Team Teka Suzuki WMX1 rider Steve Ramon narrowly missed out on a podium position at the latest round of the 2008 FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship held at Sevlievo in Bulgaria as he finished in fourth place overall on his factory RM-Z450.
Ramon's team-mate Ken De Dycker had a disappointing day meanwhile and could only muster a 10th place overall finish.
Conditions at the Sevlievo circuit were perfect for moto one and the jump-filled hillside racetrack that's boasted by the race's organisers to be 'The Greatest Motocross Track in the World' provided some of the best racing seen in the 2008 championship season so far.
Moto one saw both Team Teka riders mired in the mid-pack from the start as Ramon got closed off in turn one by the riders on either side of him and De Dycker was unable to get off the line as well as he'd have liked.
With Ramon 11th and De Dycker 20th both riders had to battle hard for their eventual positions of fifth and 10th.
After heavy rain dampened the circuit between motos, Ramon and De Dycker both got slightly better starts than in the opener on the now much more slippery Sevlievo circuit. This time reigning World Champion Ramon pushed from seventh to fourth passing and heading eventual race winner Sebastien Pourcel for a few laps mid-race before losing a position to the Frenchman but being gifted third by Barragan on the last lap when the Spaniard, who was leading, crashed.
With a 5-3 scorecard, Ramon missed out on third overall by a measly two points but was still satisfied with his speed, fitness and fuel-injected factory 450.
"My biggest problem today was my starts," explained Ramon. "I got a bad start in moto one - I aimed for the inside but it was a little bit slippery and the rider in front of me got a bit sideways and left me with nowhere to go. I had a difficult first lap and had to push hard to try and get to the front and I moved from 11th to fifth but I couldn't get by Coppins - there was only one good line and he was on it also.
"Again in the second moto I didn't get a good start but I moved forward and Pourcel only passed me after I clashed with Lauris Freibergs who I was lapping. I was riding well and we were easily catching the leaders - Barragan and Philippaerts - but it's a pity that I wasn't closer at the start because I'd have been challenging for the win or maybe even the podium.
"Overall I was very happy with my riding today and my speed was good and I'm still second in the championship even though I lost a few points to Philippaerts but there's still a very long way to go."
De Dycker was only able to charge to 11th in moto two as he was finding it difficult to make up time on the ultra-fast Sevlievo circuit. After finishing 10th overall on the day, the former championship leader knows what he has to do if he's to return to full race winning form.
"For sure I need to work on my starts because I didn't have such good ones today - I just wasn't getting the jump," said De Dycker. "I was able to come through a little bit but it was so hard because the track's not very technical here, it's very fast and that makes it very difficult to pass. My speed was okay though and I was always moving forward - I think all day only one rider passed me."
As well as Ramon's podium near miss in MX1, Team Suzuki Inotec rider Xavier Boog also took his full-factory RM-Z250 to fourth overall after tying on points but losing out on the better-second-moto-tie-breaker rule with Shaun Simpson. Boog, who's been constantly improving on the factory bike this season put in 7-4 finishes to give Suzuki their strongest showing in MX2 for some time.
"Fourth overall is my best ever result and I'm very happy," said Boog.
"I'm very happy with my riding today and the bike just keeps on getting better and better and I feel very good on it. I hope I can keep on improving each week and maybe reach the podium soon."
The FIM MX1 and MX2 Motocross World Championships continue next weekend with round five at Mantova in Italy on May 18.
MX1 Moto 1: 1 David Philippaerts (Yamaha - ITA) 40:07:606, 2 Jonathan Barragan (KTM - ESP) +0:05:616, 3 Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED)
+0:06:650, 4 Josh Coppins (Yamaha - NZL) +0:08:084, 5 Steve Ramon
(Suzuki - BEL) 0:14:351, 6 Julien Bill +0:29.896, 7 Tanel Leok (Kawasaki
Team 