EMX250 series to hot up in Italy!
The EMX250 championship will hot up in Ottibiano this weekend with two Italian riders running first and second in the series. Morgan Lesiardo has a seventeen point’s gap over fellow and more experienced Italian, Simone Furlotti.
Lesiardo started off the season incredibly well on his Maggiora KTM machine and got himself on the podium during the first three rounds of the series. He impressed so much that when the Factory Kawasaki outfit got hit with an injury to Adam Sterry they decided to draft in the young Italian who has plenty of potential.
Lesiardo has contested the last two rounds on the Factory Kawasaki but hasn’t fared quite as well as he hasn’t stood on the podium since. Ottibiano is a track he knows and likes though as he prefers the sandy terrain so he will be hoping to get himself back on the podium this weekend and regain control in the championship race.
Lesiardo has been consistent this year but still hasn’t managed to win an overall so far this year, that’s something he will want to change during the remaining four rounds of the series, there would be no better place than to do it than in front of his home crowd this weekend.
Fellow countryman, Simone Furlotti has showed winning speed during the course of the EMX250 season but hasn’t been as consistent as Lesiardo. Furlotti has two overall wins to his name and winning last time out in Russia will give him plenty of confidence heading into this weekend.
During the last round alone, Furlotti gained nineteen points so if he has another weekend like that he might even grab hold of the red plate for Portugal.
The dark horse in the championship chase is Jago Geerts. The young Belgian is learning lots during his rookie year in the EMX250 series and is thirty-five points behind Lesiardo in the chase for the title.
Geerts has been making rookie mistakes but if he can cut those out then he shouldn’t be far away from the top step of the podium as he certainly has the speed.
A further two points behind Geerts is Alberto Forato, he is riding well at the moment but starts seem to be a problem, he always seems to be coming from behind in the moto’s. If he can get good jumps out of the gate this weekend then he could be the surprise package and he’s another Italian that could be in the mix.
Mathys Boisrame missed the first three rounds of the series due to injury but has been riding great since his return to racing. He has already won two moto’s so the French rider could be the most likely to spoil the Italian’s party this weekend.
Making a return to racing this weekend is Roan van de Moosdijk who will make his EMX250 debut this weekend. The youngster won’t have any pressure on him so could be one to keep an eye on.
Add in the likes of Miro Sihvonen who is still trying to get fully fit after a shoulder injury, Ken Bengtsson and Ruben Fernandez just to name a few shows there should still be plenty of good racing and surprises in the remaining eight moto’s the class has left this year.
Pic: John Oostvogels
