STRIJBOS TAKES 6TH IN IRELAND
17 September 2005 - Suzuki Racing

The 17th and final race of the longest Motocross World Championship on record saw Team Suzuki''s Kevin Strijbos finish the year with sixth position at a cold and grey Desertmartin for the Grand Prix of Ireland.

The Belgian started well in the first moto and was second into the opening turn before proceeding to hold a position in the top five for two thirds of the race. He was caught and passed by Mickael Pichon and then future team-mate Steve Ramon in the fading minutes to end up seventh.

In race two, in front of almost 15,000 spectators, he rallied from a poor jump from the gate and 11th spot on the first lap to again duel against Ramon, with Coppins also added to the mix. The trio circulated in close proximity but Strijbos was unable to draw alongside his countryman and Motocross of Nations compatriot, eventually finishing sixth.

Motovision Suzuki Racing''s Yoshitaka Atsuta crashed on the first lap of moto1 and had to pit with a damaged clutch that forced his retirement. The former Japanese Champion fought with Brian Jorgensen and Ken de Dicker for positions just outside the top ten in the second heat and mustered a route into 12th.

Kevin Strijbos has finished a disrupted and injury-plagued season with 16th overall and 203 points. He did manage his first ever Grand Prix victory with success in the Czech Republic back in August.

Team mate Joel Smets ended his two year stint with the team in sixth despite missing the last four Grands Prix. Yoshi Atsuta has completed his fourth World Championship campaign with 14th and a best result of eighth in Portugal and France. Danny Theybers of MTM Racing was 12th and a total of four Suzuki riders placed in the final top 20 while the firm earned fourth position in the manufacturer''s standings.

The 16-round 2006 series is provisionally set to begin at Zolder on April 2nd for the Grand Prix of Flanders.

Strijbos and Atsuta will be representing their countries next week at Ernee, France for the Motocross of Nations.

Kevin Strijbos:

''My start in the first heat was good and my riding for the first 20 minutes was fine because I could hold the pace with the leaders. I started to tense up halfway through and my arms pumped so I lost the back of Leok in fourth and Pichon and Ramon went through. I missed the start completely in the second moto and was last down the straight but I cut inside and made at least 10 positions. I pushed hard for a few laps and it seemed to take my very little time to get near the front. Josh passed me and I could follow him and Ramon like in the first heat but I could not get that extra speed to overtake. I''m happy with my last race here and I did everything that I could. I want to thank the team because they have worked hard on the bike all year and next year we will be aiming to get in that top three.''

Yoshitaka Atsuta:

''We had been struggling with the jetting on the bike because of the cold. I had a good jump in the first moto but I lost ground on the straight after about 10 metres. I was around the top 10 but then crashed on the first lap and broke the clutch level. I had to come in the pits and lost a lot of time so I decided to save energy for the second race. I was around 15th at the start and I was pushing hard but the engine still wasn''t that strong for me. I used a lot of energy to keep up a pace and my confidence was not the best on a rough track. It was not fun. I was disappointed to end the season like that and I must change my mental approach a little bit for next week.''

MX1 Moto 1: 1 Stefan Everts, (BEL) Yamaha 39:13.384. 2 Ben Townley, (NZL) KTM 39:14.281. 3 Joshua Coppins, (NZL) Honda 39:31.971. 4 Tanel Leok, (EST) Kawasaki 39:39.778. 5 Mickael Pichon, (FRA) Honda 39:44.293. 6 Steve Ramon, (BEL) KTM 39 :52.763. 7 Kevin Strijbos, (BEL) Suzuki 39:56.036. 8 Jonathan Barragan, (SPA) KTM 40:11.738. 9 James Noble, (GBR) Honda 40:11.908. 10 Ken de Dijcker, (BEL) Honda 40:50.213. 12 Danny Theybers, (BEL) Suzuki 40:55.180. 16 Tom de Belder, (BEL) Suzuki 39:44.098. 17 Neville Bradshaw, (RSA) Suzuki 39:46.011. 18 Lauris Freibergs, (LAT) Suzuki 40:00.930. 27 Yoshitaka Atsuta, (JPN) Suzuki 0:33.926.

MX1 Moto2: 1 Stefan Everts, (BEL) Yamaha 39:59.247. 2 Ben Townley, (NZL) KTM 40:20.262. 3 Steve Ramon, (BEL) KTM 40:39.061, 4 Joshua Coppins, (NZL) Honda 40:39.617. 5 Kevin Strijbos, (BEL) Suzuki 40:45.241. 6 Jonathan Barragan, (SPA) KTM 40:49.327. 7 Mickael Pichon, (FRA) Honda 41:05.963. 8 Tanel Leok, (EST) Kawasaki 41:07.862. 9 Manuel Priem, (BEL) Yamaha 41:17.290. 12 Yoshitaka Atsuta, (JPN) Suzuki 40:00.249. 14 Danny Theybers, (BEL) Suzuki 40:21.286

MX1 Overall result: 1 Stefan Everts, (BEL) Yamaha 50. 2 Ben Townley, (NZL) KTM 44. 3 Joshua Coppins, (NZL) Honda 38. 4 Steve Ramon, (BEL) KTM 35. 5 Tanel Leok, (EST) Kawasaki 31. 6 Kevin Strijbos, (BEL) Suzuki 30. 7 Mickael Pichon, (FRA) Honda 30. 8 Jonathan Barragan, (SPA) KTM 28. 9 James Noble, (GBR) Honda 20. 10 Brian Jorgensen, (DEN) Yamaha 19. 12 Danny Theybers, (BEL) Suzuki 16. 16 Yoshitaka Atsuta, (JPN) Suzuki 9.

Final 2005 MX1 World Championship Standings: 1 Stefan Everts, BEL 721. 2 J.Coppins, NZL 652. 3 Ben Townley, NZL 589. 4 Steve Ramon, BEL 500. 5 M.Pichon, FRA 476. 6 Joel Smets, BEL 385. 7 J.Barragan, SPA 312. 8 Pascal Leuret, FRA 306. 9 K.de Dijcker, BEL 303. 10 James Noble, GBR 302. 12 Danny Theybers, BEL 283. 14 Yoshitaka Atsuta, JPN 218. 16 Kevin Strijbos, BEL 203.

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