Nederlands
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2’s Rick Elzinga delivered consistent race results for ninth overall at the MXGP of West Nusa Tenggara despite not feeling 100%. The team’s new recruit, Karlis Reisulis, adapted well to his new bike, class, and the extremely humid weather to secure 14th overall at round 11 of the 2024 campaign.
With the FIM Motocross World Championship leaving Europe, it brought with it new challenges for the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 team. The high temperatures, time zone, and type of race track ensured the riders needed to adapt quickly to the vastly different racing environment they were faced with in Lombok.
For Elzinga, it was a tough day of racing. Not quite able to start up front in Race One, the number 44 charged hard from the outset and moved into ninth within a few laps. During the mid-way stage of the race, the talented Dutchman was shuffled back to 11th, but after regrouping as the laps wound down, he fought hard to move back up to ninth and held his position to the finish.
In Race Two, a fall early on left Elzinga with a lot of work to do on the heavily watered circuit. Despite the slick conditions and riding a little tight, the 21-year-old began picking off riders lap-by-lap. On lap 12 of 16, he passed his new teammate Reisulis to move into 12th and then advanced to 11th with three laps to go. Holding on to 11th secured Elzinga ninth overall for the day, and he remains seventh in the MX2 Championship Standings.
Reisulis also delivered consistent results at the first of two visits to the Lombok circuit. Showing exceptional speed in his first GP for the team, the young Latvian battled inside the top 10 in Race One and was rewarded with 13th place for his efforts. In Race Two, Reisulis moved forwards from a mid-pack start to reach as high as 11th before losing two spots in the closing stages. With two 13th-place finishes, Reisulis secured 14th overall.
The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 team return to Lombok next weekend for the second of two rounds to be held in Indonesia, an event that marks round 12 of the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship.
Rick Elzinga: “A tough day today. I felt like my riding was good, but I just didn’t get going quick enough. Coming through the pack in both races was tough and I crashed early in Race Two so that made things even tougher. I rode a little tight and not like I know I can so, it was a difficult weekend overall and I was fighting myself on the bike. The bike was good though, but I feel like I’m doing something wrong, so I need to fix this before next weekend.”
Karlis Reisulis: “Not the best day, but my speed was good for battling inside the top 10. I now need to work on my endurance, as these MX2 races are five minutes longer than EMX250 races, so I’ll need to increase my training going forward. My bike was great, and the team really helped me get dialled-in on it, but it was my mistakes and riding that prevented me from getting better results. I’m really thankful for the opportunity to be racing MX2 on a factory bike and I’m looking forward to racing again next weekend.”