By Jeff Kardas

Hopes were high as the U.S. Motocross of Nations team arrived in the Netherlands for the 2019 FIM Motocross of Nations on the storied grounds of TT Circuit Assen.

U.S. Team Manager Roger De Coster and the trio of American riders—Jason Anderson in the MXGP Class, Justin Cooper in MX2 and Zach Osborne in the Open Class—were highly motivated to give it their all on the international stage.

It was the 71st running of the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme’s version of motocross’ “Olympics,” pitting teams of three riders from 34 nations against one another in a weekend-long event.

The clear favorite for the win was the home team of the Netherlands, which consisted of multi-time FIM world champion Jeffrey Herlings.

At best, the U.S. team hoped for a podium finish, as teams from Belgium, France and the United Kingdom were also very strong in the sand.

The team was handed the 31st gate pick for qualifiers via a lottery system, and the three American underdogs found themselves in surprisingly good shape after their respective qualifying races on Saturday.

Each class races against others in the class to determine gate picks for Sunday’s three motos. Despite the terrible gate picks, the team ended up in third place overall heading into Sunday.

With a convincing performance on a deteriorating track, Cooper snagged an impressive holeshot and runaway victory against a stacked field of MX2 riders. Up next were Anderson and Osborne, and then the rains began to fall.

The very rough conditions put the American riders at a disadvantage because tracks at the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship venues, where the riders normally compete, do not usually become so degraded.

Anderson managed an impressive sixth place in MXGP, battling the whole moto with the likes of Herlings and 2019 FIM MXGP Champion Tim Gajser.

Osborne held up his end of the bargain, though his eighth place in the Open Class was the worst finish for the team and the result was dropped from the overall tally for the day.

With a sixth place and a victory, the U.S. team was happy to be third on the day.

A deluge Saturday night turned the racing surface into a quagmire. During some of Sunday’s support races, the track was barely passable. Riders were getting stuck everywhere, and motorcycles were not making it through races.

The track crew was able to perform some miraculous work to get the surface at least passable.

The first race featured the MX2 and MXGP classes, which meant Cooper and Anderson were due up.

The two American riders collided with one another just after the first turn, ending up in a heap on the soaked, sandy surface. The mishap resulted in a broken clutch mount for Cooper and a broken knuckle on his left hand.

Anderson appeared to come out unscathed, though both found themselves at the far back of the pack. Despite a valiant effort, Anderson ended up 17th and Cooper 25th, effectively ending any hope the team had of getting an overall podium finish.

Race 2 featured the MX2 and Open classes, and both American riders got terrible starts. Osborne scored a surprising fifth-place finish, while the Netherlands’ Coldenhoff ran away with the win.

The ailing Cooper went down again in the first turn, putting him in last place as the pack came around for the first lap in the sloppy conditions. His 29th place final score ended up being the team’s worst for the day.

Race 3 pitted MXGP and Open class competitors. Coldenhoff once again grabbed the holeshot and ran away with the win.

Osborne and Anderson again rode hard on their 450s, but finished 13th and eighth, respectively.

It was Coldenhoff, Herlings and the Netherlands crew that took the overall win for the home team — their first in the race’s long history. Belgium managed a runner-up finish, while an engine failure for defending champion Team France allowed Great Britain to land the final podium position.

The 2020 FIM Motocross of Nations takes place on the hard-packed and gravelly hills of Ernée, France, a track where the U.S. Motocross of Nations team has seen success in the past.