The penultimate round of the World Motocross Championship went well for Clément Desalle on 8 and 9 September in Faenza. He climbed the 3rd step of the podium, which has given him a sufficient lead to already be sure of securing 2nd place in the championship. In front of some 24,000 spectators, the rider of Rockstar Energy Suzuki, a team supported by Motul, had regained all his fitness after the two previous rounds where he was hindered by a hand injury. 'I'm pleased to podium once more', he commented modestly at the arrival, 'as I've been suffering for a long time from my hand pain. The track here was very difficult. But it's good for the team that I've finished 2nd in the championship.' His team-mate, Tanel Leok, got caught up, in race one, in the middle of a spectacular battle between five riders, but mismanaged his start in the second, to come 8th finally of the two races overall.
In MX2 category, Rockstar Energy boasted another encouraging result with Julien Lieber's 10th place, the best performance of the young Belgian rider in his maiden season in this discipline.
Two weeks earlier, the team had already bagged an unexpected result with Brian Hsu's win in the 85 cc Junior Championship, at the Sevlievo circuit, Bulgaria. After 3rd place in the first race, the German-Taiwanese took victory in the second thanks to a fantastic start that allowed him to stay in the lead all the way to the arrival and to clinch the title.
The last round of the championship will take place on 23 September in Teutschenthal, Germany. While everything looks rosy for Desalle, there's still hope Leok can improve his position.
MX1 Championship Standings
01// Antonio Cairoli, KTM, 642 pts
02// Clément Desalle, Suzuki, 554 pts - Motul
03// Gautier Paulin, Kawasaki, 502 pts
08// Tanel Leok, Suzuki, 365 pts - Motul
85 cc Championship Standings
01// Brian Hsu, Suzuki, 45 pts - Motul
02// Austin Forkner, Kawasaki, 45 pts
03// Davy Pootjes, KTM, 38 pts
Photo credits: suzuki-racing.com
