Frossard’s first motocross GP win

 

Steven Frossard scored his and Kawasaki Team CLS’s first GP win in round 10 of the FIM World MX2 Championship at Uddevalla in Sweden.

 

The 22 year old Frenchman was in devastating form around the Swedish switchback; the innocent victim of a hair-raising crash on Saturday, he rebounded to dominate the GP motos the following day.

 

Only 14th to choose his start gate after being forced to charge back through the pack during the Saturday qualifying race, Steven quickly advanced from a fourth-placed start to lead by the ninth of 21 laps and resisted all efforts to dislodge him from first position. After Ken Roczen, his closest challenger, retired with mechanical problems, he won by 15 seconds.

 

Inspired by his first race performance Steven scorched out of the gate in race two to lead on his KX250F from the word go and he quickly established a five second cushion over the chasing pack. Again Roczen was his only threat, and, when the German closed the gap, the Kawasaki Team CLS rider wisely let him pass, concentrating on securing the all-important overall GP victory without taking any unnecessary risks.

 

There had already been Kawasaki success on Saturday as teammate Jeremy Van Horebeek scored a sensational victory in the qualification race, just six days after visiting hospital with a compressed vertebrae in his neck. Unable to train all week and with less than 100% movement in his neck, the Belgian battled stubbornly through both GP motos, joining Frossard in the first three of the first 40 minute race and gritting his teeth in the second race to move forward two places to sixth in race two.

 

 

Steven Frossard: “I’ve been waiting for this first GP win for a long time, and finally it has arrived! I have been on the podium many times in the last two years, even won motos, but never on the highest step on the podium; it’s a great feeling! I expected it to be a tough GP after I crashed with Roczen at the start of the qualifying race yesterday, but I got two incredible starts from the fourteenth gate today!

 

I wanted so much to win here, and I’m so happy for the team, my parents and all the people who have shown confidence and supported me. Even when Roczen got through to second place in the first race, I was confident that I would win as I was riding smoothly. He didn’t finish the race, so when he was pushing during the second moto I let him pass; I knew that a second position was enough to win the GP overall. I want to thanks my trainer Willy Linden; he told me earlier this season that we would see the results of his physical programme in July and that showed today; I feel in great shape.”

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