ANOTHER WIN FOR ROCZEN
German teen Ken Roczen blitzed the field, finishing 1-1 as well as the 2010 German ADAC MX Masters title at Gaildorf at the weekend.
The 16-year-old is exhibiting excellent form as he winds up now to represent his country at the Motocross of Nations in Colorado in three weeks’ time.
He raced his Suzuki RM-Z250 to again beat the might of Germany’s best on larger machinery and was an undisputed victor at the former Grand Prix venue at the wekkend.
Roczen’s sixth moto triumph from the last eight helped the youngster wrap-up his crown and his success at the grassy and natural layout was made especially sweeter thanks to the dominance over fellow Motocross of Nations team member (and MX1 GP winner) Max Nagl (KTM).
The teenager ran to the chequered flag with an advantage of more than 25 seconds in the first moto and then 20 seconds ahead of team-mate Arnaud Tonus in the second sprint. Roczen was able to walk away with the accolade with one round still remaining.
“I am really happy and it is something special to win this championship,” said Roczen, who actually defended his 2009 title but was unsatisfied in the conquest last year after the controversy surrounding main rival Kornel Nemeth.
“At the beginning of the year we were not totally sure if we could commit to the whole series – and I don’t know if I will be able to do it in the future – but I am glad I was able to do so well and also win it here in Gaildorf.”
Tonus rode well on the tacky terrain to recover from a first lap collision with new third team-mate Marcus Schiffer and climbed back to sixth. In the second moto he acted as a competent rear guard for Roczen and again claimed Nagl as a decent scalp on the way to a runner-up placing.
Schiffer made his first appearance for the team on a RM-Z450 and will commit to the last two GP events with the crew as he battles to come back from a long injury lay-off. The 23-year-old finished 15th after the incident with Tonus in moto one but overcame nerves and blew away some of the rust with a better performance to seventh later in the day.
Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2 is next in action this coming weekend with the Grand Prix of Benelux and the penultimate round of 15 in the FIM Motocross World Championship.
© Photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com