Back
COPPINS AND APRILIA MAKE
MX1 TOP
TEN
SEVLIEVO (Bulgaria) A positive debut in the opening
round of the Motocross World Championship has seen Josh Coppins and the
Aprilia MXV finish with 9th position overall.
After a winter spent optimising the performance and output of the
twin-cylindered machine, the objective of the squad from Noale in their
fresh union with the New Zealander was to penetrate the top ten of the
premier class and gain some ground against the works European and
Japanese teams.
The wide and fast Bulgaria circuit was the scene for Aprilia to enact
their season objectives, and build on the strong fourth position secured
by Coppins in the Italian Championship.
Coppins began the Grand Prix with ninth position in Saturday's
Qualification Heat, as the quick course was given a greasy layer of
traction thanks to light rainfall in the morning. Sunday saw sunshine
and decent temperatures dry the ground considerably and Coppins made the
most of his engine's potential to arrive to the first corner among the
leading group in two decent starts.
In the first moto he held fifth in the opening stages and then found a
rhythm holding eighth place until a small crash saw him drop another
position and the distance was too vast to hope for a recovery. In the
second moto he was again on the coat-tails of the leaders and after the
initial bustle of the first laps was circulating in ninth. At the
halfway stage he engaged in battle with Ken De Dycker and Davide
Guarneri, finally crossing the line in 10th. In the final classification
he was able to walk away from his Aprilia debut with 9th overall; and
retains the same numerical status in the early championship standings.
Determined team-mate Manuel Priem was unlucky to suffer a heavy fall on
the sixth lap of the first race. The Belgian lost control negotiating a
set of jumps and received a blow to the back; squashing a vertebrae as
well as an impact to his lung. He required a visit to the hospital for
precautionary medical checks.
Swiss JK Racing rider Julien Bill recorded a 19th position finish in the
second moto after being forced to retire to the pits after an off-track
excursion earlier in the day.
|