Sitting just one hundred or so kilometres north of Portugal’s capital Lisbon, the Alqueidao Motocross track is hosting its first World Sidecarcross GP for over thirty years, the last being run in 1992. On a track which first saw action well before then, the teams will be tested to the limit.
Words by Barry Nutley – Images courtesy of WSC
Coming off the back of a stunningly successful opening round in Talavera de la Reina, Spain last weekend, this second event will almost certainly match the spectacle in terms of the track itself, which features no fewer than twenty-three jumps, some small, but many huge. It is a particularly technical track, having hosted many National and Regional MXGP events as well as sidecar GP’s.
Spain kickstarted the season in epic fashion with a drama-packed weekend leaving several top teams coming here to Portugal with few, or in some cases, no points on the board. Others were more fortunate, and Belgian Marvin Vanluchene and his French passenger Nicolas Musset bring a maximum of fifty points into round two.
Reigning Champions Etienne Bax and Ondrej Cermak rallied after an horrendous crash in qualifying left their machine in two parts. They rode fast but guardedly on day two, gaining a pair of sixth places and keeping themselves in the top five.
Brett Wilkinson and Joe Millard had their best-ever ride, coming away second overall in the table from Gert van Werven and Robbe de Veene.
Surprise package in Spain were the Belgian/Lithuanian duo of Jason van Daele and Kostas Beleckas. The former solo ace and “sidecar back-flip” star has done no serious training or long races recently, but together, they still delivered a strong weekend resulting in fourth place after two races.
Justin Keuben/Dion Rietman continued where they left off in 2022 riding strongly and finishing on equal points with Bax and van Daele.
Veteran Stuart Brown did not race in Spain after a practice incident damaged ligaments in his left ankle. He is here in Portugal with a sincere hope that one week’s rest will get him out on track to make up lost ground.
French brothers Killian and Evan Prunier had less than a glittering start to the season, after a race one crash in Spain ruled them out of further action and the points. The passenger is still out of contention, so young Rodolphe Lebreton is standing in to maintain the “all-French” content of the team. He has more than proved his worth giving a good account of himself with Daniel Willemsen.
All in all, there is so much to look forward to this weekend, and the buzz is palpable even before the teams arrive. They will have had some rest, some sun and some family time in the few days between the races.
This season is shaping up to be a stellar year. We at WSC, just cannot wait for the weekend to begin. All reports and updates are here on www.fimsidecarcross.com with the usual TV Highlights show available shortly. Keep up with all other news as it happens on our Social Media platforms.
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