Camden McLellan etched his name in the history books at the MXGP of Trentino, delivering a flawless ride in moto one to score Triumph’s first-ever moto win in the MX2 World Championship.
The Monster Energy Triumph Factory Racing rider grabbed the holeshot and never looked back, leading every lap on his TF 250-X at the iconic Pietramurata circuit. His dominant performance not only marked his own maiden Grand Prix race win but also a landmark moment for Triumph’s motocross program.
“It’s been a very positive weekend for me here in Italy as I picked up my first-ever race win!” said McLellan. “From the get-go on Saturday, I felt good, and my bike was working perfectly. My starts were also good all weekend and to holeshot and then win race one was amazing.”
Conditions at Trentino were as unpredictable as ever. After a dry Saturday, overnight rain turned Sunday into a technical challenge with the Italian hard-pack surface becoming slick and rut-laden. Despite the switch from deep sand in Sardinia just a week prior, McLellan showed no signs of discomfort, qualifying fourth and clearly carrying momentum from his recent overall podium.
Race two looked promising as he worked his way up to fourth and began closing in on third. But it wasn’t to be — a mistake while hitting neutral before a jump sent him down and dropped him back to 24th. In pain, he remounted and pushed through to finish 16th, salvaging sixth overall for the day.
“The second race was going good until I hit neutral before a jump and crashed – that ruled out any chance of getting on the overall podium,” McLellan explained. “I want to thank the team for what they do and helping me to get this win, and now the focus is on Switzerland next weekend.”
Vincent Bereni, Monster Energy Triumph Racing Team Manager, praised the milestone moment: “We’ve finally got the race win we’ve been chasing since we started competing in MX2 last year, and all of the hard work has paid off.” He noted that the team had focused heavily on starts during the lead-up, which paid dividends in both motos. “Besides that, we didn’t make any changes to the bike throughout the weekend as Camden was happy with the set-up, and it did exactly what we expected at this challenging track.”
With a win now under their belt and momentum building, the team’s eyes are set on Fraunfeld for the MXGP of Switzerland next weekend — where Guillem Farres is expected to return from injury and bolster Triumph’s MX2 assault.
Triumph’s Head of Global Racing Programmes, Ian Kimber, was equally pleased. “It was great to see Camden take the moto win today, a first for Triumph in MX2, and it continues to show the performance of the TF 250-X. In a seriously competitive field, it shows that our bike is very capable and I’m really pleased for Camden, and the whole Monster Energy Triumph Factory Racing team.”
Although the overall podium slipped from his grasp, McLellan’s standout ride in race one proved Triumph’s MX2 program is a force to be reckoned with.
