Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Mathis Valin narrowly missed the podium in round two of the EMX250 Championship at Pietramurata in the Trentino region of northern Italy but the French teenager retained a secure second place in the series standings.
A single slip in each race cost the youngster a second consecutive podium in his rookie season in the class, but he displayed character and determination to regain his composure and charge back up the leaderboard to finish fourth in each moto. He spun out in a loose-surfaced turn on the third lap of Saturday afternoon’s first moto after quickly advancing to fourth; the incident cost him three positions but he responded well to recover fourth place five laps from the close despite discomfort in his leg from the crash. In race two on Sunday morning he found himself squeezed towards the trackside banking heading into the first turn but was again quickly on the move to seventh before tipping over in a tight turn at the start of lap four to surrender two positions. Undaunted by the slip he persevered with decisive passes on consecutive laps mid-moto to make fourth his own four laps from the end. He now trails the championship leader by sixteen points but is seventeen clear of third in the standings.
Bud teammate Benjamin Garib had no joy in Saturday’s first moto as he was involved in a mass collision on the exit from turn one but the Chilean showed his speed and determination in race two as he advanced consequently from a fifteenth-placed start to seventh – with his sights set on fifth – two laps from the finish before a fall pushed him back to eighth at the chequered flag.
Mathis Valin: “ After my crash yesterday I had so much pain in my leg that I could hardly walk when I came back to the team truck and I didn’t sleep so well last night. But today I did my best to get some important points with another fourth-placed finish; in the first part of the race I still had some pain, especially when I was sitting down, but it became less painful mid-moto and I could make some passes. I didn’t really enjoy this track so much but the results show that all the work we did this winter is paying off and overall I’m happy as I’m still second in the standings.”
Benjamin Garib: ” Saturday was not a good way to start the weekend with a crunch at the first corner but my start was better today and I was right on the pack. I could make some good passes but I had a small crash near the end which cost me a couple of places. I enjoyed the track, but it was a new experience and very tricky with the grip; you had to be very careful with line-choice. I’m happy with my riding; I just need to figure out my starts.”
