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Coppins ties on points at Portuguese MX GP.
Josh Coppins has narrowly missed out on his third consecutive GP win at the third round of the FIM Motocross world championship in Agueda Portugal. The factory Yamaha racer had to ride through the pain barrier with a suspected broken toe sustained in the Saturday’ practice session, however Coppins still notched up a determined 1-2 result for second overall.
Feeling uneasy going into the first moto, Coppins let his adrenalin take over any pain and discomfort as he passed Kevin Strijbos around the halfway mark of the 40 minute moto. The hot weather conditions and rough circuit took their toll on the pack however Coppins managed to use these to his advantage as he took first honours.
The second moto almost ended in disaster as Strijbos drifted wide in the first turn risking taking himself and Coppins out at the same time. Coppins chased down the Belgian as both had to race through the pack and passed him to move into second spot. Strijbos retaliated a lap later and clinched the lead with Coppins hot on his heels. With ten minutes left the duo had pulled a sizeable gap on the rest of the field and it looked as if it would be a fight till the end until Coppins backed down and settled for second.
“I had some problems this weekend and couldn’t really ride how I wanted,” explained the Kiwi. “I tried not to think of the pain and did the best I could under the circumstances. I haven’t lost any points in the championship but it still would have better to keep the winning streak going. We have a bit of time before Mantova to heal so I’ll keep working hard and look forward to defending the red plate.”
The Italian GP in Mantova, will take place on the 6th of May which gives the GP teams and riders some time to recover from the long trek back from Portugal.
Race results:
