Champions past and present will gather at the legendary Namur circuit this weekend, for the Grand Prix of Belgium, where home hero Stefan Everts looks set to collect his tenth and final world title.
But dont think the past champions are simply present to watch; this weekend will see the first FIM Veteran Motocross World Cup, where famous names from motocross history (aged between 40 and 60) will return to battle. The legends will be divided into two classes: The FIM Senior Motocross World Cup for those aged 40 to 50 and the FIM Veteran Motocross World Cup for riders 51 to 60.
Because of this highly anticipated event, there will be two Everts', riding with the same racing number on the same day, at Namur: After having watched so much recent grands prix from the pit lane, Harry Everts (father of Stefan) will be back in the saddle thanks to his own impressive CV - the main criteria for entry into the Veterans race, which will surely feature the younger Everts in future editions.
But of a more immediate concern to Stefan is maintaining his unbeaten 2006 season, which has also put him on course to take 100 GP wins before he retires at the end of the year, and wrap up his tenth title in the process. In reality, Everts only needs to score one point more than nearest rival Kevin Strijbos during Sunday's two races, but the Yamaha star is unlikely to throttle off and settle for points now.
Suzuki rider Strijbos also has other concerns, in the form, of defending his runner-up spot in the face of competition from Suzuki team-mate Steve Ramon, Kawasaki's Tanel Leok and CAS Honda's Ken de Dycker. All bar Estonian Leok will be desperate to impress in front of their home fans this weekend, while Kiwi Josh Coppins - ruled out of the championship hunt by early season injury - is sure to again be in front running form.
Meanwhile, the MX2 title is still very much up for grabs with long time leader Christophe Pourcel leading current champion Antonio Cairoli by 34 points (25 points are awarded for each race win), with Davi Philippaerts now just 11 points further behind.
