Ready for attack in Assen
By Infront Moto Racing on 26th Aug 15
ASSEN (The Netherlands), 26 August 2015 - The sixteenth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship will take place for the first time ever at the world-renowned TT circuit of Assen, The Netherlands. While the Van Drenthe circuit is already recognized worldwide as the longest standing venue on the MotoGP calendar, this weekend it will make its mark on the motocross world with the unveiling of a super trick man-made sand track.
25,000 cubic meters of white sand has been imported from a nearby army training facility to make the track, which is still under construction as we speak. The circuit will be built in less than a week, which means it will be brand spanking new and a level playing field for everyone.
What is also exciting about the new and exciting track is that it can be enjoyed from the same permanent facilities used for MotoGP. The grandstands will be put to use with enough space to seat 25,000 raging MXGP fans. This means that come rain or shine, the racing can be enjoyed in the dry thanks to the sheltered spectating zone. Everyone involved or onsite to witness the epicness the MXGP of The Netherlands will bring will be spoiled with access to all of the immense permanent facilities such as a world-class media center, lavish VIP areas, flushing toilets, clean showers, the list goes on.
In addition to the luxuries of permanent facilities and the coolness of an all new never before seen track, the FIM Motocross World Championship will also be joined by the final rounds of the European Championships EMX250, 125 and 150 as well as the one and only round of the Veteran World Cup, VMX.
In the European Championship EMX250, Dutchman riding for J-Tech Honda, Nick Kouwenberg has a 34 point lead and should wrap the title up in front of his home crown this weekend while in the EMX125 the title will go down to the wire with only 1 point separating KTM Factory Junior's young Spaniard Jorge Prado and his Kiwi teammate Josiah Natzke.
This weekend all eyes will be on the rookie Yamaha Factory Racing Yamalube's Romain Febvre as he could be crowned world champion on Sunday. After his uber impressive double victory last weekend in Mantova, MXGP of Lombardia, Febvre will line up in Assen with a 101-point advantage over fellow Frenchman Gautier Paulin.
Speaking of Paulin, the Team HRC rider is the only guy who can keep the title chase alive this weekend, but in order to do so he must finish with at least 2 points more than Febvre.
While the atmosphere is already chirpy inside the Yamaha camp, Jeremy Van Horebeek will want to contribute to those smiles by wrapping up his shaky season with some podium finishes.
Meanwhile Team HRC's Evgeny Bobryshev has got to be looking for a top step performance. The Russian has, up to now, achieved his goal of being consistent which as a result has him in third place in the championship standings.
With sand going into the Dutch TT circuit by the truck load, one rider who will be thinking "yes, that's right, just keep that sand flowing” is Hitachi Construction Machinery Revo KTM's Shaun Simpson who has made quite a name for himself on the soft surfaces.
Flying the flag for the Dutch this weekend is Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe's Glenn Coldenhoff who has proved he can run the pace and he can win. The Dutchman wowed everyone in the sand of Latvia when he took his first ever MXGP race and round win and we can only imagine that he will be wanting to do it again on home soil this weekend.
MXGP Championship Top Ten: 1. Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 597 points; 2. Gautier Paulin (FRA, HON), 496 p.; 3. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, HON), 463 p.; 4. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 416 p.; 5. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 392 p.; 6. Maximilian Nagl (GER, HUS), 384 p.; 7. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 366 p.; 8. Clement Desalle (BEL, SUZ), 331 p.; 9. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, SUZ), 321 p.; 10. Todd Waters (AUS, HUS), 300 p.
