The third round of the FIM Motocross World Championship took place on 29th March, with teams from across Europe travelling over 8000 miles to the new facility in Villa la Angostura, Neuquen, Argentina.
Steve Dixon welcomed Max Anstie back into the MX2 fray following an injury to his shoulder and foot that he sustained in the opening round of the MXGP in Qatar, which left him out of action for round 2.
To ensure Max was up to speed and in good shape to tackle the fine Neuquen soil, his set-up refinement was the name of the game and the team worked diligently to give Anstie the tools to run near the front, ultimately finishing 7th place in qualifying.
On race day, Anstie enjoyed a decent start in the first moto and rounded the first lap in fourth place. He overtook Julien Lieber and then had a lonely remainder of the race trying to close the distance to Pauls Jonass in second spot. The second moto brought bizarre scenes from the outset as Anstie reacted a moment too soon and nudged the start gate. Forced to restart the KX250F while the pack escaped, the Brit circulated expecting to see a possible red flag for a gate malfunction but eventually turned the throttle hard and got back into the mix. Due to the delay, Max wasn’t able to get up into a points-scoring position by the time the flag was waved.
Max Anstie said: “It was nice to get that top three in the first race and it was only the second moto I’ve finished so far this season. I felt pretty good. We were searching a bit with tyres and settings but I think everybody was. I hit the gate in the second moto and I cannot actually remember a time when I’ve done that. It is really weird. I thought I had total focus on it but I also thought I saw something move. Bummer. I couldn’t get the bike started and was a lap down straight away so it was a bit of a nightmare. I feel fine from the injury and it didn’t even enter my mind. I felt 100% and I think I made the right choice by waiting and coming back at the right time.”
Commenting on Anstie’s performance, team manager Steve Dixon said: “Highs and lows today. Max just hit the gate. Obviously he thought it didn’t drop – as riders do – but he spent too long messing around and came in saying the race should be red-flagged. We know that championships can be won and lost in those situations and you just need to go until a red flag is actually shown. I was disappointed in one way but happy that Max got through the GP without any reoccurrence of his injury and that top three in the first moto was good.”
Teammate Mel Pocock is currently still in hospital following an injury that he sustained in the first round of the UK Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship. The former European number one could be discharged in the coming seven days and then faces a lengthy period of rehabilitation and recuperation.
The second round of the Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship takes place this weekend at Lyng in Norfolk, but the team will have to wait another two weeks before starting the race truck for the first time in 2015 and driving down to Arco di Trento in Northern Italy for the Grand Prix of Trentino on April 19th.
