Team Venum Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Francisco Garcia leapt to second, just two points shy of the points lead, in the European EMX250 Motocross Championship after scoring his second consecutive podium in the Swiss round of the series at Frauenfeld.

Just a week after his first ever win in the European Championship, Francisco had another top ride in Switzerland. Sixth in the timed practice session he took a top-five start and worked his way forward to third on lap seven of sixteen. He was closing on the leaders until a slip four laps from the close lost him contact but could not prevent him taking the twenty championship points with a third position. Two days later, on Monday as there was no action on Easter Sunday, he moved quickly from seventh to fourth through the first few turns and leapt past for third on the uphill climb already on the opening lap. He finally broke down the stubborn resistance of the rider in second on lap eleven of seventeen but the leader was already eleven seconds clear by then. Third- and second-placed motos earnt second overall over the weekend and the forty-two points have seen him close dramatically in the championship points-chase; he is now second in the series, just two points shy of the red plate, heading to the next round in Portugal on May 3-4.

Jake Cannon discovered an unusual layout at Frauenfeld, and qualified In seventeenth position for both races. On Saturday he ride a solid race to seventh from a top-ten start, and was expecting to repeat that in the second moto two days later. Unfortunately he was involved in a massive crash at turn five in race two but the Australian teenager showed great character, pushing hard all race to come back from thirty eighth and earn two points in nineteenth place.

This weekend the team will be at Castelnau de Lévis for the third round of the French Elite series

Francisco Garcia: “I am really proud to have scored another podium. I was not riding at my best this weekend but I am happy with the result.; I leave with second overall after a third and a second in the two motos and that is important in a long series. On Monday I had Zanocz and Reisulis on my back wheel for a time as I looked for a way past Askew so once I got past him I concentrated on riding smart for a couple of laps; I pushed a little more at the end to close up to the leader but ran out of time to catch him. It was a solid weekend and I have the red plate in sight as I am now just two points from the lead in the series.”

Francisco Garcia : Second overall (3/2) and second of the championship
Jake Cannon : Twelfth overall (7/19) and sixteenth of the championship

Team Venum Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Francisco Garcia raced to a career-first EMX victory in the third round of the European EMX250 Motocross Championship at Pietramurata in the Trentino region of northern Italy.
Watch our video inside Team of the Italian round on our Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RW–zneIBG0

The Spanish youngster had dominated both practice sessions to earn pole position and in the first moto of the weekend he came out of the first turn just inside the top-ten. Lapping more than a second faster than anyone else, he sliced his way up the leaderboard with a series of immaculate passes to take over third by the end of the opening lap and was second next time round before taking the lead with a decisive move on lap four. He immediately opened up an advantage of several seconds to control the race to the finish, eventually taking victory by more than eight seconds. The track was different on Sunday for the second race as it rains in the night, and our young Spaniard emerge fifteenth from the first corner, but quickly moved to fifth by the completion of the first lap. Fourth one lap later he quickly passed third, and was fighting for second position when he was pushed into the trackside banking and fell. He was quickly back on his feet without losing a position and with three laps remaining was back in contention. A pass for second appeared secure but his front wheel was engulfed by a deep sticky rut and he crashed with three laps to go; the incident pushed him back to a distant seventh but that position was sufficient to secure his first-ever overall victory in EMX250. Scoring thirty-nine points for the weekend he is back into serious championship contention as he is now fourth in the standings, twenty-four points off the series lead and just eight points off second.

The weekend was not so good for Jake Cannon; in the first heat Jake was running a comfortable tenth for the first half of the race until he crashed off the side of the track; it cost the Australian teenager nearly a minute to rejoin the race and he eventually finished twenty-fifth. On Sunday he pushed forward from a mid-pack start and was eyeing up the top-ten until a mid-moto fall cost him several places; after recovering to thirteenth the Australian teenager had he heartbreak of bogging down at the very last turn of the race when a rock blocked his rear chain.

Francisco Garcia: “I had really good speed this weekend and I wanted to win again after my first victory on Saturday. I didn’t have much luck in the mud at the first two rounds of the series but I have felt so good since I joined Bud Kawasaki. I had a really good feeling with the track and my KX250 immediately from the start of the weekend. My start was not so good on Saturday but I could soon pass into the lead and push to open up a gap. On Sunday the track was really tough in the rain and I guess I pushed just a little too hard but I was on the top of the box anyway. It’s my first-ever overall win in EMX and I am so happy, not only for myself but also for the team and for my father who is the most important person in my life. I now have a lot of confidence; with our first win the season has really kicked in.”

Francisco Garcia : Winner (1/7) and fourth in the championship
Jake Cannon : Thirty fifth overall (25/33) and nineteenth in the championship

Once more it’s in tough conditions due to the weather that the second round of the 250 European Championship was organised at Saint Jean d’Angely. Racing conditions were not as bad as in Spain, and the Venum Bud Racing Kawasaki riders experienced mixed fortunes, culminating in a fifth place finish for Francisco Garcia.

Some sun, some wind and some showers didn’t deter the fans who were as usual there to cheer their heroes at this GP of Europe, organised on a track that has been significantly modified since last year. As always in France there was a nice atmosphere at Saint Jean, and we had the pleasure to meet many partners of the team who came to visit us throughout the weekend.

Saturday the track was dry for the practice session, and Francisco Garcia confirmed his ambitions with the fastest lap time of his group in both sessions to get a very good gate pick. In the first race he was close to the top ten after the first lap but during the second circulation he hit the bike of a rider who crashed in front of him. With his rear brake damaged in the process, Francisco went into ‘warrior’ mode to come back from thirty-ninth to eighteenth place and save some points. On Sunday after an average start he was back in the top ten after four laps, and never give up to cross the checkered flag in fourth position. Fifth in the GP, he is seventh in the championship.

Team mate Jake Cannon also posted in his group very good results in the practice sessions, with a fourth in the free session and a third in the qualifying one. In the first race he got the holeshot, and was fifth at mid race when another rider did an aggressive attack, hit his bike and forced him to retire with a damaged bike! On Sunday his start was not as good; he was outside the top twenty after one lap, but he came back ninth to finish the GP in fifteenth position. He is eleventh in the standings before the next race organized at Arco di Trento (Italy) in three weeks’ time.

Next weekend the team will be at Pernes les Fontaine (southern France) for the second round of the French Elite championship

Francisco Garcia : Fifth overall (18/4) and seventh in the championship
Jake Cannon : Fifteenth overall (DNF/9) and eleventh in the championship