Lotte van Drunen of the Beurspro KTM team finishes fifth during the first qualifying event for the Italian youth championship series. After initial difficulties, she came back to fourth in the first heat. In the second heat she finished fourth again after having held third for a few laps.
The race at Cremona was Lotte’s first big outing for the season, and she was keen to get going. A big entry of 64 riders meant that the field was split into two groups for qualifying. Lotte still rode a bit stiffly during free training, but still clocked the fourth time. She knew that she had to gain some time for the qualifying session, though. She acquitted herself well, qualifying fourth, but with a smaller gap to the leaders.
Lotte posted the third fastest time of all riders during warm-up. She was clearly in the mood for action, and blasted off well in race one, slotting into fifth position. A few mistakes cost her a couple of spots. She regained her rhythm and made a few passes to finish fourth. Lotte was happy with the ride, but still realized that there are some improvements that could be made.
Lotte launched well again in race two, but got boxed in, and dropped to tenth. She immediately started moving forward, and within a lap, she was in fifth position already. She kept piling on the pressure, and soon found herself in third spot. She lost a position a few laps later, though, and finished fourth again.
Lotte has proved that she is a force to be reckoned with on all terrains. She will be in action again next weekend in Lovolo, for the second qualification race of the series. The track offers significant elevation changes and a hardpack surface, which is what she knows least well, but the whole objective is for her to learn to manage all track conditions.
Overall Italian Championship 85cc Cremona:
1 Alessandro Gaspari 500 Pnt
2 Mattia Barbieri 420 Pnt
3 Patrick Busatto 290 Pnt
4 Riccardo Persone 280 Pnt
5 Lotte van Drunen 280 Pnt