Monster Energy Triumph Racing’s Camden McLellan has secured his first overall podium result in this year’s MX2 World Championship with a stunning third at the MXGP of Sardegna! Racing at the notoriously deep sand track of Riola Sardo in Sardinia, McLellan was incredibly fast and consistent all weekend long aboard his Triumph TF 250-X machine while Mikkel Haarup overcame crashes in both races for seventh.
Full of confidence after placing fourth in the MX2 Qualifying Race, Camden McLellan lined up for round three in Sardinia focused on success. Benefitting from his strong start in race one, the South African progressed from completing the opening lap in fifth and moved into third halfway through the moto. Able to maintain his high pace to the end, McLellan would secure an impressive third in the opening race of the day.
Knowing a strong finish in race two would secure an overall podium result, McLellan was once again eager to impress. Not quite replicating his race one start, the 19-year-old quickly reeled off multiple fast laps to move into fifth on lap five. Once again able to sustain his pace to the finish, Camden’s fifth-place result secured third overall at arguably one of the toughest circuits on the calendar. Following his impressive performance, McLellan moves up two places to seventh in the MX2 World Championship standings.
For Mikkel Haarup, unfortunate crashes prevented him from challenging for the podium in Sardinia. Fifth in race one was the highlight of the Dane’s weekend, who ultimately placed seventh overall and remains sixth in the championship standings.
Camden McLellan: “I really have to thank the whole Monster Energy Triumph Racing team for this result. They took a chance on me and it’s really starting to pay off and I’m getting better with every passing round. It’s been a really long, tough weekend and I’m pretty tired, but all the hard work has been worth it. Once again, I just want to thank the team again for everything they do. Thanks guys!”
Mikkel Haarup: “We’re done here in Riola Sardo and it’s been a tough weekend. I was really happy with my riding although I didn’t make it easy on myself today. I had to really fight hard in race one after crashing and I came through to fifth, which was a great result considering that I was so far back in the pack. Then in race two, I crashed in the first turn so again I had a lot of work to do. I got back to ninth so that wasn’t too bad. My speed is good but I’m just a little frustrated with the mistakes I made this weekend.”
Vincent Bereni – Monster Energy Triumph Racing Team Manager: “For Camden, he made a really big step this weekend with his riding. From the first time he got on track he was fast, and his reward was a trip to the podium. It shows that hard work pays off and he made no mistakes all weekend, so he really deserves what he has achieved. Mikkel was also fast all weekend, which is of course positive, he was just unfortunate that a few mistakes cost him. We’ve not raced the bike in conditions like today – deep sand and hot weather – and we had no problems at all, so it shows that our bikes are fast and reliable. I know the whole team is feeling really positive and we’re all looking forward to next weekend in Pietramurata.”
Results – MXGP of Sardegna
MX2 Race 1:
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 35:19.551
2. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:49.524
3. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 36:04.369
4. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 36:16.744
5. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 36:21.704
6. Rick Elzinga (Yamaha) 36:50.331
MX2 Race 2:
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:29.714
2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 35:41.398
3. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 36:04.529
4. Liam Everts (KTM) 36:05.318
5. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 36:15.879
6. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 36:20.896
9. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 36:45.186
MX2 Overall
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 47pts
2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 47pts
3. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 36pts
4. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 34pts
5. Liam Everts (KTM) 31pts
6. Rick Elzinga (Yamaha) 28pts
7. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 28pts
MX2 World Championship Standings
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 170pts
2. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 141pts
3. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 124pts
4. Thibault Benistant (Yamaha) 106pts
5. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 100pts
6. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 96pts
7. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 95pts
Words by Triumph Racing – Images by Ray Archer
