BMW make encouraging start to ’08 WEC series in Sweden
Seven-time World Enduro Champion Anders Eriksson got the
BMW Motorrad Motorsport team’s participation in the
’08 WEC series off to an extremely promising start at
the GP of Sweden as the newly signed team rider claimed two
fourth place finishes in the competitive Enduro 3 class. Painstakingly
close to finishing on the podium on day two having held the
runner-up position for much of the day, Eriksson eventually
matched his day one result of fourth after falling during
the very last special test of the event. Despite his obvious
frustration BMW nevertheless showed that they are ready to
challenge for podium positions in what is their first full
season in the WEC.
Entering four riders into three classes in Sweden –
Finn Simo Kirssi and Belgian Jeff Goblet in Enduro 2, Swede
Anders Eriksson in Enduro 3 and German Bert Meyer in Enduro
Junior, the opening round of the ’08 WEC series was
an important event for the BMW Motorrad Motorsport team for
several reasons. Having participated in selected rounds of
the ’07 series to further the development of the new
450cc sports enduro bike, in Sweden the emphasis was on competition.
With seven-time world champion Anders Eriksson leading the
team’s assault, the first round of the eight-event championship
ended encouragingly with the team’s enduro newcomer
Simo Kirssi placing eighth on day two.
But it was Eriksson, competing aboard a 480cc machine in the
Enduro 3 class, that showed that BMW are more than ready to
start challenging for podium results this season. Hopeful
of a top three result at his home round of the world championship,
Anders performed well on day one but was unable to match the
pace of the three riders that eventually finished ahead of
him. On day two it was a very different story. Fifth on the
opening motocross test Eriksson then upped his pace and placed
second in class on the long and technical enduro test. Backing
that up with another impressive time on the second enduro
test, Anders held the runner-up position as the day neared
its close. On the final test of the event Anders saw his good
work undone as a fall cost him eight seconds and with it his
hopes of claiming BMW’s first WEC podium result were
ended.
For Enduro 2 class riders Simo Kirssi and Jeff Goblet the
GP of Sweden proved to be a challenging one. On day one Kirssi’s
bike failed to start, but with a new battery fitted the enduro
newcomer gained valuable experience ahead of day two. Riding
a four-stroke in winter conditions for the first time Goblet
placed 15th having seen his day spoiled by too many crashes.
On day two Kirssi overcame a slow start to finish inside the
top 10 on all but two special tests in the E2 class. Performing
at his best on the enduro test the Finn claimed a well-deserved
top 10 points scoring result with eighth in class. Fast, but
making a few too many mistakes as he did on day one, Goblet
finished 17th but having enjoyed himself in Sweden.
In the Enduro Junior class Bert Meyer just missed out on scoring
world championship points on day one finishing 21st out of
36 finishers but placed 17th on day two. Part of the reason
Meyer failed to break into the top 20 of the EJ class on day
one was because he unselfishly stopped to help an injured
rider who had crashed ahead of him.
Simo Kirssi – Enduro 2 class: “I really
enjoyed my first World Enduro Championship race. We had some
problems on day one as my bike didn’t start in the morning
but it was just a simple problem, which we fixed easily. Problems
like that can happen in motorsport. I knew that I wouldn’t
be able to score any points on day one, because I had to fit
the new battery, but I rode anyway for most of the day to
get some experience. I was pretty pleased with the way it
went.”
“The second day went well. My bike was really good and
I finished eighth, which for my first WEC race I’m pleased
with. I made some mistakes, like most riders did, I got stuck
behind some riders on a few tests, but yeah it was ok. The
enduro test was difficult. It looked like it would be fast
but it got really rough. I learned a lot about enduro from
the weekend so lets see how things go in Portugal and Spain
now.”
Jeff Goblet – Enduro 2 class: “It’s
been a good weekend for me in terms of what I’ve learned
about racing a four-stroke in the snow, but not great in terms
of my results. My main problem was that I couldn’t stop
my eyes from watering, which meant that I couldn’t see
properly. It was a really strange problem. I was riding quite
well but I made too many crashes, which spoiled my results.
I know that my speed in the tests wasn’t too bad in
many sections but I always had some small mistakes, which
cost me a lot of time. If I can remove the mistakes I know
I can get much better results because my bike is really good.”
Anders Eriksson – Enduro 3 class:
“The first day was difficult because at the start I
had to do some work on my bike. A few people thought I’d
received outside assistance, which I hadn’t. There was
talk that I might get disqualified, which effected my concentration
a little. As things turned out I had done nothing wrong and
I finished fourth, which I was quite pleased with. I wanted
to be closer to the podium but it was a good start to the
season.
“Day two didn’t start that well as I was fifth
on the first test, but things got better. Coming into the
last test I was second in class, but then I fell on the last
test and dropped to fourth. I can’t tell you how disappointed
I am. Not just because I made a stupid mistake, crashed and
wasted a great result but because I should have given BMW
their first WEC podium result.”
Wolfgang Fischer – BMW Motorrad Motorsport
Team Manager: “It’s been a good weekend
because BMW showed that we are able to fight for podium positions.
Anders was second going into the final test on day two but
crashed and dropped to fourth, which was disappointing. Nevertheless
it shows that both he and the bike are performing well. Also
Simo, Jeff and Bert learned a lot. It was Simo’s first
ever WEC race, and only his second enduro, and he put in some
strong test times. We are all looking forward to the next
two rounds of the championship so that we can continue to
move things forward in the right direction.”
Results Grand Prix of Sweden – Day 1
Enduro 2 class
1. Joakim Ljunggren (Husaberg) 1.01:10.08; 2. Jonny Aubert
(Yamaha) 1.01:38.63; 3. Juha Salminen (KTM) 1.01:50.26; 4.
Valtteri Salonen (Husaberg) 1.01:55.44; 5. Antoine Meo (Husqvarna)
1.01:56.22; 6. Rodrig Thain (TM) 1.04:47.20; 7. Alessandro
Belometti (KTM) 1.04:47.20; 8. Fritz Andersson (KTM) 1.05:19.95;
9. Fabrizio Dini (Yamaha) 1.06:00.97; 10. Daniel Persson (Husaberg)
1.06:04.94; 11. Alessandro Zanni (Honda) 1.06:32.62; 12. Nicolas
Deparrois (Gas Gas) 1.06:33.02; 13. Torbjorn Back (Honda)
1.06:46.90; 14. Olle Lothman (KTM) 1.06:49.91; 15. Jean Francois
Goblet (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 1.06:56.87; 16. Fabio Mossini
(HM-Honda) 1.07:35.47; 17. Freddy Blanc (Suzuki) 1.07:53.73;
18. Rudy Cotton (HM-Honda) 1.07:58.68; 19. Aaron Bernandez
(Husqvarna) 1.08:08.018; 20. Antti Lehtonen (KTM) 1.08:15.06
Enduro 3 class
1. Samuli Aro (KTM) 1.01:23.92; 2. Marko Tarkkala (KTM) 1.01:33.85;
3. Bjorne Carlsson (Husaberg) 1.02:11.94; 4. Anders Eriksson
(BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 01.03:05.16; 5. Sebastien Guillaume
(Husqvarna) 1.04:00.30; 6. Christophe Nambotin (Gas Gas) 1.04:57.97;
7. Marcus Kehr (KTM) 1.05:40.31; 8. Alessandro Botturi (Honda)
1.06:36.16; 9. Stefan Svitko (KTM) 1.06:52.58; 10. Daniel
Johansson (Gas Gas) 1.06:59.24; 11. Xavier Galindo (KTM) 1.07:04.28;
12. Patrik Stahl (Husqvarna) 1.07:31.78; 13. Stefan Merriman
(Aprilia) 1.08:36.15; 14. Ervin Plekkenpol (Honda); 15, Euan
McConnell (TM) 1.09:08.54; 16. Jordi Figueras (KTM) 01.09:12.67;
17. Vita Kuklik (KTM) 01.09:51.65; 18. Juraj Dozsa (GasGas)
1.10:36.47; 19. Juan Pedrero (Yamaha) 01.11:50.13
Enduro Junior class
1. Roni Nikander (KTM) 1.03:26.23; 2. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna)
1.04:07.43; 3. Oskari Kantonen (KTM) 1.04:23.67; 4. Anti Hellsten
(Husqvarna) 1.04:24.14; 5. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 1.04:41.49;
6. Olli Turma (KTM) 1.05:13.57; 7. Jari Pulkkinen (Honda)
01.05:35.96; 8. Oriol Mena (KTM) 01.05:39.85; 9. Ricard Wressel
(Aprilia) 01.05:40.74; 10. Jens Westerlund (Honda) 1.06:10.81;
11. Robert Kvarnstrom (TM) 1.06:43.90; 12. Victor Guerrero
(KTM) 01.07:08.27; 13. Michal Szuster (Yamaha) 01.07:11.84;
14. Oscar Balletti (Honda) 1.07:41.36; 15. Tomas Jansson (KTM)
01.06:11.37; 16. John Christian Seljord (Honda) 1.08:17.48;
17. Martin Sundin (Husaberg) 1.08:25.78; 18. Miko Mellin (KTM)
1.08:30.50; 19. Fredrik Berg (KTM) 1.08:33.01; 20. Kai Estola
(KTM) 1.08:36.13; 21. Bert Meyer (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
1.08:59.07
Results Grand Prix of Sweden – Day 2
Enduro 2 class
1. Juha Salminen (KTM) 49:34.02; 2. Joakim Ljunggren (KTM)
49:55.10; 3. Johnny Aubert (Yamaha) 50:04.54; 4. Valtteri
Salonen (Husaberg) 50:15.31; 5. Jari Mattila (Honda) 50:18.90;
6. Antoine Meo (Husqvarna) 50:53.51; 7. Alessandro Belometti
(KTM) 51:57.28; 8. Simo Kirssi (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 52:10.95;
9. Rodrig Thain (TM) 52:23.23; 10. Fritz Andersson (KTM) 52:29.92;
11. Daniel Persson (Husaberg) 53:38.44; 12. Fabrizio Dini
(Yamaha) 53.:46.07; 13. Alessandro Zanni (Honda) 53:55.00;
14. Nicolas Deparrois (Gas Gas) 54:15.89; 15. Torbjorn Back
(Honda) 54:40.71; 16. Ollie Lothman (KTM) 51:46.31; 17. Jean
Francois Goblet (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 54:59.19; 18. Freddy
Blanc (Suzuki) 55:26.38; 19. Antti Lehtonen (KTM) 57:13.11;
20. Sebastian Adielsson (Beta) 57:26.08
Enduro 3 class
1. Samuli Aro (KTM) 50:01.17; 2. Marko Tarkkala (KTM) 50:38.54;
3. Bjorne Carlsson (Husaberg) 50.50:95; 4. Anders Eriksson
(BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 50:54.89; 5. Sebastien Guillaume
(Husqvarna) 51:57.01; 6. Christophe Nambotin (Gas Gas) 52:18.32;
7. Alessandro Botturi (Honda) 52:42.08; 8. Marcus Kehr (KTM)
53:10.17; 9. Euan McConnell (TM) 53:38.56; 10. Xavier Galindo
(KTM) 54:15.38; 11. Stefan Svitko (KTM) 54:25.28; 12. Patrik
Stahl (Husqvarna) 54:38.25; 13. Stefan Merriman (Aprilia)
55:34.78; 14. Daniel Johansson (Gas Gas) 56:29.25; 15. Ervin
Plekkenpol (Honda) 56:33.79; 16. Juraj Dozsa (Gas Gas) 58:02.38;
17. Jordi Figueras (KTM) 1.03:4.43
Enduro Junior class
1. Roni Nikander (KTM) 51:18.13; 2. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 51:53.03;
3. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna) 51:33.06; 4. Oskari Kantonen
(KTM) 52:13.69; 5. Anti Hellsten (Husqvarna) 53:07.40; 6.Michal
Szuster (Yamaha) 53:16.41; 7. Oriol Mena (KTM) 53:24.97; 8.
Oscar Balletti (Honda) 53:54.40; 9. Mirko Gritti (Beta) 54:05.10;
10. Tomas Jansson (KTM) 54:09.61; 11.Olli Turma (KTM) 54:16.89;
12. Victor Guerrero (KTM) 54:24.53; 13. John Christian Seljord
(Honda) 54:48.32; 14. Robert Kvarnstrom (TM) 54:42.78; 15.
Kristoffer Jonsson (Gas Gas) 55.01.33; 16. Fredrik Berg (KTM)
55:16.79; 17. Bert Mayer (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 55:35.35;
18. Carl Svensson (KTM) 56:05.22; 19. Martin Sundin (Husaberg)
56:27.86; 20.Carl Sjoo (KTM) 56:30.38
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