World Motocross Championships - Round 2 - Bellpuig

Crockard desperately unlucky again at Bellpuig

Team Wulfsport Honda had to leave the Bellpuig circuit and the Grand Prix of Spain over Easter weekend without any points after being hit by further bad luck. Gordon Crockard was temporarily sidelined by a gory and freak accident while Shaun Simpson, Scott Probert and Martin Kohut were unable to make the qualification cut in MX2.

The holiday weekend saw sunny weather and 26,200 fans arrive to the Bellpuig circuit in Catalunya, an hour’s drive east from the Mediterranean city of Barcelona. The short, steep and fast track provided its usual bumpy and rough test for the riders trying to negotiate the second round of fifteen in the FIM MX1 Motocross World Championships.

On Saturday afternoon Shaun Simpson was knocked wide off the track in the first MX2 qualification heat and although he fought back from last to 15th he did not make the top 12 to qualify for the Grand Prix motos. Rookie Probert and Kohut were also unable to breach the leader-board. All three MX2 representatives faced some tough opposition in the Last Chance timed session and Simpson was just over a second away from the six fastest riders who survived the elimination process. His team-mates were slightly further back but all three were facing a difficult task on an increasingly demanding and slower circuit.

Gordon Crockard was 15th quickest in the MX1 class and seemed to have put the disappointment of the technical problem in Zolder behind him.

The former 250cc Spanish Grand Prix winner started brightly in the first moto but was forced to pull over for medical assistance on the first lap as a rock had smashed his mouth by entering the tiny gap between his goggles and helmet. The 27 year old had his upper lip split both inside and out and his teeth knocked inwards. Somewhat groggy the Irishman was understandably in no condition to take to the line an hour later after needing stitches in the medical centre.

The team are hopeful that with the right treatment he should be able to compete next weekend in Portugal and the town of Agueda, roughly 100km south of Porto, for the third round of the FIM series.

Shaun Simpson:
“Zolder suited me a little bit better. We have not ridden on these kinds of hard-pack tracks that much and I need to get some more practice to improve on this sort of terrain. Zolder was sandy and more like a British track so it was slightly easier for me. In the heat I was coming around the outside and Anthony Boissiere was hit by another rider and knocked me into the haybale. I got going and the times and the speed were OK but I could not make up the distance I had lost. It was very one-line because of the watering. Portugal should be a better place for us.”

Roger Magee:
“On the first lap Gordon gated well and was inside the top ten. He then noticed that he had searing pain and his mouth started to fill with blood. He rolled the bike to a stop and saw the ambulance people by the side of the track who took him up to the medical centre. They inserted a number of stitches on the outside and inside of the lip. His teeth had also been smashed. He will need some work done on it this week but we hope he will be OK for Portugal. In the MX2 class Shaun got pushed out at the start of the qualifying heat and although he came back to 15th with all the watering and one line on the track it was hard for him to make up ground. Scott showed that he is getting closer to the pace at this level but Saturday was a good experience for him. Martin Kohut has been doing well in the British Championship with two top ten finishes last week and this was another level for him. He did OK in the heat finishing 16th but could not come through the Last Chance. We will have another go in Portugal and hope for better there.”