Coming into the eighth round of the MX2 World Championship at Kegums, just three points separated championship leader Sacha Coenen and reigning world champion Simon Längenfelder. However, the Latvian Grand Prix proved to be a weekend to forget for the German, who leaves the sandy circuit facing a much larger deficit in the title race.
In the opening moto, Längenfelder looked set to secure third position before losing two positions on the final lap, dropping him to fifth place.
The second moto brought even more disappointment. After a poor start, the Red Bull KTM rider fought his way through the pack and appeared poised to challenge Liam Everts for position. However, disaster struck when he jumped too far over one of the Kegums jumps, losing control and crashing heavily. The incident resulted in a DNF and a significant loss of championship points.
The positive news for Längenfelder is that he appears to have avoided any serious injury and is expected to line up at the next round in Montevarchi.
“A tricky weekend. I hoped to turn things around. It was a nice feeling to holeshot the Quali race but it was not easy after that. Top three, and I wanted the same after a bad start in the first moto today but unfortunately on those last laps things came apart and I was 5th. We made some changes to the bike and I felt good for the second moto: a great jump from the gate but a bad first corner! I was 12th and moved up and when I jumped too far I went sideways and off the track. I was winded for a bit and hurt my back…but it seems OK now. We should be fine for Montevarchi”, Längenfelder stated in a KTM press release.
With Coenen capitalising on Längenfelder’s troubles, the championship picture has changed dramatically. What was a three-point gap heading into Latvia has now stretched to 37 points, leaving the German with plenty of work to do in the remaining rounds. The title fight is far from over, but after a costly weekend in Kegums, Längenfelder will be eager to bounce back immediately in Italy and stop Coenen’s growing momentum.
