The South African Grand Prix, the eleventh round of the FIM Motocross World Championship, ended on a high note for Calvin Vlaanderen. Riding his Desmo450 MX, the South African battled all the way to the final corner of the second moto to secure an impressive fourth-place finish at the Terra Topia circuit, just a few kilometres from Johannesburg, in front of his home crowd.
After recording his best qualifying result of the season with fifth place, the 30-year-old rider from Port Elizabeth also enjoyed a strong start to the opening moto. However, he was boxed in through the first corner, losing several positions on the opening lap and crossing the line in ninth place. A consistent ride enabled the Red Bull Ducati Factory MXGP Team rider to work his way up to eighth, where he ultimately finished.
The second moto got off to a less favourable start, but Vlaanderen fought his way back to fifth during the opening lap. Determined to reward his home fans with a strong performance, he guided his Desmo450 MX into fourth place on lap 11 of 17. In the closing stages, he successfully held off the pressure from the rider behind to cross the finish line in fourth. The result also earned him fourth overall for the day—his best performance of the season—and moved him a significant step closer to the top ten in the championship standings.
Calvin Vlaanderen:
“What an incredible weekend at home. It was fantastic to race my first-ever Grand Prix in South Africa and to come away with such a strong result. There was a lot of pressure with my family, friends and all the fans there to support me. I knew I had to deliver. I tried to block out all the distractions and focus entirely on my riding and what I needed to do, and I managed to do exactly that. I’m proud of myself and happy with the form we’ve shown over the past few weekends. We’ve been able to maintain that momentum, we’re continuing to improve, and my confidence is coming back. Now we need to keep building on this.”
