Mathis Valin claimed the FIM European EMX250 Championship title in style with a double race win at Cozar, final round of the series. He offers team Bud Racing Kawasaki his first European title in this class, and the second one as Brian Moreau won the EMX125 in 2017.

Third of the qualifying session on Saturday, Mathis cleverly choosed a mid-gate start position, several gates away from his title rivals and claimed a clear holeshot ahead of Bud teammate Benjamin Garib. Establishing a three-second advantage already on the opening lap the eighteen-year old smartly managed the advantage to sweep home as moto winner thirty minutes later and thus be confirmed as European EMX250 champion in his first season with Kawasaki and his rookie year in the 250cc class. On Sunday he again swept into turn one in front from mid-gate but drifted slightly wide in the rapid sweeping turn to emerge second. This would already ensure the overall victory but the stylish youngster confidently swept inside for the lead at the start of lap five and, soaking up pressure admirably despite sickness, kept his main rival of the campaign off his rear wheel to the chequered flag for his tenth moto victory, fourth overall (three of them with a maximum score) and ninth podium in the eleven-round series and a decisive thirty-four point title victory. The result was also important in the stakes for the FIM Manufacturers’ Championship; with an eight-point advantage at the start of the day Valin’s victory ensured that Kawasaki deservedly take the title by eleven points.

Benjamin Garib was also impressive on Saturday as he followed Mathis through the opening turn of the race, maintaining second-place throughout the moto and defiantly holding off a last-lap challenge to complete a rousing 1-2 for the Bud team and Kawasaki. On Sunday he was closed down entering turn one to emerge sixteenth but he dug deep to claw back one position after another until he was ninth on lap ten of fourteen. He continued to push to narrow the gap to the riders ahead but just ran out of time to make the further pass which would have secured him his first career podium. Fourth overall, edged out of the podium by a single point, his efforts did however confirm seventh in the final series standings.

Mathis Valin: “This season was incredible; at the start of the year I could never have dreamed that I could win the European title in my rookie season. My aim at the start of the year was to be around the top-five but in fact I won nearly half of the races to take the title. I was delighted to secure the title with a race win on Saturday, but I came here determined not only to win the title but also to take the victory in this final round and we did it! It was a great and incredible season; I want to thank Stephane Dasse and the entire Bud team, our coach Thierry (Van Den Bosch) and all my family for their support. Now I will take a little break and then we’ll go for the winter training and another step in my career with a new bike, a new team and a new life as I will be based at Lommel. »

Benjamin Garib: “This first moto means a lot to me. This results just shows how hard work pays off; I didn’t start the season well with so many muddy races, but this was a new track for everyone and I had a good pace all weekend. On Saturday I had Mathis in front of me and it felt like a training moto; then on Sunday I had a really bad start but I came through from the back even though it is really hard to pass here. I had the speed but I got stuck behind some guys for a long time and by the time I got to ninth the gap was too far to eighth to make the final pass I needed for the podium. But I’ll take the positives from the first moto; that was a good note to end the season. My thanks to everyone in the Bud Kawasaki team for the last two years; we were always improving and had a lot of fun together.”

Stephane Dasse (Bud Kawasaki team owner): « We are super happy. For us it was a perfect season as we won the French Elite and the European Championship! There was a great atmosphere with both riders in the team, our bikes were competitive, and Mathis surprised us! When we signed him for two years we were not expecting such good results already this year but he is really strong mentally; we saw him progressing all year long and since mid-season he made another step. Now he is ready to move to MX2 and we want all the best for him in the factory team. We will continue to invest in young riders for the European Championship; that’s what we enjoy and with this championship, the French Elite, Paris Supercross and the World SX we have a strong and busy programme. »

Mathis Valin took his Bud Racing Kawasaki to a massive double-victory at Afyon in Turkey in the penultimate round of the FIM European EMX250 Championship; the maximum scoreline sees the red plate holder take a twenty-one point series-lead to the final round of the championship.

Although a newcomer to the track more than thousand metres above sea-level in western Anatolia, Mathis already stamped his authority on proceedings during Timed Practice as he established pole position with a lap-time eight-tenths of a second faster than his closest rival in the points-chase. In the first race of the weekend he confirmed his pace with a smart move at turn three on the opening lap to move from third to first and he immediately sprinted clear to establish a lead of more than two seconds on the opening lap, and then built a ten-second advantage for his seventh moto-victory of the campaign. Full of confidence after his first moto victory Mathis ran a little wide in turn one at the start of the second moto but already before the completion of the first lap he was through to second and rapidly built a comfortable advantage over the chasers. He showed his maturity to stalk the leader for twenty minutes before building the pressure to inherit the lead two-and-a-half laps from the end for his eighth moto win and third overall victory of the season. He now leads the series standings by twenty-one points heading to the final round in Spain on the weekend of September 28/29.

Benjamin Garib continued to show his progress with fifth-fastest time during Timed Practice but the Chilean faced a frustrating race in the first moto. A slight off-track excursion to avoid a fallen rider saw him complete the opening lap eighth and that was where he stayed in a leaderboard train until a small slip on lap eight of fourteen as he tried for a pass ended up costing two positions to finish tenth. On Sunday he made sixth his own already on the opening laps and a consistent ride saw him maintain that position until he surrendered to a hard-charging title-candidate on lap seven. The Chilean was eighth overall over the weekend and has made his eighth place in the series points-standings even more secure.

Mathis Valin: “It was a great weekend; it’s been a long time since I won the overall with two moto victories. We have been working a lot with Thierry (Van Den Bosch) on the start and my position on the bike recently, and we saw that all this work is paying off. I had a great speed all weekend long, even though today the track was different, very slippery with many ruts. Van Erp was riding really well today; I tried to pass him several times but I was making little mistakes as I looked for a way past him. Finally it was he who made a mistake for me to pass for the lead. We will keep on working before the final round in Spain; I want to fight for the wins there, not just ride safely to secure the points!”

Benjamin Garib: “Both practice session went really well but I just never had a good feeling in the motos. I took a good start in the first one but another guy crashed in front of me on the first lap; I was forced off-track and that cost me several placings. On Sunday I had a better result but I still didn’t feel comfortable on this track after they watered so much last night; this just wasn’t my weekend in the racing. On the positive side I am now eighth in the championship and close to seventh. I just need to figure a few things out and we will see what is possible at the last round. I’d just like to thank everyone in the team and my family for their continued support.”

With a moto win and another podium in the Swiss round of the European EMX250 Championship, Mathis Valin is still leading the series with two more rounds to go. It was another good weekend for team Bud Racing Kawasaki, as Benjamin Garib got another top five result at Frauenfeld.

Undisputed fastest in both practices, Mathis was chopped off aggressively by his closest championship rival entering the first turn and faced a mountain to climb from dead-last in a field of forty. Passing rivals at will he was into the top-twenty already on the second lap and he continued to push hard, moving into the top-ten on lap six and continuing his charge to eventually finish fourth. On Sunday he got in the second moto the decent start he needed as competitors faced sticky conditions after heavy overnight rain, and he quickly moved forward from fourth to second already on the opening lap to give chase to his main championship challenger. He had already closed down his rival as they hit the first lappers as early as lap four and cleverly chose an advantageous line through traffic to sweep around for the lead two laps later. Withstanding the pressure he built an advantage which he could defend despite having to discard his goggles after ten minutes as the leaders encountered a never-ending string of tailenders. Such was the pace of leaders that only four other riders remained on the same lap at the finish with victory for the Kawasaki rider by nearly four seconds. The moto win secured second overall over the weekend – his seventh podium of the series – and significantly he rebuilt his championship points-lead to eleven points with two rounds remaining.

Teammate Benjamin Garib made a superb sixth-placed start in the first race and a clever opening two laps saw him advance to third and hold it for four laps before a small mistake dropped him to his eventual sixth. On Sunday he continues to build after a difficult start to the season; he again gated superbly to exit turn one third and, after quickly surrendering two positions in the difficult conditions, settled down to bring home a lonely fifth, one of only five riders not lapped by his teammate. The effort secured him fifth overall and the weekend points-haul lifts him into the series top-ten, just five points shy of seventh.

Mathis Valin: “I was feeling great in the Free Practice session and I confirmed that feeling with the pole position in the Timed Practice period. Then I had a good start, but Lata had a better one and changed his line; I hit his rear wheel and crashed, so I was last after the first corner. I did some good opening laps; I knew that it was important to pass early in the race to get the best possible result as we are close in the championship. I rode a strong race to finish fourth. On Sunday I came here to win, I wanted to get my revenge! I did it and we kept the red plate, so that was a perfect way to respond. I love the rain and the mud, and I could pass Lata for the lead and resist his challenge to the finish. I even rode my best lap at the very end so I’m proud about that.”

Benjamin Garib: “In the first race I had a good start and was running third for a couple of laps before I had a small crash; I felt a little tired in the heat after the break in my rhythm but in general it was a good day. I know I have the speed because I was pushing and now I want to ride some more in front with the top guys. On Sunday the conditions were hard after the rain but I rode smart and stayed on two wheels. I’ve been really consistent these last few weekends so let’s keep on training hard and keep the results coming.”

Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Mathis Valin maintained his thirteen-point lead in the FIM European EMX250 Championship after recording his sixth podium of the season in the Swedish round of the series at Uddevalla.

On Saturday Mathis did a strong race as he spun at the gate and had to come from outside the top-ten to reach his eventual third place on the eighth of fifteen laps in the first points-scoring moto of the weekend. In the second moto on Sunday he made an excellent start to hold down an immediate third place and already on lap two he made a decisive pass to move into second. He was then the sandwich in a three-rider breakaway at the head of the pack; time-and-again he would close down the leader but the hard-pack track had become very one-line and attempts to pass were becoming ever more frustrating. The action became increasingly hectic as they got caught up with lappers during the closing stages and at the final corner of the penultimate lap he left an opening for his chaser to slip past and he again finished third. Mathis did not lose the overall podium and, more significantly, he leaves Sweden with his thirteen-point series advantage intact.

Teammate Benjamin Garib posted his best Qualifying of the season to earn eighth gate-pick and used that choice effectively for a top-six start in the first championship moto of the weekend. After surrendering two positions through the hectic opening laps the Chilean responded admirably to slice his way back up the leaderboard with a series of impressive passes to secure his eventual fifth three laps from the finish. On Sunday he made it two Bud Kawasaki’s in the first six on the opening lap and the Chilean rode another solid race, advancing to fifth on lap three and maintaining his leaderboard position to the chequered flag to earn fifth overall – his best result of the campaign – over the weekend and advance to eleventh in the points-standings.

Mathis Valin: “On Saturday I missed a good jump at the gate so my start was not so good but I rode a strong first lap even if it’s not easy to pass on this track. I was quickly into the top-ten and I knew that my championship rivals were in front so I had to push but I didn’t want to do anything stupid. I made some good passes to come back to third but I was not really happy with my performance as I was fighting the track. On Sunday the feeling was much better. I got the same result – a third position – but it was really close throughout the entire moto with Lata and Van Erp; it was very intense! Perhaps I could have scored a couple more points this weekend, but we kept the red plate and I only lost one point to Lata. I knew in advance that this track is not really my favourite and in two weeks it will be different as I really like Frauenfeld!”

Benjamin Garib: “I was solid all weekend long with fifth in Free Practice, eighth in Timed Practice and fifth in both races. I had a good start in both races and could maintain the speed at the top with some good passes at the end of the first race. I felt great all weekend on the track; when we arrived on Friday I thought it would be a mud race after all the rain but conditions were perfect even if the track was a little muddy in places on Sunday; I stayed focused and put all the pieces together for my best-ever EMX result. I want to thank all of the team for their help and confidence in me; now we keep training and focused to produce more good results in the races to come.”