KEY POINTS:
Josh Coppins missed a podium finish for the first time this season when racing at the Swedish Grand Prix motocross. But he expects his disappointing result to be only a speed bump on his path to the world crown.
The 30-year-old from Motueka had a difficult weekend at the redesigned Uddevalla circuit in the ninth of 15 rounds in this year's world championships.
The factory Yamaha rider had flu and knew his goal would be simply to limit any loss of points in the MX1 title chase.
However, with a big 97-point lead in the championship before the weekend started, Coppins knew not to panic and that a mature approach would maintain his tight hold on the points table.
So it proved, with Coppins finishing fourth and sixth in the two 21-lap races and emerging at the end of the day a comfortable 89 points clear of his nearest rival for the crown, Belgian Steve Ramon (Suzuki).
Coppins battled to get a quick jump in the first race but lost his rhythm in the opening laps as riders jostled for position. He settled for sixth place and focused on catching Ramon, pushing past the Belgian with four laps to go to come fourth.
It was another melee at the start of the second MX1 race. Coppins traded positions with Estonian Tanel Leok and Scotsman Billy McKenzie, all the while losing time on race leaders Ken de Dycker and Ramon. With Ramon moving to the front in the later stages of the race, Coppins managed sixth.
"It's been a bad weekend for me," Coppins said. "I had no physical power and never felt good all weekend. I just struggled.
"The other guys were all really fast and were attacking and I couldn't retaliate. I managed to limit the amount of points lost and still have a comfortable lead, but I'm disappointed with the day."
Nevertheless, Coppins still has a solid lead with six rounds left. Round 10 is in Faenza, Italy, in a fortnight.
