The penultimate round of the FIM Motocross World Championship was completed in front of a passionate group of Dutch fans over the weekend. A man-made track in Assen played host to that event. It was a great platform for the Wilvo Yamaha MXGP squad, because both Shaun Simpson and Jeremy Seewer have proven that they are more than capable when the going gets tough.
The premier-class qualifying moto, which took place on Saturday afternoon, was a perfect example of that. Shaun Simpson started inside of the top ten and was making good progress before a minor fall caused him to lose ground and positions. It was not too much of a hiccup, because he picked himself up and salvaged a ninth at the chequered flag. The first moto was equally as impressive as he started seventh and moved forward to claim sixth at the chequered flag. The result actually tied his season-best finish.
The second and final race at the Grand Prix of The Netherlands, the nineteenth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship, obviously took place on a track that had deteriorated significantly. Simpson recorded yet another sixth in an impressive fashion, however, which unsurprisingly left him in sixth in the overall classification. The result also helped him to jump into the top fifteen in the championship standings, which is remarkable considering the amount of time that he has missed due to injury. It was certainly a positive outing.
Jeremy Seewer could also extract positives from the round, as he made significant improvements over the weekend and those left him inside of the top ten in the overall classification. An eleventh was secured in the first encounter, following a poor first lap, then he backed that up with a ninth in race two. Tenth overall was where he ended up and the points gained left him eighth in the standings. It is extremely likely that he is going to secure that position at the final round, the Grand Prix of Italy, which takes place in two weeks. Another road-race facility will play host to that event.
Shaun Simpson: “I feel good. I am slightly disappointed that I did not finish inside the top five. I wanted it and the team wanted it. Jeremy [Seewer] has been wanting it all year. Unfortunately, we could not get it done. I am a little bit disappointed on that front, but otherwise it has been the best weekend I have had all year. I showed some good speed yesterday and even today, but I crashed in every race this weekend. I think the mistakes definitely cost me in the first race where I could have finished fourth. In the second race my speed was good, but it just was not enough. I needed more sprint speed, rather than the marathon pace I was running. Stuff to work on, just a shame it is the end of the year. I look forward to seeing what we can do in the last race of the year.”
Jeremy Seewer: “I am definitely not happy with how my weekend went. I had bad starts and crashes in the first moto, although I did manage to come back really strong for eleventh. I struggled a little bit with suspension and a little bit with myself this weekend. I did not make too many mistakes in the final race and I did feel better, but for some reason I always struggle here. One more round to go and I think it will be something that I like more.”
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