Following a lengthy journey to the other side of the world, the Wilvo Yamaha MXGP squad landed on the island of Pangkal Pinang for the twelfth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship. Spirits were high entering the race, despite the unpredictable weather, as Shaun Simpson claimed victory at the venue a year ago.
A storm threatened to turn the circuit into a quagmire ahead of the Saturday programme. The track soon dried out though, thanks to the intense sun, so conditions were pleasant in qualifying. Jeremy Seewer had a positive time of it in that heat and crossed the line in eighth, despite a slow start that threatened to hurt his ranking. Thirteenth was the position that he occupied at the end of the first lap. The second Wilvo Yamaha MXGP rider, Shaun Simpson, was restricted by mistakes and eventually reached the chequered flag in sixteenth.
Jeremy Seewer set the fourth-fastest time on Sunday morning and showed similar speed in the first of two MXGP motos. Another poor start restricted him, however, as he completed the opening lap in twelfth. Seewer immediately got to work and charged up ninth, before engaging in an entertaining tussle for seventh. Eighth, a position that he has become very familiar with, was the position that he eventually secured at the chequered flag. Coincidentally, the first moto actually marked the eighth time that he has finished eighth this year. The result still set him up well to earn a good result in the overall classification.
A couple of mistakes hindered Jeremy Seewer in the second moto, unfortunately, but he still pushed hard and proved that he belongs in the top six. Seewer eventually recovered to end up in tenth at the chequered flag and then occupied the same position in the overall classification. Eighth is where he is sat in the series standings and he actually strengthened his advantage over the rider in ninth at the Grand Prix of Indonesia.
Shaun Simpson had another difficult weekend, unfortunately, as crashes and other small issues stopped him from pushing for a position in the top ten. After finishing eighteenth and nineteenth in the two motos, he secured nineteenth overall and now runs nineteenth in the championship standings. The ranking that he has in the series standings is not a true reflection of how he has performed, however, as he missed three rounds with an injury.
There will be no opportunity for the Wilvo Yamaha MXGP squad to relax, as the FIM Motocross World Championship will spring back into life next weekend. Semarang, a new circuit in Indonesia, will host the thirteenth round of the series.
Jeremy Seewer: “It was a tough weekend for me. I felt pretty solid all weekend, but was just a little bit off. The first corners in the second race I was inside the top Five but crashed twice, which was a bad end to my weekend. Otherwise the weekend would have been pretty good. I seemed to be consistently eighth, which is not really the goal. I felt I could have done more, but I made some silly mistakes. There are still some things missing in my puzzle; sometimes it is the first lap and sometimes it is after twenty minutes. I need to have the whole package come together like it did in Ottobiano in one of the races. When that happens, it will be good.”
Shaun Simpson: “I struggled this weekend. My ribs were hurting a bit and they got worse over the weekend. In the first race I made a mistake and hurt them even more. I heard a pop, but what was it? I have no idea. These two races were two of the hardest in my life. I am disappointed with how I rode. I am not making excuses, but at this level you will never manage to get the job done while injured.”
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