Japanese rider shines in Surabaya motocross

SURABAYA (JP): Despite failing to win any single heat, Japanese Akira Hosono was able to grab the 125cc overall title at the Lucky Strike international motocross championships in Surabaya, East Java on Sunday.

Hosono, riding a Honda, finished third behind leader Dutchman Oscar Vromas, also on Honda, and fellow Japanese Kenji Suzuki in the first heat on Saturday.

Hosono handled his bike perfectly to finish second behind Josh Coppins of New Zealand in Sunday's race, earning him a total of 52 points for the overall championship.

Coppins, whose riding skill on a Suzuki overwhelmed the fierce battle among 25 crossers at the newly built Grand Family Estate circuit, had to be content to finish as the overall runner-up with 46 points. Suzuki collected 43 points for the third spot.

The New Zealander, however, topped the championship series standings with 78 points. He had finished fourth overall in last April's first leg in Yogyakarta.

Leading for the first five minutes of the scheduled 15 minutes plus two laps in Sunday's final moto, Hosono soon lost ground and was forced to closely trail Coppins and Australian Jason Marshall on a Yamaha for the rest of the race.

Four overseas riders have decided to withdraw their entries for the next round of the five-leg motocross championship series, following a dispute over the re-start of Sunday's final heat.

"I'm dissatisfied with the organizers' decision to re-start the third moto due to a false start by a local competitor," Coppins told The Jakarta Post. He said the committee should have penalized the guilty party instead of aborting the ongoing race.

In the national championship event, Frans Tanujaya took over the leadership from title holder Jhony Pranata after collecting 52 points. Jhony dropped to second place with 40 points.

Frans finished eighth in the race which also served as the seventh stop of the national motocross championship series, with Jhony a disappointing ninth. (rsl)

Overall results

1. Akira Hosono (Jap) Honda CR 52pts 2. Josh Coppins (NZ) Suzuki RM 46 3. Kenji Suzuki (Jap) Yamaha YZ 43 4. Oscar Vromas (Hol) Honda CR 40 5. Jason Marshall (Aus) Yamaha YZ 36 tie 6. Damon Smith (NZ) Suzuki RM 34 tie 6. Kentaro Murahashi Yamaha ZS 34 8. Frans Tanujaya (Ina) Yamaha ZS 20 9. Jhony Pranata (Ina) Suzuki RM 16 10. Pieter Yanujaya (Ina) Yamaha ZS 15