It’s another two-part episode of the NBC Sports Original Digital Series “Paddock Pass,” coming to you this week from the Hungaroring in Budapest.
In Part 1, NBC Sports Group pit reporter/insider Will Buxton speaks to Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado, who left one struggling team for another and hopes to get Lotus to the podium. Buxton also speaks with Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez about racing in his home country in the return of the Mexican Grand Prix next year.
In Part 2, Buxton gets the latest from Toro Rosso’s Jean-Eric Vergne, Caterham’s Marcus Ericsson and newly announced Marussia reserve driver, American Alexander Rossi.
Coming off his best Supercross season to date, Enzo Lopes has re-signed with Muc-Off / ClubMX Yamaha and will race for the team in 2024. The deal is for Supercross only.Enzo Lopes won his heat race in Denver and finished fourth in the Main. – Feld Motor Sports
Lopes debuted in the Supercross series in 2019 on a Suzuki and scored his first top-10 finishes in his last two starts of that season. Showing consistent improvement, he earned six top-10s in eight Main events the following year and finished fifth in the 250 East standings. In 2022, he scored his first top-five at Daytona and finished in the top five in points again.
“I am happy to be returning to ClubMX for another season,” Lopes said in a press release. “It is like family to me there and that is very important. Although I had many options, staying where I am makes the most sense for many reasons. The bikes are great, the people are great, the tracks are amazing, and I am surrounded by people that care about me. We all want to win and together we will get there.”
While he improved his season-best performance by only one position this year, it was nevertheless a breakout season. Lopes barely missed the podium three times in 2023 with fourth-place finishes at San Diego, Seattle, and Denver.
His strong performance him rumored to be speaking with factory teams.
“We could see the growth from Enzo every time he gets on the bike,” said team owner Brandon Haas. “We all knew it was just a matter of time before he would be noticed by everyone, and we are proud of him on many levels. He had some heat race wins and qualified fastest at three events this season. It would be hard not to be noticed going that fast. He had a big decision to make and we are glad he chose to stay with us at ClubMX.”
Lopes had three podium finishes in heat races this year, including a win preceding his fourth-place finish in Denver.
