Ahead of the MX2 World Championship season getting underway we take a look at some of the potential dark horses to look out for during the exciting season almost upon us.
Make no mistake about it, it is a huge year ahead for Mikkel Haarup who enters his final year to race the MX2 World Championship season due to the U23 age rule. The Dane is really talented and perhaps that gets forgotten about. For 2024, he has signed with new manufacturer in the sport, Triumph Racing and he needs to deliver results to secure an MXGP ride in 2025. His pre season races have went really well with two podiums in Spain and France so he should go into the season confident.
Joining Haarup under the Triumph awning is, Camden McLellan who had his rookie year last season but an injury meant he missed the first part of the season. The South African had some promising and good rides on the JM Honda and as a result has secured a full factory ride. On paper, McLellan isn’t the first rider on the team as it’s only his second season in the class so doesn’t have to deal with big pressure which could make him very dangerous.
Two years ago, Sacha Coenen was racing the EMX125 class but has had a very fast transition up to the MX2 World Championship as last year was his rookie season. The season probably didn’t go as the Belgian would have wanted – especially seeing his twin have so much success – but it was still a good learning year. Coenen was small last year so hopefully he has grown a bit and added some strength. The good thing is that his starts are usually pretty good which means he can learn the pace at the front quickly.
New KTM team manager, Harry Norton told us he is confident Coenen will have a good season:
I think he has definitely made some steps. He looks more complete, I am not sure he’s grown so much (laughs). He does look more solid and on the bike he doesn’t look as small so if he can put it all together, the boy is fast, he is really fast. If he can keep it on two wheels and keep building and those things he worked on during the winter, he should be good.
One rider that is probably under rated at this point is WZ KTM rider, Oriol Oliver. The young Spaniard finished twelfth in the championship standings last year and showed some real good flashes on what he can do. In the second moto at Maggiora he looked to have third in the bag until a real late crash which was a big blow but he knows he has pace. He looked really good in the International Italian championship series in February as well so look out for Oliver. It’s not always easy to battle with the factory bikes but he can do it.
Joining Oliver under the WZ KTM awning in 2024 is, Hakon Fredriksen, who is somewhat of a forgotten talent to many people. The Norwegian is really good but has been struggling with injuries the past few years which is a real shame. Starts also hold him back due to his heavy build but he has a lot of speed and especially in the sand. We might not see Fredriksen’s true potential until he moves up to MXGP as he’ll really suit the bigger bike but hopefully this year he can remain injury free and use this year as a building block for the future.
A former EMX250 champion, Rick Elzinga had his rookie season in the MX2 World Championship and showed flashes of what he could do despite an injury ruling him out of a couple of GP’s. Elzinga ended up tenth in the championship standings which is solid as a rookie but in 2024 he’ll want to close that gap to the top five. Now he has had a year racing the series he knows what to expect and with the change of structure at Yamaha he’ll be back with the Hutten Metaal Yamaha team that he knows very well having been with them in the past and getting EMX250 glory with them.
It hasn’t been an ideal winter for David Braceras after an injury but the good news is that he will travel to Argentina for the opening round. The young Spaniard was with the F&H Kawasaki team last year and improved a lot during the course of his rookie season. Towards the end of the season he was a consistent top ten rider and for 2024 he becomes a factory Fantic rider – exciting times!
Not only has Braceras suffered from a tough winter but Kay Karssemakers has had a couple of injuries and it’s now been revealed he’ll miss Argentina at least. It is a shame as Karssemakers had a strong 2023 season finishing second in the EMX250 series and also has MX2 GP experience with the Hitachi KTM team in 2022. Let’s hope he can make a return to racing soon so he can showcase his talent.
Last but by no means least is Jack Chambers who was drafted into the DRT Kawasaki awning last year as a fill in rider. The American was able to learn how things work in the world championship and that should really help him for the 2024 season. With the DRT Kawasaki he’ll have a fast bike and working with Zach Osborne who has literally experienced everything that Chambers is at the moment, should be really able to help him.
Article: Andy McKinstry
