Monster Energy Riders - 2012

Sunday 25 December: Monster Energy have put a lot of effort into the sport of Motocross in recent years, but none more so than in the 2011 FIM World Motocross Championship and MXoN. Geoff Meyer writes for Youthstream.

Now with this season over we can look towards 2012 with huge excitement as Monster Energy really turn up the heat to try and win an FIM World Motocross Championship.

Until now it’s been the Red Bull Teka KTM team with riders like Antonio Cairoli, Tyla Rattray, Marvin Musquin and Ken Roczen who have dominated much of the action in the last four years, but it could all change in 2012.

Leading the Monster Army will be former FIM World MX2 Champion Christophe Pourcel. The flying Frenchman showed in the MX1 class in 2011 that he has the speed, and once he gets his consistency back, you can be sure he will produce the goods against Cairoli and the others.

Pourcel will race for the Team CP377 Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit, and his brother Sebastien will also be included in this MX1 line-up. Yann Lozano is Team Manager.

Also look out for Monster Energy Yamaha Team riders David Philippaerts and Steven Frossard (pictured left). Team rivalry is also healthy for riders and you can bet the Italian and Frenchman will be looking for the best method to deal with Cairoli and Pourcel.

While Pourcel, Philippaerts and Frossard look likely to be three riders in contention for the FIM World MX1 Championship, you can’t count out Scottish rider Shaun Simpson who will line-up in the Monster Energy Factory Yamaha. Simpson will have factory support and despite a painful season in 2011, he might surprise many with the right set-up.

In the MX2 class the leading candidate for FIM World Motocross Championship honors is British rider Tommy Searle. Searle, who rides for Team Floride Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit has always showed good form when the pressure is on proved in 2011 that he has the speed of Jeffrey Herlings, all Searle needs to do now is produce it week in and week out. Monster Energy Factory Yamaha will also have two strong candidates in the MX2 class with both Zach Osborne and Arnaud Tonus looking to improve on their results from 2011.

It should be Searle, Osborne and Tonus who give MX2 favorite Jeffrey Herlings the most trouble, but also expect young Belgian Joel Roelants, who is also riding for the Team Floride Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit, to improve. Again the rivalry in the team between Searle and Roelants should make for healthy improvement from both riders.

Not only will the Monster Energy input be huge on the track, but expect some major excitement off the track, as once again the Monster Energy girls strut their stuff around the paddock and public area. And how about the huge Monster Energy paddock area with all the teams and riders in a little Monster Energy city?

Whatever happens in 2012, you can count Monster Energy being a major part of the action culminating with the MXoN at the sands of Lommel.