It was Team Teka Suzuki WMX1 rider Ken De Dycker's turn to narrowly miss out on a podium place this weekend as the former MX1 championship leader emulated his team-mate Steve Ramon's luck of last week - in Sevlievo - by losing out on a top-three overall finish by next to no points.
Ramon, meanwhile, had a "weekend to forget" and could only muster a ninth place overall finish after two gruelling motos at the Mantova circuit during the Grand Prix of Italy - the fifth round of the 15 round FIM Motocross World Championship.
Overnight rain left the Mantova circuit super slippery, as underneath the few inches of slop that lay on top was a hard base that was soon polished up by the spinning wheels of the racers. But regardless of the tricky conditions, expectations were high for good results from the two Team Teka Suzuki WMX1 team riders in today's two motos.
The start of moto one saw both riders get off the start line in the latter half of the pack although De Dycker was able to square off turn one to elevate himself to fifth by turn two. From there he easily charged to second place - the position he'd hold to the finish - after showing the kind of form he produced in the early season.
Ramon also had a great first lap and by the time the pack had settled was seventh but from there struggled to find a quick way around Leok and also Coppins who he was much faster than. Unable to pass Coppins, Ramon finally finished sixth after his championship rival David Philippaerts caught and passed him with four laps remaining.
The start of moto two was equally as testing for the pair as De Dycker started ninth while Ramon was even further back in 11th. With conditions so bad and line choice limited both Suzuki riders took their time to fight forward. It took De Dycker until mid-race to fight to his final position of sixth while Ramon had his hands full as he battled with Tanel Leok over eighth - a position the Estonian rider would finally secure ahead of Ramon four laps from the finish.
De Dycker's haul of 37 points from his 2-5 scorecard meant the Belgian rider missed out on third overall by one point and the win on the day by a measly three! As well as finishing fourth on the day Ken rises to fourth in the championship making it a great day for De Dycker.
"Today has been a very good day for me," reckoned De Dycker. "I got away pretty well at the start of race one and passed some guys who crashed so I was soon in second. I got really bad arm-pump early on in the moto but luckily I was able to hold my pace and I finished in second place.
"In the second race I didn't get such a good start and I had to work my way forward through the pack. The track was very slippery and the surface was shiny so it was difficult to see some of the ruts and bumps. I was very happy to come back to sixth although I was a bit disappointed I couldn't catch Coppins. Still, today has been a real improvement for me, I'm happy and I can look forward to the next round."
Ramon ended the day ninth overall on his factory RM-Z450 and still holds second in the series although Philippaerts extended his lead in the series by a further 11 points.
Obviously disappointed with his day's work Ramon explained that he'd done the best he could even though his best was not as good as he'd have liked it to be.
"Overall it was just a bad day for me, I knew it would be a difficult GP for me but I expected to do a little bit better and I didn't score anywhere near enough points today.
"I didn't get a great start in moto one and I found it hard to pass as there were not so many lines. I got caught behind Josh for too long which allowed Philippaerts to catch and pass me and so I finished sixth. It was the best I could do but my riding was just not good - I wasn't happy with that or where I finished.
"The second moto also was just a bad race for me. The track was just so slippery, it was hard underneath and that made it very difficult for me to ride fast."
With a one-week gap in the schedule the next round of the MX1 World Championship will be held at Mallory Park - a brand-new venue for Grand Prix motocross - in Great Britain on June 1.
MX1 Moto 1: 1. Sebastien Pourcel (Kawasaki - FRA) 41:10:667
2. Ken De Dycker (Suzuki - BEL) +0:06:1733. Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED) +0:08:384
4. Josh Coppins (Yamaha - NZL) +0:10:939
5. David Philippaerts (Yamaha - ITA) + 0:20:259
6. Steve Ramon (Suzuki - BEL) +0:24:8027. Tanel Leok (Kawasaki - EST) +0:26:078
8. Aigar Leok (Yamaha - EST) +0:39:106
9. Billy MacKenzie (Honda - GBR) +0:41:799
10. Jonathan Barragan (KTM - ESP) +0:45:875
MX1 Moto 21. Max Nagl (KTM - GER) 40:35:621
2. David Philippaerts (Yamaha - ITA) +0:05:258
3. Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED) +0:29:696
4. Billy MacKenzie (Honda - GBR)+0:36:498
5. Josh Coppins (Yamaha - NZL) +0:40:720
6. Ken De Dycker (Suzuki - BEL) +0:43:0557. Sebastien Pourcel (Kawasaki - FRA) +0:43:392
8. Tanel Leok (Kawasaki - EST) +1:03:004
9. Steve Ramon (Suzuki - BEL) +1:05:67910. Manuel Priem (Kawasaki - Belgium) +1:25:490
World Championship standings (after 5 of 15 rounds): 1. David Philippaerts (Yamaha - ITA) 187 points
2. Steve Ramon (Suzuki - BEL) 159
3. Josh Coppins (Yamaha - NZL) 149
4. Ken De Dycker (Suzuki - BEL) 135
5. Billy MacKenzie (Honda - GBR) 130
6. Sebastien Pourcel (Kawasaki - FRA) 129
7. Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED) 116
8. Max Nagl (KTM - GER) 114
9. Jonathan Barragan (KTM - ESP) 105
10. Tanel Leok (Kawasaki - EST) 98
Manufacturer World Championship standings (after 5 of 15 rounds): 1. Yamaha 189
2. Suzuki 181
3. Kawasaki 170
4. KTM 161
5. Honda 158
6. TM 26
Women's World MX Championship:Team Suzuki Inotec's feisty female racer Larissa Papenmeier took her RM-Z250 to third overall in the second round of the inaugural Women's Motocross World Championship at Mantova in Italy just one week after injuring her ankle at round one of the series in Bulgaria.
Before suffering the injury in the second moto two at Sevlievo, pint-sized Papenmeier had taken pole position in qualifying and also won the first race of the championship after battling hard with and beating current championship leader Livia Lancelot.
Despite feeling the pain from her injured ankle, she was able to hang tough for 3-5 finishes in difficult conditions at Mantova to secure fourth place in the series with just three rounds remaining. Happy in her surroundings with the German team, Papenmeier will be looking to improve her championship standing as the series continues.
"I'm very happy with the Inotec team and the support they are giving me," explained Larissa. "They're a very friendly team and I'm very happy there. The RM-Z250 is also very good - it's light, the motor is strong and it's the best turning bike I have ever ridden.
"Today I was pretty happy to finish third in the first race and by finishing fifth in the second race I was able to take third overall. I had a lot of pain with my ankle during the first moto so I took plenty of painkillers and had my ankle taped up before moto two and it was a little better.
"I have chance to rest my ankle before the next round of the championship so I hope to come back at full fitness so I can challenge for more wins!"
