A change of scenery has seen the 10th round of the FIM MX World championship move to South Africa and the city of Nelspruit situated in the Mpumalanga Province.
Yamaha Monster racer, Josh Coppins, was expecting to claw back valuable championship points after a disappointing Swedish result two weeks prior however the New Zealander was plagued once again with bad starts and a first turn crash that forced him out of a podium spot.

With 20.000 enthusiastic spectators turning out to the well groomed Alkmaar racing circuit, Coppins was positioned well on the start line for the first MX1 moto. He didn’t get the best jump and tried to make up in the first turn but was hit from behind when Frenchman Sebastien Pourcel collided with the Kiwi. Both Coppins and Pourcel had to remount and fight their way through the 30 man field. Coppins managed to break into the top ten by the halfway mark and secured 9th spot by the end of the 35 minute + 2 lap race.

Knowing the importance of a good start for the second race, Coppins shot out the gat but was cut off by fast starter Jonathan Barragan. Coppins kept his calm and emerged in 7th on the opening lap. He quickly honed in on first race winner, Steve Ramon, and pressured the Belgian until he found a way past with ten minutes gone on the clock. Coppins carried his momentum disposing of fellow team-mate David Philippaerts with a great pass around the halfway mark. He went on to post the fastest lap of the race in trying to shut down Sebastien Pourcel, however he had to settle for fourth position.

“The two heats at the last GP in Sweden and the first heat here in South Africa I either crashed in the start or on the first lap which really put a dent in my confidence. I can’t afford to come from the back and I need to get around the first lap safe and try and pull some wins back. I had a good line over the second triple in the second race and managed to pass Steve, David and Billy there and then I worked hard on catching Pourcel. Obviously I am disappointed again, but I’m busting my butt and want to win badly – my fitness is good, my speed is good I just need to get better starts.” vowed Coppins.

The calendar allows a week’s break before the demanding sand circuit of Lommel will host round 11 in Belgium on the 3rd of August.

Race results:

MX1 Race 1
1 Ramon, Steve BEL Suzuki
2 Philippaerts, David ITA Yamaha
3 Barragan, Jonathan ESP KTM
4 Nagl, Maximilian GER KTM
5 de Dycker, Ken BEL Suzuki
6 Leok, Tanel EST Kawasaki
7 Mackenzie, Billy GBR Honda
8 Pourcel, Sebastien FRA Kawasaki
9 Coppins, Joshua NZL Yamaha
10 Priem, Manuel BEL Kawasaki
11 Bill, Julien SUI Honda
12 Schiffer, Marcus GER KTM
13 Boniface, Steve FRA Honda
14 Noble, James GBR KTM
15 Campano, Carlos ESP Yamaha

MX1 Race 2
1 Barragan, Jonathan ESP KTM
2 Nagl, Maximilian GER KTM
3 Pourcel, Sebastien FRA Kawasaki
4 Coppins, Joshua NZL Yamaha
5 Mackenzie, Billy GBR Honda
6 Philippaerts, David ITA Yamaha
7 de Dycker, Ken BEL Suzuki
8 Ramon, Steve BEL Suzuki
9 Priem, Manuel BEL Kawasaki
10 Desalle, Clement BEL Suzuki
11 Leok, Tanel EST Kawasaki
12 Schiffer, Marcus GER KTM
13 Boniface, Steve FRA Honda
14 Noble, James GBR KTM
15 Church, Tom GBR Kawasaki

MX1 World championship standings:
1 Philippaerts, D. ITA 339
2 Ramon, Steve BEL 328
3 Coppins, J. NZL 316
4 de Dycker, Ken BEL 296
5 Barragan, J. ESP 284
6 Pourcel, S. FRA 274
7 Nagl, M. GER 253
8 Mackenzie, B. GBR 235
9 Leok, Tanel EST 234
10 de Reuver, M. NED 178
11 Desalle, C. BEL 173
12 Priem, Manuel BEL 160
13 Bill, J. SUI 141
14 Nemeth, Kornel HUN 115
15 Brown, Mike USA 107