Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP’s Ben Watson finished tenth in the sixth round of the FIM World MXGP Motocross Championship at Kegums in Latvia.
The English rider paid the penalty for taking time to settle into his rhythm on the opening lap of the first moto; an electrifying start from the outside gate he had been dealt after a crash during the previous day’s Qualifying saw him sweep through turn one seventh but his exit line saw him relegated to thirteenth, his eventual finishing position, within a few corners.
The initial sort-out though the early turns in race two saw him fifteenth, but he was up to twelfth within ten minutes and, maintaining his lap times to the finish, he broke into the top ten four laps from the end to be classified tenth in both the moto and overall on the day. He retains eleventh in a tightly-fought series points chase.
“I’m not where I know I can or should be but everyone in the team is working to get there. ” said Watson. “We know our potential and will keep working until we get there.”
“The bike is amazing out of the gate so I have a lot of confidence when I go to the gate but I need to improve my Qualifying to make race day easier and ride to my potential, my riding in the second moto was much stronger but I am starting too wide which makes the first turn difficult in both motos.”
