Clément has made another fan!

Photo: CDS

Today was the media day for the press just days ahead of the first round of the Belgian motocross championship. Of Course Clément -being one of the main men in his domestic series- was present as well. On the pic RTBF TV journalist Gérald Wery is having an animated conversation with 'Panda'.

It will actually be the first time for Desalle to contest the complete series (six races). As a youngster he mainly raced in France and as a professional he rode in Germany were he claimed the runner-up title last season behind Max Nagl. Our MX2 rider Dennis Verbruggen will race the open class as well. Both guys are looking strong for the moment so Beervelde, the first race, should be interesting!

Verbruggen and Desalle add to their points tally in Holland

Photo: CDS

Four GP’s into the series and Clément Desalle is not only ninth in the point standings but also the first Honda rider. Technical woes during Saturday’s qualifying race were the cause for Desalle’s last pick behind the gate. Nevertheless he rode two decent heats, once again. In the second heat he even set the fastest time. Spaniard Jonathan Barragan won the GP, in front of Antonio Cairoli and Tanel Leok.

Despite being handicapped by a difficult starting position Dennis Verbruggen proved his worth in Valkenswaard. In both heats the rider who hails from Grobbendonk worked his way up, to grab 11th in the overall standings. The former European Champion confirmed his good form of last week’s race in Mons. Portuguese rider Rui Goncalves won the MX2 overall in front of Simpson and Aubin.

Sports manager Marnicq Bervoets: “I was also pleasantly surprised by Dennis’ performances this weekend. He pulled through and proved that he is capable of doing a lot better then his results showed until now. This is definitely a boost to his morale, it should give hem the calm and confidence to keep on performing in the races to come. Clément set some very fast laps but in the last 15 minutes he was suffering physically. We don’t know what ‘s causing this, but it is definitely something we should look further into.

Preview GP of Benelux-Valkenswaard

Photo: CDS

LS Motors Honda rider Clément Desalle will enter the fourth round of the World championship in Valkenswaard keen on improving his current ninth place in provisional MX1 standings. Like most Belgian riders the nineteen year old enjoys racing in heavy conditions. Desalle had an excellent build-up to Valkenswaard winning the International in Mons on Sunday ahead of Jonathan Barragan and Kevin Strijbos. Clément swept the first heat and was runner-up in the second.

Desalle’s best result on the demanding Eurocircuit, south of Eindhoven, was 11th in last year’s GP. But he should be more than capable to top that result aboard his CRF450R, given his current form and his outstanding fourth place finish in the punishing second race in Lierop at the end of last season.

Panda takes Mons international by storm!

Photo: CDS

Local hero Clément Desalle again beat the established MX1 stars at the Belgian International in Mons - repeating his Grobbendonk shock win at the start of the season. The spectacular LS Motors-Honda rider collected a win in the first race ahead of Honda’s factory pairing Strijbos and De Reuver. Clement ‘Panda’ Desalle crashed in the second heat while leading the race, but quickly managed to pass Manuel Priem and De Reuver to capture third. Desalle gave his home crowd something to cheer about when he caught up with Strijbos. The 19-year old passed Strijbos and pushed on for the lead, but his attempts stranded at Barragan’s rear wheel.

In the overall standings Desalle beat Jonathan Barragan and Kevin Strijbos. Clément said: "I’m really happy with my victory today. I had strong starts in both races and that’s absolutely vital here. After two corners I grabbed the lead in the opening race and I never looked back. Of course I knew I had Kevin Strijbos behind me, but I never felt any pressure and it was easy to control the race. I was a couple of laps behind Barragan in the second, and right after I had passed him I went down! I lost valuable time, but I was quickly climbing up from fifth to the lead again. Unfortunately time ran out and Jonathan (Barragan) resisted till the end."

MX Panda consistent in Istanbul

Photo: CDS

Two ninth places in the heats meant an eighth place overall in the Turkish GP. Desalle was quick out of the gate but crashed on the opening lap. From nineteenth he worked his way up to eighth, passing established riders like De Reuver, McKenzie and Vuillemin in the process. While doing so Desalle posted the fastest lap times. In the final laps however Clément couldn’t withstand the pressure from Coppins and had to settle for ninth. After another excellent start Clément lost a couple of places. He would again end the heat as ninth. Italian Antonio Cairoli won the GP ahead of Steve Ramon and David Philippaerts. In the World MX1 points standings Desalle is now ninth. The LS Motors-Honda rider is not only the sole private entered rider in the top 10 but also the youngest.

Going to unchartered MX territory in Turkey

Photo: Ray Archer

This Easter weekend the World MX Championship goes to Turkey for the very first time. Turkey may be unchartered territory when it comes to motocross, motorcycling on the whole has definitely become popular after Ten Kate Honda’s Kenan Sofuoglu took the World Supersport crown in 2007 and hosting MotoGP racrs from 2005 to 2007. For the motocross riders however the journey to Turkey will add some exotic flavor because no one knows what

to expect. LS Motorsport-Honda’s sporting manager Marnicq Bervoets looks ahead to this weekend’s racing and analyses Clément Desalle’s previous GP.

On Desalle’s crashes in Bulgaria: “I think Clément was a bit too confident going into the races on Sunday. In the first few laps he was a bit too wild, taking some unnecessary risks. He crashed twice and was forced to make his way through the pack in order to clinch tenth. An effort in which he had to dig deep and robbed him from vital energy in the second moto. Add to that the first real heat of the season, always a massive impact someone coming from

a moderate climate., and you know the reasons for a not so good second moto. Still Clément is only 19 and you can’t expect him to be on the podium of every GP. But he is definitely a fighter and will continue to make progress in the months to come.”

Racing in Turkey: “We know very little about the track, apart from the fact that it’s located on an airport site close to a lake, west of Istanbul. Being located so far from Belgium, it makes it a bit of an overseas GP. And they’re always a bit of an expedition really. But that’s part of the World championship and adds about of ’s charm to it. Besides, we will have our truck there, which we don’t have overseas. It’s clear to see that the Turks are ambitious about

this GP. The biggest Turkish oil company launched the GP through a massive ad campaign in each of its 3.300 petrol stations.”

Coming to grips with a brand new track: “Nobody of the GP regulars knows the track. But quick learners will

definitely have an advantage. For some riders it takes two or three GP’s before they are competitive on a particular track. That’s definitely not the case with Clément who doesn’t needs tons of practice in order to learn a track. When we debrief after free practice I’ll point out the parts on the track were he might struggle. But most of the time he knows already where he lacks speed and where he is fast. Being able to analyse your own performance like that is key to progress for a young rider.”

Podium for Fiolek!

The LS Motors-Honda girls started their season in style. American Women’s MX champion Ashley Fiolek grabbed another podium spot, her third podium from her five GP starts so far! Ashley finished 3rd in both races and left a very good impression. Fiolek took the holeshot in both moto’s and enjoyed held the leader spot for a couple of moments. On Saturday as well as on Sunday German Laier and reigning World champion Lancelot proved to be a bit faster. Lancelot won the GP in Sevlievo in front of Laier and Fiolek. However Ashley was the best American girl on Bulgarian soil with Tarah Gieger coming home ninth while Aubrianna Dunn unfortunately didn’t score any points.

Belgium’s Elien De Winter ended up 11dth in the overall standings. That was a surprisingly good result l given her injuries (Elien is on the mend after suffering a broken vertebra and a dislocated pelvis). In the first race on Saturday Elien finished in 8th. In the Sunday she had to ride through the pain barrier but clinched an honourable 13th position nevertheless. De Winter became 11th and first Belgian in the overall standings. Brenda Wagemans was 13rd and Morane de Barquin 24th.

Desalle top ten in Sevlievo

Photo: CDS

A decent tenth place was Clément Desalle’s final result for this season’s second GP. But the result could have been a lot better for the LS Motors-Honda rider. Nineteen-year old Desalle showed his potential by leading Saturday’s qualifying race for several laps. Finally he’d qualify in fourth. On Sunday a couple of mistakes would cost him dearly. The high rhythm meant passing was very difficult on the fast hard pack track. Clément is 8th in the current World MX1 standings. The GP of Bulgaria was won by Coppins in front of Barragan and De Dycker.

Elien De Winter and Ashley Fiolek kick off WMX series

Photo: Red Bull Photofiles

In Bulgaria LS Motors welcomes the ever enthusiast American Ashley Fiolek. Ashley will defend the LS Motors colors during a few selected rounds of this year’s WMX World championship. Last year Ashley clinched her first podium in Sevlievo and ended 6th in the WMX’s final standings despite missing one GP. Just like Elien, Ashley oozes with

professionalism and stamina. LS Motors-Honda is very proud of fielding this duo that combines speed, charm and personality. Both Elien and Ashley ride a Honda CRF250R. Their main competition will come from reigning World champion Livia Lancelot, strong German girls Stephanie Laier, Maria Franke and Larissa Papenmeier. Peurtorican Tarah Geiger, the first every woman to compete in the Motocross of Nations, will also be behind the starting gate in Sevlievo.

Desalle looks ahead to Sevlievo

Looking back on Faenza: "Sure I got compliments from everywhere. It was definitely nice to be on the podium for the very first time. I was pleased with that but on the other hand I was mad at myself. I mean, you can’t be otherwiseif you let slip second place from you in the last lap. We didn’t celebrate that third place but then there’s no time for partying with a busy schedule like this.”

On racing in the mud “I wouldn’t call myself a real mud specialist. Sometimes it goes like you planned it, sometimes it doesn’t. All in all it’s good riding skills mixed with a portion of luck. Riding in the mud is demanding in a different way. Your speed is much lower than normal, but it’s much harder work because of all the mud that sticks on the bike. It becomes real tough when you crash and have to put the bike back upright.”

On Sevlievo. “Personally I think it’s a wonderful track: hard pack, fast and with a nice layout. The accommodation around the track is second to none as well, it’s just real professional. It’s a bit strange to find such a state of the art track in a country that is so old fashioned. But then again we really don’t have the time to visit it, we’re not there on a

holiday.”