The EMX250 championship battle is very intense this year as Mathis Valin, Valerio Lata and Cas Valk are locked in a three way battle to become champion. It’s Valin who currently holds the red plate but only has eleven points over Lata with Valk only another eight points further back.
At the latest round of the series in Switzerland, it was Lata who took the overall win going 1-2 so we caught up with him to discuss his overall victory and more…
GateDrop: Valerio, overall I’m sure you would have wanted to go 1-1, it would have been the perfect weekend, but still overall good points for the championship and you still rode well and still won the EMX round, so still a positive weekend?
Lata: Yeah, no perfect weekend, yesterday good start, I take the holeshot and for the race every lap I was first and I won the race. Today, overnight so much rain and today the track is so wet, so difficult, but I started again first and I pushed hard for 2-3 laps. I take a gap from Valin, but after with another lapped rider, the track is so difficult and Valin passed me. I finish second, it is important for the championship, now I have 11 points from the first in the championship and two races left in Turkey and Spain, so I am very motivated for these races and yeah, looking forward.
GateDrop: Just on the second moto, just how difficult was that track to ride and so many back markers as well, it sort of wasn’t a race, it was kind of just trying to get past the back markers safely more than anything?
Lata: Yeah, but I had a good ride in the race too but the track had such big ruts, so I stopped in the ruts a few times in one lap and Valin was so close. I finished second, but I am happy for the weekend.
GateDrop: Just on the championship, is it fun, is it exciting? I mean, you’ve got Valin and you’ve still got Valk in the championship fight, is it exciting to be part of such a close battle?
Lata: Yeah, but I am happy, I am part of the three riders that are fast and going for the championship, and now I think Valk is nine points from me, so he is third, and I am second in the championship. But yeah, three riders that are very fast and I try my best on the last races in Turkey and Spain.
GateDrop: Turkey is next and you’ve raced Turkey before, so that’s quite good for you, because I don’t think Valin has, because he is a rookie… Is that a track you like?
Lata: Yeah, Afyon was my first race in the MX2 World Championship, and I like it so much, it’s a hard pack track so I like it.
GateDrop: Just how is everything going with the team? Obviously the team got a little bit more support this year, being an official Gas Gas team, and Joakin Furbetta, you’re working closely with him, just what’s that like?
Lata: My team is a European team and next year I go with the MX2 class… so, now I look, I don’t know if I stay with Gas Gas or go to another team, but yeah, I don’t know.
GateDrop: Are you looking forward to going up to race the MX2 GP’s, and obviously going to the fly away rounds? You’ve raced some GP’s before, but to do a full season, it’ll be nice?
Lata: Yeah, yeah, I like so much the MX2 World Championship, and I try my best for the end of the season, but after, we start with the preparation for next season.
GateDrop: Obviously you’re Italian, when you were young, was Cairoli a rider you looked up to, or what other riders did you look up to when you were growing up?
Lata: Yeah, but he is rider that is more fast, very fast, and so it’s difficult to go that speed. but yeah, I try my best every race and step by step.
GateDrop: And Maggiora, that was a special day for you, getting on the podium there in MX2, at home, amazing, can you just talk me through that weekend, and what it felt like to stand on the podium?
Lata: Yeah, Maggiora, I started with my goal to be in the top five or top ten but in the first race I finished fifth. In my mind, oh, I don’t know but a podium is very good… I like it so much and then in race two, we started well and for every lap I was for the whole race in third position, and I finished third overall GP so I’m very happy. Maggiora was my second race this year in the MX2 World Championship, so I’m very happy, it was one of the best days of the year and I’m very happy about it.
