Lommel: Camden Mc Lellan (Triumph) wins Race 1 ahead of Simon Längenfelder

First race of the MX2 class at Lommel, Grand Prix of Flanders: Local hero Liam Everts (Husqvarna) took the holeshot ahead of Maxime Grau (Honda) and Simon Längenfelder (KTM). Pole-sitter Camden Mc Lellan (Triumph) didn’t get off to a good start. The South African had to fight his way up from outside the top 10.

Sacha Coenen crashes on the first lap

Sacha Coenen (KTM) collided with German Kosak-KTM rider Valentin Kees on the first lap and dropped to the back of the field. Fortunately, the Belgian was able to continue the race, but had to embark on a gruelling chase to make up ground. Kees was forced to retire from the race.

Längenfelder with a clever race strategy

Defending champion Simon Längenfelder got off to a good start but was overtaken repeatedly from second to fifth place by the halfway point of the race. Guillem Farres (Triumph), Janis Reisulis (Yamaha) and Camden Mc Lellan (Triumph) initially overtook the German. After 20 minutes, Längenfelder launched a burst of speed and overtook Everts and Mc Lellan in one go.

Holeshot and retirement for Liam Everts

After 25 minutes, Everts came to a halt at the side of the track, presumably frustrated by a technical fault. Kay Karssemakers (Kawasaki) also had to retire from the race in the early stages.

Near-collision between the two Triumph works riders

After 25 minutes, Camden Mc Lellan had caught up with his leading team-mate Guillem Farres. On three occasions, the Spaniard narrowly avoided a crash. This led to a near-collision between the two team-mates. Längenfelder was the beneficiary of the in-team duel; he closed in on the Triumph duo and was able to overtake Farres – who briefly lost his concentration – to move into second place behind Mc Lellan.

Third race win for Mc Lellan

Camden Mc Lellan secured his third race win of the season at Lommel. He won the first race with a lead of just under 6 seconds over Simon Längenfelder. Guillem Farres finished third, 10 seconds behind. Sacha Coenen fought his way back up to sixth place after his crash on the first lap. The Czech Osicka-KTM rider Julius Mikula secured another good result in seventh place.

World Championship point for Lotte van Drunen

Two-time WMX World Champion Lotte van Drunen from the Netherlands picked up another World Championship point in 20th place.

MX2 Race 1, Lommel

1. Camden Mc Lellan (ZA), Triumph, 36:08.902

2. Simon Längenfelder (GER), KTM, +5.898

3. Guillem Farres (E), Triumph, +10.765

4. Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LV), Yamaha, +12.043

5. Janis Martins Reisulis (LV), Yamaha, +32.445

6. Sacha Coenen (B), KTM, +1:23.092

7. Julius Mikula (CZ), KTM, +1:33.889

8. Alve Callemo (S), Husqvarna, +1:55.155

9. Valerio Lata (I), Honda, +2:00.388

10. Scott Smulders (NL), Husqvarna, +2:10.032

11. Noel Zanocz (H), KTM, +2:14.362

12. Ollie Colmer (GB), KTM, 1 lap down

13. Maxime Grau (F), Honda, 1 lap down

14. Alessandro Gaspari (I), KTM, 1 lap down

15. Hugo Forsgren (S), Honda, 1 lap down

16. Luca Ruffini (I), Husqvarna, 1 lap down

17. Sandro Sools (S), KTM, 1 lap down

18. Ben Almagor (ISR), KTM, 1 lap down

19. Jaka Peklaj (SLO), Husqvarna, 1 lap down

20. Lotte van Drunen (NL), Yamaha, 1 lap down

World Championship Standings

1. Guillem Farres (E), Triumph, 646 points

2. Sacha Coenen (B), KTM, 607 points, (-39)

3. Camden Mc Lellan (ZA), Triumph, 583 points, (-63)

4. Simon Längenfelder (D), KTM, 578 points, (-68)

5. Liam Everts (B), Husqvarna, 526 points, (-120)

6. Janis Martins Reisulis (LV), Yamaha, 497 points, (-149)