GCC Mernes '08

Round three of the 2008 German Cross Country championship was coloured white and blue, as three of the top four bikes in the XCPro class were BMW G 450X machines. The BMW Motorrad factory team may have been denied its third consecutive victory, but overall the racing at Mernes proved to be a major success.

BMW factory rider Simo Kirssi, the current GCC series leader and winner of the opening rounds at Tollwitz and Walldorf, was yet again the fastest man out of the Munich manufacturer's camp, still the race win on the well prepared and entertaining "Speedhang" went to Frenchman Cyrille Coulon. The sentimental win belonged to five-time World Motocross champ Joel Smets though, who came from behind to seal the final podium step.

Under blazing sunshine Kirssi grabbed the Le Mans-style start and guided the field into the first lap, shadowed by his teammate Bert Meyer and Coulon. The latter set a blistering pace and wasted no time. The Frenchman passed Meyer in lap one and Kirssi in lap two. Smets meanwhile suffered drama in the first chicane. Finding himself trapped under his own bike after a crash - and visibly in pain - the likeable Belgian re-joined the race dead-last. But Smets was on fire and quickly started to pick up competitors to the left and right, ultimately rounding out his fine performance by stealing third place from Meyer.

Championship leader Kirssi had been following Coulon for a large portion of the 2-hour race, yet had to accept the runner-up position.

Bert Meyer, who completed the BMW display of strength behind Kirssi and Smets, had his hands fulls with long-time rival Arnaud Demeester early in the race. The veteran Frenchman however crashed out two thirds into the proceedings.

The BMW Motorrad Motorsport crew applauded their riders after the chequered flag and everyone on the team was delighted with the result. After all, success is the best reward for all the hard work and extensive development carried out.

Simo Kirssi: "I started well and enjoyed the track. Cyrille went by in the second lap and I couldn't quite keep his pace. Not today. I am not satisfied and would have preferred to win."

Joel Smets: "There was a lot of dust in the first corner after the start. I couldn't see anything and don't even know why I crashed. Maybe I clipped another rider's bike, maybe someone touched mine or maybe I just lost the front. Anyway, I was lying there with my leg trapped between the rear wheel and fender. I hurt my hip in the incident and had to ride through the pain for two hours. Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun and I am pleased with the result."

Bert Meyer: "The start went well today. After re-fuelling though, I ran into an old problem of mine: struggling to gain my rhythm back. I was then battling with Arnaud (Demeester) and taking control before he crashed out eventually. Fourth place is okay."

Wolfgang Fischer (head of team): "Simo rode his own race in second place. His lap times were similar to Coulon's, but he couldn't quite keep him. Joel delivered an exciting race and came from being way behind to take third. Bert had a nice battle with Demeester going on until the Frenchman dropped out. All team riders completed the race and two climbed onto the podium. A good day for us and a good day's racing."


GCC Mernes XCPro class:

1.    Cyrille Coulon (FRA), Yamaha, 22 laps
2.    Simo Kirssi (FIN), BMW Motorrad Motorsport, 22 laps
3.    Joel Smets (BEL), BMW Motorrad Motorsport, 22 laps
4.    Bert Meyer (GER), BMW Motorrad Motorsport, 22 laps
5.    Marco Straubel (GER), KTM, 21 laps
6.    Stefan Geyer (GER), KTM, 21 laps
7.    Falko Karbautzki (GER), KTM, 21 laps
8.    Christoph Seifert (GER), KTM, 20 laps
9.    Steffen Albrecht (GER), Yamaha, 19 laps
10.   Andreas Schulz (GER), 19 laps