This weekend saw the 2023 MX National Championship draw to a close giving Husqvarna Racing some time to reflect on what on all counts was a challenging season. Grant Frerichs from Husqvarna South Africa summed it up saying he has every reason to be proud of the team. “2022 is a wrap and we faced some significant adversity this season like losing star rider David Goosen to a career-ending injury mid-season and being forced to try patch things up, yet still managing some solid results,” Frerichs said.
Both Josh Mlimi and Davin Cocker showed promise moving on to the 2023 season he commented. “Phenomenal result from young Neil van der Vyver who went out swinging bringing home 1st places in both heats, he did everything possible but he had to settle for 2nd overall in the Championship, this kind of sums up our season” Frerichs added. “We are all looking forward to some downtime to recover and refocus for the 2023 season,” he said.
Van der Vyver had the perfect weekend and got some redemption by taking the win ahead of rival Trey Cox in both heats. “The first heat went smooth for me being able to control things from the front but the second heat I had to battle from mid-pack and bashed bars with Trey for a couple of laps before managing to pass him and take the win,” he said. “It is frustrating that I still fell short with a few points, but it was a great season with a lot learnt in the process. Of course, I need to thank my Husqvarna team for all the effort they put in for me this year” van der Vyver said.
Cocker and Mlimi battled bravely and both brought home solid results as they continue to build for what is set to be a significant 2023 season.
Mlimi finished 2nd in MX1 and 4th in MX2 saying “I had a few hiccups and made some mistakes that cost me, but nonetheless I’m really happy with how I’ve progressed over the last couple of nationals, the team and I have a really good base to build on for 2023.”
Cocker, in turn, said, “So happy to be back racing MX again, I’m slowly getting back to where I left off and I can’t wait for more of that next season.”
