Round five of the 2024 FIM MX2 Motocross World Championship proved a challenging one for Monster Energy Triumph Racing, with Mikkel Haarup’s race two third, that contributed to the Dane placing eighth overall, being the clear highlight for the team. Unfortunately for Camden McLellan and the whole team, he crashed during the MX2 Qualifying Race, which resulted in a broken fibula in his left leg.
Heavy rain fell throughout much of race day at the MXGP of Portugal, creating a challenging race track for every competitor. Shortly after the gate dropped for race one, Haarup was outside the top 10 but quickly made a series of passes to move into ninth. A small mistake by the Dane allowed two rivals past before he crashed off the side of the track and down a steep slope. Losing considerable time as he worked to re-join the race, Mikkel would finish a frustrating race one in 18th.
Aiming for a strong result in moto two to make amends for a difficult first race, Haarup certainly delivered. By using his vast experience, and riding with a composed mindset, he worked his way forwards from 11th at the end of lap one and all the way up to third with two laps to go. Fending off challenges from Thibault Benistant on the final lap, the TF 250-X racer crossed the line in third to secure eighth overall. The 22-year-old now lies eighth in the MX2 World Championship standings after five rounds.
Mikkel and Monster Energy Triumph Racing return to action next weekend in Spain for the MXGP of Galicia.
Mikkel Haarup: “The weekend is done in Portugal, and it was a tough one to say the least. In the first race I went off track and lost a lot of time, but I fought hard and got back into the points. For race two I rode with a cooler head and worked my way into a podium position in third. Overall, it was obviously not the result we wanted, but for sure it was a proper test for the bike today and it ran flawlessly all day. So, a credit to the team for doing an amazing job.”
Vincent Bereni – Monster Energy Triumph Racing Team Manager: “This weekend was very unfortunate for Camden. He’s been riding really well and then a small crash had big consequences. He’ll be out for some time, but he’ll be back. For Mikkel, he turned his weekend around after his crash in race one, as in race two he came from last to third in what was an amazing ride. He believes in himself, and we believe in him too, so I know we can keep on improving.”
