Clement Desalle was a shock podium finisher at the Unadilla round of AMA Motocross last weekend.

Rockstar Teka Suzuki World MX1 rider Clement Desalle used the break in the FIM World Championship calendar to travel to New York for the ninth round of the AMA National Motocross series, stunning with an impressive second place performance behind AMA series leader and Suzuki teammate Ryan Dungey on Saturday.

The 21-year-old enjoyed an excellent wild-card outing around the impressive Unadilla facility and finished as runner-up overall against the best of the US.

The Belgian champion fought with James Stewart and beat the former AMA Motocross and Supercross champion to second place in the first moto.

Then, during the second outing, he was only pipped to the chequered flag – and the overall victory – by fellow Suzuki representative and series leader Dungey aboard his Rockstar Makita Suzuki.

“My day was really good,” he said. “I made the podium and also I didn’t crash today. It was really fun to have a nice track like that. All the time I look at the tracks of the AMA Nationals on TV and it’s different when you’re out here. It was a lot of fun to ride here.

“It was really good racing with Ryan. It was a strange feeling to be here, and we had some good racing – but most important, we didn’t crash. It was really fast, and although it’s better to be one position further, it’s still good.”

The trip was a positive one for Desalle’s profile, that of the team and the talent being plied in the FIM competition. The double GP winner in 2010, and presently second in the MX1 standings, will now head south to Campo Grande for the Brazilian GP and round 13 of 15 next weekend.