The three riders who will represent Brazil on October 5 and 6 at the Matterley Basin Motocross of Nations were presented on Friday before the final round of the Brazilian Motocross Championship in Ponta Grossa, Paraná.
Enzo Lopes will lead the team in MXGP, while Fabio Santos will be in the Open class, and the young Bernardo Tiburcio in MX2. Dudu Lima is the reserve rider.
Enzo Lopes stepping up to MXGP has been quite a surprise for everyone, considering he has never raced in the premier class in his entire professional career. In fact, the former Star Racing Yamaha rider currently competes in the MX2 in Brazil class for the 595 bLU cRU Racing Yamaha team. The last time Lopes represented Brazil was at the 2022 Motocross of Nations in Red Bud, USA.
Fabio Santos is the official Yamaha Brazil rider and a reference in Brazilian motocross, with five titles, three in MX2 and two in MX1. A record that could increase this weekend, as he arrives at the final round with a 7-point advantage over his closest rival, the Frenchman Stephane Rubini.
Bernardo Tiburcio rides for the Honda Brazil team, and is currently second in the MX2 standings, just 7 points behind the leader. Matterley Basin will be his debut in a Motocross of Nations.
Brazil has participated uninterruptedly (except for 2020 and 2021) since its debut in the 1997 edition, held in Nismes, Belgium. The best result has been 14th, obtained on two occasions: Indaiatuba (Brazil) in 1999 and in Franciacorta (Italy) in 2009. Last year they finished 17th.
