ROCZEN RECOVERS FROM BAD START TO TAKE 6TH IN FRANCE

2010-06-05 14:25
Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2's Ken Roczen pulled through from a mediocre start at a hot and humid St Jean D'Angely for the Grand Prix of France. The seventh round of 15 in the FIM Motocross World Championship took place just one week after the paddock migrated from Glen Helen in California and the GP fraternity found a similar climate near the French west coast.

Roczen and team-mate Arnaud Tonus classified sixth and ninth after the pair gated reasonably well but then ran into traffic around the opening corner of the re-worked hard-pack track. Hard, carved ruts littered the majority of turns and the circuit was difficult in places purely because of the alternation between slippery hard terrain and the technical lines.

Both RM-Z250 riders fitted hard-pack tyres to their machines and Roczen was on the pace from the first session, eventually registering the third best time while Tonus was ninth.

The German and Swiss trawled back through the field in the 20 minute and 2 lap heat race and now have fairly decent positions in the start gate for tomorrow's motos that are forecasted to occur under the threat of showers.

Ken Roczen:

"Both Arnaud and I came out of the gate really well and arrived to the first corner where we were both pushed to the outside. It meant we were quite far back and it was hard to overtake on this track. I found a couple of places that worked, so that is something useful for tomorrow. The ruts were deep and hard and it was not easy to keep on your lines."

Arnaud Tonus:

"I did not get around the first corner well and must have been down in 20th. I pushed the whole race to come back to ninth and passed Verbruggen on the last corner. We now know that the start is a bit better on the inside. The track is narrow but there are some options with lines for passing; you just have to be aggressive. I like this kind of dirt so I am hopeful for tomorrow."

MX2 Qualification Heat Classification: 1. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha); 2. Marvin Musquin (FRA, KTM); 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM); 4. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki); 5. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM); 6. Ken Roczen (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2); 7. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki); 8. Dennis Verbruggen (BEL, KTM); 9. Arnaud Tonus (SWI, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2); 10. Matiss Karro (LAT, Suzuki).

Source: Team Suzuki Press Office

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