Wilvo Yamaha shows potential in Qatar
The lights of the Losail International Circuit fade into the distance, the first round of the FIM Motocross World Championship now just a memory. The beautiful accommodation, located just outside the capital of Qatar, was the scene of the first race, a race that yielded mixed results for the Wilvo Yamaha MXGP duo.
The schedule used at the Qatar Grand Prix is quite unorthodox, such as the Friday and Saturday on which the event is held. Qualifying was the first item on the agenda and despite the difficult circumstances, Arnaud Tonus was well ahead. The Swiss rider fought within the top five for a long time, but had to settle for sixth place at the end of the race. This allowed him to choose a great starting position for himself in the heats on Saturday. Shaun Simpson had the opposite effect, crashing in the early stages of the race and then making up a few more places to finish seventeenth.
The first MXGP round of the season was a copy of qualifying: Tonus again managed to benefit from a good start, while Simpson made a mistake on the first lap. Tonus was one of the few riders who managed to improve at the top of the field. He started around the top 10 and managed to pass several former Grand Prix winners to finish seventh. While Tonus was on the rise, Simpson had a hard time and had to go deep to score as many points as possible. This became seventeenth place and four valuable points.
Arnaud Tonus had no luck during the second and final MXGP round. He crashed early in the moto and then had to start from the back and give chase. Unfortunately, he then made another mistake and had to settle for ninth place and two points. Simpson made it through the first few laps of this round unscathed and was in the top 10 for a long time. Unfortunately, he was just unable to maintain this and was flagged in fourteenth.
The Wilvo Yamaha MXGP team will be back in action next week during the second round of the FIM Motocross World Championship, which will be held in Indonesia.
Shaun Simpson: “I think the start of the year has been different for me. Things didn't go that way in the preseason and I usually start quite well here. If you look back at the past few years, I was always within the top 10 in the first competition and I think this is the first time that this has not worked out. It's a bit disappointing. The track was different this year, but exactly how I would normally like it. It felt like something was wrong with my set up but we were able to make some adjustments and progress over the weekend. So there were quite a few positive points that we can take home.”
Arnaud Tonus: “There were definitely some positive things. I'm happy with the bike and the work the team has done so far. I was quite happy with the way I rode the first moto and my speed was good too. On the first lap of the second moto I had a crash, came back to the front and had another crash. After that it was just a fight.”
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