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GP of Portugal: double podium joy for Honda at Agueda

In Offroad

11 maggio 2009

GP of Portugal: double podium joy for Honda at Agueda

Antonio Cairoli won the Grand Prix of Portugal at a warm but cloudy Agueda circuit for the Grand Prix of Portugal and the fifth round of fifteen in the 2009 FIM MX1 World Championship and Rui Goncalves claimed the MX2 class honours in front of 25,000 spectators. Honda were able to celebrate podium appearances in both categories thanks to LS Honda’s Clement Desalle and NGS Honda’s Marvin Musquin.

Honda’s representation in the premier class in Portugal was severely dented by pre-event training accidents that side-lined their riders in both the Martin Honda and CAS Honda teams. Their absence leaving Desalle to steer the CRF450R to third place in both Motos after bright starts for third place overall across the undulating Agueda slopes. He is the top Honda rider on current form and deserved his second rostrum appearance of the season.

Martin Honda were not able to wheel their machines out of the awning over the weekend as Kevin Strijbos had broken his scaphoid the previous week and several days after Strijbos’ demise Marc De Reuver sustained a dislocated hip and three broken vertebrae after a training crash. Strijbos will face a month on the sidelines while the season is most certainly over for De Reuver.

CAS Honda had Cedric Melotte absent through a back complaint leaving teammate Billy Mackenzie hoping for a positive weekend to lift Honda spirits. But fate determined otherwise when a minor fall, while attempting a flying lap in the second practice session, left the Scot with a swollen right thumb. Despite a pain-killing injection the British Champion had to withdraw from the first moto and also the Grand Prix.

In MX2 NGS Honda’s Musquin enacted an incredible first race to blast through from last position to be among the leaders in the opening laps. The Frenchman had crashed in the Saturday qualification heat and started from almost the final slot in the gate. He overtook main rivals Goncalves and Steven Frossard in the first moto to capture his first chequered flag since the round at Bulgaria in early April. In the second Moto he was not able to fight through the pack as effectively and two small slips saw him cross the line in sixth spot for third overall on the CRF250R.

In the World Championship standings Desalle is unsurprisingly the first-ranked Honda rider and lies seventh, 16 points from the top five. Strijbos is just inside the top ten. Musquin has closed ground in the MX2 table and is just six points away from Paulin at the top.

Martin Honda hopes to find a replacement rider for the British Grand Prix at the end of the month while Melotte should return to action for the following meeting.

The Portuguese round also saw the second grand prix for the Women’s World Championship. Reigning number one Livia Lancelot won her second race of the year and was chased onto the podium by AMA champion Ashley Fiolek. The American is now second in the standings with her CRF250R but returns to the US this week to prepare for her national campaign.

Round six of both the MX1 and MX2 World Championships takes place next weekend at the Bellpuig circuit, Spain, for the Grand Prix of Catalunya.

Clement Desalle, LS Honda:
“I took my first podium at Faenza but that was in crazy weather conditions so this one feels a bit better. I had to work hard for this but I am very happy with the result. I tried my best and I think for Honda it is good because there has been some bad luck with the other riders. I had a problem with my throttle cable at the start of the second moto but it was nothing major and I could continue.”

Marvin Musquin, NGS Honda:
“It was impossible to take the holeshot today! I pushed really hard in the first moto to come back as high as I could. I found it was possible to gain ground and pass Paulin, Frossard and Goncalves and the whole first race was just so good. I felt a bit tired in the second one, and two small crashes in the same place before the whoops did not help. Anyway this was a good track for me and I am looking forward to Spain. I am second in the championship now and I have four podiums; I want to keep on trying my best each GP.”

Billy Mackenzie, CAS Honda:
“The weekend started off mega. We got the bike working really well and I was happy and confident and we made some decent times in the first session. I went to make a lap in the pre-qualifying and I knew it was a flyer because it was the fastest split and the front end washed out. I must have put my hand out and jammed my thumb. It started swelling and then turned black and blue. I had an injection but I could not hold onto the bars and was also having a lot of pain. I managed to get through qualifying and then had plenty of ice and anti-inflammatory cream overnight but nothing stopped it getting bigger. To be honest I think I might have broken it. I tried the first race but was battling far down the field and was having a few dodgy moments so I had to stop before doing more damage.”

Ashley Fiolek, LS Honda:
“Yesterday was OK, I did not ride as well as I could have and felt much better and faster today and could stay closer to Livia. The track got a lot rougher today and I am more used to this kind of terrain. I would really have liked to stay here and compete in the next round but I need to get back and get ready for the AMA series that begins in a few weeks. I hope to be back for Sweden though.”

Roger Harvey, Off-road Racing Co-ordinator, Honda Motor Europe:
“These are difficult times for us at the moment but this is the nature of the sport and we have to just accept the circumstances and try to find some suitable replacements where we can. However, today absolutely full credit to the excellent rides from Clement and Marvin; they did us proud and Marvin’s recovery from almost last in the first moto was splendid to watch, a really special effort.”

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