Kemea Reytec v Laar Yamaha Racing team race report
The Belgian Championship competition in Kester is a real Flemish classic on the national calendar. The beautiful natural circuit offers great competitions every year and the public is always present in large numbers.
The sun meant we didn't get to see a mud race like last year. After the heavy rainfall of the past week, this was feared for a while, but in the end the course was difficult and technical, but still passable.
On Saturday, the Kemea Reytec van de Laar Yamaha team was victorious after a victory by Cyril Genot in the 85cc class. Cyril won both heats and preceded Kim Savaste and Jago Geerts in the final standings.
On Sunday, both Kevin Fors and Petar Petrov competed in the Inters Open class of the BMMX Radson MX1 Trophy. Petar rode the 450 for the first time in Kester, while Kevin stuck to his trusted 250 among the heavy bikes.
In the qualifying race, the Kemea drivers finished in 14th and 15th place. The start of the first heat was not great for either of them and when they first crossed the finish line, Kevin found himself in 27th place and Petar in 32nd place. The two Kemea riders stayed close to each other throughout the race and together moved smoothly to the front of the strong field. Ultimately, Petar finished 11th, just ahead of Kevin who finished 12th.
In the final round, Petar and Kevin were again close to each other in the initial phase. Wheel in wheel, they crossed the finish line in 20th and 21st after 1 lap. Just like in the first moto, both moved steadily to the front and it was Kevin Fors who achieved an impressive recovery. Kevin moved up from 13th to 9th in the final phase, while Petar crossed the finish line in 13th. In the day's results, Kevin finished eleventh and Petar was classified 13th.
In the MX2 class, the team's newest addition was also in action, in addition to Andre Park and Freek van der Vlist. The young South African Nick Adams rode the van de Laar 125cc 2-stroke engine to replace the injured Ludovic Brevers. However, Nick could not show his full capabilities in Kester as he was struck by illness. He finished 20th in the final standings with a 18th and 18th place.
It was quickly over for André Park in the first heat when, after a bad start, he came into rough contact with the Flemish Brabant soil. André hurt his back and decided to leave the match. In the second moto André got off to a good start and finished fourth. After a few mistakes in the opening phase, the Estonian fell to 10th place. He got into a good rhythm and despite a still sore back, finished 11th, good for 15th place in the day's results.
Freek van der Vlist, with his 125cc engine, had a disadvantage at the start compared to the heavier four-strokes, but still managed to return from 24th place to 11th in the first heat. In the final moto Freek again started just outside the top 20. The riding did not go so well in this moto, but Freek was still able to finish tenth, good for 9th place in the general classification.
Marnicq Bervoets: 'All in all, this was a successful weekend for the team. On Saturday Cyril showed his potential again and won both heats. On Sunday I was especially impressed with Kevin. He rode very strongly and especially in the second moto it was clear that he made good progress. He rode smoothly with Tixier, and although this is not a GP, this is good for confidence. Petar rode a race with the 450 for the first time and had to get used to the engine. He still rode the bike too much like with a 250 and if you do this with a 450 it will be punished. But it was ideal to give him feeling with the MX1 engine and good training for Ernee. In the MX2 class Freek rode a decent first moto, but a poorer final moto. Although his results were better, things did not go as well and he himself was not satisfied. André rode a solid second heat despite his back pain and had an especially good start in that second heat. We can't say much about Nick at the moment. He was unlucky enough to be ill and therefore his weekend was disappointing in terms of results. He is already super motivated to perform well in the European 125cc European Championship and we will train hard in the coming weeks in preparation.”
Next weekend there will be the GP of France in Ernée, where, in addition to the GP MX2, the second stage for the European Championship MX2 will also take place.
Photos: CDS
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