Honda 114 Motorsports’ new recruit Mitchell Evans made MXGP fans sit up and take notice after an impressive FIM MX2 World Championship debut at the stunning Neuquen circuit at the MXGP of Argentina.
New to the MXGP stage Evans was looking to build experience and keep his feet on the ground with modest expectations for his first GP outing. “I didn’t know what to expect this weekend at all,” said Evans. “I just wanted to learn and, if I got a top 10, I would have been happy.”
After a sixth-place finish in Saturday’s qualifying moto, the young Australian followed that up on Sunday in the opening race with a fifth place, finishing nearly two-seconds ahead of British pilot Ben Watson.
A great start for the 20-year-old but he was only getting warmed up. Out of the MX2 gate, Evans found his front wheel behind the race leader and would only lose one spot to claim the last step on the podium.
“To land on the podium I am absolutely stoked,” the Aussie said in a press release. “It has been great working with Team 114, so we are very happy. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are going to enjoy this for sure.”
On Evans’ debut, team boss Livia Lancelot said: “Mitch is a hard worker and he deserves this podium! It is also good to prove that the podiums we did during our first year were not just luck! We are back this year with big expectations.”
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