The second round of the 2024 season in WMX was an exciting one with incredible battles in the tough sands of Riola Sardo. The summer-like temperature was another factor to navigate for the riders in this Sardinian round.
Words and Images by Infront Moto Racing
It was the dominant De Baets Yamaha MX-Team’s Lotte Van Drunen also known as the ‘Sand Queen’ who came out victorious with two race wins and a perfect performance to leave Sardegna with the Red Plate. She dompted the track and showed that she will be a force to be reckoned with this season.
It was a good start in race 1 for number one F&H Racing Team’s Courtney Duncan but it was home rider MXFONTARACING’s Kiara Fontanesi on the inside taking the lead in the first corner with Schmicker Racing’s Lynn Valk and Daniela Guillen from RFME GASGAS MX Junior Team following closely. A multi-rider crash made Lotte Van Drunen having to lose many places after avoinding it while Valk quickly took the lead off Fontanesi in the opening lap.
The red plate Guillen didn’t take long to force her way past Duncan and get to 3rd place with the young Van Drunen already up to an impressive 5th place on lap 2 despite coming from the back of the pack.
The top two in the Championship only looked forward. On lap 5, Guillen bounced off Fontanesi at the end of several attempts previously brilliantly dealt with by the Italian. Guillen was now 2nd behind Valk who was showing great composure. Van Drunen in the meantime passed Duncan and Fontanesi as well who could not do anything about the Dutch rider to get to 3rd position.
Time was counted for Valk at the lead as Guillen reduced the gap meticulously to get ready to pounce on lap 6. Guillen made her way to the lead and rushed forward while a Van Drunen on a mission also brushed past her compatriot Valk to go 2nd.
Then a dramatic last lap unfold as Guillen who saw a 4-second lead vanished in the last lap after runing in a back-marker which allowed Van Drunen a last-gasp chance to put pressure on the red plate. This is exactly what happened with only two corners to go when Van Drunen took the outside of the Spaniard and grasped the lead to go on to win Race 1 in Sardegna; her fifth race win of her career.
Valk rounded up the top 3 after a solid showing with Fontanesi marking good points in 4th, in front of the defending champion Duncan in 5th place.
In Race 2, Fontanesi took the best start in front of Duncan, Van Drunen, Guillen and Valk with most of all the biggest challengers right where they needed to be. Guillen on a charge managed to overtake everyone on the opening lap to lead the way with Van Drunen on her tail! Duncan 3rd and Fontanesi 4th in the mix while Valk rounded the top 5.
Great move from Valk as she passed the Duncan to go 4th on the second lap. Valk didn’t stop there as she kept going to push behind Fontanesi and took the inside to get 3rd.
While at the top, Van Drunen managed to take back the lead on lap 3. She made the same move as in Race 1 to pass Guillen and got the best momentum showing all her qualities that we know on sand.
Van Drunen quickly pulled away from Guillen getting a 5-second lead while Guillen also had a 10-second gap with Valk in 3rd
Duncan was very much on a the charge to get to Fontanesi as she reduced the gap mid-way through although the Italian managed to keep her cool and stay in 4th. The battle kept going as the two world champions battled it out and went toe to toe but Fontanesi held her ground in her home race to finish 4th while Duncan ended in 5th like in race 1.
At the top, Van Drunen was simply the best increasing her lad until the end to win comfortably her second race of the day and her second overall win of her career. The ‘Sand Queen’ showed her ability once more on this tough surface to get the Red Plate and the lead in the Champinship in front of Guillen.
Valk rounded up the podium with an excellent performance over the weekend with a 3-3.
The riders will now focus on the next round in Galicia in what should be another exciting and challenging racing.
WMX – Race 1 – Classification:
FIMWMWC_WMX_R1_RaceClassification-3903_19_27_351_1_D8974BF64D05D88097FAA57882953154
WMX – Race 2 – Classification:
FIMWMWC_WMX_R2_RaceClassification-3903_19_27_352_1_78727C8CA202DA227E3F182BF72EDDA7
WMX Overall:
WMX World Championship – Top 10 Classification: 1. Lotte Van Drunen (NED, YAM), 94 points; 2. Daniela Guillen (ESP, GAS), 94 p.; 3. Lynn Valk (NED, KTM), 76 p.; 4. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, GAS), 68 p.; 5. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 63 p.; 6. Martine Hughes (NOR, KAW), 55 p.; 7. Courtney Duncan (NZL, KAW), 54 p.; 8. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, HON), 51 p.; 9. Shana van der Vlist (NED, YAM), 49 p.; 10. Malou Jakobsen (DEN, KTM), 45 p
WMX Manufacturers – Top 10 Classification: Yamaha, 94 points; 2. GASGAS, 94 p.; 3. KTM, 78 p.; 4. Kawasaki, 66 p.; 5. Honda, 51 p.; 6. Husqvarna, 20 p.;
