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DYLAN FERRANDIS
250 SX / MN.
IMAGE /MPG WORDS / KILPATRICK DESIGN / WILSON
>> There have been lots of successful French riders that have made the continental switch to the United States in order to live the American dream of racing dirt bikes in the Land of the Free. The most recent to do so is Star Racing Yamaha’s newest signing, Dylan Ferrandis. Most Americans that aren’t familiar with the MXGP series may recognize the name from the 2014 Motocross Des Nations when Team France took the Chamberlain Trophy in Kegums, Latvia. The French native has showed massive amounts of speed throughout his career in Europe, regularly dicing it up at the head of the field with the likes of Jeffrey Herlings and company. Unfortunately, his results have been hindered by the injury bug, but he’s looking to turn over a new leaf with this fresh opportunity in foreign territory. Ferrandis has proven his supercross skills in one-off events overseas, but nothing can compare to the real thing when the gate finally drops at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minnesota. The Star Racing Yamaha rider was able to adapt quickly to the tight and technical track in the first timed session, posting one of the fastest lap times, but he couldn’t make much more headway in the second session which slotted him into eighth overall head- ing into the night show. Ferrandis’ first race didn’t get off to the best start as he struggled to steer clear of the madness coming out of the first corner; he found himself at the back of the pack after he got caught up on a downed rider in the first rhythm section. The French native manhandled his bike around the fallen machines ahead of him as he reentered the fray, making some moves on the first lap in order to work his way up to tenth position. The rest of the race was damage control for the Star Racing Yamaha rider as
he attempted to gain as many positions as he could in order to better his gate pick for the main event. Over the course of the next six laps, Ferrandis advanced his position four times in succession, eventu- ally working his way up to sixth place behind his teammate, Mitchell Harrison. Although it’s not the gate pick he’d have hoped to earn, Ferrandis can find solace in the fact that he explored unorthodox lines and sharpened his race craft heading into the main event. Supposedly throughout the offseason, Ferrandis has been the most consistently successful starter at the Yamaha test track. The Frenchman wasn’t able to transport that technique to either of his races as he set off to another poor start in the main event, putting him in the midst of the pack on the opening lap. The Yamaha rider came across the stripe for the first time just outside the top ten in a Honda sandwich consisting of Freddie Noren and Christian Craig. He lost a position to the Geico Honda rider on the opening lap, but actually managed to work his way back around both red riders only a couple of laps later. After settling into tenth position, Ferrandis began to ride forward as he clicked off consistent laps whilst simultaneously closing the gap to those ahead of him. Once lapped traffic became an issue and the track really started to deteriorate, Ferrandis found his form; he advanced from tenth position all the way up to sixth in the latter half of the race, working his
way around the likes of McAdoo, Renzland, Wentland, and Rodriguez. The Frenchman’s efforts will go relatively unnoticed as he was only able to manage a finishing position just outside the top five, but the way he got there was mighty impressive. Keep an eye out for him to mix it up at the sharp end of the field if he can figure his starts out next weekend in the Georgia Dome.
44 GRITMOTO • FEBRUARY 19, 2017