Sara Andersen scored best result of season in 2019 Women MX World Championship nailing 3rd in Race 1 at MXGP of Loket in the weekend. Coming off back from racing EMX Women MX Championship winning Round 3 at Slagelse, Sara has certainly gained in race-craft pushing Overall standing to 7th in Championship.
Having raced at Loket in WMX 2017 finishing 12th, Sara came into Timed Practice with confidence to make top 5 knowing circuit suited her racing style on hard-pack track, with jumps, and plenty of elevation changes.
325: ‘My goal for Timed Practice is always just around 5. I was riding in Loket a few years ago and most of the track was the same. I like hard-pack with a lot of jumps, so Loket is perfect for me’.
Race 1 was certainly game-changer for Andersen, not only setting new bench-mark on what #325 is capable of achieving racing up-front with seasoned riders, but also proving the young 17 year old Danish rider has the speed to make passes count and close all important points gap.
325: ‘Race 1 went really well for me and I’m super happy about my race. It all started out with panic, when I had to change to my spare bike after sighting lap, and I was just back in time till I had to pick my gate. My start was not good, but pretty decent around 10-12. I made a few quick passes in the first few laps and I found a good flow, especially in the last part of the race’.
‘I never really felt any pressure in the race, because I came from behind and I made the passes. Lare was behind be for a few laps, but then she made a mistake. I made the pass for third- Amandine crashed. I could then focus on my riding, because I had a pretty big gap back to 4th position. Suddenly I could see Nancy in front of me, but the time was up and I finished 1.5 seconds behind 2nd position! Super happy about that!’
Race 2 was definitely bit unlucky with Sara getting caught up with another rider charging around first corner, launching off bike and landing over fence barrier. And it all looked painful.
Never really backing down from unforeseen circumstances, Sara picked herself up, battled on and salvaged valuable points with not-so-great-operating-bike to finish 8th Overall in GP. Not what was expected, but silver linings proved #325 has more than what it takes to gain steps on podium in the future.
#325: Race 2 started out really bad… already after first corner I jumped through the waves and hit another rider. I ended up in the fence with a huge crash and my bike was bent. I couldn’t reach my clutch lever or front brake and it resulted in another crash in the second lap, when I stalled the bike and crashed’.
‘I fought as hard as I could and made a few points. I couldn’t really do anything about it, but a better start would maybe help for another time, so that’s my focus now that I know, I have the speed!’
Given 2019 WMX is only Sara’s 2nd full season on the World MX Championship calendar, progress and upward movement on points standings is happening. WMX Round 1 finishing 14th Overall, Round 2: 4th Overall, Round 3: 8th with EMX Women MX Championship Round 3 win plus leading Swedish MX Championship with 11 point margin.
And, Sara is pleased.
#325: ‘Yes, even though my overall result was bad this weekend, there are some positive things to take with me. It has given me a lot of confidence knowing that I’m able to ride with the best in the world and even pass them’.
‘The riders are mostly older than me and have been riding WMX for some years before I started to ride. They know the tracks better and are more used to everything!’
‘I often feel stiff on the bike and feel uncomfortable on the tracks! But it’s getting better and better every time and I’m slowly getting used to the whole event. I don’t really have a race agenda, but I just always try to do my best and keep pushing, because every point counts in the end’.
Words: Sharon Cox.
Comments are closed.