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MX2, MONSTER ENERGY FIM MXoN - Mantova, ITALY, 26 Juni 2016

Another podium for Dylan Ferrandis in Italy

Dylan Ferrandis of the Monster Energy Kawasaki MX2 Racing Team swept to yet another podium in the twelfth round of the FIM World MX2 Motocross Championship at Mantova in northern Italy.

The Frenchman started strongly in the event, run in stifling heat, as he led the Qualifying race for most of the distance until a lapped rider forced him to crash, and he displayed great speed throughout both GP motos to clinch third overall despite a number of incidents. Twice he moved forward quickly to fourth and fifth places in the opening GP moto before crashes cost him several positions each time, but he continued to force the pace despite the heat and was finally rewarded with third position on the final lap. Dylan was one of the victims of a clearly defective start gate in race two, but officials declined to order a restart and he had to battle his way through almost the entire field to finish sixth. He has now advanced to sixth in the series standings despite being forced to miss four rounds earlier in the year.
 
Teammate Petar Petrov had a difficult weekend after a crash in qualifying which left him with a poor gate choice and a bang on the head, which undoubtedly affected his chances on race day. He was soon eliminated in the opening moto but recovered bravely from sixteenth in race two to complete the top ten at the chequered flag. Petar is now eighth in the series standings.
 
Vsevolod Brylyakov of Monster Energy DRT Kawasaki was returning to racing after missing the British GP and simply lacked any luck.  The Russian crashed in the qualifying race and again at the start of the opening GP moto, being forced to withdraw mid-moto after a rapid advance into the points positions. Determined to make amends in race two he pushed forward into the top six until the extreme weather conditions took their toll in the closing laps and he dropped back to eleventh. Vsevolod is now tenth in the points standings.
 
Dylan Ferrandis:  "I was happy with my results on Saturday even though I crashed while leading, as a lapper didn’t move. But Sunday was not as good, and it is difficult to understand why. In the first moto my start was average but I had a good first lap and passed Herlings, but then I crashed twice; I came back and passed Pootjes but he took me out ! I was happy to come back to third. In the second race the gate moved but didn’t fall and I hit it, so I was late into the first corner. I passed almost the entire field to finish sixth; I had good lines and was one of the fastest riders on the track to get this overall podium.”
 
Petar Petrov: “This weekend was not really good with the results, but we learnt a lot so I want to take the positives away with me. That will be important for the rest of the season; now we have one month off and we know what we have to do to be stronger in Loket and the following GPs. I had such a bad gate after my big crash during the qualifying race that it was impossible to get decent starts; I wasn’t even sure to race as I had crashed on my head. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season now.”
 
Vsevolod Brylyakov: “I came back from injuries with a lot of expectations, but this weekend didn’t go as I would have like. I have not been able to do much during the last few weeks as I was recovering from injuries but the weekend went wrong from the word go with a crash in the qualifying race. In the first moto I crashed at the start, came back in the points but then had to pull out. In the second race I had a better start and got as high as sixth but with this heat it was impossible to keep the rhythm; the last ten minutes were very difficult for me with the heat and I lost several positions. I'm not really happy but it is what it is, now we have three weeks to come back stronger.”