Testing French GP for Marshal Weltin!
Marshal Weltin was the sole Jumbo No Fear Vamo Honda rider in Saint-Jean d’Angély due to the back injury Micha-Boy De Waal picked up last weekend. Fresh from a brilliant performance in the UK Weltin was keen to keep the ball rolling but he had to settle for two twenty place finishes in France.
The steep hard pack climbs, descents and off-camber corners were even hartder to negotiate on Sunday after downpour during the night. The Jumbo No Fear Vamo Honda rider retaliated from a first lap pile-up to claim the final world championship point in the opening race.
Weltin made a better start to his second moto, circulating just outside the top 10 on the first lap. Unfortunately his bike got hit by two big stones who got stuck between the rear brake and the engine. Not sure what to make of the situation Marshal lost valuable time to figure out that at that at least he could continue even if he had to work his way around a rear brake malfunction. From dead last he bounced back to 20th in the end.
This weekend the Jumbo No Fear Vamo Honda team heads to Ottobiano, Italy for round 11 of the FIM MX2 World Championship.
Marshal Weltin: “I struggled this weekend. I ended up in a first turn crash in the first race. My bike was stuck under another rider’s bike. By the time I got going again I was 30 seconds behind last place. I worked my way up to 17th got a bit flustered in a rut and tipped over in a rut. I lost my focus and finished 20th. The second moto was weird with these big stones hitting my bike I presumed my race was over. Luckily it was not but I was way behind last place when I knew it would be okay. I sort of rode my own race from that moment on.”
Words: Tom Jacobs
Pic: Shot by Bavo