Monster Energy Triumph Racing’s Mikkel Haarup has claimed his second fifth-place overall finish in a row, delivering a strong performance at the MXGP of Flanders. At the sharp end of the field in both races, the Dane placed fourth in race one before coming home seventh in moto two. Meanwhile, Camden McLellan secured sixth overall after landing on the podium in third in the opening race before finishing ninth in moto two.
One week on from competing at the hardpack circuit of Loket, Monster Energy Triumph Racing made their way to the infamous deep sand track of Lommel in Belgium for round 14 of the 2024 MX2 World Championship, where Haarup’s incredible fitness and sand riding skills were on full display in moto one.
Starting from outside the top 10, the Dane moved forwards throughout the race to reach fifth before losing a place to his teammate. Undeterred, Mikkel then chased Camden to the finish to secure fourth, setting himself up nicely for an overall podium result.
A stronger start in moto two saw Haarup complete the opening lap in seventh, and from there, it was a relatively quiet race for him. Hovering outside of the top six positions for the duration of the moto, he was unable to advance and held seventh all the way to the finish. With Andrea Adamo absent from racing in Belgium and Mikkel placing fifth overall, the 22-year-old moves up to fifth in the MX2 World Championship standings.
For McLellan, the MXGP of Flanders was certainly a positive one. Clearly capable in the sand, Camden charged to third in race one to pick up his second top-three finish of the season and the sixth for the Triumph TF 250-X in world championship competition.
With a strong start in moto two, the South African had the overall podium in his sights until a crash on lap two dropped him down field. The resultant race-long charge saw McLellan move into 10th on lap seven of 16, before holding eighth until he was passed on the final lap. Nevertheless, by finishing ninth it was an impressive showing and one which contributed to a fine sixth overall.
Monster Energy Triumph Racing will now take a weekend off before heading to Uddevalla for the MXGP of Sweden over the weekend of August 10-11. The event marks round 15 of the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship and the first of three back-to-back races with the Netherlands and Switzerland up next on the calendar.
Mikkel Haarup: “We’re wrapped up here in Lommel and it was an awesome track with tough conditions, but I enjoyed it a lot. It was a good test for me and the bike to help with development of it in the future. In the end, we came away with a solid fifth overall. There are a couple of things for me to work on ahead of the next races we have on sand but overall, with the Monster Energy Triumph Racing team, I think we did a great job here in Belgium.”
Camden McLellan: “Lommel is really close to home so it was kind of like a home GP for me. My starts continue to improve and today they were good in both races. Finishing third in race one was awesome because from the start it was just a battle the whole time, so that was a cool race. I knew the overall podium was possible but then I crashed on the second lap in race two. It took me a while to get going and I lost a lot of time but I got back to ninth for sixth overall. As always, thanks to the team as this GP was a real tough one.”
Vincent Bereni – Monster Energy Triumph Racing Team Manager: “Lommel is the most challenging track in MXGP in my opinion, and I knew this weekend would be challenging. The team has worked really hard on the bike to perform in these tough conditions, and with Mikkel fifth and Camden sixth, and a podium for Camden in race one, I would say it’s been a success. We’re proving that the bike and riders are good, and overall, I’m very happy with the results, and we’ll continue to keep building.”
Results – MXGP of Flanders
MX2 Race 1
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:52.969
2. Rick Elzinga (Yamaha) 35:57.026
3. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 36:00.176
4. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 36:05.218
5. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 36:06.022
6. Liam Everts (KTM) 36:09.580
MX2 Race 2
1. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 35:33.487
2. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:40.804
3. Liam Everts (KTM) 35:52.910
4. Rick Elzinga (Yamaha) 36:04.689
5. Karlis Reisulis (Yamaha) 36:09.384
6. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 36:18.327
7. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 36:27.281
9. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 36:48.131
MX2 Overall
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 47pts
2. Rick Elzinga (Yamaha) 40pts
3. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 38pts
4. Liam Everts (KTM) 35pts
5. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 32pts
6. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 32pts
MX2 World Championship Standings
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 683pts
2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 618pts
3. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 606pts
4. Liam Everts (KTM) 556pts
5. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 465pts
6. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 457pts
11. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 246pts
Words by Monster Energy Triumph Racing – Images by Ray Archer
