Mikkel Haarup And Monster Energy Triumph Racing Secure Fifth In MX2 World Championship
Monster Energy Triumph Racing's Mikkel Haarup has claimed an impressive fifth overall in the 2024 FIM MX2 Motocross World Championship. At today’s final round in Spain, the MXGP of Castilla la Mancha, Haarup once again demonstrated his speed and consistency to finish sixth overall. His overall championship result underlines an incredible debut season for Triumph in MXGP. Camden McLellan was also in action in Cozar, placing 11th to maintain ninth in the standings – an incredible result, considering he missed six rounds due to injury.
The final round of the MX2 World Championship in Spain was a testing one for all teams and riders, partly because it was the first time MXGP had visited, but mostly down to the fast-drying nature of the hardpack and stony circuit.
Focused on securing fifth in the final standings, Haarup kicked off the weekend with a strong sixth in the MX2 Qualifying Race. He replicated that result in race one, before improving to fifth in race two after holding fourth until three laps to go. His sixth-place overall finish provided enough points to secure his career-best championship result, proving the capabilities of the new Triumph TF 250-X machine.
For McLellan, it was a mixed weekend in Cozar. Fifth in qualifying showed he had the speed, but mistakes in both races while closing in on the top five were costly. Ending the weekend with an eighth and an 11th across the two races secured 11th overall on the day and ninth in the final standings. A remarkable achievement given the number of races he missed mid-season.
Following a very successful year, both Mikkel and Camden now look ahead to next weekend’s Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations. Held at Matterley Basin in Great Britain, the prestigious event takes place for the 77th time, where all participating nationalities compete with three riders for the legendary team event. Haarup will compete for Team Denmark, while McLellan will line up for South Africa.
Mikkel Haarup: “That’s the last round of the season finished, and what a year it’s been. Today was tough, and my start in race one wasn’t good, which cost me a chance at the overall podium. From mid-season on, my goal was to finish top five in the championship, and with the team, that’s what we did. I want to say a huge thanks to Monster Energy Triumph Racing – this has been the best season of my career by far. We’ve achieved so much, and I’m proud to have represented the Triumph brand in its first season of racing in MX2. Now it’s onto the Motocross of Nations, and I’m really looking forward to representing Team Denmark.”
Camden McLellan: “That’s a wrap on the final GP of the year, and it’s been a bit of a tough one. With the team we tried a few different settings for this track, but it was really tricky as there were a lot of rocks and not a lot of traction. But I made the best of it, and if it wasn’t for a couple of mistakes, my results could have been better. My speed was good though, so that’s positive. I have to thank the team so much for the opportunity this year, and I want to praise Triumph for making such a great motocross bike at its first attempt. The season isn’t quite over as we have the Motocross of Nations next weekend, which I’m excited for, and then it’ll be the off-season and a time to rest and recharge for 2025.”
Vincent Bereni – Monster Energy Triumph Racing Team Manager: “The season is now over, and while the results weren’t quite what we wanted today, it wasn’t due to lack of effort from the riders or the team – this is just how racing goes sometimes. This track was very different, very rocky and stony, so it was challenging, and over the off-season we will test more for circuits like this. Looking back on the season, I’m really proud of what we achieved. Mikkel was fifth in the championship and Camden was ninth, even though he missed some rounds because of injury, and both riders stood on the podium this year. The team has been amazing as well, as have Triumph, and over the off-season we will continue to develop the bike even more. I want to say thanks again to everyone on the team for making this happen and now we have the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations where both riders will compete for their countries.”
Results – MXGP of Castilla la Mancha
MX2 Race 1
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 34:32.130
2. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 34:54.861
3. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 34:58.746
4. Thibault Benistant (Yamaha) 35:00.279
5. Ferruccio Zanchi (Honda) 35:00.932
6. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 35:02.451
8. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 35:06.088
MX2 Race 2
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 34:14.738
2. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 34:36.736
3. Thibault Benistant (Yamaha) 34:37.920
4. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 34:44.666
5. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 34:45.626
6. Ferruccio Zanchi (Honda) 34:52.186
11. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 35:36.103
MX2 Overall
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 50pts
2. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 40pts
3. Thibault Benistant (Yamaha) 38pts
4. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 36pts
5. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 32pts
6. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 31pts
11. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 23pts
MX2 World Championship Standings
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 959pts
2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 939pts
3. Simon Langenfelder (GASGAS) 852pts
4. Liam Everts (KTM) 749pts
5. Mikkel Haarup (Triumph) 694pts
6. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 674pts
9. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 424pts
