Duncan Signs Off Campaign with Dutch GP Win   29 Aug 2016

DUNCAN SIGNS OFF CAMPAIGN WITH DUTCH GP WIN

AUGUST 20, 2016: She won most of the battles, but, sadly, not the war.

New Zealand's Courtney Duncan will have to wait at least another 12 months to underscore the widespread belief that she is the fastest female motocross racer in the world, the Altherm JCR Yamaha rider forced to accept fifth overall as her reward for an injury-blighted campaign.

The 20-year-old from Otago won five of the 14 races of the 2016 Women's Motocross World Championships (WMX), which wrapped up with Duncan also winning the seventh and final round at Assen, in The Netherlands, on Sunday.

So, while fifth overall in the championship is no reflection of her real status in the sport, Duncan certainly stamped her authority at the weekend's Dutch GP.

Duncan topped the podium with 1-2 results over the two WMX races, bringing her race win tally for the season to five, more than any other individual this year.

And this was even after she had been able to start only nine of the races because of an injury, one that she was not in any way responsible for.

Duncan crashed on a jump while leading at the German GP in May, the third round of the series, after clipping an errant photographer who was standing out on the track. The wrist injury she suffered forced her out of the following five races as she underwent surgery and then took more time off to recover.

But she was close to her best again in The Netherlands.

Duncan led all 13 laps of the first WMX race on Saturday, eventually winning by a staggering 35 seconds from Italy's Kiara Fontanesi, although Duncan also had to swallow the bitter pill of seeing French rival Livia Lancelot cross the line in fourth position and that was enough for Lancelot to wrap up the 2016 WMX crown with a race to spare.

A rare mistake while leading race two on Sunday, when she got cross-rutted and shot off the track, meant Duncan had to settle for runner-up spot, finishing behind Dutch fellow Yamaha rider and eventual championship runner-up Nancy Van De Ven.

Altherm JCR Yamaha Racing Team boss and mentor Josh Coppins said he and Duncan were already looking ahead to next season and another WMX campaign.

"We need to enjoy her good win today, but it's hard not to think about next year and going for the title," said Coppins, a two-time former motocross world No.2.

"It's frustrating for sure, but it is what it is and we need to focus on the positives and move forward. There was no point thinking about the title after (what happened in) Germany. She just had to focus on the positives.

"Courtney learned a lot this year, like to be patient and know where to push and where not to. She learned how to be better in the sand too, but we have a lot to more to do yet."

Duncan and the Altherm JCR Yamaha Racing team are supported by Altherm Window Systems, Yamaha, JCR, CRC, Ados, GYTR, Yamalube, Fox Racing, Hollands Collision Centre, Star Moving, Ward Demolition, Fulton Hogan, Pirelli, FMF, DID, NGK, Matrix, Renthal, Motomuck, Workshop Graphics, Motoseat, Hammerhead, SKF, Vertex Pistons, Rtech Plastics, Etnies, Biketranz and Fulton Hogan.

Words by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com

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