VRT Yamaha Official EMX250 team’s Ivano van Erp narrowly missed out on a trip to the overall podium, finishing fourth at EMX250 round seven in Belgium. The talented racer maintained his impressive form this year by charging to sixth in Race One before finishing third in Race Two. The team’s second rider, Gavin Towers, secured 14th overall despite being unable to complete Race One after a first-turn fall rendered his bike unrideable.
Following a seven-week break in the EMX250 calendar, van Erp and Towers were both eager to impress at round seven at the bottomless sand circuit of Lommel. With van Erp fifth quickest in Time Practice and Towers not too far back in 11th, both riders headed to the line for Race One confident of running up front at arguably the toughest track on the calendar.
Frustratingly, van Erp didn’t get the best jump off the line in Race One, which gave the 19-year-old a lot of work to do. Up to 21st by the end of the opening lap, the young Dutchman broke into the top 10 on lap 10 aboard his GYTR-kitted YZ250F and never stopped charging. With four laps remaining, van Erp continued to make passes and moved into sixth on the final lap.
With a much better start in Race Two and quickly making a couple of passes, van Erp found himself in third by the end of the second lap. From there, he chased the leading riders while also pulling away from EMX250 series leader, Mathis Valin, in fourth. Able to rely on his incredible fitness to maintain his pace to the finish, van Erp placed third for fourth overall. With four rounds remaining, van Erp remains fourth in the Championship Standings.
A fantastic start saw Towers hit the first turn of Race One near the front until a rival collided with him. With his bike too damaged to continue, it led to an unfortunate DNF. Regrouping for Race Two, the American adapted well to the demanding circuit to claim 11th for 14th overall on the day. Towers now lies 20th in the Championship Standings despite only contesting three of seven rounds.
The VRT Yamaha Official EMX250 team will now take a weekend off before heading north for the MXGP of Sweden on August 10-11, round eight of the 2024 campaign.
Click here for the EMX250 results from the MXGP of Flanders.
