘73’ eventually broke free and pushed hard to finish 19th.

 

Reisulis put in 17 smooth and consistent laps to finish a season-best seventh position, while last weekend’s round winner, van Erp, started last and fought back to 16th after hitting the gate.

 

Bouncing back from the frustration of the first race, Zanchi powered his GYTR kitted YZ125 to an incredible holeshot in race two and led every lap for an emphatic race win – the first of his budding career.

 

Van Erp also got off to a much better start and battled back from a small crash to finish sixth, while teammate Reisulis rounded out the top-10.

 

After a day of ups and downs, Zanchi was fifth in the overall classification, 2-points clear of Reisulis in seventh, and 7 in front of van Erp in ninth.

 

The MJC Yamaha Official EMX125 Team and its line-up of talented youngsters will be back in action next weekend, in Madrid, Spain.

 

Hakon Fredriksen

EMX250 Round of France Winner, 47-points

8th EMX250 Championship Standings, 103-points

“I am really happy about my race today. I had two good starts and I know I can run with the guys up front, so I am happy that I managed to keep it on two wheels and take it home. This season has been a big struggle so it’s just an emotional win. I’d like to thank everyone behind me, especially the team and my family. I am so happy now. ”

 

Andrea Bonacorsi

3rd EMX250 Round of France, 42-points

5th EMX250 Championship Standings, 154-points

“Another good day on the box, second place today. I am really happy I am growing, let’s say, race by race. I feel really good. In the second moto I struggled a bit more but anyway, I am still really happy about my day.”

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