It was back in the deep sand in Arnhem, in The Netherlands, for round 16 of the FIM world championship for the Gabriel SS24 KTM team, with Cas Valk wildcarding in MX2 at his home GP.
Cas had 12th in timed qualification followed by 9th in the RAM qualifying race! Starting race one outside the top 15 Cas manoeuvred his way through the field and by the end of the moto had got himself up to 11th place. Race two was a repeat of race one with a similar start and another respectful 11th place finish. With some good battles throughout the day on a tough circuit he finished the GP 10th overall!
Cas: “Happy about my home GP in Arnhem! With a good Saturday to take 2 points in the qualifying race, and to finish P10 overall on Sunday was good with 2 strong moto’s after having not the best starts! On to Switzerland next weekend!”
In MXGP Josh Gilbert had 23rd in timed qualification. In the RAM qualifying race he had a minor issue with his transponder spinning, hindering him from turning right and finished the race 25th. In race one he didn’t get the best of starts in the deep sand but was in a battle with a train of riders before a small crash. He remounted but half a lap later a freak issue with his bike meant he had to retire from the race on lap 10. Race two was a lot more positive with Josh getting a better start and in the fight the entire moto, with consistant lap times and a last ditch attempt at the end of the moto to claim 20th he caught a bank and crashed whilst giving everything he had finishing 22nd.
Josh: “A few things didn’t go my way this weekend but I’m happy with how the weekend ended in race two. It would have been nice to grab that last point after all of the effort but that’s racing. Another week of hard work begins before Switzerland!”
Team Manager Shaun Simpson: “Arnhem was another heavy weekend for both riders. The track was physical and the pace was high. Josh is making small steps forward each weekend and even though we didn’t manage to get a few points in the second Moto he’s pushing hard to the end of the races and the speed is coming back. Cas had a great weekend showing his pace is good enough to run inside the top 10 in MX2. We got unlucky with both starts but he fought hard and 10th overall for the weekend was very solid. Thanks to all our sponsors for their continued support. On to the next one!”
Words by Gabriel SS24 KTM – Images by Ray Archer
