Yamaha Comes Out Fighting for the Monster Energy SMX Riders’ Cup
. By Bikeland Staff
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP rider Romain Febvre, Kemea Yamaha Official MX Team's MX2 rider Brent Van doninck and French Outdoor SX vice-champion and Yamaha 2B rider Yannis Irsuti covered new ground today as they defended Yamaha's honour at the SMX Manufacturers Cup, Febvre scoring victory in one of the three SMX races at the Veltins Arena in Germany.
The Monster Energy SMX Riders' and Manufacturers' Cup is a unique concept that combines supercross and motocross elements, as Youthstream President Mr. Giuseppe Luongo and FIM Europe President Dr. Wolfgang Srb explained in the morning pre-event press conference in the stadium. The high-speed track was covered with a mix of some deep and shallow sand over a smooth surface. The demanding and tricky sections required a lot of throttle control and formed a unusual setting for the riders to use their bikes strongest points while representing Yamaha.
The action started in the afternoon with two practice sessions when the Yamaha trio got a first feel for the track before the Super Pole. Romain Febvre had the honour to set a flying lap on behalf of the Yamaha team and took provisional pole by 0.067s to ultimately hold fourth place when all six manufacturers had completed their one hot lap.
It was then time to start the main event. Twenty-three riders stormed away, from a new type of aluminum plated starting grid, when gates dropped for the first 16-lap SMX race. Febvre had a good start and pushed hard in third place. He kept on the pace until coming together with Herlings in a small crash, losing a place to finish fourth.
Van doninck impressed with the speed of his YZ250F machine and positioned himself in thirteenth place at the start of the first race before quickly rising to twelfth. The Belgian rider held his position for the majority of the race and, though he had to let a chasing rival pass, he finished the first race as the highest classifying MX2-rider.
Irsuti had a cautious start to the SMX event and lost valuable time due to a crash, that thankfully left the Frenchman unharmed. Despite the fall he still finished the race in 19th place.
Having learnt from the first, Febvre had a strong opening lap to the second race and navigated his way flawlessly through the traffic to end the first lap in third place. He was looking strong when he charged to the front and ticked off Bobbyshev without any complications before riding to Tim Gasjer. A fall from the race leader gave Febvre a smooth pass for the lead. The Frenchman remained unchallenged for the remainder of the 16-lap sprint and sealed the win with a heel-clicker over the finish.
Van doninck had a more challenging second outing at the Veltins Arena, but the youngster again showed that he knows how to work his YZ250F bike. He held a steady pace going whilst fighting with Gautier Paulin and Jake Weimer. He ended the session in 16th place, leaving them tied in points in the MX2 championship with Jeremy Seewer.
Irsuti again didn't have luck on his side and suffered a second tumble at the Veltins Arena in the second race. The fall saw him drop down from 18th to 21st place in the race two classifications.
Febvre got caught in the first corner after another rider's crash on race three, completing the first lap in 18th place. He had work to do to fight his way to the front and that's exactly what he did. The Yamaha-man muscled his way through the pack and needed only a couple of laps to fight his way up to eighth before picking off Evgeny Bobryshev on lap 11 to take a well-deserved seventh place.
Van doninck had a difficult start to the last race of the day, but he never lost heart and picked up the pace towards the end of the 16-lap session. He gained two places with just two laps to go, to end the day with a 17th position.
The final race was also a mixed event for Irsuti, who had a good start and moved up to 18th place, but was unable to maintain the strides he had made. He fell back to 21st position, but gave a last-minute push to climb up the rankings again in the final five laps to take 19th place.
After the three races, the team had the option to drop their two worst scores. Keeping the results of all riders for race one and Febvre and Van doninck's results for race two and three. Yamaha wrapped up the event in fifth place in the manufacturers' championship with a total of 77 points.
In the riders' ranking, Febvre secured fourth place with a total of 12 points, Brent Van doninck took 15th place with 46 points and Yannis Irsuti ended in twenty-first place with a total of 59 points.
Untitled Romain Febvre
"The event was good and the track was really good also. We worked on our starts a lot this week so the race starts were strong for us. I was able to always start at the front, which was the key for the races. The track is really small so if you start last it's very difficult to come back. The first race I was following the leaders looking for a place to pass but made a mistake, and Herlings also. We touched each other and crashed. It could have been better but with a crash it wasn't too bad. The second race was perfect, I had a good start and was second, then Tim Gasjer had a crash and I took the lead. Second place was elastic, he kept coming back but then I was moving forward so I kept the position. The last race, someone came too fast on the inside and crashed, pushing everyone out and I was stuck behind the bike. I went last but came back to finish seventh which was a bit disappointing. The stadium event is good for the pubic and it was great to be part of a full Yamaha team."
Untitled Brent Van doninck
"Race one was my best start of all three for me. I was first MX2 rider and I think I was 13th or 14th overall with the MX1 riders. It was a good race and I was happy with it. The second race I had a bad start, I was already in the back from the beginning. The third race again I had a bad start, I was the fourth MX2 rider but then many riders crashed, which was good for me and easy passing! It was a good day, I had fun and it was a nice event. I felt honoured that Yamaha picked me for the event, I like things like this and to be together with the team and Romain was great."
Untitled Yannis Irsuti
"Race one was a hard race because I had an SX set up on the bike but it wasn't an SX set up track, there was too much sand so I crashed on the first race and the same thing in the second race. For the last race I tried to have fun, I didn't crash so it was good for me. It was really great to ride with Romain, a world champion, and Brent who is also a great rider. It was like a dream for me."
Untitled Alberto Barozzi - MX Team Manager
"For sure the races were amazing for the spirit and the atmosphere. The Manufacturers' Cup is a really good challenge for the future because my feeling is that the responsibility for our riders to defend the brand is a great honour. Our line up changed a bit for reasons before the event, which was unfortunate. Finally Romain made a very good result and was one of the fastest riders on the track. Brent was very close to winning the overall 250 but in the final round he had a bad start which affected it. He rode really well as always. For Yannis, it was his first time in the big international stage. He rode well and gave his maximum with a less than perfect set up on his bike. We are happy for the event and take the positives from it for the future, it's definitely an interesting way to end the season for the Yamaha family."