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SUZUKI AND RAMON POISED FOR TITLE
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SUZUKI AND RAMON POISED FOR TITLE
September 1, 2007
Team Suzuki Press Office - September 1, 2007.
Team Suzuki's Steve Ramon qualified third for the Grand Prix of the
Netherlands at
the sandy Lierop circuit and stands on the threshold of his first title
in the FIM
MX1 Motocross World Championship.
The Belgian only has to score a point in the first moto tomorrow to be
crowned after
nearest rival Josh Coppins pulled out of the meeting due to a continuing
shoulder
injury.
The sandy ruts and bumps of Lierop provided its usual array of technical
and
physical demands on the riders. The weather was changeable with cloudy
breaks
bringing sunshine and the occasional light shower.
Ramon, still riding with a painful left wrist, changed his suspension
setting during
the day and also the engine mapping to obtain a sharper delivery from
the RM-Z450 to
cope with the draining effect of the sand. The 27 year old showed no
signs of the
pressure he faces on the eve of potentially becoming the new number one
and was just
over two-tenths-of-a-second away from serial pole position man Tanel
Leok.
"Things went well today," he said. "We already had our sand set-up in
place but we
made a few changes and I felt good on the track. I only have to score
points
tomorrow but I am doing my best not to think about it. The motos will be
tough and
physically hard. It will be easy to make a mistake so I must keep
concentrated."
Kevin Strijbos is currently third in the championship and 38 points
behind his
team-mate. He stands a mathematical chance of taking the crown if he
beats Sebastien
Pourcel and some misfortune befalls Ramon tomorrow. Strijbos at least
will be aiming
to take second spot and needs just 25 points to overtake Coppins. The 22
year old
was second fastest in Timed Practice across the sand ripples and missed
out on pole
by a tenth of a second. He needed both practice sessions to fine tune
the set-up of
his machine.
"It was hard out there," he commented. "At first I was really struggling
with the
bike and the track. We changed the suspension and the front fork but
then ended up
going back to the original setting for Timed Practice. Things went
better. I had
some good lines and unfortunately my flying lap was ruined a little bit
because a
slower rider got in the way. I'm pleased that I was quick enough to
almost take pole
and the races will be hard work tomorrow for sure."
MX1 Timed Practice:1. Tanel Leok (EST, Kawasaki), 2:00.537; 2. Kevin
Strijbos (BEL,
Suzuki), +0:00.157; 3. Steve Ramon (BEL, Suzuki), +0:00.241; 4. Marc de
Reuver (NED,
Yamaha), +0:00.451; 5. Manuel Priem (BEL, TM), +0:00.672; 6. David
Philippaerts
(ITA, KTM), +0:01.105; 7. Ken de Dycker (BEL, Honda), +0:01.809; 8.
Billy Mackenzie
(GBR, Kawasaki), +0:02.151; 9. Sebastien Pourcel (FRA, Kawasaki),
+0:02.400; 10.
Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), +0:02.595.
For more stories about Steve Ramon, click here.For photos, click here
For more stories about Kevin Strijbos, click here.For photos, click here
Team Suzuki's Steve Ramon qualified third for the Grand Prix of the
Netherlands at
the sandy Lierop circuit and stands on the threshold of his first title
in the FIM
MX1 Motocross World Championship.
Suzuki and Steve Ramon are just several days away from being able to
seal their
first Manufacturer's and Rider's titles in the FIM MX1 Motocross World
Championship.
The final round of 15 in the 2007 competition takes place in the sand of
Lierop in
the Netherlands this weekend and Ramon enters the last two motos with a
14-point
advantage while Suzuki lead reigning champions Yamaha by 29.
Steve Ramon finished fourth overall at the British Grand Prix on the
RM-Z450 and as
a result Suzuki now lead the Rider's and Manufacturer's standings of the
FIM
Motocross World Championship.
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