Source: MXGP.

Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Meghan Rutledge claimed the overall victory at round five of the 2014 FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship at Teutschenthal in Germany.

In race one German fans were brought to their feet with local lady Anne Borchers taking the holeshot. With the top 10 riders in the WMX championship this year riding faster than ever, the German couldn’t maintain that position and eventually dropped back to a respectable seventh.

Meanwhile the wildcard rider all the way from Brazil, Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Marianna Balbi took the lead on lap one and took charge of the first few laps. As the race approached midway the red plate holder Fonta MX Yamaha Racing’s Chiara Fontanesi dropped the hammer pushing past the SEL supported rider to take over the lead.

With Balbi dropping back to second she was left to deal with a ton of pressure from her temporary teammate Rutledge who eventually found a way through in the final stages of the race. Team One One Four’s Livia Lancelot crashed while battling with Balbi and Rutledge for second but managed to recover for fourth with Team Dragon Moto’s Stephanie Laier rounding out the top five.

With the drop of the gate for race two, Rutledge was on a clear mission to take back control of the WMX Championship. The Australian wonder took a massive holeshot leading the red plate holder and race one winner Fonta MX Yamaha Racing’s Chiara Fontanesi around turn one.

Despite a brief effort to pressure the girl nicknamed Mad Meg for the win, the Italian couldn’t match her blistering speed and ended up coming home in second.

Meanwhile another bad start for Team One One Four’s Livia Lancelot left her searching for lines to pass as she put in a tremendous effort to inch her way forward. Come mid race, the French super star had caught up to her long time rival Team Dragon Moto’s Stephanie Laier resulting in a ‘battle of the former champions’ duel for third.

With Laier going wide on a muddy section of the track, Lancelot charged in hard on the gas straight through the middle of the slop to take over the position and maintain it all the way to the finish. Laier kept the twenty-five year old honest, but with the waving of the checkered flag, the German lady had to be content with fourth.

Young Dutch lass on board her YZ125 two-stroke machine rode solid for fifth, while yesterday’s freshest face in the class Marianna Balbi, started strong but appeared to lose her rhythm mid race meaning she would only come home for eighth.

At the end of the weekend, Rutledge took her third WMX overall of the season, while Fonta MX Yamaha Racing’s Chiara Fontanesi did enough for second. Team One One Four’s Livia Lancelot rounded off the podium with Team Dragon Moto’s Stephanie Laier taking fourth and Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Marianna Balbi rounding out the top five.

As for the championship, Fontanesi will hold onto the red plate with a four point advantage over the nineteen-year-old Rutledge, while Lancelot and Laier, thanks to the absence of Hitachi Construction Machinery UK KTM’s Natalie Kane, have moved up to third and fourth respectively.

2014 FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship
Round five – Teutschenthal, Germany

Overall results:
1. Meghan Rutledge (AUS) 47
2. Chiara Fontanesi 47
3. Livia Lancelot 38
4. Stephanie Laier 34
5. Mariana Balbi 33
6. Nancy Van De Ven 31
7. Larissa Papenmeier 28
8. Anne Borchers 28
9. Genette Vaage 24
10. Nina Klink 19

Championship standings:
1. Chiara Fontanesi 210
2. Meghan Rutledge (AUS) 206
3. Livia Lancelot 187
4. Stephanie Laier 176
5. Natalie Kane 151
6. Nancy Van De Ven 150
7. Larissa Papenmeier 144
8. Anne Borchers 120
9. Marianne Veenstra 111
10. Francesca Nocera 88

Click here for detailed results