13 and 14 April saw the opening round of the 2019 BeNeLux Trophy, the superbike championship in the Netherlands, which also counts for the national Belgian Championship, with seven events scheduled between April and the end of September. Reigning champion Sander Claessen riding an Aprilia RSV4 (in the photo below the title, bike no. 189) won the race with the colours of his team, Delta Motorcycle (that is the Aprilia dealer in Turnhout, Belgium).
The location was the Croix en Ternois racetrack in northern France. Almost 2 km packed with sharp turns: a real stop-and-go circuit. The sun shone over the entire weekend, but in the areas along the North Sea coast, the temperature plunged almost to freezing point, with a few snowflakes falling in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais department.
However, this didn’t stop the riders from offering the spectators a couple of very lively races, with some neat overtake action. Claessen started ahead in the first race and steadily expanded his lead over his opponents, leaving them to fight for the other places on the podium. In the second race, he had to take over the lead from fast starter Yan Ancia, but once he had caught up with his fellow countryman, a double victory for Claessen was assured, after he managed to build up a safety margin in the second half of the race.
At the end of the two races, the places on the podium were identical: winner Sander Claessen, followed by Yan Ancia and French rider Cedric Fievet, riding an Aprilia and two BMWs. The next race will be held in the Netherlands in mid-May.
The Aprilia RSV4 bike racing in the Superbike championship on display in the showroom in Tornhout (Belgium) of dealer, rider and champion Sander Claessen.
INFO: Aprilia Turnhout/Delta Motorcycle official facebook page
www.facebook.com/Aprilia-Turnhout-358352544683448
