Rick Elzinga hasn’t had the ideal preparation heading into the 2025 season as he broke his elbow which means he is going into Argentina with limited bike time. The Dutch talent has made one big change over the off-season as he’s decided to hire Alessio Chiodi as his coach.
Chiodi who is a three time 125cc world champion still raced at a high level up until last year – contesting selected Italian championship rounds. The Italian clearly has a big passion for the sport. He also ran the Ceres71 Yamaha team up until this year – the team has sadly closed their doors after focusing on WMX for many years.
With the Ceres71 team having no future and Chiodi winding down his racing days, the recently turned 51 year old was going to have a lot more free time but he’ll now coach Elzinga which will see him remain the sport he clearly has a lot of passion for.
Yamaha revealed the news in their press release ahead of the opening round of MXGP:
“Rick Elzinga has implemented significant pre-season program changes, including bringing on new coach Alessio Chiodi to enhance his performance on hardpack surfaces. The 23-year-old talent enters the championship with a title-focused mindset, determined to maximize points at every round”.
Rick Elzinga pointed towards improving in hard pack conditions for hiring the former World Championship as his coach:
“I’m feeling great. Obviously, I did not have the preparation I hoped for, but I am excited to return to racing again! I have made many changes in my program, especially on the setup and my approach to riding, so it took a while to get used to that, and it is a work in progress. I started working with Alessio Chiodi, which I enjoy a lot, to give myself a little extra on the hardpack tracks. It’s hard to guess where everyone will be after their winter, also with the change in rules regarding sound. It’s exciting to see where I stand in Argentina. The goal is to win the title. How far I get, I don’t know, but I put that on my mind to keep myself in check, motivated, and to get every point possible on track.”
Due to the injury, the real work won’t start with Chiodi until Elzinga is back feeling100% but then the intense work will start with his new coach. The Factory Yamaha rider will hope it’s exactly what he needs in what is his final year of racing the MX2 World Championship.
