Here’s a little insight into how the shooting went and what was going on behind the scenes.

We headed down to Spain a couple of weeks ago to do the pre season photo and video shoot with our BUD RACING Riders Dylan Ferrandis and Valentin Teillet.

Tommy Searle consolidated his hold on second place in the FIM World MX2 Motocross series with a strong fourth place in the Benelux GP at the Lierop sand track close to the Dutch-Belgian border.

The Englishman, brought up on grassland and hardpack tracks, always knew that the GP in the unrelenting sand of the Dutch circuit would be one of the most difficult of the year, but, as he had done at the opening round of the series in similar conditions, fought bravely to secure two fourth places behind a trio of sand-riding experts. Maintaining a sustainable pace throughout the first moto he retained fourth place throughout and repeated the performance in race two after holding second place in the early laps. His chances of clinching the title are now fairly remote, but the Team Floride Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit leader takes a 38-point advantage over the third-placed rider in the series to the final two rounds.

Valentin Teillet of the Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki team rode a decisive opening moto in the deep sandy conditions which are alien to young French riders to fight his way forward to ninth place before surrendering two places late in the race to local experts. After a less satisfactory start in race two he found himself in sixteenth place, but never gave up battling to gain two places before the end of the moto in the difficult conditions.

Young teammate Dylan Ferrandis had made a lightening start in the first moto to hold down third place for three laps and he was still running top six in the difficult conditions until he suffered a heavy crash in which the bike landed on his back. His start in race two was not quite as good but the teenage rookie held down sixth place early on and, despite pain from the first race incident, battled hard for tenth at the chequered flag to retain his eighth place in the series rankings.

Tommy Searle: “I don’t really like the sand and struggled here, but four and four is not so bad. I didn’t ride so much in the sand this year, maybe I will have to come more often to be more ready than I was this weekend. In the second moto I felt better; I got a good start, put in some good laps but then I suddenly lost ten seconds in one lap. It’s always tough here, and I will come back soon in the Netherlands to prepare the Motocross of Nations.”

Valentin Teillet: “I didn’t have a good feeling with the track, and didn’t feel confident this weekend; my goal was to score top fifteen results here, and that’s what I did. For sure I will have higher goals for the next two races, but for me it was important to finish both races here.”

Dylan Ferrandis: “It was my first experience here in Lierop, and it was even harder than I expected. My first start was good and I was happy to be third for the first few laps, but then I made a mistake and dropped back to sixth. I still had a good rhythm but then I had a big crash and the bike landed on my back. I lost a lot of time so there was no point to continue to the end of the race. I had pain in my back during the second race, but I managed to finish tenth which is not so bad for a first experience here.”
MX2 results
Lierop

Highlights from round 6 of the FIM world motocross championships in St Jean D’Angely, France. Featuring Christophe Pourcel, Gautier Paulin, Tommy Searle, Xavier Boog, Sebastien Pourcel & Valentin Teillet.

Searle is a big fan of France - Image by Ray Chuss

Tommy Searle maintained his challenge for the FIM World MX2 Motocross Championship with yet another moto win in the sixth round of the series at St Jean D’Angely in western France.

The 22 year old Englishman was on pole position after a stunning victory in qualification, and he recorded the fastest lap in both GP motos aboard the Team Floride Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit. An unfortunate incident at the start of the first moto when he failed to get away cleanly as his rear wheel dug into soft ground restricted him to third in that race, but he rebounded strongly in race two with an overwhelming victory to strengthen his second place in the championship standings.

Searle’s teammate Joel Roelants was a strong fourth in both races as he continues his return to the front flight following an unfortunate concussion last month, which had interfered with his training programme. In a particularly strong second race he finished just two seconds from second place and has consolidated his fourth place in the championship.

After suffering terribly bad luck with injuries since the opening GP Valentin Teillet took his Team Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki to sixth place overall in his home GP to augur well for the rest of the season, but unfortunately his teenage teammate Dylan Ferrandis was forced to withdraw from the GP with a wrist injury after being catapulted out of the qualifying race by another rider; earlier he had set a sensational third fastest time in Pre-Qualifying.

Tommy Searle: “This was probably the best-prepped track all year, but that meant that there was less of a differential between the fastest riders and the rest so it made it more difficult to move through the pack if you didn’t get a good start. After winning the qualification on Saturday we decided to take gate one, but the ground at the start had been graded and my rear wheel dug into the soft gravel so I was nearly last off the start. By the time I got to third, the leaders were gone. I was soon second in race two and once I found a way past the leader I put my head down and opened up a gap.”

Joel Roelants: “I have been able to train hard since we got back to Europe from the overseas races and, even though I didn’t get a good start in the first race, I was able to push through to fourth place. My second start was better but I was again fourth. Second place was only two seconds away but I couldn’t quite finds a way past the two riders immediately ahead of me.”

Valentin Teillet: “After my injuries I haven’t been able to race so much and couldn’t practice for several weeks, so it was physically demanding for me this weekend but I reached my goal with two top ten results. It’s such a great feeling to finish two motos again, particularly in front of my home crowd; it was incredible to get so much support from the fans. Sixth place was a great result and it could have been better if I had not had one small crash in each race.”

Dylan Ferrandis: “I had my best pre-qualifying session of the season with the third berst time, so I had a good gate for the qualifying race. My start was also good and I was in sixth place after several corners, but another rider hit me and forced me to crash. I carried on but then the front wheel slipped away in a fast corner and crashed again. I felt pain in my wrist and the team and I decided that I should not race until I have had a thorough examination on Monday.”

Racing conditions were perfect in Gaillac Toulza, and there was a lot of suspense before the start in each class; Valentin was leading Maxime Desprey by a single point in the MX2 class, while Sébastien came in Gaillac one point ahead of Cédric Soubeyras. Valentin got the holeshot in the MX2 heat, and won the race on his Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki while Maxime Desprey scored a fourth position on his NGS Junior Team Kawasaki. In the MX1 class Soubeyras got the holeshot and won the race; after a crash in the opening lap, Sébastien came back from twelfth to third. In the super final Sébastien and Valentin got a better start than their rivals, and secured their title by finishing respectively first and eighth. Sébastien celebrates his fifth French title with Kawasaki, the first one for team CP377 Monster Energy, while Valentin grabbed his first ever French crown. Dylan Ferrandis was unlucky in the MX2 race as he crashed with another rider, coming back from twenty one to fourth with the fastest lap time; a better start in the super final helped him to secure a fifth position among the 450.

Sébastien Pourcel: “It’s a good feeling to get this title, as I had two difficult years with my shoulder injury in 2010 and then my back injury last season. I know that I’m not yet at my best level, but this title is a first step in my recovery and I want to thanks Kawasaki, my team and my family who were behind me. After my early crash in the MX1 heat I came back third and lost the leadership of the series, but in the super finale I got a good start. I took the lead, Cédric was fast but I was able to make a small gap with him to celebrate another heat win this season.”

Valentin Teillet: “I’m of course very happy, it was not easy to hold the pressure as I came to this race with my wrist injury. I had so much pain during the first heat, more than ever in my career and the last laps were difficult. I’m happy for my team Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki, they all did their best for me before this final round; I won all the MX2 races except one in Plomion, but it was not an easy championship as I missed the second round in Sommières. It’s great to celebrate another title four years after my European crown, and now the goal is to get good results in GP’s and I will prepare carefully the upcoming French Grand Prix.”

Dylan Ferrandis: “My start was not very good in the first heat, and then I had some troubles with another rider who stopped in a corner. My foot was under his wheel, so I lost too much time and was twentieth after the first lap. I came back fourth, but that was not what I could expect. I had a strong motivation before the super final, and got a good start among the 450. It’s good to finish the Elite series with a fifth position, as I entered the season not at my best due to my shoulder injury. My goal is the GP’s, and I can’t wait to race my first French GP next weekend.”

The Englishman finished second in each moto after two thrilling rides through the field following misfortune in the early stages of both tough 40 minute motos around the hillside track at an altitude of nearly 1700 meters with temperatures soaring into the 90s. Lapped riders got in his way as he prepared his assault on the leaders in the opening race and an early fall in the second encounter forced him to charge back through the pack. Tommy is now just one point shy of second place in the standings after four GPs of the 16 round series.

His teammate Joel Roelants was racing for the first time since suffering a severe crash during the Italian GP, and the Belgian showed great character to end the day fourth despite suffering occasional lapses of concentration. The Belgian ‘s resiliance has seen him strengthen his fourth place in the championship.

Bad luck dogged Team Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki all day. Valentin Teillet made a sensational return to action as he maintained pressure on the leading duo for half of the first race until he crashed and had to go for a check-up on a painful wrist. GP rookie Dylan Ferrandis then took up the challenge and in a sensational final lap stormed from sixth to fourth for his best GP result to date. He had high expectations of yet another top finish in race two, but a crash at the first corner and another one lap later when a local rider lost control and jumped into him forced his early retirement.

Tommy Searle: “I got a good jump out of the gate in the first race, but one of the riders inside me slid out at the first turn and I had to brake. I soon had the leaders in my sights, but there were so many slow local riders this week that we were already lapping them after 10 minutes. Some of them were all over the track and they cost me a lot of time. The second race was my mistake as I crashed on the first lap when I was second. I have the speed to win, but Jeffrey is too good for me to catch him again if things happen like they did today but I still got second in both races. I know my physical condition is good, so I never stopped pushing because I knew other riders would not be able to maintain their speed.”

Joel Roelants: “I’m really happy to finish fourth in the second race, and, if I hadn’t crash in the first moto, I would also have been fourth. I was not riding t my full potential this weekend after my crash in Italy two weeks ago. I knew that it would be tough here as I had to stay in a darkened room for five days after the crash, and still today during the races I had to keep telling myself ‘concentrate, concentrate’. Normally I wouldn’t be happy with fourth, but that was the maximum in the circumstances.”

Dylan Ferrandis: “I didn’t make a good start in the first race but I kept pushing, and on the last lap I was able to pass Tixier and Roelants to finish fourth. I was delighted with that result and was optimistic for the second race. I got a great start this time, but in the first corner I slid out and crashed at the first corner; I damaged the throttle so I had to stop at the pits for repairs, and then a Mexican backmarker threw his bike at me and my race was over.”

Great weekend in France for Kawasaki, as Sébastien Pourcel and Valentin Teillet won the penultimate round of the French Elite series.
Racing on a chalky track is never easy, but if you add some rain it’s even worst! The racing conditions were pretty tough in Plomion (north of France) for the penultimate round of series, but it was another good day for the Kawasaki riders who are now leading both classes. Sébastien Pourcel from team CP377 Monster Energy Kawasaki is the new leader of the MX1 class, while Valentin Teillet leads the MX2 category with his Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki. Both will go to the final round (Gaillac Toulza on May 27th) with a minor advantage: one point for Teillet, and two for Pourcel!

Always suffering from a hematoma in his lower back, Valentin Teillet had a difficult opening moto; he was in third position behind Maxime Desprey, his main rival for the title, when both crashed. They lost all their chances in this crash, and finally the best Kawasaki rider was Dylan Ferrandis who scored a second position, followed by Teillet in third and Desprey in fifth. In the super final Valentin got a good start and scored a fifth position far ahead the other MX2 riders; fifteenth overall and fourth MX2 rider, Maxime is now runner up in the standings while Dylan Ferrandis retired when he had to stop twice with a stone in his rear brake pedal.

In the MX1 class Sébastien Pourcel got a double win in Plomion, and in both races his main rival was Cédric Soubeyras. The MX1 heat wasn’t a problem for Seb who led the entire period, but the super final was more difficult as he lost time due to a couple of mistakes. He had to recover from a crash which relegates him in seventh position, and made a winning pass only in the last lap of the race. Twice winner ahead of Soubeyras, he is now leading the series by two points.

MX1 standings: 1.Sébastien Pourcel (CP377 Monster Energy Kawasaki), 218 pts; 2.Cédric Soubeyras (Honda), 216; 3.Gregory Aranda (Yamaha), 147; etc…

MX2 standings: 1.Valentin Teillet (Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki), 195 pts; 2.Maxime Desprey (NGS Junior Monster Energy Kawasaki), 194; 3.Loic Larrieu (Husqvarna), 160….6.Dylan Ferrandis (Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki), 136; etc..

Sébastien Pourcel: “I struggled a little bit in the timed practice session, but in the MX1 race I just needed one lap to lead the race. I pushed to get a ten seconds lead, and then managed the gap with my rivals. The super final was tougher; I had a bad start, came back third, crashed and later made another mistake! I came back second and pushed really hard to join Soubeyras; in the last lap I made a pass to win this race. I know that the final round will be tough as we’ll just be back from South America, but I’m happy to have again the red plate on my Kawasaki. After my DNF in Italy, that’s good to win races!”

Valentin Teillet: “I was not so happy with my riding in the MX2 race, and I lost too much time when I crashed on Desprey’s bike. It was better in the super final, and to finish fifth among the 450 is a good result as the track was slippery. I didn’t train during the previous week as I spent most of my time with my doctor; I still have pain in my body, in fact even if I had some injuries in the past it has never been so hard and painful than actually. But the most important this weekend was to take points in the series and to keep all chances for the title.”

All the team, including Dylan Ferrandis and Valentin Teillet, expected a difficult start to the championship as they recover from early season injuries and couldn’t train so much in the sand before the event. But both youngsters showed great character to secure strong results in qualification – eighth place for Valentin and fourteenth for Dylan – and later in both races. With great starts thanks to their powerful Bud Kawasaki, Valentin and Dylan scored twice top ten results. Ninth and tenth after he stalled his engine in race two, Valentin finished ninth overall right behind his teammate. Dylan rode strong in both races, and battled for a top six result against some sand specialists during half of the second race.

The Women World Championship also kicks off in Valkenswaard, on one of the most demanding track. Livia Lancelot crashed pretty hard during a practice session; riding with a broken finger and occasional spells of dizziness she dominates the qualifying race, and then scored twice a podium result. Second of the Grand Prix, she will enter next weekend the GP of France in Castelnau de Lévis.

Dylan Ferrandis: “I was expecting a tough GP, and my goal was to do a top ten there as I am still not totally recovered from my injuries. But my Kawasaki gave me two great starts and then I rode smart; for sure the next tracks will be even better for me.”

Valentin Teillet: “This was the first time I have raced here, but I know the track’s reputation and rode a little tense in the first moto. I had a great start in the second race, but then I stalled the engine in the first corner and had a tough fight back through the field. My shoulder was still painful but I now have a free weekend before the next GP and I’m confident I can do even better there.”

Livia Lancelot: “I had a big crash during the practice session yesterday and it was not certain if I could race at first as I broke a finger and was a little dizzy so this was a great result for me, particularly as my main goal this year is the X-Games in California.”

Jacky Vimond: “It’s a good result, and a strong reward for all the staff including the mechanics who worked hard to be ready for this event. We didn’t really know what to expect due to the rider’s injuries, but both reached our common goal with a top ten result. They all did clever races, and didn’t took too much risks on this track; for sure they will be stronger on hard tracks such as Bulgaria or Italy.”

Suzuki Europe MX2 Team Co-ordinator Jens Johansson reflects on the 2010 season and the development of the RM-Z250 from World Championship competition to future production models.

2011 was a year of attrition for the Suzuki Europe MX2 team with Grand Prix rider Valentin Teillet luckless with injury but still able to show the competitiveness of the factory-backed RM-Z250 in five of the six rounds he completed with strong top-10 results.

There were other bright spots such as Italian teenager Simone Zecchina being given his GP debut on the best equipment possible and using the experience to go on and clinch the European 125cc Two-Stroke series riding an RM125. Young Swiss rider Jeremy Seewer was also given support and took the potent RM-Z250 motorcycle to an eighth-placed finish in his class during the first moto of the Motocross of Nations.

Here Technical Co-ordinator Jens Johansson provides some perspective on the racing campaign that finished a fortnight ago in France.

This was the fourth year for the MX2 project. What is your evaluation of 2011?

“I think to say it is a ‘lost year’ is maybe a bit harsh but due to rider injuries we lost a lot of decent track time. We had to wait from October to January and then got going for five or six weeks, stopped for two weeks with a back injury, started again and then had a broken toe; overall we have been really limited with what we can do. Valentin basically had to get used to riding again in January which meant that there was not much testing being done. We managed to do some very small adjustments before the first Grand Prix; things to do with engine mappings and settings. We learned a lot but it was not really a step forward. Since then we have made some developments in that direction but we have not been able to test.

“We were also in the situation where as the practice bike was not identical, we’d get to Grands Prix in Germany and Latvia and we find out that he needs power in a certain area whereas before he had been riding on slick tracks and didn’t need the bike so aggressive. Add to that things like the congested GP calendar when the bikes have been on the road for three weeks in a row and basically we have not been able to do as much as we would have liked to this season.”

People might assume the bike is sorted pre-season and perhaps don’t realise the amount of work that actually has to go on through a six-month campaign…

“We are in a lucky situation because not all teams have the possibilities we have. We can change things during the year and we have options. To do things like switch major engine components is a privilege and it is why we could react to Valentin’s requests.”

Did the positive approach to development come off the back of a very successful 2010? If so, then how might that change after a tough season this year?

“In the end you always need something to show for the work but the relationship with the engineering department in Japan is really good and the rapport is as good as it can be. I believe Suzuki trust in what we do and its support is excellent. Sending the best information we can as soon as we can helps us all to move forward. We have stuff coming now that we are ready to test for next year or even the year after.”

Do you think the RM-Z250 is still a priority in terms of racing development?

“I can’t answer that fully and of course MX1 is the main class but there is a lot of engine work that can be done on the MX2 bike. Personally I see MX2 as more of a challenge but that doesn’t mean it is necessarily more important.”

Do you think the engineering department see MX2 as much as a challenge as you?

“I hope so!”

The set-up for the team this year without a title sponsor and using just one rider means it has not been easy. Will you be able to keep the same team structure and approach for next year and even over the winter?

“We could see that in 2010 we ended the year with a good technical package, a really competitive bike, and now one year later I think it is still the case. With the introduction of fuel injection by us and other manufacturers I think this has moved the goal posts forward in terms of ‘rideability’ – there is no ‘bogging’ – while new noise limits have made things more difficult from a technical side. I am not saying that it is easy to gain power because of fuel injection on this bike but I think the technical challenge with FI and noise regulations means you have to work quite a lot on these things to have a powerful, rideable and quiet engine and I believe we managed to do that last year already. It is pretty complicated and we did a good job last year to still be in a position engine-wise with the bike we have now. There are limitations; one of those has been with the rider this season, as I have explained. There have also been restrictions with budget and staff. We can do a good job with one rider but we have been under-staffed and it has been a fight against time. I don’t think we will make any huge steps in the next year but we have stuff coming and we can still improve.”

Do you think you have contributed to the upcoming MX2 production machine?

“Absolutely. We are in this for racing first of all but it is obvious that when we send good feedback the bike progresses and everyone can see that in World MX2 the RM-Z250 has grown to be every competitive. I think it is now a fantastic base for a good production bike.”

The orientation of the MX2 project seems to be shifting more towards youth and with the link with the two-stroke riders Jeremy and Simone, will it be harder for the four-stroke GP effort to retain that ‘factory-backed’ status because of this?

“I don’t think so. To attract young guys you need something at the top level so they can see both long-term and short-term and say something like ‘that will be my bike in two years.’ For promising teenagers it is hard to look all the way to MX1 with the many race-winners and big heavy bikes so you need a competitive package in MX2 Grands Prix to act a bit like the carrot on the string. We want to give the opportunity to young Suzuki riders and give them a realistic vision that they might be able to ride for us. We want to keep them on Suzukis and give them something to aim for. The European series is a separate budget and won’t cost us much in terms of manpower; MX2 remains our main goal.”

2008 European Motocross Champion, Valentin Teillet will be next year the team mates of Dylan Ferrandis & Livia Lancelot in the team Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki, who will focus on the MX2 250 class.

After this European title, the 21 years old rider didn’t had the same success in the World Championship, as a series of injuries didn’t allowed him to do one perfect season. Very talented on a bike, with a spectacular riding style, he proved anyway with several ‘Top five’ GP results in the competitive MX2 class that he had the speed to get great results. For the first time in his career he will have the opportunity to work closely with Jacky Vimond to reach another step of his promising career.

Valentin Teillet: « I had a great season with team factory Suzuki, and being part of a factory team was good for me. I’m very happy to be back on a Kawasaki, a bike that I raced in 2007, and I’m so pleased to have signed with team Rockstar Bud Racing Kawasaki. It’s a strong team, and I will do my best on their 250 Kawasaki; Dylan proved in the European series how competitive the bike is, and I’m convinced that it’s a great choice for me. Since three years I’ve been affected by several injuries, it was really tough mentally to come back to the highest level but I did it to come back to top 5 GP results. I know that my speed and my riding style are OK, and I’m sure that after strong winter training alongside Jacky Vimond I will have a successful 2012 season. It’s the first time in my career that I will have the opportunity to work with such a famous trainer as Jacky, who was a top rider and knows a lot about the sport; I’m impatient to start working with the team !”

Stephane Dassé: “As soon as we decided to focus in the MX2 class, Valentin Teillet was one of the riders we were looking for, as we know what he is able to do in this class and battle for the podium. We’ll give him the possibility to work with Jacky, it’s important as he had too many injuries this season and he needs to be physically well prepared. With Valentin and Dylan we have two young riders, who both have a great potential and enjoy riding a Motocross bike. We’ll do our best to help them to get strong results.”