Monster Energy Triumph Racing’s Mikkel Haarup finished a fine second overall at round 12 of the FIM MX2 Motocross World Championships.
The exceptional result is a career-best finish for the Danish rider (pictured here) on the Triumph TF 250-X machine, and with team-mate Camden McLellan, from South Africa, placing seventh overall, the MXGP of Lombok was a certainly a fruitful one for all involved in Triumph’s MX2 world championship racing program.
One week on from a largely successful first visit to the Lombok race track for MXGP round 11, Monster Energy Triumph Racing returned to find a revised circuit that ran in the opposite direction. Both riders adapted quickly, and in the MX2 qualifying race, Haarup placed fifth with McLellan 14th.
Haarup took advantage of starting fifth in race one and comfortably held his position until he was passed by Italian defending world champion Andrea Adamo.
Adamo then fell, gifting fifth back to the Dane who then passed Belgian Sacha Coenen one lap later to move into fourth.
With the leaders building up a sizable gap at the front of the field, Haarup maintained his strong pace despite the humid conditions to secure fourth.
In race two, Haarup once again started up front and soon engaged in an intense battle for the top five positions.
The 22-year-old bided his time in sixth and when Adamo and Belgian Liam Everts collided, he moved up to fourth.
A hard charge then began with Haarup moving aside Dutchman and championship leader Kay de Wolf, to slot into third on lap seven, before pushing past German rider Simon Langenfelder for second spot two laps later.
Adamo then demoted Haarup to third on the penultimate lap and at the time, off of the overall podium until Langenfelder fell just metres from the finish, losing a position and two crucial points.
With the dust settled following an epic conclusion to race two, Haarup was rewarded with a hard-fought runner-up result and retains sixth in the MX2 World Championship standings.
Continuing to rebuild himself after returning to action last weekend, Camden McLellan once again impressed with his speed, fitness, and consistency in Indonesia.
Not quite able to enjoy the same starts as his team-mate, McLellan dug deep in the sweltering conditions for eighth in both races. He remains 13th in the championship with eight rounds to go.
Following a very positive and rewarding trip to Indonesia for two back-to-back rounds of racing, the racers will now return to Europe.
Up next on the calendar is a staple event on the FIM Motocross World Championship calendar – the MXGP of Czech Republic on July 20-21.
“That’s the second round in Indonesia done and it feels great to be back on the podium! I battled hard for every position in both motos to go 4-3 for third overall so yeah, it’s been a great trip for myself and the team,” said Harrup afterwards.
“The team did an amazing job with the bikes, and everything went perfectly so I want to say a huge thanks to everyone involved and now we look forward to heading home before the next GP.”
Photo courtesy Triumph
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RESULTS & STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 12:
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 1 – Top 10 Classification:
1. Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), 33:56.609; 2. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:04.273; 3. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:05.096; 4. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Triumph), +0:12.029; 5. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:20.389; 6. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:53.457; 7. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:56.826; 8. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +1:08.826; 9. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), +1:11.541; 10. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +1:14.062.
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 2 – Top 10 Classification:
1. Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), 34:51.702; 2. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:04.910; 3. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Triumph), +0:05.658; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:19.113; 5. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:26.015; 6. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:58.445; 7. Rick Elzinga (NED, Yamaha), +1:03.411; 8. Camden McLellan (RSA, Triumph), +1:08.121; 9. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +1:10.631; 10. David Braceras (ESP, Fantic), +1:24.547.
MX2 Overall – Top 10 Classification:
1. Lucas Coenen (BEL, HUS), 50 points; 2. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, TRI), 38 p.; 3. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GAS), 38 p.; 4. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 37 p.; 5. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 35 p.; 6. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 34 p.; 7. Camden McLellan (RSA, TRI), 26 p.; 8. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), 23 p.; 9. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Rick Elzinga (NED, YAM), 20 p.
MX2 – World Championship Classification:
1. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 576 points; 2. Lucas Coenen (BEL, HUS), 527 p.; 3. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GAS), 509 p.; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 471 p.; 5. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 455 p.; 6. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, TRI), 399 p.; 7. Rick Elzinga (NED, YAM), 346 p.; 8. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 341 p.; 9. Quentin Marc Prugnieres (FRA, KAW), 228 p.; 10. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 226 p.