STRIJBOS ON POLE IN SWEDEN
 Kevin
Strijbos came back to Motocross World Championship action
with a bang and captured his second career pole position under
dark clouds at Uddevalla for the Grand Prix of Sweden the
ninth round of 15 in the FIM series.
The 21 year old Belgian set the quickest lap in damp and
difficult conditions after missing the previous race in Bulgaria
due to problems with his left knee. Strijbos was quick and
confident at the venue where he claimed his second ever moto
victory in 2004; the first GP campaign of the RM-Z450.
The team were satisfied as both riders placed in the top
three fastest with Steve Ramon just over a second behind in
third spot. Heavy rainfall during the week and Friday night
meant that the Uddevalla course was soft, rough and very rutty
throughout practice and the technical nature of the terrain
increased during the sessions as the mud dried. Strijbos did
not alter any settings on his works machine after last steering
the bike in France three weeks ago. Ramon tried switching
between bikes with two different engine configurations but
eventually opted for the set-up he used to take successive
podiums in the previous two rounds.
Strijbos posted his fastest lap early in the 30 minute Timed
Practice and then enjoyed an advantage for the rest of the
period as the deep carved ruts meant that a quicker effort
was almost physically impossible for the rest of the MX1 field.
Weather predictions are positive for race day and the mainly-single
racing line layout of the track means that decent starts will
be paramount.
"When I ride the knee is ok even if I did have some
more inflammation only last week and I really don't know what
to expect from the races," Strijbos commented. "It
feels good to be on pole but going strong for the whole moto
on this track will be hard. I want to do my own race, take
as many points as I can and then try for third in the championship;
catching Steve will be difficult."
"I had a better feeling in Timed Practice than this
morning simply because it was so wet," said Ramon. "The
second session was slightly drier but still difficult and
only one-line. It was slippery out there with many deep ruts
so a small mistake was costly. My riding was pretty good but
the track requires so much concentration because you can be
on the floor in an instant."
MX1 Timed Practice: 1. Kevin Strijbos (BEL,
Suzuki), 1:40.735; 2. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Honda), +0:00.186;
3. Steve Ramon (BEL, Suzuki), +0:01.320; 4. Tanel Leok (EST,
Kawasaki), +0:01.419; 5. Sebastien Pourcel (FRA, Kawasaki),
+0:01.669; 6. Joshua Coppins (NZL, Yamaha), +0:01.893; 7.
Billy Mackenzie (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:02.080; 8. Mike Brown
(USA, Honda), +0:03.029; 9. Manuel Priem (BEL, TM), +0:03.137;
10. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), +0:03.162.
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