Brits blitz Czech Republic
By TMX Archives on 4th Jun 09
BRITAIN has got talent and that's official!Just ask the opposing riders from Holland, Germany, Switzerland, France, Denmark, Czech Republic and for the first time ever in an IMBA European championship solo event, Russia, as they could only stand back in admiration as all five riders representing Britain finished in the top ten overall at the opening round of the IMBA MX2 European series on Sunday.Gloriously, the Brits claimed all three podium places at Krasny Dvur, in the Czech Republic, as Phil Mercer took the win ahead of Lee Dunham and Matt Porter. Also on his full IMBA debut, young Sean Frayne recorded a brilliant sixth overall whilst final team member Simon Lane was tenth.Report and Pictures: MIKE WOOD While Britain basked in sunshine and sizzling temperatures, conditions for the opening round of the IMBA MX2 series were cool, cloudy and very overcast. On the day before the event, rain had left puddles on the track leaving the going decidedly sticky for the early exchanges. The mud certainly held no fears for our British boys as they went about their early business in style.
In moto one though it was German Andre Adrian who quickly found a way past fast-starting Dutchman Menno Verleng to build a commanding lead with Mercer slotting into third, Porter fourth and Dunham eighth despite not having a favourable selection of start gates. As the race progressed Frayne, on his full IMBA debut, was charging hard through the pack and up into 11th, closely followed by Lane.
What happened next though was already a potentially defining moment in the title quest as Adrian crashed heavily, suffering concussion and being forced to retire from the remainder of the meeting.
Taking full advantage of his rival's misfortune, Mercer gleefully then raced-on to earn the win ahead of Ronnie van Rooji, Porter, Dunham and Verleng. Frayne eventually earned a very determined seventh at the flag, only to then discover on his return to the pits that he had punched a small hole in his lower crank casing whilst Lane, remarkably in his 14th consecutive season of IMBA action, worked hard for 12th.
In moto two, Porter was again the fastest Brit away, leading the pack, followed closely by team mate Dunham and Dutchmen Kenny Beekmans and Van Rooji whilst Mercer was down in 11th spot.
Whilst first Frayne, then later Lane, both suffered falls, Porter and Dunham were totally dominating proceedings at the front as Mercer moved up and now found himself locked in a no-holds barred battle with Beekmans and a rather wild Rene Albers for fourth spot. Clashing on more than one occasion, an angry Mercer was actually knocked-off his machine before remounting to split the Dutchmen and earn a vital fifth. In a great British battle for the win in this moto, Dunham just edged out Porter, but such was the blistering pace of the front two that they finished an incredible 24 seconds clear of third placed Van Rooji
After his lap three tumble, Frayne recovered back to a great ninth with a disappointed Lane down in 19th.
So, in the deciding last moto, could Great Britain claim a memorable, IMBA record making , glorious podium domination on European soil with only Dutch lad Van Rooji in a points position to spoil the party?
Well, right from the off, the Brits hit the front as Porter yet again led the way with Dunham and Mercer in tow as Van Rooji was down in eighth, just ahead of Lane and Frayne who had produced their best starts of the day.
As the moto progressed, Dunham and Mercer passed Porter but then both riders were to suffer heart-stopping moments as mechanical gremlins threatened to be the party poopers and ruin the potential podium party. First, Dunham's Kawasaki plug cap came adrift, causing his motor to splutter, and as he stopped to insert the cap back into place, Mercer went through to take the lead.
Quickly, Dunham was back under power but now incredibly Mercer was in trouble as his ignition began to fail. Riding in as high a gear as possible, the experienced campaigner had like Dunham to then nurse his machine home to victory, finishing just over a second ahead of his teamate, with Porter in a superb third.
Having his best ride of the day, Lane took a strong seventh just ahead of Frayne who had slipped off on the final lap.
Before the end of June, our lads face two more long trips in their IMBA European Championship quest to both Southern France and Italy.
Let's hope that on completion they are still holding the top three trump cards in what promises to be a very productive, exciting title tussle.
IMBA MX2 EUROPEAN MOTOCROSS
CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 1 – Krasny Dvur, Czech Republic
Race One: 1 Phil Mercer (GB), 2 Ronnie Van Rooji (Holland), 3 Matt Porter (GB), 4 Lee Dunham (GB), 5 Menno Verleng (Holland), 6 Kenny Beekmans (Holland), 7 Sean Frayne (GB), 8 Randy Morand (Switzerland), 9 Sebastian Potraz (Germany), 10 Rene Albers (Holland), 11 Bjorn De Cort (Holland), 12 Simon Lane (GB), 13 Frederic Birh (France), 14 Christian Scholer (Denmark), 15 Dennis Van Rooji (Holland), 16 Andrey Ptahin (Russia), 17 Josef Mnuk (Czech Republic), 18 Tony Morand (Switzerland),19 Adrian Leutenegger (Switzerland), 20 Marcel Zander (Switzerland).
Race Two: 1 Dunham, 2 Porter, 3 R Van Rooji, 4 Beekmans, 5 Mercer, 6 Albers, 7 Scholer, 8 Jaromir Romancik (Czech Republic), 9 Frayne, 10 De Cort, 11 Mnuk, 12 Leutenegger, 13 Birh, 14 Ptahin, 15 Rany Morand (Switzerland), 16 Pascal Proenen (Germany), 17 Rene Egsgaard (Denmark), 18 T Morand, 19 Lane, 20 D Van Rooji.
Race Three: 1 Mercer, 2 Dunham, 3 Porter, 4 Beekmans, 5 R Van Rooji, 6 Romancik, 7 Lane, 8 Frayne, 9 D Van Rooji, 10 De Cort, 11 Scholer, 12 Egsgaard, 13 Potraz, 14 Mnuk, 15 Zander, 16 T Morand, 17 Jonathan Lesage (France), 18 Birh, 19 Albers, 20 Voitrek Janecek (Czech Republic).
Overall: 1 Mercer 165 points, 2 Dunham 161, 3 Porter 154, 4 R Van Rooji 149, 5 Beekmans 137, 6 Frayne 117, 7 De Cort 103, 8 Scholer 101, 9 Albers 100, 10 Lane 94,...
Phil Mercer (10) attempts a pass on Dutchman Rene Albers (6) who, in turn, hunts down Switzerland's Adrian Leutenegger (40) in a thrilling showdown.