Newcomer in the MX1 class this season, Jeremy Van Horebeek will race this weekend, and for the first time in his career, on a 450 on the famous ‘Valkenswaard Euro Circuit’.
Third round of the 2013 FIM World Championship, the Grand Prix of the Netherlands is a regular venue of the series. For Jeremy Van Horebeek it will be ‘the real beginning’ of the season, as the Kawasaki Racing Team rider broke one finger earlier this season and was not at his best during the first GP’s in Qatar and Thailand. Reaching podiums in the first two rounds of the Dutch Championship, Jeremy feels ready for this weekend.
Jeremy, it must be a good feeling to be back on the podium?
Yes for sure, and that was good for my confidence. When I came back from Thailand I needed to do some races to prepare this GP, and the best was to ride on sandy tracks. In Halle and Oldebroek I got good starts, felt stronger than in Thailand and that was great to get some podiums against some other GP riders who also raced there to prepare Valkenswaard.
How do you feel before this Grand Prix?
I feel good, you know I’ve been working really hard to recover since we were back in Belgium and now I’ve less troubles with my finger. I visited daily my physiotherapist and I had some specific treatment for this finger, which is now less painful. I still need to work to have more strength in my hand, but that’s already much better than it was for the first GP’s! I feel ready for this event, and I hope that I will be able to ride at my real level.
You show in the Dutch races that you are back in form?
It was a good feeling to stand twice on the podiums. In both races I got some good starts – I did some changes on the bike and I’ve a better feeling at the start now – and then was able to keep a good rhythm, even if the last minutes were tough physically. I’ve not been able to train normally since my injury, and that was important to do some races this past weeks. I spent more hours on my factory Kawasaki now, and we were able to adapt some settings to my riding.
Have you some good memories about Valkenswaard?
Not really, as I never got any podium there. Several times it has been the first or second GP of the season, so you feel a lot of pressure going there when you are a title contender. This year will be different, I feel more calm and relax, the team didn’t put any pressure and I’mready to surprise some peoples! I know that I will have a lot of friends and supporters around the track, it will be great to see them cheering me! And I want to show them that I’m back!
This year you will ride Valkenswaard in the opposite way as usual. What’s your opinion and what do you expect?
I don’t care so much you know, it’s a sandy track and that’s enough. I just hope that the track will be technical, and that they don’t built too big jumps; it’s enough difficult to ride full speed in the sand, it can be dangerous to have fast and big jumps as they made for the first GP’s. About my expectations it’s difficult to say, the last race that I did in good shape – but not physically ready as now – was Mantova, early in January. But I hope to finish at least one heat in the top seven!
