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Saturday, 22 March 2008 |
Yamaha Monster Motocross Team’s Joshua Coppins is facing a rush to be fully fit for the opening round of the 2008 FIM MX1-GP World Championship in two weeks after an incident while training Saturday morning (22nd March) caused the New Zealander to break two toes on his right foot and undergo immediate surgery.
The 31 year old travelled to the Dunkirk circuit in France to begin his motos in the early stages of Saturday morning to avoid a crowded venue later in the day. However his intentions were curtailed after he crested a hill only to find a local rider picking up his machine. Coppins’ right foot bore the brunt of the subsequent collision as he caught the other bike’s footpeg. With counsel from renowned motocross surgeon Dr Claes, Coppins went under the knife successfully the same afternoon and did not require the insertion of any metalwork into the two smallest toes on his foot.
The natural healing process means that one of the strongest favourites for the MX1-GP title is now staring at the possibility of missing the first meeting of the GP series at Valkenswaard in the Netherlands on April 6th.
“I cannot believe my luck, this is the third injury in a row that I have had that was not my fault,” he said. “Valkenswaard is 50-50 at the moment. My foot has to heal naturally and we might run out of time; I’m not too sure how things will go at the moment. We will have to assess things over the next few days. I am trying to stay positive but clearly this was not what I wanted. It is a long season though and we have to keep looking ahead.”
Coppins had won races in Italy and France over the last six weeks in a promising pre-season period on the works YZ450FM. He claimed five grand prix victories in 2007 and was leading the world championship by 107 points until a freak accident at the Grand Prix of Czech Republic, four rounds before the end of the campaign, caused him to surrender what would have been his first crown. |
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Monday, 17 March 2008 |
Yamaha's Josh Hill toasted a fine maiden AMA-SX triumph in front of almost 41,000 fans at the Metrodome in Minneapolis last Saturday for round eleven of seventeen in the 2008 championship. The 18 year old steered his YZ450F to the chequered flag ahead of Ryan Dungey and Kevin Windham. Series leader Chad Reed was a protagonist in the Main Event but a crash dropped him down the race order and he finished seventh for the second week in succession.
Reed, who was struggling with sickness and sat out second practice, was hounding the back wheel of early leader Hill as the Yamahas formation-flew in the first half of the sprint. The Australian then made an uncharacteristic mistake at the end of the whoops section, and his slip caused him to plummet down the leader-board to ninth position. Hill was then free to continue his fine rhythm to the finish line.
"I knew that I had to get going because somewhere in the mix, Chad would be there," said Hill, a first ever debut-winner in Minneapolis who is currently negotiating his first season in the SX class. "I was just in the right place at the right time. Chad made a mistake, and I just cruised along to victory, pretty much. After I broke away from Dungey, I kind of just was able to get into a smooth pace and keep it going."
"Chad had problems," he continued. "I haven't beaten Chad straight-up. Has anybody? He's gnarly! It's not going to be easy at all to do this again, and with my rollercoaster-ride season... if I keep my track-record, I should be 17th next weekend! But I think my program has really improved to a point where I'm mentally in the game a lot more when I show up to the race. Before, I'd really work hard during the week, and I'd do my homework, but I'd show up at the race and either be drained or just mentally not focused and I think Ryan Hughes has really helped me out with that."
As for Reed it was the first time he has missed the podium for two races this season. His error also sliced his advantage in the overall standings down to 17 points with six rounds left to run. AMA Motocross Champion Grant Langston is still unable to compete due to an eye problem.
Another Yamaha-mounted teenager, Tyler Bowers, was sixth in the East Coast Lites division on the YZ250F.
The AMA-SX (also an FIM World Championship) campaign now enjoys a break for the first time this year. The teams and riders will have two weeks to recollect over Easter weekend before the trip to the Rogers Centre in Toronto on March 29th. |
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Sunday, 16 March 2008 |
UFO Corse Yamaha team rider Simone Albergoni got his 2008 Enduro 1 World Championship campaign off to an impressive start at the Grand Prix of Sweden, staged in Ostersund, where the Italian was runner-up on day one and then again finished on the podium with third place on day two. The series' only winter enduro is typically an event in which many southern European riders struggle, due to the frozen terrain and sub-zero riding conditions. Albergoni defied expectations and showed just how determined he is to win this year's E1 title by posting two solid results despite admitting that he certainly doesn't feel at home racing with spiked tyres.
Heading to Finland ten days prior to the Swedish opener for preparation, Simone mixed consistency with speed on day one and never dropped lower than fifth in the class on any of the day's seven special tests. Finishing just eight seconds behind eventual E1 class winner Mika Ahola on the event's opening test, Simone held off hard charging WEC newcomer Eero Remes from Finland and after one-hour of special test action placed as a deserved runner-up.
On day two Simone was again quick, despite the unfamiliar conditions. Although not starting Sunday as well as he had on Saturday, and not managing to get to grips with the fast motocross test, three solid enduro test performances saw him end the day third, just 18 seconds behind former double E1 world champion Ivan Cervantes. Up next on the WEC tour are the second and third rounds of the series, which will take place in Portugal and Spain - events that will be much more to Simone's liking.
Competing alongside Albergoni for the UFO Corse Yamaha team in the E1 class Maurizio Micheluz placed in seventh on both days - results the Italian was pleased with considering the frozen terrain. Performing well on the motocross test on day one, Maurizio was again at his best on the motocross tests on day two managing to record the third fastest E1 class time on the last lap of the event.
Although consistent on both days, and like Micheluz riding strongly on the event's fast and flowing motocross section, Spaniard Cristobal Guerrero was unable to perform as well as he'd hoped as several crashes hampered his results. Cristobal preparations for the meeting were hampered due to the shoulder injury he sustained at the final round of the Indoor Enduro World Cup but he was still able to secure two top ten results with eighth on day one and ninth on day two. |
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Friday, 14 March 2008 |
The Yamaha Monster Motocross Team will be hoping to strike extra fear into their FIM Motocross World Championship rivals in 2008 thanks to a new alliance with Monster Energy drinks. The factory-backed Grand Prix squad – now entitled ‘Yamaha Monster Motocross Team’ thanks to the title sponsorship - will benefit from a high-profile three year joint programme with one of the new powerful movers in motorcycle racing for their attempt on the MX1-GP title.
Monster Energy, a product of California-based subsidiary Monster Beverage Co. part of the Hansen Beverage Company, have also lent their backing to the AMA Supercross series (an FIM World Championship) and have now extended their reach into the motocross Grand Prix paddock with the team responsible for winning three of the four titles since the MX1 class was born in 2004.
“It's fantastic to have Monster Energy on board with us,” said Yamaha Motor Europe’s Racing Division Manager Laurens Klein Koerkamp. “Our results with the team over a long period have shown that we can offer Monster - as a partner - the top level successful image that they are looking for in Europe. During the discussions it was clear we were speaking to a company dedicated to supporting us in getting the best results and above all passion for off-road sport. Monster is a young and fresh brand, relatively new to Europe. It will be also exciting from a marketing point of view to work with them and raise their awareness on this side of the world.”
The works YZ450FMs of Joshua Coppins and David Philippaerts will run a new design and livery for 2008 that will be unveiled in a special presentation on Friday evening prior to the first Grand Prix in Holland on April 6th.
The team rightfully fill a position of prominence in world championship motocross racing having won the MX1-GP crown three times in succession with the potent YZ machinery from 2004 to 2006. Prior to the inauguration of the MX1-GP class they were also responsible for three 500cc titles in 1999, 2001 and 2002. They dominated races in the short-lived MXGP competition (a forerunner to MX1-GP) in the 2003 season when Stefan Everts also made history by winning three motos on a Yamaha in three different categories on the same day at the Grand Prix of France. In 2006 they helped the Belgian to record ten world championships and 101 career victories before his retirement. |
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