There are plenty of excited youngsters heading into the weekend with the new generation in action for the opening round of the EMX125 series set to get underway at Matterley Basin this weekend. We will take a look at some of the riders to keep an eye on.
The Maddii Fantic team are a top team and the recently new brand have been a great edition to the paddock over the past couple of years. They might not have won the 2021 title but they’ve previously won the series through Andrea Bonacorsi and after missing out last year they’ll want to get their hands back on the title. The team have signed up young Dutch talent, Cas Valk who looks the real deal. During pre season Valk has been really impressive and there’s no doubt he’ll be a contender in 2022.
The team drafted in French talent, Alexis Fueri last year after Hakon Osterhagen’s injury and he managed to secure a spot on the team for the full 2022 season. Fueri was a surprise last year coming in with little EMX experience but with a full winter behind him working with the team he should be strong this year and now has the belief he can run at the front.
The MJC Yamaha team always have a strong team to contest the EMX125 series but this year it’s a very impressive rider line up the team have. Ivano van Erp was really strong last year finishing fifth in the series and with the top four moving out of the class will be many peoples favourite heading into 2022. There’s no doubt he won’t be far away and he should have a very bright future in the sport.
Young Latvian, Alberts Karlis Reisulis has a lovely precise style and is really nice to watch. The MJC team will hope to see him on the podium regularly and there’s no reason why he can’t do that – he has the talent. Last year was Ferruccio Zanchi’s rookie EMX125 season and he was strong finishing ninth in the championship, with another winter behind him he should be even stronger and will look to push into the top five.
Last year was a great year for Czech talent, Vitezslav Marek on his 85cc as he won the EMX85 championship and will now make the move up to the 125cc. Marek has been winning all sorts in the youth racing and will now look forward to more competitive racing in the EMX125 as the competition will only make him a better rider but he is a talent to keep an eye on.
Marek’s biggest challenger last year was Janis Reisulis who will also now transition up to the 125cc but he’s already impressed on the bike! Last year he decided to contest the last four rounds of the EMX125 series and he managed to finish a moto in second – that is not easy to do! With a full wither behind he should be even stronger and it’ll be interesting to see how he stacks up against his brother (Alberts Karlis Reisulis) – he might even be after his ride!
Last year was a good season for French talent, Marc-Antoine Rossi as he ended up eighth in the series despite missing a round. The Tech32 KTM rider is under the watchful eye of former Grand Prix rider, Seb Pourcel and has plenty of potential. Rossi managed to win a moto last year in France so knows what it takes if he can improve his consistency. The Tech32 KTM team have also drafted in Matteo Russi who will be hoping the move to team is exactly what he needs.
The RFME GasGas team always have a strong EMX125 rider line up and this year is no different. Last year, Elias Escandell showed a lot of good speed but the results didn’t necessarily reflect his speed. The Spaniard will hope to improve his starts and consistency to turn himself into a solid top ten rider in the series. Injuries weren’t ideal for Edgar Canet last year but he has plenty of talent and if he can stay fit he has the pace to run at the front. Joining the pair under the awning will be Antonio Gallego who completes the team’s rider line up and will hope he can also get plenty of top ten results.
Injury hindered Maximilian Werner last year as he only raced the first three rounds of the series but the German looks to have grown and looks good during pre-season. The Kosak KTM rider could be one to watch and especially in the hard pack conditions.
One rider that’s going to be really exciting to watch is female sensation, Lotte van Drunen who makes the move up to the 125cc. The Dutch talent is still to young to race the WMX series so will race the EMX125 to help make her a better rider for the future. Van Drunen has everything to be a future WMX champion but perhaps she’ll be looking for more than that – could she be the first woman to competitively ride against the men? Either way the future is incredibly bright for her!
There’s plenty of Brits to watch out for at the opening round with it being held at Matterley Basin but there’s a couple to really keep an real eye on. Firstly, Joe Brookes who will be an EMX125 rookie. Last year Brookes did do three rounds and showed some good pace. After inking a deal with the GRT Impact KTM, he’ll be hoping the move to orange was the step he needed and he started his season off with a win at Hawkstone International.
Brookes team mate, Ollie Colmer could also do good things in the EMX125 class, last year injury ruined his rookie season but he’s highly rated and hopefully this year he can stay injury free to learn as much as possible racing all over Europe. Other young British talents worth keeping an eye on are Charlie Heyman, Wal Beaney and Ashton Boughen.
Young Dutch rider, Mirco ten Kate did some rounds of the EMX125 series last year to prepare for the 2022 season. The intention this year was for ten Kate to contest the full series but he is currently recovering from an injury so he’ll miss round one but he should be back at the second round. Ten Kate hasn’t got too much experience racing outside the Netherlands so look for him to be fast in the sand but learning to improve in hard pack conditions.
Young Swede, August Frisk could be one to keep an eye on – he started his season off at Hawkstone International and even took a moto win so he’ll go into Matterley Basin with confidence.
Last but by no means least, Kasimir Hindersson from Finland could be one to keep an eye on. It’s not easy to come from Finland and make a name for yourself in the EMX series as they tend to be slow burners but Hindersson has experience racing in the Netherlands and will be hoping to impress in the EMX125 series.
Podcast! Jonathan McCready and Andy McKinstry look ahead to the new MXGP world championship season and discuss the contenders, the injuries and the rookies plus much more ahead of an exciting new MXGP season.
Listen here on iTunes, or Spotify/YouTube below:
