The thirteenth round of fifteen in the international campaign took place in front of 21,500 spectators and across the new layout close to the city centre and in the heart of the flat Mato Grossi do Sol region. High temperatures, dust and typically dark red terrain were the main characteristics of the event in which the track – generous with air-time – made its inauguration as a Grand Prix venue.

Osborne, just one week from his domination at Farleigh Castle, took time to settle into the Qualification Heat on Saturday, the difficulty of which was increased by the plumes of dust and drawing sunset and finally captured eighth in the gate. Sunday saw the American set the fastest time in warm-up as he began to feel more comfortable on a surface that was soft and rutty in places as a consequence of over-zealous watering.

The first moto saw the 20 year old in good form and he rose up to fourth position by the end of the 35 minute and 2 lap distance. The second outing produced a more subdued affair and a late mistake by Osborne saw him slip to ninth place. The combined result was still enough for another top five berth and due to the injury sustained by Shaun Simpson Osborne was able to enjoy a slice of good fortune and move into the top five of the MX2 championship. He is 6 points ahead of Jeremy Van Horebeek and needs 49 points from the final two Grands Prix to reach fourth spot.


Bike it Cosworth Yamaha will head straight to Silverstone next week for the seventh round of eight in the Maxxis British Championship. Osborne currently leads the MX2 field by 44 points and with just 150 left in the six motos remaining is hoping to edge closer to his first title for the team. Mel Pocock did not travel from the UK and will be back in the saddle at the MotoGP and F1 facility. Successive Grand Prix events in Holland and Italy on subsequent weekends will draw the international campaign to a close.

Zach Osborne:
“It wasn’t the best day of the year but it wasn’t the worst. I didn’t have a good feeling on Saturday but I was fastest Sunday morning and that helped my confidence. I had a decent start in the first moto and just hung-it-out-there. I didn’t really get tired at all but after about seven or eight laps of the second I felt flat and was going through the motions. I made a silly mistake which cost me eighth. I think I need to work on my second moto fitness a little bit. Not being able to train after the concussion has set me back a little. I will see what I can do to bring that up before Lierop and have a few good rides before the end of the season.”

Steve Dixon, Team Manager:
“We came here and took two moto finishes. It is always difficult with these long-haul flights to be fully prepared and we have seen this weekend that a few riders suffered breakdowns. Zach turned his form around from Saturday for the first moto and in the second race he made a few mistakes and lost his rhythm. It is never nice to see a rider fading and we were half-optimistic of a podium after the first race but we took some points and now we can look to push for fourth or fifth in the championship. We go to Silverstone next for the penultimate round of the British and we hope to continue our good form on home soil.”