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The official race report service of Kawasaki Racing Team.

EMX, MXGP OF SARDEGNA (ITA) - Riola Sardo, ITALY, 26 March 2023

Quentin Marc Prugnières second in EMX250

BUD Racing Kawasaki's Quentin Marc Prugnières was a magnificent runner-up in the opening round of the FIM European EMX250 Championship at Riola Sardo on the island of Sardinia.

The French youngster already made an impressive start to his third season of EMX250 racing with a strong ride through the pack in Saturday's first moto, a series of spectacular passes from a mid-pack start taking him to an eventual third. A lightening start in Sunday's second moto saw the Kawasaki lead for three laps and a determined Prugnieres still didn't surrender when one of the Dutch sand experts sneaked past, retaking the lead for half a lap before positions were again reversed. The front-three, with the Kawasaki rider second, were still covered by the proverbial blanket on lap five when the Frenchman fell spectacularly as the rear wheel stepped out of a rugged rut and he was thrown over the handlebars. The incident cost fifteen seconds and pushed him back to fourth but there was no question of the man in Green giving up. Metre-for-metre he reeled back in the riders ahead of him, making a solid pass to regain third in moto on the pennultimate lap, thus securing second overall over the weekend.
 
Quentin Marc Prugnières: “I was outside the top-fifteen at the start yesterday but I could find some spots where I was able to make passes. The track was pretty physical with a lot of deep holes so I was happy to come back to third; I wasn't that far from Valk in the last few minutes but I made a mistake and lost a couple of seconds again. But a third in the first race was a good basis for the season. I was really focused at the start of race two today; I was so motivated to get this holeshot. Then we had some nice battles for the lead but I made one single mistake and crashed, but I never give up until the end and was rewarded with a pass near the end. I’m really happy with this podium; it was a tough race but we have worked hard this winter with the team and with Thierry (Van den Bosch) so it’s great to get the reward with this podium."
 
The EMX250 series continues on April 15/16 at Pietramurata in the north Italian province of Trentino.