CAS Honda star, Josh Coppins proved today that he is back in form and it will only be a matter of time before he will join fellow countryman Ben Townley on the podium.
An unusual mid-pack start from Coppins in the first heat left the Honda rider with lots of work to do. Townley was just ahead as the two started to move through the pack together. Coppins also managed to capitalize on mistakes by Smets and Everts and in the dieing stages of the race “Lizzard” had hunted down Brian Jorgensen and was making a race for third position. Josh tried all he could to get past the Dane however an extremely rutted and difficult-to-pass circuit was not helping. Coppins chased Jorgensen right to the end for a photo-finish but just missed out on his first podium of the year.

Determined to put things straight in the second heat, Coppins pulled a magnificent hole-shot and set a blistering pace at the front of a gaggle of riders. A thrilling train of six riders formed at the front, Coppins leading with a slight advantage over second place man, Smets. While positions were chopping and changing behind Coppins, the Kiwi looked in control and was riding a faultless race. With ten minutes to go, disaster struck for Coppins when Smets tried to slip up his inside on a hairpin turn. Both riders touched however Coppins came off second best and crashed. Losing some positions he remounted to slot in behind Townley and the New Zealand duo finished the race third and forth respectively.

“ I have to say I’m a bit disappointed. After my result in Zolder I really needed the win in the second race to get back into the championship. I suppose it was my own fault as I left the door open for Joël and he basically ran me into the soft dirt. My goal was to finish top five this weekend and I achieved that but it should have been different. The bike is working really well and I’m looking forward to the next GP in Portugal” explained Coppins.

Results MX1 Race 1

1, Pichon Mickael, Fra, Honda, 39:42.520
2, Townley Ben, Nzl, KTM, 40:04.932
3, Jorgensen Brian, Den, Yamaha, 40:06.915
4, Coppins Joshua, Nzl, 40:45.533
5, Ramon Steve, Bel, Ktm, 40:24.998
6, Noble James, Gbr, Honda, 40:32.139
7, Smets Joel, Bel, Zusuki, 40:36.372
8, Everts Stefan, Bel, Yamaha, 40:43.990
9, Huckelbridge mark, Gbr, Honda, 40:45.515
10, Berandez Aaron, Spa, Honda, 40:46.730
11, De Dijcker Ken, Bel, Honda, 40:47.400
12, Cooper Paul, Gbr, Honda, 40:51.332
13, Garcia Vico, Spa, Honda, 40:52.023
14, Strijbos Kevin, Bel, Suzuki, 40:52.403
15, Pyrohnen Antti, Fin, TM, 40:57.687

Results MX1 Race 2

1, Smets Joel, Bel, Suzuki, 39:37.090
2, Everts Stefan, Bel, Yamaha, 39:43.029
3, Townley Ben, Nzl, KTM, 39:49.029
4, Coppins Joshua, Nzl, Honda, 39:50.935
5, Ramon Steve, Bel, KTM, 39:53.356
6, Pichon Mickael, Fra, Honda, 40:02.509
7, Garcia Vico Javier, Spa, Honda, 40:12.398
8, Nemeth Kornel, Hun, Suzuki, 40:18.760
9, Strijbos Kevin, Bel, Suzuki, 40:36.895
10, Pyrhonen Antti, Fin, TM, 40:39.422
11, Theybers Danny, Bel, Suzuki, 40:39.728
12, Cooper Paul, Gbr, Honda, 40:58.393
13, Huckelbridge Mark, Honda, 41:00.687
14, Noble James, Gbr, Honda, 41:06.758
15, Federici Claudio, ITA, Yamaha, 41:07.043

World Championship classification

1, Pichon Mickael, Fra, Honda, 84 points
2, Smets Joel, Bel, Suzuki, 80 points
3, Everts Stefan, Bel, Yamaha, 80 points
4, Townley Ben, Nzl, KTM, 78 points
5, Coppins Joshua, Nzl, Honda, 61 points
6, Strijbos Kevin, Bel, Suzuki, 48 points
7, Ramon Steve, Bel, KTM, 45 points
8, Noble James, Gbr, Honda, 43 points
9, Cooper Paul, Gbr, Honda, 42 points
10, De Dijcker Ken, Bel, Honda, 40 points