Thomas Kjer Olsen places second overall at Dutch International

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's MX2 ace returns to form at star-studded event in the Netherlands

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing have enjoyed a successful day at the Dutch International, held at the Motorsportpark Gelderland Midden venue. In the team’s first competitive motocross race since the MXGP of the Netherlands back in March, Thomas Kjer Olsen raced to a well-earned second-place overall finish in the MX2 division, while teammate Jed Beaton also enjoyed a top-three result, placing third in moto one. Arminas Jasikonis challenged for podium positions in both MX1 class motos, ultimately securing fourth overall.

Fully recovered from his pre-season hand injury, Thomas Kjer Olsen made it known that he is back to full fitness at the Dutch International. Running in fourth position for much of moto one, Kjer Olsen recorded his fastest laps of the moto as the race wound down and he moved into second place. Despite the Dane coming up just short of the race win, he crossed the finish line less than two seconds down on eventual winner, Jago Geerts. 

After an impressive first race, Thomas Kjer Olsen pulled another strong start to open his second moto. Running in fifth position for the majority of the race, a small tip over on the final lap frustratingly demoted the Dane to sixth. Having no bearing on his overall result, Kjer Olsen rounded out the day on the second step on the podium.

Jed Beaton made a strong start in race one, ending the opening lap in third place. Among a frantic group at the head of the field, Beaton’s FC 250 machine powered him into first position on lap four as he led many of his MX2 World Championship rivals. Slipping back to third place the Australian kept the lead riders in sight during the remaining laps of the race.

Race two in Arnhem was somewhat uneventful for Beaton. After working on his starts over recent months, he fired out of the gate and ended lap one in a strong fourth place. At the midway stage of the race the Australian was in sixth, shadowing his teammate Thomas Kjer Olsen who later tipped over on the final lap, gifting fifth position to Beaton. With his 3-5 moto finishes, Jed placed fourth overall.

EMX250 star Kay de Wolf lined up in the MX2 class in Arnhem amongst an established line-up of MX2 World Championship racers. The young Dutchman was consistent all day, qualifying in seventh and then racing to an 8-7 result onboard his FC 250 machine.

After finding success in domestic race action over recent weeks, Arminas Jasikonis lined up for the Dutch International with his confidence high and quickly set the pace early on, qualifying fastest in a talent-stacked MX1 category. Race one saw the Lithuanian record a top-10 start, charging forwards as the race progressed, he crossed the finish line in a hard-earned fifth place.

In race two, Jasikonis delivered a notably improved performance. A strong start saw the 22-year-old charge hard in fourth place, clocking the fastest lap of the race in the star-studded field of MX1 riders. With the Arnhem circuit becoming a little one-lined as the race wore on, Arminas was unable to secure a podium finish and ultimately ended the moto in fourth place to claim fourth overall.

Thomas Kjer Olsen: “It was a pretty decent day. Second overall in a strong field is a great result. The track was really tough. Really rough and a little one lined so I rode with my head and stayed strong on the bike. It was great to be racing again and I felt great on my bike. It was a shame to have a small crash in the second race, but it had no effect on the overall result so to come away from here healthy and on the podium is a great feeling.”

Jed Beaton: “It was great to be back racing today and get some gate drops ahead of the GPs starting again. It’s been a long time since we’ve been racing so the nerves were back and it was good to get them out of the way before Latvia in two weeks. I rode a little tight in the first moto, which is to be expected after so much time off the bike. It was great to lead some laps during the middle part of that race. I’ve been working on my starts a lot lately and that showed today, two good starts and I tied for third overall with almost all of the MX World Championship riders so I’m really happy with where I’m at.”

Kay de Wolf: “It was a great day for me. In race one I didn’t get the best of starts, however I was able to make passes quickly and push towards the front. It was a good result for me, finishing eighth from a mid-pack start. In moto two I made a much better start. I was able to make a few passes and passed Tom Vialle for seventh on the last lap. Overall, I’m happy. We haven’t raced for a long time so to finish sixth overall in this field is a great result.”

Arminas Jasikonis: “It’s great to be racing again, and with the top guys like it’ll be at the GPs. I’m pretty pleased with the way things went today. It wasn’t an easy track to pass on, but my lap times were good, so I’m pleased enough. I didn’t get a great start in the first moto and then rode a bit tight. From mid-pack it wasn’t easy, and I had some riders crashing in front of me. I pushed hard but, let’s say, I wasn’t riding perfectly. The second moto was better. I got a better start and was pushing with the other guys at the front. It was great to be racing like that. It was pretty close between us. Some things to work on, but it was great to be racing and I’m looking forward to the next race, next weekend.”

Results – 2020 Dutch International

MX1 - Overall
1. Glenn Coldenhoff (GASGAS) 47pts; 2. Romain Febvre (Kawasaki) 47; 3. Gautier Paulin (Yamaha) 38; 4. Arminas Jasikonis (Husqvarna) 34; 10. Micha Boy de Waal (Husqvarna) 17; 16. Evgeny Bobryshev (Husqvarna) 10; 21. Gianluca Ecca (Husqvarna) 5; 28. Mitchel van den Essenburg (Husqvarna) 2

MX1 - Race 1
1. Romain Febvre (Kawasaki) 19 laps, 33:12:079; 2. Glenn Coldenhoff (GASGAS) 33:14:977; 3. Jeremy Seewer (Yamaha) 33:24:310… 5. Arminas Jasikonis (Husqvarna) 33:27:636; 11. Evgeny Bobryshev (Husqvarna) 34:36:734; 15. Micha Boy de Waal (Husqvarna) 33:26:817; 19. Mitchel van den Essenburg (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 33:51:541; 23. Gianluca Ecca (Husqvarna) 34:18:861

MX1 - Race 2
1. Glenn Coldenhoff (GASGAS) 19 laps, 33:27:549; 2. Romain Febvre (Kawasaki) 33:29:131; 3. Gautier Paulin (Yamaha) 33:296:23; 4. Arminas Jasikonis (Husqvarna) 33:30:153… 10. Micha Boy de Waal (Husqvarna) 35:05:637; 17. Gianluca Ecca (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 34:39:048

MX2 - Overall
1. Jago Geerts (Yamaha) 50pts; 2. Thomas Kjer Olsen (Husqvarna) 37; 3. Roan Van De Moosdijk (Kawasaki) 36; 4. Jed Beaton (Husqvarna) 36… 6. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 27; 14. David Herbreteau (Husqvarna) 15; 16. Josh Gilbert (Husqvarna) 11; 27. Leopold Ambjornsson (Husqvarna) 2; 28. Boyd van der Voorn (Husqvarna) 2; 30. Camden McLellan (Husqvarna) 2

MX2 - Race 1
1. Jago Geerts (Yamaha) 18 laps, 31:50:993; 2. Thomas Kjer Olsen (Husqvarna) 31:52:600; 3. Jed Beaton (Husqvarna) 32:00:031… 8. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 32:27:817; 13. David Herbreteau (Husqvarna) 32:57:642; 16. Josh Gilbert (Husqvarna) 33:12:424; 19. Camden McLellan (Husqvarna) 33:23:906; 24. Leopold Ambjornsson (Husqvarna) 17 laps, 32:26:975; 27. Boyd van der Voorn (Husqvarna) 32:40:111

MX2 - Race 2
1. Jago Geerts (Yamaha) 19 laps, 33:09:002; 2. Ben Watson (Yamaha) 33:09:818; 3. Thibault Benistant (Yamaha) 33:29:039… 5. Jed Beaton (Husqvarna) 33:47:382; 6. Thomas Kjer Olsen (Husqvarna) 33:52:272; 7. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 34:06:287; 15. David Herbreteau (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 33:11:479; 16. Josh Gilbert (Husqvarna) 33:19:011; 27. Leopold Ambjornsson (Husqvarna) 34:34:334