Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP’s Calvin Vlaanderen made it two overall podium finishes in a row with third at the MXGP of Lombok. Clearly comfortable in the hot and humid conditions and at one with his Yamaha YZ450FM machine, Vlaanderen fought hard for third in Race One before repeating that same result in Race Two. For Andrea Bonacorsi, a pair of 10th-place finishes secured him ninth overall.
With a reversed and revised race track in Lombok, all riders faced a new circuit for their second visit to the venue to complete the double-header event in Indonesia. One thing that remained the same one week on was the weather, with high temperatures and humidity creating tough racing conditions.
Continuing to establish himself as an elite MXGP racer, Vlaanderen demonstrated his incredible fitness in Race One to catch and pass reigning MXGP World Champion Jorge Prado on the penultimate lap to secure third in the opening race.
The South African’s form continued into Race Two as he rounded the opening turn well inside the top five. An intense battle for third then began, but Vlaanderen pushed hard to move into third by the end of lap one as he set his sights on the leading riders. Despite not being able to pressure them, the number 10 broke away from the rest of the pack and crossed the finish line in third, just under 12 seconds from eventual race winner, Jeffrey Herlings. With two third-place finishes, Vlaanderen stepped onto the overall podium in third for the second consecutive GP and remains a comfortable fourth in the Championship standings.
The MXGP of Lombok saw a consistent showing from Bonacorsi. Even with the Italian feeling the effects of the heat and humidity, he placed 10th in both races for ninth overall. With his solid points haul, Bona remains 14th in the Championship Standings and just five points from 12th.
With a very successful Indonesian double-header complete, Vlaanderen and Bonacorsi will now return to Europe in readiness for MXGP round 13 in the Czech Republic on July 20-21.
Click here for all the results from the MXGP of Lombok.
Calvin Vlaanderen
3rd MXGP of Lombok, 40-points
4th MXGP Championship Standings, 429-points
“What a weekend and trip it’s been. I’m so, so happy to back things up from last weekend and be on the podium again. I put together two good races and I had to work hard for it in Race One. I could see Jorge Prado fading a little, so I put in a late-race change and got him. Then in Race Two, I put in some quick laps at the start and although I couldn’t quite hang with the leaders, I did create a nice gap behind me. So, 3-3 for third and another podium, so I’m really happy.”
Andrea Bonacorsi
9th MXGP of Lombok, 22-points
14th MXGP Championship Standings, 167-points
“This GP was pretty tough. I had good starts, close to the top five, so that made things a little easier. But this weekend, the heat really got to me, so it made things difficult. But now, we can head back to Europe, regroup, and get ready for Loket in a couple of weeks.”
