STRIJBOS INJURED DURING PRACTICE
04 February 2005 - Suzuki Racing

Team Suzuki rider Kevin Strijbos is facing a five week layoff after a practice crash in America ten days ago resulted in strained ankle ligaments.

The 18 year old Belgian, one of the breakthrough stars of the 2004 MX1 World Championship, is due to visit doctors again in Belgium this Friday. He expects to be told that he can start light training on the painful joint, but will need another three to four weeks before he can remount the RM-Z450.

Strijbos caught his right foot in the rear wheel of the four-stroke and was forced to prematurely curtail his Stateside practice trip. News of the spill at the Suzuki track in California filtered through to the Belgian team who initially feared a repeat of the injury disaster almost one year ago that blighted the 2004 campaign of their lead rider Joel Smets. Fortunately initial medical examinations in Europe revealed a less serious ailment. Strijbos has reorganised his pre-season commitments and is now likely to make his first race appearance of the year at Hawkstone Park in the UK on 6th March.

''I had been told to rest for one week and now I hope that on Friday I can start to do some cycling or slowly use the ankle again with some physio,'' commented Strijbos from his Belgian home. ''I am not too worried about the injury. I was riding quite well in America and enjoyed my time there. I hope to go back at the end of this season. I will miss the first few International races of the year, but there is no reason to expect any trouble before the first Grand Prix. I think I should be able to come back at Hawkstone.''

The team has started preparations for the 2005 FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship. The works squad is fielding the same rider line-up of Joel Smets and Strijbos for the Grand Prix series that kicks off in less than three months.

The 17-round calendar will be the second full-time campaign for the RM-Z450. The bike itself has undergone several small refinements throughout the off-season, although largely remains unchanged. The team has switched exhaust partner to Akrapovic, believing the Slovenian company can offer more potential for development of the high-tech four-stroke engine.

Former Grand Prix winner Marnicq Bervoets now heads a two-man test team working parallel to the squad and has been putting the RM-Z450 through the mill several times a week since October. Aside from giving the team technical feedback, Bervoets, who retired from world championship racing at the end of 2004, will keep his competitive edge by contesting amateur races in Belgian during the ''05 season.

2005 will represent the second year for the MX1 class, two moto (35 minutes and two laps duration) format, mixing 450cc four-stroke and 250cc two-stroke machinery. Last season Kevin Strijbos finished fifth in the standings with two moto victories and two podiums.

The first Grand Prix takes place at Zolder, Belgium on 2nd - 3rd April. The opening race for Team Suzuki this year will occur at Mantova, Italy on February 12th, the venue at which Joel Smets ruptured his knee in 2004.

www.suzuki-racing.com

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