Grand Prix of Benelux MX2

LIEBER MAKES PROGRESS AT BENELUX MX2

Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe saw Julien Lieber recover from bad starts to finish 15th overall at a sunny Lierop for the Grand Prix of Benelux and the first of the three final rounds of the FIM Motocross World Championship to be played out in the next three weeks.

Round 14 was watched by 20,000 spectators trackside as the young Belgian battled the demanding sandy conditions; the surface full of shifting bumps and holes.

The team dealt with a tough blow on Saturday as Jeremy Seewer crashed and lost consciousness for almost five minutes. The Swiss recovered well overnight in hospital but a dislocation of his left thumb meant any slim chance of competing in the European MX2 motos - the penultimate outing of seven for the best youngsters on the continent - was ruled out.

Lieber was making his second appearance for the team and several crashes on Saturday in qualification meant a lowly position on the start line for Sunday's races, but a week of preparation in the sand of Lommel helped the young Belgian in his plight. Lieber recovered from a slot outside the top 30 in the first moto to work his way up to 16th. He then reeled off the laps to improve that standing by one slot in the second race.

Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe now moves to Italy and Faenza next week for the Grand Prix of Europe and then to Teutschenthal in Germany a fortnight later for its home event and the final fixture in the FIM Motocross World Championship.

Julien Lieber:

"This weekend was really hard. Yesterday was not good as I crashed a few times and also went down in warm-up today. We changed the suspension a little bit and it was better. I was 32nd, I think, at the start of the first moto and came back to 16th, which wasn't so bad. In the second I was 25th and made 10 places, so overall that was an improvement. I'm really happy to work with the team and I want to thank Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe for such a good job."

MX2 Moto1: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 40:41.884; 2. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), +2:07.139; 3. Max Anstie (GBR, Honda), -1 lap(s); 4. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), -1 lap(s); 5. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), -1 lap(s); 6. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 7. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 8. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), -1 lap(s); 9. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), -1 lap(s); 10. Alexander Tonkov (RUS, Honda), -1 lap(s). 16. Julien Lieber (BEL, Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe), -2 lap(s).

MX2 Moto2: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 39:32.414; 2. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), +2:04.344; 3. Max Anstie (GBR, Honda), +2:07.174; 4. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +2:27.492; 5. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), -1 lap(s); 7. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), -1 lap(s); 8. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 9. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), -1 lap(s); 10. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), -1 lap(s). 15. Julien Lieber (BEL, Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe), -1 lap(s).

MX2 Overall result: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points; 2. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), 44 p.; 3. Max Anstie (GBR, Honda), 40 p.; 4. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 36 p.; 5. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), 31 p.; 6. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 28 p.; 7. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 27 p.; 8. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 27 p.; 9. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 27 p.; 10. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Husqvarna), 20 p. 15. Julien Lieber (BEL, Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe), 11 p.

MX2 World Championship Standings (after 14 of 16 rounds): 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 622 points; 2. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 557 p.; 3. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), 519 p.; 4. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 387 p.; 5. Joel Roelants (BEL, Kawasaki), 367 p.; 6. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 367 p.; 7. Max Anstie (GBR, Honda), 314 p.; 8. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), 272 p.; 9. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 263 p.; 10. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Husqvarna), 241 p.


Related Motorsport Articles

84,519 articles