Bax/Stupelis win season opener in Eersel, serious injury for Mike Keuben!
Sidecar cross team Bax/Stupelis have already claimed their first victory of 2019! In Eersel, the team managed to win both heats in the international sidecar class, not without a fight. Justin Keuben and Dion Rietman rode to second place in the day's results, followed by the combination of Mulders/Van der Wiel who climbed onto the final podium scaffold.
The unfortunately bad news of the day, however, was the crash of the Mike Keuben/Lars de Laat combination, who crashed hard in training, after which rider Mike Keuben was taken to the hospital and will have to undergo a long rehabilitation.
Mike Keuben/Lars de Laat fell hard at high speed during the morning training. Mike Keuben himself told what exactly happened. 'I really made a big hit. Suddenly my front wheel caught in the sand and Lars and I flew headfirst off the sidecar at high speed. I was just unlucky enough that the machine ended up right on top of me. I was immediately gasping for breath and knew that something was wrong.'
Mike Keuben was taken to the hospital where the diagnosis was finally made. There were tears in the intestines and pancreas and the attachment of the pancreas was also loose. Mike Keuben must now remain in hospital for observation for the next two to three weeks, after which further treatment can be determined.
A big blow to the ambitions of the Keuben/De Laat team, whose main goal was to compete for the IMBA sidecar title in 2019! MXmag will keep you informed about developments and wishes Mike the best of luck.
First heat
In the first round, which had only ten participants with the loss of Keuben/De Laat, there was a victory for Bax/Stupelis. However, this did not happen automatically. They crashed on the first lap when trying to cross a track. After this, they again started hunting in good spirits for the leading position, which at that time was held by the Belgian nestor Santermans. However, Santermans/Beleckas crashed and Bax, driving behind, could not move and crashed for the second time in the first heat. It is already known that the Bax/Stupelis combination has resilience and this was demonstrated by ultimately claiming first place at the finish ahead of the solidly riding Justin Keuben/Dion Rietman who would come second. New international rider Iljen Kops, together with his racing driver Pim Lambrechts, managed to surprisingly finish third on the meet.
Second heat
The holeshot in the second heat was for Stalman/Maas, but they could not enjoy first place for long. During the second heat there was no limit on Bax/Stupelis. Although they didn't get off very well at the start, they were clearly a size too big for the rest. They quickly rode to first place and managed to maintain this position until the finish with a large lead. With two first place finishes, Bax/Stupelis managed to score the first day victory of 2019 for the many sidecar cross enthusiasts who came to Eersel partly due to the beautiful weather.
Keuben/Rietman and Mulders/Van der Wiel then battled for second place. Just like in the first heat, Keuben/Rietman also managed to take second place at the finish, with Mulders/Van der Wiel behind them. Third place in that second heat turned out to be enough for Mulders to also finish third in the day's results, with Keuben/Rietman deservingly in second place and Bax/Stupelis climbing the highest step of the day's podium.
In two weeks there will be a new confrontation between the international sidecar crossers from the Low Countries when the ONK sidecar cross will be held in Lierop on March 10!
Daily result Inters Sidecar season opener Eersel
Text: Emil Bilars
Photo: Chris Blokhuis
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