French Elite Championship, round 3: A double win and the red plate for Mathis Valin

Team Bud Racing Kawasaki enjoyed another great weekend in the French championship, with a double win for Mathis Valentin and a solid race for Benjamin Garib. The series is at mid-way and Valentin is the new leader while Benjamin consolidates his third position in the standings.

New track and new conditions for our riders! Mathis raced at Romagne in the past, but Benjamin discovered the sunny but cold layout due to heavy wind. During the timed practice sessions Mathis posted the fastest lap in the first group, while Benjamin just lost the pole of the other group in the last minute; however with a second position he did his best qualification so far.
Starting the first race in second position, Mathis only needed three laps to take the lead and go to another moto win while Benjamin came back from sixth to third. The second moto was similar for Mathis who took the lead after two laps, to get another moto win and of course the overall! Benjamin didn’t start so well this moto but came back to fifth, too far to expect a better result as the top four had made a break.

Thanks to this double win Mathis is the new leader of the MX2 Elite, while Benjamin is in third position. There is three more races at the calendar, but our riders will be able to do only one (Villars sous Ecot) as the two others (Bitche and Ernée) are scheduled the same day as a European round. But both riders keep all their chances, as they will get points credit (average points of all the races the attend) for those two rounds.

No race next weekend, we’ll be back on track on May 4/5 in Portugal for the third round of the 250 European Championship.

Mathis Valin: “Everything went well this weekend, I won both motos and got the red plate, a perfect weekend we’ll say! Romagne has always succeeded for me since I was a kid, last year I also got a double win. I feel comfortable in all conditions and on all types of terrain, we try to show that we are there everywhere like this weekend against good riders. The club worked hard, it’s a shame they redid everything before the rounds but we still had some big holes and some good ruts so it was good preparation for the rest of the season.”

Benjamin Garib: “The weekend was not what I wanted, but was not so bad. In the first moto I got a third position which was good, so close to second! In the second moto I didn’t get the best start and it was hard as I was alone during all the moto, the guys in front were ten seconds ahead. It was a boring moto, I need to get better at the start and we’ll continue to work before Portugal.”

Mathis Valin stays second in EMX250

Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Mathis Valin narrowly missed the podium in round two of the EMX250 Championship at Pietramurata in the Trentino region of northern Italy but the French teenager retained a secure second place in the series standings.

A single slip in each race cost the youngster a second consecutive podium in his rookie season in the class, but he displayed character and determination to regain his composure and charge back up the leaderboard to finish fourth in each moto. He spun out in a loose-surfaced turn on the third lap of Saturday afternoon’s first moto after quickly advancing to fourth; the incident cost him three positions but he responded well to recover fourth place five laps from the close despite discomfort in his leg from the crash. In race two on Sunday morning he found himself squeezed towards the trackside banking heading into the first turn but was again quickly on the move to seventh before tipping over in a tight turn at the start of lap four to surrender two positions. Undaunted by the slip he persevered with decisive passes on consecutive laps mid-moto to make fourth his own four laps from the end. He now trails the championship leader by sixteen points but is seventeen clear of third in the standings.

Bud teammate Benjamin Garib had no joy in Saturday’s first moto as he was involved in a mass collision on the exit from turn one but the Chilean showed his speed and determination in race two as he advanced consequently from a fifteenth-placed start to seventh – with his sights set on fifth – two laps from the finish before a fall pushed him back to eighth at the chequered flag.

Mathis Valin: “ After my crash yesterday I had so much pain in my leg that I could hardly walk when I came back to the team truck and I didn’t sleep so well last night. But today I did my best to get some important points with another fourth-placed finish; in the first part of the race I still had some pain, especially when I was sitting down, but it became less painful mid-moto and I could make some passes. I didn’t really enjoy this track so much but the results show that all the work we did this winter is paying off and overall I’m happy as I’m still second in the standings.”

Benjamin Garib: ” Saturday was not a good way to start the weekend with a crunch at the first corner but my start was better today and I was right on the pack. I could make some good passes but I had a small crash near the end which cost me a couple of places. I enjoyed the track, but it was a new experience and very tricky with the grip; you had to be very careful with line-choice. I’m happy with my riding; I just need to figure out my starts.”

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French Elite Championship A double podium for the team !

It’s not so often that you can score a double podium and a win in a race, and this weekend team Bud Racing Kawasaki did it at Castelnau de Lévis during the second round of the French Elite Championship. With an overall win for Mathis Valin and a second position for Benjamin Garib, everyone was smiling on Sunday evening!

Since three weeks now the team enters a race every weekend, and after an Elite round in Normandy and the first European race in Spain it’s near Albi that our new structure was for the second round of the French Elite. Castelnau de Lévis is an atypic track, offering both “concrete” and “plasticine” sections where both riders felt comfortable in the practice session with a third position for Mathis and a fifth for Benjamin.
In the first moto Mathis grabbed the holeshot, and did the entire period in the lead to win seven seconds ahead of Benjamin who did a great comeback from seventh to second, posting the fastest lap time! The second moto was another good one for both Benjamin who finished third and Mathis who got a fourth and secure the overall win ahead of his team mate! Those performances are a great reward for Mathis who got again top results in his fourth race on a 250, and for Benjamin who got his first ever podium since he joined us in Europe after a tough Spanish weekend.

Next weekend no race at our program, and then the team will move to Italy for the second round of the European Championship on April 13-14.

Mathis Valin: « Another great day even it was pretty tough for me as this kind of track is not my favorite, but I won the first moto and the overall so what could be better? Good results keep coming, we worked hard with the team and I’m happy to offer them this win. We’ll continue to work as it would be great to continue this momentum.”

Benjamin Garib: “Happy with this podium, last weekend in Spain was not so good for me so to come back strongly on a podium is great and we’ll keep working. This weekend was very fun, I want to thanks my team Bud Racing, my family and my mechanics. This track was similar to some tracks in Chili, and I felt pretty comfortable all day long.”

Race win and podium for Mathis Valin on EMX250 debut

Mathis Valin was impressive in his first ever 250 European race, as he sensationally raced to a moto victory and second overall on his debut in the European EMX250 Championship in the suburb of Madrid.

On Saturday afternoon Mathis had already shown his potential in the first moto as he charged from sixth on the opening lap to finish third, less than four seconds behind the winner and he was truly in his element in race two on Sunday morning. Gating second he moved confidently into the lead already on the opening lap and controlled the race to the finish in heavy track conditions with deep sticky ruts after extensive overnight track-watering. Quickly breaking away from the chasing pack he showed great maturity to extend his lead to seven seconds by half-distance, coolly maintaining his advantage to the chequered flag. The moto win appeared to the key to overall victory too as he entered the final lap but there was heartbreak as his rival for the top step of the weekend podium was gifted a position three corners from the finish to reverse the overall standings. But, with second overall and a moto win Kawasaki’s class newcomer can look forward with confidence to the next races.

Mathis Valin: “Incredible! Already yesterday I had a good feeling; the track changed a lot throughout the day but that was not a problem as I feel very comfortable on the bike. Then today I had another good start; I took the lead when van Erp crashed and I could made a gap to control the race. I have always enjoyed racing in muddy conditions but to win a moto in my second race on the 250 is incredible! I stayed calm until the chequered flag; I just lost the red plate as Lata gained one position on the last lap but anyway it’s great to be on the podium. We had a good winter with the team and the hard work is paying off, it’s great to offer them this podium and I’m proud of this first moto win.”

Benjamin Garib on the second Bud Racing Kawasaki had to dig deep from midfield starts in both motos from the middle of the gate after a disappointing Timed Practice had left him with sixteenth pick. The Chilean’s frustration was intensified in the first moto as he was dragged down in a multiple-rider pile-up on the opening lap and narrowly missed the points in twenty-second after a tough recovery from the back of the forty-rider pack. Sixteenth in the early stages of race two he advanced to fourteenth by mid-moto and, maintaining his lap times to the finish, grabbed two places on the final lap to finish twelfth.

Benjamin Garib: “I didn’t get the results I wanted this weekend but I will learn from my mistakes; I don’t feel so comfortable in muddy conditions but at least I stayed on two wheels today. My thanks to the team and my mechanics; we will keep pushing and training and look for a return to best form in the French championship race next weekend.”

French Elite Championship Top six results to launch the season

As Lacapelle Marival was cancelled two weeks ago, team Bud Racing Kawasaki was doing its first race of the season at Basly, first round of the French Elite Championship.

After weeks of training and preparation, Basly was finally the first event of the year for the team and the first race this season for Benjamin Garib and Mathis Valin. Track conditions were muddy on Sunday morning due to the rain, but Mathis had a good feeling with the track as he posted the second fastest lap of his group while Benjamin finished tenth. As the rain stopped the track conditions were better for the first moto, even if it was a muddy one; Benjamin got a top ten finish with and eighth position, while Mathis couldn’t do better than twelfth. Both rebounded in the second moto; Mathis got the holeshot and led the race during six laps to finish runner up, while Benjamin came back from seventh to third of the moto, and was classified fifth overall one position ahead of Mathis.

This weekend the team will be at Madrid for the first round of the 250 Motocross European Championship.

Mathis Valin: “Different conditions in both races, some little problems in the first one where my riding was not so good, and then in the second one I was leading several laps to finish second! Track conditions were rough, thanks to the club for what they do on the track and after this first pre season race I feel ready for the opening round of the European 250 next weekend.”

Benjamin Garib: “It was ok, not my favourite conditions this morning with the mud but the track came better for the second moto. The track was a lot dryer and I felt more comfortable and got a third in the second moto. Just happy, we keep pushing and building for the next couple of races”