FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

 

ROUND 1 - ZOLDER 1-2 APRIL 2006

2 April 2006, Zolder (Belgium) – Stefan Everts has opened the MX1 World Championship with victory and once again showed the pedigree and talent that has already won his nine crowns, five consecutively in the premier class. In the first of two home Grand Prix – the last for the 33 year old who will retire at the end of the season - the reigning number one produced a fast and efficient performance on a rough and tricky course that had been worn and churned by frequent showers. The ruts were deep and technical and demanded a lot from the riders as well as the machines with grip and traction at a premium. In this case the Pirelli Scorpion MX range with its four tipes of tyre ready for different grades and conditions, allowed the works Yamaha team to create a suitably apt and prepared YZ 450FM with which Everts was let loose to create his magic. The Scorpion also earned its spurs within MX2 as Kenneth Gundersen and David Philippaerts captured an overall podium place and a moto victory between them.

WEATHER	Cloudy, Sun and rain	TEMPERTURE	17°
HUMIDITY	60%	TERRAIN	Sand and earth

The first of fifteen rounds in the MX1 contest was a straight shoot-out between works KTM rider Sebastien Tortelli and Stefan Everts as the pair shared moto wins. After having chosen to use the Pirelli Scorpion MX MidSoft 32 in the first race the Belgian was able to chase the Frenchman to the chequered flag and only lost ground to the leader negotiating the many backmarkers. In the second sprint he grabbed the lead early-on to beat Tortelli to the finish by some 38 seconds. A duel between Suzuki riders Steve Ramon and Kevin Strijbos left both riders in 4th and 5th positions respectively after using the Pirelli Scorpion MX Soft 410 for the first moto and the MidSoft 32 in the final race of the day.

Overall Classification

Stefan Everts	Yamaha	Pirelli
Sebastien Tortelli	KTM
Tanel Leok	Kawasaki
Steve Ramon	Suzuki	Pirelli
Kevin Strijbos	Suzuki	Pirelli