KEGUMS (LATVIA) 4 June 2023 – The Round of Latvia was really eventful in both categories and we saw a lot of intense battles throughout the weekend in Kegums.

In EMX250, it was Hutten Metaal Yamaha Racing Team’s Ivano Van Erp who won his first EMX250 round of his career with a solid performance in front of the always consistent BT Racing Team’s Kay Karssemakers and Red Plate holder Hutten Metaal Yamaha Racing Team’s Andrea Bonacorsi.

In EMX125 presented by FMF Racing, 737 Performers GASGAS’s Mathis Valin got a back-to-back win in front of Red plate holder MJC Yamaha Official EMX125’s Janis Martin and Fantic Factory Team Maddii’s Maximilian Werner.

In Race 1, it was Fantic Factory Team Maddii’s Maximilian Werner who took the lead early on after a great start but got passed by a very fast Mathis Valin and MJC Yamaha Official EMX125’s Janis Martin Reisulison lap 3. From there on it was all about Valin and Reisulis to battle for the lead. Reisulis maintained an incredible pace and Valin could not follow and Reisulis took the lead on lap 8 of 14 to never let it go and cruise to victory. Valin settled for the 2nd place.

Werner was 3rd for the most part of the race but couldn’t defend on his teammate, Fantic Factory Team Maddii’s Elias Escandell who overtook him for 3rd at the end. Werner ended at the 4th place
Julius Mikulaperformed really well as he went from 8th on lap 1 to 5th even putting some pressure at the end to Werner for 4th. 

Vitezslav Marek continues to show a lot of qualities as he went from 13th to 6th and overtook many riders while Sturm STC Racing Team’s Mads Fredsoe did the opposite as after an excellent start he couldn’t maintain his pace and moved down the rank to finish 8th. Finishing 7th was August Frisk who had an incredible finish as he overtook 3 times in the last lap to move from 10th to 7th. 

In race 2, Werner got the best start of the pack and took the lead in front of Valin and Marek. On lap 2, Valin pushed and took charge of the race as he set a fastest lap to move on to the lead. Valin set an infernal pace and edged away. That gap helped him when Valin fell but picked himself up still in front and went on to dominantly win without dropping his pace. Valin went 2-1 for a back-to-back win and his 3rd win of the season. 

Finishing 2nd was his usual rival Reisulis who couldn’t keep the pace and settled for 2nd after a nice effort to move up from 6th on lap 1. With 1-2 Reisulis finished 2nd overall and lost few points in the Championship to Valin but still kept the Red Plate. 

Werner who got overtaken only by Valin and Reisulis continues his great form with his 4th podium in a row and an strong 4-3 for 3rd overall. Marek keeps fighting at the top recently and got only passed by Reisulis to finish 4th with a 5th overall. 

Riding strongly and consistently were RFME GASGAS MXJUNIOR TEAM’s Francisco Garcia and Cole McCullough crossed paths on lap 2. Garcia finally managed to pass McCullough on lap 8 to go 5th until the end while McCullough settled for 6th. Garcia in the end went 11-5 for 7th overall, McCullough showed good qualities and went 12-6 for 8th overall.

Escandell made a mistake on lap 2 to move down from 5th to 8th and manage to gain a position as he overtook Noel Zanocs for 7th while Zanocs settled for 8th. Escandell went 3-7 for 4th overall, missing the podium by 4 points behind his teammate Werner. Zanocs on his side went 10-8 for 9th overall to get a good top 10.

Fredsoe managed to be more consistent in race 2 and didn’t fade out as he shadowed Mikula during the race and moved up the leader board throughout the race going from 13th to 10th while Mikula went from 12th to 9th. 

In the end Mathis Valin managed a really impressive weekend to win a back-to-back round in front of Red Plate holder Janis Reisulis and Maximilian Werner who continues on his impressive podium streak.

Mathis Valin: “It’s a great weekend for me. The first race didn’t go as planned but winning in the second race, even if I went down during the race was really amazing”       

Main Photo: Mathis Valin

Bottom Photos: 1.EMX125 Start  2. Janis Reisulis

MXGP OF LATVIA QUICK FACTS:

Circuit length: 1790m

Type of ground: Hard Sand

Temperature: 15°

Weather conditions: Rainy/Cloudy

Weekend Crowd Attendance: 18,000