BMW Husqvarna Motorsport team rider Juha Salminen has placed sixth on both days of the Enduro World Championship's seventh and penultimate event - the GP of Turkey held in Fethiye. With the event being the first held in Turkey no teams or riders knew what to expect, but soon found conditions to be extremely dry, rocky and dusty. Hoping to repeat his podium result scored on day two of the GP of Greece, Salminen mixed special test winning performances with a handful of occasional mistakes and spills to finish sixth on both days.
Day one started steadily for the former seventime world champion before topping the motocross test on lap two. With the event's enduro test running through rock littered woodland, the motocross test proved to be extremely dry and dusty while the extreme test was slow and technical. Juha ended the opening day just under oneminute behind E2 class winner Mika Ahola.
After placing fifth in class on the opening enduro test Juha topped the motocross test on lap one before finishing third on the opening extreme test and looked well placed to better his day one result. Frustratingly for Salminen day two ended with the same sixth place Enduro 2 class result as he claimed on day one. Juha's teammate Marko Tarkkala endured a tough weekend in Turkey placing 13th and 11th.
The BMW Husqvarna Motorsport team will next be in action in the Enduro World Championship at the series' final event, staged in France on September 25/26.
Juha Salminen - Enduro 2 class: 'It's certainly been an interesting race here in Turkey. I guess nobody knew what to expect before the race but the organisers did a very good job. The race certainly wasn't easy and although the organisers didn't get everything perfect the tests were good and the event was certainly of world championship standard. My problem was consistency. Some tests were very good, but others weren't. I found it difficult to get into my rhythm during the first lap on day one, but then I won the motocross test on lap two. I didn't make any big mistakes, just some small ones. That was enough to put me in sixth. Day two was similar - I had some good tests but others weren't good. Things were again good on the motocross test, where I won again, and were also good on some of the extreme tests. But I couldn't be consistent enough, and on the final test of the second day I fell.'
2010 Enduro World Championship, Grand Prix of Turkey - Day 1
Enduro 2
1. Mika Ahola (Honda) 40:11.05; 2. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 40:15.11; 3. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 40:31.83; 4. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna) 40:51.10; 5. Oscar Balletti (Honda) 40:51.62; 6. Juha Salminen (BMW Husqvarna Motorrad) 41:09.43; 7. Pierre Alexandre Renet (KTM) 41:21.74; 8. Joakim Ljunggren (Husaberg) 41:24.23; 9. Fabien Planet (Sherco) 41:28.75; 10. Rodrig Thain (TM) 41:39.27; 11. Jordi Figueras (Gas Gas) 41:52.64; 12. Hans Vogels (Husaberg) 42:11.50; 13. Marko Tarkkala (BMW Husqvarna Motorrad) 42:40.89; 14. Valtteri Salonen (Husaberg) 43:06.02
2010 Enduro World Championship, Grand Prix of Turkey - Day 2
Enduro 2
1. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 47:15:41; 2. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 47:35.32; 3. Mika Ahola (Honda) 47:39.08; 4. Oscar Balletti (Honda) 47:43.55; 5. Pierre Alexandre Renet (KTM) 47:48.06; 47:48.06; 6. Juha Salminen (BMW Husqvarna motorsport) 48:21.59; 7. Joakim Ljunggren (Husaberg) 48:35.92; 8. Hans Vogels (Husaberg) 48:51.69; 9. Fabien Planet (Sherco) 49:04.04; 10. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna) 49:21.34; 11. Marko Tarkkala (BMW Husqvarna Motorsport) 49:29.07; 12. Valtteri Salonen (Husaberg) 49:29.10; 13. Jordi Figueras (Gas Gas) 49:50.90
Day one started steadily for the former seventime world champion before topping the motocross test on lap two. With the event's enduro test running through rock littered woodland, the motocross test proved to be extremely dry and dusty while the extreme test was slow and technical. Juha ended the opening day just under oneminute behind E2 class winner Mika Ahola.
After placing fifth in class on the opening enduro test Juha topped the motocross test on lap one before finishing third on the opening extreme test and looked well placed to better his day one result. Frustratingly for Salminen day two ended with the same sixth place Enduro 2 class result as he claimed on day one. Juha's teammate Marko Tarkkala endured a tough weekend in Turkey placing 13th and 11th.
The BMW Husqvarna Motorsport team will next be in action in the Enduro World Championship at the series' final event, staged in France on September 25/26.
Juha Salminen - Enduro 2 class: 'It's certainly been an interesting race here in Turkey. I guess nobody knew what to expect before the race but the organisers did a very good job. The race certainly wasn't easy and although the organisers didn't get everything perfect the tests were good and the event was certainly of world championship standard. My problem was consistency. Some tests were very good, but others weren't. I found it difficult to get into my rhythm during the first lap on day one, but then I won the motocross test on lap two. I didn't make any big mistakes, just some small ones. That was enough to put me in sixth. Day two was similar - I had some good tests but others weren't good. Things were again good on the motocross test, where I won again, and were also good on some of the extreme tests. But I couldn't be consistent enough, and on the final test of the second day I fell.'
2010 Enduro World Championship, Grand Prix of Turkey - Day 1
Enduro 2
1. Mika Ahola (Honda) 40:11.05; 2. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 40:15.11; 3. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 40:31.83; 4. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna) 40:51.10; 5. Oscar Balletti (Honda) 40:51.62; 6. Juha Salminen (BMW Husqvarna Motorrad) 41:09.43; 7. Pierre Alexandre Renet (KTM) 41:21.74; 8. Joakim Ljunggren (Husaberg) 41:24.23; 9. Fabien Planet (Sherco) 41:28.75; 10. Rodrig Thain (TM) 41:39.27; 11. Jordi Figueras (Gas Gas) 41:52.64; 12. Hans Vogels (Husaberg) 42:11.50; 13. Marko Tarkkala (BMW Husqvarna Motorrad) 42:40.89; 14. Valtteri Salonen (Husaberg) 43:06.02
2010 Enduro World Championship, Grand Prix of Turkey - Day 2
Enduro 2
1. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 47:15:41; 2. Thomas Oldrati (KTM) 47:35.32; 3. Mika Ahola (Honda) 47:39.08; 4. Oscar Balletti (Honda) 47:43.55; 5. Pierre Alexandre Renet (KTM) 47:48.06; 47:48.06; 6. Juha Salminen (BMW Husqvarna motorsport) 48:21.59; 7. Joakim Ljunggren (Husaberg) 48:35.92; 8. Hans Vogels (Husaberg) 48:51.69; 9. Fabien Planet (Sherco) 49:04.04; 10. Marc Bourgeois (Husqvarna) 49:21.34; 11. Marko Tarkkala (BMW Husqvarna Motorsport) 49:29.07; 12. Valtteri Salonen (Husaberg) 49:29.10; 13. Jordi Figueras (Gas Gas) 49:50.90
