2004 Sidecarcross world championship
Encyclopedia
The 2004 FIM Sidecarcross World Championship, the 25th edition of the competition, started on 21 March 2004 and finished after fourteen race weekends
on 5 September 2004 with Daniël Willemsen
and Kaspars Stupelis
taking out the title once more. For Willemsen, it was his third world championship while it was the second for Stupelis.
The season saw the cancellation of the Russian GP in Moscow on 15 August because of heavy rainfall, thereby reducing the schedule to thirteen GP's and 26 races.
, with Sven Verbrugge
as his passenger, was their main rival early on in the competition. An injury to Sergis meant however, the pair would miss five race weekends and be out of contention for the championship. After this, Willemsen / Stupelis won the championship almost undisputed. For the following season, 2005, Willemsen and Sergis would exchange passenger, with Sven Verbrugge returning to Willemsen, who he had raced with before, while Sergis / Stupelis would form an all-Latvian team.
The fourteen GP's of the season were held in eleven countries, Spain
, France
(2x), Netherlands
, Germany
(2x), Italy
, Estonia
, Latvia
(2x), Croatia
, Bulgaria
, Russia
and Belgium
. It was the first time that a GP was to be held in Russia.
The first twenty teams of each race score competition points. The point system for the 2004 season was as follows:>
Workweek
The workweek and weekend are those complementary parts of the week devoted to labour and rest respectively. The legal working week , or workweek , is the part of the seven-day week devoted to labor. In most Western countries it is Monday to Friday. The weekend comprises the two traditionally...
on 5 September 2004 with Daniël Willemsen
Daniël Willemsen
Daniël Johan Nico Willemsen is a Dutch sidecarcross rider and eight times World Champion.Willemsen is the most successful rider in sidecarcross history, winning the title nine times, in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011...
and Kaspars Stupelis
Kaspars Stupelis
Kaspars Stupelis is a Latvian sidecarcross passenger and double World Champion.As of 2008, he is part of the Team Serģis, operated by five times world champion Kristers Serģis. However, his two world championships were gained when being the passenger in Daniël Willemsen's team...
taking out the title once more. For Willemsen, it was his third world championship while it was the second for Stupelis.
The season saw the cancellation of the Russian GP in Moscow on 15 August because of heavy rainfall, thereby reducing the schedule to thirteen GP's and 26 races.
Overview
The 2004 season was the 25th edition of the sidcarcross world championship. It resulted in a third world championship for Daniël Willemsen, his second in a row with passenger Kaspars Stupelis. Five time world champion Kristers SergisKristers Sergis
Kristers Serģis is a retired Latvian sidecarcross rider and five times World Champion.Kristers Serģis came to the sidecarcross sport through his father, himself a rider in the days of the Soviet Union. He made it possible for his son to take up the sport after Latvian independence in 1990...
, with Sven Verbrugge
Sven Verbrugge
Sven Verbrugge is a Belgian sidecarcross passenger and triple Sidecarcross World Champion, winning the title in 2005, 2006 and 2011....
as his passenger, was their main rival early on in the competition. An injury to Sergis meant however, the pair would miss five race weekends and be out of contention for the championship. After this, Willemsen / Stupelis won the championship almost undisputed. For the following season, 2005, Willemsen and Sergis would exchange passenger, with Sven Verbrugge returning to Willemsen, who he had raced with before, while Sergis / Stupelis would form an all-Latvian team.
The fourteen GP's of the season were held in eleven countries, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(2x), Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(2x), Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
(2x), Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. It was the first time that a GP was to be held in Russia.
Format
Every Grand Prix weekend is split into two races, both held on the same day. This means, the 2004 season with its fourteen Grand Prix had originally 28 races. Each race lasts for 30 minutes plus two laps. The two races on a weekend actually get combined to determined an overall winner. While this overall winners receives no extra WC points, they usually are awarded a special trophy.The first twenty teams of each race score competition points. The point system for the 2004 season was as follows:
|
|
Calendar
The calendar for the 2004 season:| Date | Place | Race winners | GP winner | Source |
| 21 March |  Talavera |
 Kristers SergisKristers Sergis Kristers Serģis is a retired Latvian sidecarcross rider and five times World Champion.Kristers Serģis came to the sidecarcross sport through his father, himself a rider in the days of the Soviet Union. He made it possible for his son to take up the sport after Latvian independence in 1990... / Sven Verbrugge Sven Verbrugge Sven Verbrugge is a Belgian sidecarcross passenger and triple Sidecarcross World Champion, winning the title in 2005, 2006 and 2011.... |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Result |
 Daniel WillemsenDaniël Willemsen Daniël Johan Nico Willemsen is a Dutch sidecarcross rider and eight times World Champion.Willemsen is the most successful rider in sidecarcross history, winning the title nine times, in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011... / Kaspars Stupelis Kaspars Stupelis Kaspars Stupelis is a Latvian sidecarcross passenger and double World Champion.As of 2008, he is part of the Team Serģis, operated by five times world champion Kristers Serģis. However, his two world championships were gained when being the passenger in Daniël Willemsen's team... |
||||
| 4 April |  CastelnauCastelnau-de-Lévis Castelnau-de-Lévis is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France.It is located just west of Albi. The inhabitants are Castellévisiens.-Chateau of Castelnau-de-Lévis:... |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Result |
| Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
||||
| 12 April | Oldebroek Oldebroek Oldebroek is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands and it has almost 6000 inhabitants.-Population centres:Bovenveen, Eekt, Hattemerbroek, Kerkdorp, 't Loo, Mullegen, Noordeinde, Oldebroek, Oosterwolde, Posthoorn, Voskuil and Wezep.-Sport:... |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 25 April |  AufenauWächtersbach -Location:Wächtersbach lies between the Spessart and the Vogelsberg Mountains in the middle Kinzig valley at the edge of the Büdingen Forest, not far from the towns of Gelnhausen, Birstein, Bad Orb and Bad Soden-Salmünster.-Neighbouring communities:... |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 9 May |  AstiAsti Asti is a city and comune of about 75,000 inhabitants located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about 55 kilometres east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 31 May | Brou Brou, Eure-et-Loir Brou is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France.-Population:... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 6 June | Pflückuff Pflückuff Pflückuff is a village and a former municipality in the district Nordsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2009, it is part of the town Torgau.... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 13 June |  JaanikeseJaanikese Jaanikese is a village in Tõlliste Parish, Valga County in southern Estonia. It's located just north of the neighbouring town Valga. Jaanikese also borders Latvia in the west, and is situated between Valga–Uulu and Valga–Tartu roads... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 20 June | Cēsis Cesis Cēsis , is a town in Latvia located in the northern part of the Central Vidzeme Upland. Cēsis is on the Gauja River valley, and is built on a series of ridges above the river overlooking the woods below... |
 Evgeny Scherbinin / Sergey Sosnovskikh |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 11 July |  ZabokZabok Zabok is a town and municipality situated in northwest Croatia in the Krapina-Zagorje County. It has a total population of 9,365 . Zabok is situated on the main crossroads in the heart of Hrvatsko zagorje region... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Marco Happich / Thomas Weinmann |
Result |
| Marco Happich / Thomas Weinmann |
||||
| 18 July |  SamokovSamokov Samokov is a town in Sofia Province in the southwest of Bulgaria. It is situated in a kettle between the mountains Rila and Vitosha, 55 kilometres from the capital Sofia... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 8 August | Kegums Kegums -Sport:Ķegums has been host to the Latvian Sidecarcross Grand Prix numerous times and will be hosting it again in 2010, on 8 August.In the 2009, Ķegums also hosted the Latvian Motocross Grand Prix.-See also:*List of cities in Latvia... |
Kristers Sergis / Sven Verbrugge |
Marco Happich / Thomas Weinmann |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 15 August | Moscow Moscow Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent... |
cancelled 1 | ||
| 5 September |  NeeroeterenMaaseik Maaseik is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. The city is located on the river Meuse , bordering the Netherlands. The Maaseik municipality includes the town of Maaseik and the villages of Neeroeteren and Opoeteren... |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
Result |
| Daniel Willemsen / Kaspars Stupelis |
||||
| 19 September | Rudersberg Rudersberg Rudersberg is a municipality in the Rems-Murr district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located 10 km southeast of Backnang, and 28 km northeast of Stuttgart.-Sport:... |
Germany |
||
- The Sidecarcross des Nations is a non-championship event but part of the calendar and is denoted by a light blue background in the table above.
- Flags for passengers not shown.
- 1 Cancelled after heavy rain, only an exhibition raceExhibition gameAn exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...
was held, won by Marco Happich / Thomas Weinmann, which didn't count torwards the world championship.
Riders
Out of 56 teams in the points, the top-twenty of the 2004 season were:| Driver / Passenger | Equipment | No. | Points | GP wins | GP 2nd | GP 3rd | Race wins | Race 2nd | Race 3rd | |
| 1 | Daniel Willemsen Daniël Willemsen Daniël Johan Nico Willemsen is a Dutch sidecarcross rider and eight times World Champion.Willemsen is the most successful rider in sidecarcross history, winning the title nine times, in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011... / Kaspars StupelisKaspars Stupelis Kaspars Stupelis is a Latvian sidecarcross passenger and double World Champion.As of 2008, he is part of the Team Serģis, operated by five times world champion Kristers Serģis. However, his two world championships were gained when being the passenger in Daniël Willemsen's team... |
Zabel-VMC Vruwink MotorCycles The Vruwink MotorCycles company, short VMC, is a Dutch Sidecarcross frame manufacturer, having won eleven riders and six manufacturers world championships in this sport.-Company history:... |
1 | 572 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 4 | 1 |
| 2 | Marco Happich / Thomas Weinmann |
Zabel-VMC | 7 | 419 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 |
| 3 | Are Kaurit / Jurgen Jakk |
KTM KTM KTM Sportmotorcycle AG is an Austrian motorcycle, bicycle and moped manufacturer.The company was founded in 1934 by engineer Hans Trunkenpolz in Mattighofen. It started out as a metal working shop and was named Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen... -AYR AYR AYR is an Estonian Sidecarcross frame manufacturer, competing in the sports world championship.The most prominent team in the 2008 world championship to use an AYR frame is the former world champions Kristers Sergis / Kaspars Stupelis. AYR has yet to win a world championship.-History:The company... |
4 | 391 | — | 1 | 1 | — | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Evgeni Scherbinin / Sergei Sosnovskikh |
Zabel-APZ | 11 | 385 | — | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 5 | Stuart Brown / Luke Peters | Zabel-VMC | 5 | 374 | — | 2 | 3 | — | 4 | 3 |
| 6 | Eric Schrijver / Christian Verhagen |
MTH MTH Racing engines MTH racing engines are two-stroke lightweight engines, built by an Austrian company, MTH. They are used in motocross sidecars and ultra lightweight aeroplanes.... -EML |
10 | 274 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| 7 | Kristers Sergis Kristers Sergis Kristers Serģis is a retired Latvian sidecarcross rider and five times World Champion.Kristers Serģis came to the sidecarcross sport through his father, himself a rider in the days of the Soviet Union. He made it possible for his son to take up the sport after Latvian independence in 1990... / Sven VerbruggeSven Verbrugge Sven Verbrugge is a Belgian sidecarcross passenger and triple Sidecarcross World Champion, winning the title in 2005, 2006 and 2011.... |
MTH-BSU | 2 | 246 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 | Werner Wittmann /  Premsyl Novotny |
Yamaha-AYR | 12 | 231 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 3 |
| 9 | Jan Hendrickx / Tim Smeuninx |
MTH-BSU | 6 | 224 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 10 |  Bertram Martin /  Bruno Kaelin |
Zabel-VMC | 14 | 215 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 11 | Joris Hendrickx Joris Hendrickx Joris Hendrickx is a Belgian sidecarcross rider and the 2009 World Champion, together with his passenger, the Latvian Kaspars Liepiņš.... / Roger van de Lagemaat |
MTH-BSU | 41 | 211 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 12 | Frank Hofmann / Ludo Somers |
Zabel-VMC | 16 | 203 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 13 | Marcel Willemsen Marcel Willemsen Marcel Willemsen is a Dutch sidecarcross passenger and 1999 World Champion.Marcel won the 1999 world championship as the passenger for his older brother, the seven times world champion Daniël Willemsen... / Rene Boon |
KTM-VMC | 32 | 191 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 14 | Andy Burgler / Meinrad Schelbert |
KTM-Spatech | 25 | 164 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | — |
| 15 | Benoit Beaumont / Henry van de Wiel |
MTH-BSU | 8 | 142 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 2 |
| 16 | Maris Rupeiks / Haralds Kurpnieks |
Zabel-AYR | 9 | 124 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 17 |  Henrik Soderquist / Tobias Sylwan |
KTM-VMC | 26 | 122 | — | 1 | 1 | — | 2 | 1 |
| 18 | Josef Brustmann / Stefan Urich |
KTM-NMP | 20 | 100 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 19 | Carlo van Duijnhoven / Tom van Duijnhoven |
MTH-BSU | 13 | 99 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 20 | Nicky Pulinx / Dagwin Sabbe |
KTM-VMC | 118 | 96 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
- Equipment listed is motor and frame.