Exhaust misfortune for Osborne in Latvia
The USA’s top representative in the FIM Motocross World Championship, Zach Osborne, could not extend his impressive run of podium results and finished just one of the two motos through the fine, fast and bumpy soil of the pacey Kegums circuit for the Grand Prix of Latvia and the ninth round of fifteen in the series.
The 20 year old, riding for the British Bike it Cosworth Yamaha team, could not pick up a fourth trophy or improve on his 5th place in the world championship standings after a fall on the first corner of the first race saw another bike clatter the rear of his YZ250F and damage the exhaust silencer. After a few valiant laps trying to regain ground he pitted for a change but re-appeared on the track far behind the field and with slim possibilities to reach a points-scoring slot. The team opted to withdraw the rider with a view to a strong assault in the second affair.
The next race in hot and demanding riding conditions saw the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix winner in something like normal form as he started brightly and began a race-long plight to reach the top five; a feat he managed on the final lap by pushing past Joel Roelants. Osborne placed 13th in the final classification.
"I fell over. It was my fault and I shouldn’t have been in that position and in the chaos of the first corner," he recounted. "Someone ran over the back of the bike and broke the pipe. I stopped in the pit thinking that I could get back out and run on the track with the leaders because when people see them coming they tend to move over and that would have helped win positions but it took a bit longer to change the pipe than we thought and it would have been impossible to get near the points. It seemed pointless to grind out a race on an already difficult track."
"The second moto was decent," he continued. "It took me a few laps to get going because I hadn’t had a chance to set my pace in the first race. After twenty minutes or so I felt quite comfortable and confident and made some passes. I had some help from Mel on the last lap to pass Roelants for fifth and I was happy with the result."
"I was not podium material this weekend and I can accept that and go on to next weekend and try to do a bit better. Sweden is a new track but I am keen to do well there just as much for Kenneth who has helped me so much over the last year. I want to keep the momentum going of contending for podiums."
For more information and details about Zach’s racing and life on the road in Europe check out his new blog at: www.osborneoracle.blogspot.com
