Crine and Beirer claim wins at Schalke debut.

American pro racer Kevin Crine claimed the overall win during the first international supercross staged at Europe?s most advanced sports stadium, the Arena auf Schalke in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, while home hero Pit Beirer took supermotard honours.

In front of 20.000 excited fans, Honda rider Crine, from Maryland, climbed on top of the podium thanks to third, second and first place finishes throughout the night?s programme.

Second overall went to Australian teenager Brett Metcalfe upon the prototype KTM 200. Metcalfe ended runner-up with a consistent 6-4-4 result. Third place belonged to the best European rider, Johnny Aubert from France. Aubert won the second heat on the spectacular track, while fellow Yamaha rider Nick Wey took the opening race, literally leading from start to finish. Wey?s victory hopes went down the drain though in the second run when he suffered from a crash in the 'whoops' section of the course.

After two races, Joaquim Rodrigues from Portugal had looked like the best bet to keep 27-year old Crine from clinching the overall, but the Honda rider crashed heavily on his final outing. Among a field of 250 two-strokes, Rodrig Thain also brought his Yamaha YZF 250 4-stroke to Schalke for a night that wasn't meant to be. After finishing seventh in race one, the Frenchman faced a temporarily dislocation of his right shoulder in race two and had to call it a day.

The German fans were highly addicted to the supercross show, yet the Supermoto programme, held under the same three-race format, kept them on their feet from the very first minute.

In a race that combined road racers, supermotard experts, off-roaders and retired pros, national motocross hero Pit Beirer managed to post an emotional win on his last ride for Yamaha. The 29-year-old German brought his two-stroke 250 home first once and second twice in a field dominated by big four-strokes.

Beirer was not the fastest on the night - that honour went to five-time motocross world champ Stefan Everts - but consistency definitely paid off for the crowd favourite, who will become a Honda rider next season.

Everts could well have taken the main trophy on a supermotard track that vastly favoured the dirt riders, yet this time the Belgian had to settle for second overall. The reigning 500cc world champ crashed twice in race one, ultimately costing him the win. Everts, who rode a highly-modified version of his alloy-framed practice bike, ruled the remaining heats, but the well-deserved overall went to a very happy Beirer.

Former 125cc and 250cc road racing world champion Loris Capirossi?s performance was slowed down by technical problems and the off-road character of the circuit. The 28-year-old had to change from his special Honda CR500 to a quickly-adjusted Honda CR250 after his initial bike had broken down before the start of the opening supermoto race. Despite the fact that Capirossi may have not been the quickest rider in Schalke, however, he was easily the one signing the most autographs.

Overall results - Schalke

International Supercross

1. Kevin Crine USA Honda 67 points (3-2-1)
2. Brett Metcalfe AUS KTM 51 (7-4-4)
3. Johnny Aubert FRA Yamaha 50 (5-1-12)
4. Nick Wey USA Yamaha 49 (1-17-3)
5. Mike Craig USA Suzuki 49 (4-6-5)
6. Joaquim Rodrigues POR Honda 45 (2-3-18)
7. Jason Thomas USA Yamaha 40 (8-9-6)
8. Doug DeHaan USA Honda 36 (9-19-2)
9. Matt Shue USA Honda 35 (11-8-9)
10. Marco Dube CAN KTM 34 (15-7-7)

Supermotard

1. Pit Beirer GER Yamaha 69 points (1-2-2)
2. Stefan Everts BEL Yamaha 56 (15-1-1)
3. Kurt Nicoll GBR KTM 56 (2-7-3)
4. Jacky Martens BEL Husaberg 52 (4-4-5)
5. Johan Boonen BEL KTM 50 (6-3-6)
6. Harald Ott GER KTM 49 (3-6-7)
7. Thierry Godfroid BEL Kawasaki 42 (7-5-9)
8. Marniq Bervoets BEL Yamaha 41 (5-14-4)
9. Roland Diepold GER KTM 33 (9-11-10)
10. Soren Mortensen DEN Yamaha 32 (10-10-11)