RAMON 3RD IN MALLORY MX1 QUALIFYING
Team Teka Suzuki WMX1's Steve Ramon has set the third fastest
time on his factory RM-Z450 during qualification for the British
Grand Prix at Mallory Park.
Setting a time just 0.381 seconds behind pole-sitter Sebastien
Pourcel, the reigning MX1 World Champion acquitted himself
well on the technical circuit and never looked to be pushing
the limit.
Rain leading up to the British round of the FIM MX1 Motocross
World Championship left the freshly built, jump-filled circuit
in perfect condition as the soft clay-based soil rutted up
to offer an abundance of lines.
Ramon set his fastest lap in the early part of the session
and felt pleased with his performance in the timed session
and confident of a good result in tomorrow's points paying
races.
"The track is fun to ride and has a lot of nice jumps.
It's pretty rough out there with plenty of deep ruts, which
means that there are lots of lines to choose from and I like
that," he said. "Riding went well for me all day
- both the free practices were good for me and I felt good
on the bike and it feels great so it was important for me
to set a good time in the qualifying session.
"I was able to put in a good lap early in the session
but Pourcel and De Reuver came past me but only by a very
small amount. I'm happy with third because I pushed but I
didn't take any risks to put in my fast lap and that makes
me feel confident for tomorrow. Now I need to get two good
starts and get a good result, a win, or at least a podium!"
Ramon's team-mate Ken De Dycker also looked very confident
on the technical Mallory Park circuit as he threw his factory
Suzuki around during the timed qualifying session. Finally
finishing eighth after several rival riders bettered his time
on the last lap, De Dycker's fastest lap was only 1.27 seconds
slower than the pole setter which gives him great confidence
going into tomorrow's races.
"I hope to be back on the podium this week," he
said. "I wasn't able to set a great time today because
I never seemed to get a clear lap in the qualifying session.
This is a very nice track and very technical with a lot of
jumps and ruts - it's a good motocross track. I always enjoy
racing in England and I have many fans here so I want to do
well for them and obviously for the team who have been working
very hard for me this season."
The weather forecast for tomorrow's races is for sunny intervals
with the temperature expected to be around 18 degrees Celsius.
MX1 Timed Practice: 1 Sebastien Pourcel
(Kawasaki - France) 1:51:239, 2 Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED)
1:51:572, 3 Steve Ramon (Suzuki - BEL) 1:51:820, 4 Tanel Leok
(Kawasaki - EST) 1:52:020, 5 Julien Bill (Honda - SUI) 1:52:118,
6 Jonathan Barragan (KTM - ESP) 1:52:288, 7 Max Nagl (KTM
- GER) 1:52:409, 8 Ken De Dycker (Suzuki - BEL) 1:52:509,
9 Clement Desalle (Suzuki - BEL) 1:52:617, 10 Josh Coppins
(Yamaha - NZL) 1:52:743.
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