11am local time and the competitors for the first race of the 2023 Quadcross of Nations in Cingoli, Italy lined up to take the gate under beautiful sunshine, with temperatures approaching 25c. The qualifying sessions would indicate that Team USA were once more, the team to beat however, Italy, Great Britain and Ireland were snapping at their heels.
Race 1 – A+B
One again under the baking heat in Cingoli, the A and B group riders took to the gate for what promised to be an interesting and fascinating race, with the circuit itself in prime condition for the first race of the day.
The charge to the first turn was a heavily contested event, with Mark McLernon taking an early lead with Harry Walker in very close attendance from the get-go. Team USA found themselves languishing in the mid-pack after a poor start, which certainly let them a lot of work to do over the coming 25 minutes.
From the very early laps, we saw a fantastic defensive ride from McLernon, with Walker, Sylvain Petit and Lucio Mercogliano all vying for track position, and a rapidly-approaching Bryce Ford establishing himself in the fight. In a somewhat unexpected position, Joel Hetrick was picking off his opponents one-by-one after finding himself down in ninth position after a relatively slow getaway from the gate.
Bryce Ford just could not find a way past the Irishman, and this proved vital for his compatriot as the pace was reduced compared with the pace they shown yesterday, and this was enough for Hetrick to clamber up further positions and, before too long, he was into second place and right in the wheel tracks of Ford. Harry Walker was becoming in an ever-increasingly lonely third place throughout the mid-point of the race but the battle raged on for fourth place between McLernon, Petit, Mastronardi and Mercogliano – the Irishman positioning his Yamaha in exactly the correct position to hold position ahead of the Argentinian.
Team USA occupied positions one and two, however, the order of this would soon change as race-leader Bryce Ford made a rare mistake, and Joel Hetrick did not need a second invitation as he took the reigns, and opened up the margin over Ford to five seconds at the start of the penultimate lap.
An inspired attempt at an overtake from a seemingly impatient Mastronardi on Petit unfortunately did not pay off, and proved to be a gamble not worth taking as he lost valuable time and, what was once a quartet, became a trio in the battle for fourth with Mercogliano finding the smallest of gaps to promote himself ahead of McLernon who managed to fend off Petit, the Frenchman, for fifth.
Race 2 – B
Under the cloudless sky, two-thousand feet above sea level, competitors took to the circuit ready to battle for honours in the second race of the day. Team USA came into this race as favourites however, Argentina’s hard-charging Lucio Mercogliano and 2023 European champion Patrick Turrini were pumped-up and eager to put a halt to their domination.
Storming into the first turn and Turrini streaked into the lead with Chad Wienen following closely behind. Murray Graham and Miro Cappucio were high up the order too, however, mechanical issues continued to plague the latter who eventually was forced to retire from the race. Bryce Ford was left squabbling for position in the mid-pack, but soon found his stride and climbed up the leaderboard once more to stalk compatriot Chad Wienen at the mid-point of the race. A poor start for fast Argentinian Mercogliano was to prove to be inspiring for him as he went from the back of the field to eventually come home in sixth position.
Team Great Britain’s Murray Graham held onto fourth position for the majority of the race, but rather frustratingly found himself behind Manfred Zienecker in the closing stages of proceedings – in spite of Zienecker’s efforts, the retirement for Cappuccio will certainly put a dent in Team Germany’s hopes in this years team event.
The field spread out as the race ran its course, regardless of this, Team USA proved dominant once more as they claimed yet another 1-2 finish, doing everything they can to carry the Nations championship for one more year.
Race 3 – A + C
For the final time this weekend, the Quadcross competitors took to the gate for their last opportunity to claim valuable points in this year’s SQMXoN. Team USA came into this race with the weight on their shoulders as they looked to confirm themselves as champions once again – Team Italy and Team Ireland were locking horns in the fight for second place.
The race for, what we thought would be the final time, got underway however at the end of lap one the red flags were thrown by the marshals around the circuit to bring a premature end, reason being an issue with the starting gate.
Charging towards the first turn for the final time and it was Joel Hetrick who held the advantage from the very start as he took the holeshot and immediately stretched his advantage over the chasing pack. His compatriot Chad Wienen from row two of the gate had work to do as he was found on the cusp of the top five positions in the opening handful of laps behind Team Germany’s own Manfred Zienecker, Team Ireland’s Mark McLernon and Team Italy’s Patrick Turrini.
Moving into the half-way point of the race and it was once again a Team USA 1-2 to put themselves in fine position to take home another Quadcross of Nations victory. Meanwhile, Turrini increased his pace in order to put himself into third position with Harry Walker very frustratingly, crashing out of fourth position on the final lap. It soon transpired that he was riding with bent bars and a damaged stem from an earlier incident at the first corner, prior to the red flag being thrown.
Race Report by Bradley Hix – Images courtesy of WSC