Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Mathis Valin swept to an emphatic victory in the first FIM European EMX250 Championship moto of the weekend at the tortuous Lommel sand-track in the Flanders region of Belgium to extend his series points-lead.
The French teenager had already signalled his intentions as he posted the fastest time in Free Practice and he was only narrowly pipped for Pole during Qualifying Practice. Excellent reactions at the start-gate saw the Bud Kawasaki sweep through the opening turn of the first points-scoring moto of the weekend to take the holeshot before he was pushed off the track in a highly aggressive move by his main championship rival at turn three. Regrouping calmly in fourth he was third by the end of the lap, second on lap three and made a smart inside-pass in a deep sandy turn to retake the lead on lap five. Within two laps he had already opened up a six-second lead and continued to move relentlessly clear of the chasers until he had established a comfortable advantage of more than ten seconds which he maintained until, taking no risks as he carefully threaded his way through the lappers during the last two laps, he took the chequered flag by 7.6 seconds. The moto victory sees him extend his series lead to twenty points and he can go to the start full of confidence for yet further success tomorrow morning in moto two.
Mathis Valin: “We came in Belgium two weeks ago to train and prepare for this race in Lommel, and today we got the reward. Lata took the pole in the Timed Practice period but I knew that the race would be different; he was pretty aggressive in the first part of the race, but I took my time and when I found my rhythm I passed the two guys in front of me and made a gap. Honestly I am never thinking about the championship when I am on the bike and tomorrow I will again stay focused and give my best.”
Bud teammate Benjamin Garib took a tenth-placed start from gate fifteen and maintained a top-ten ranking until a small slip pushed him back to twelfth on the final lap.
Benjamin Garib: “I got a decent start and was running around tenth all moto; on the last lap I had a small crash trying to make a pass so I had to be content with twelfth. This is my first time at Lommel and it’s a cool experience; it’s tough, and they tell me it gets even rougher on Sunday, so I’ll tell you tomorrow if I have enjoyed it (laughs)”.
England’s Joel Rizzi, fourth-fastest in Qualifying on his KX250, was knocked off in the first turn but responded strongly to claim a well-deserved fourteenth at the finish.
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