Lotte van Drunen of the De Baets MX team secured a fourth-place finish at the penultimate round of the Women’s World Championship in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey.
Van Drunen entered the Turkish GP with a 20-point advantage over her closest rival. After a strong feeling in both free practice and timed practice, she approached the opening moto with confidence.
A poor start, however, forced her into a comeback race. Thanks to some clever line choices in the first few corners, she quickly broke into the top five and soon advanced into third position. Although she tried to close the gap to the two leaders, they managed to edge away slightly in the early stages. Van Drunen maintained her pace, delivering a solid performance to finish third and collect important championship points.
In the second moto, Van Drunen launched well from the gate but tangled with a rider alongside her, forcing her to back off and drop to the rear of the field exiting the first corner. Once again, she had to mount a charge through the pack. As the race progressed, her rhythm improved, and she fought her way back to the rear wheel of the third-placed rider. Despite her efforts, she couldn’t make the pass and had to settle for fourth.
With a 3-4 moto score, Van Drunen took fourth overall on the day. Crucially, she still holds a 16-point lead in the championship standings heading into the final round.
The decisive season finale will take place in Australia on 20-21 September.
Photocredits: Fullspectrum Media
