Max Nagl and Dylan Ferrandis double up at Loket MXGP
A classic old school versus new school battle bought the ancient hills of Loket to life on the weekend for the thirteenth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship, the MXGP of Czech Republic.
MXGP
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Nagl’s performance today was nothing short of breath taking. It was truly special to witness him ride with so much hunger and intensity, and for it to pay forward with a double moto victory and his first grand prix win of the year. Also as a result, the German star has leap-frogged Romain Febvre in the championship standings and is now third, 16 points shy of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Antonio Cairoli in second.
Honda Gariboldi’s Tim Gajser must have been the author of the quote, “if you don’t live life on the edge, you’re taking up too much room.” He is just unbelievable. Even with a 92-point lead in the championship he still continues to push the envelope, which was his undoing at the end of the day with a small spill costing him the win in Race 2 which would have landed him on the top step of the podium for the eighth time this year. Take nothing away from the rookie though, he still managed to extend his championship lead and has maintained his perfect podium streak, thirteen from thirteen.
When it comes to challenging and technical hard-pack tracks, very few riders get around them better than the defending champ, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Romain Febvre. Starts were Febvre’s downfall today, he may need to sharpen his holeshot game if he wants top the box again this season, but then again in his defense, he has just recovered from a concussion, so it could be down to that. What is most important is that he is still running the pace, which is something he can be extremely proud of.
Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Clement Desalle tied on 34 points with Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jeremy Van Horebeek. Don’t underestimate the speed of the Belgians, they’re still running a fierce pace, it’s just finding those extra few milliseconds that will make the difference in their overall results.
You never know how a rider will transition to the bigger machine. For the likes of Febvre and Gajser, it was a piece of cake, whereas for the former MX2 World Champion, Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Jordi Tixier, it’s not been as smooth. Nevertheless, the Team Green rookie is plugging away and has progressed at every round. This weekend the Frenchman nailed his best MXGP result yet, sixth overall.
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Max Nagl
“It was a great GP for us. Despite only having the 14th gate pick, I managed to get two great starts in the final motos. In the first race I quickly passed Gautier Paulin for the lead and started pushing hard as I knew Tim Gajser was following me. I wanted to avoid being passed by any means, so I gave it all to remain out front until the end. In the second race Tim got the lead right after the start and I was third behind Butron. I quickly passed him and started putting in fast laps to close the gap to Tim. My plan was to put pressure on him and that’s exactly what happened. He made a mistake a few laps before the end and when I got the lead I just went for it. Getting two race wins for my first overall victory this season is just great. It’s so good for the team and a great confidence booster for me as well. I want to enjoy the moment and this victory and I’m looking forward to the next GP in Lommel.”
Romain Febvre
“For sure I am happy to be back on my YZ450FM and racing again. I was out for nearly one month to recover from my crash in England, and in that time I missed some training because it was not possible to get on the bike until I recovered completely. I was fine physically, but the reaction time between my vision and my brain needed rest and attention in order to come back. Now I am 100 percent and it’s very good to get this result today. The conditions here were very slippery, because this is hardpack and there was a little bit of rain today. Next week we go back to the heavy sand at Lommel and it will be a very different GP in Belgium.”
Jeremy Van Horebeek
“I had one of my best starts of the season in the first moto. But in the second race I was 14th in the first lap, and with the humidity after three laps my goggles were fogged, so I rode in fifth and limited the risk. It’s a pity, but we are going in a good direction and it’s a good solid top five for the team.”
Clement Desalle
“It’s easy to explain how my weekend went; I had some bad starts, and then made many passes to come back in the top five with a third in the qualifying race, then a fifth and a fourth position in the GP motos. In the first race I made some good moves in the first corners to come back into the top ten, and never stop pushing to get a fifth at the end of the race. My start was a little bit better in the second race and I recovered to fourth to finish just off the podium. The final result is not so bad considering my position in the first corner. We did some testing during the summer break and I feel some improvements in the settings; I also know that I can continue to make more progress. Next weekend will be my home GP; it will be nice to see the fans, although it would be nice to go to some other place, even if I like riding in the sand.”
Jordi Tixier
“ I’m happy to get this good result; it shows that we’re doing a good job. I had a very good result in the timed practice period with a second position, so the speed is there even if I made some mistakes in the qualifying race. I never started in the top fifteen today and we need to work on that point, but then I was able to come back to eighth and sixth. In the first moto I couldn’t keep the rhythm in the last ten minutes and lost one position, but in the second race I was stronger; for sure the track was slippery after the rain, but here it’s not such a problem when it’s raining. Now we’ll move to Belgium; we’ve already been working with the team to prepare the bike for the sand.”
Tommy Searle
“We had no real break in the past month with the British championship races, and it’s been a long season as we’re now moving to Belgium. This weekend was a solid one for me with two top ten results, ninth in both races and qualification after a sixth position in the timed practice period. The starts were not too bad; I got good jumps out of the gate but in the first corner it was not easy to find the way. We all did the best we could and it’s been a while since I had such a consistent weekend. I made some good passes, an d that’s never easy on this track; sometimes for sure I could pass sooner but the racing was very close and overall it was a good weekend.”
Christophe Charlier
“It was an OK weekend for us. My starts were good and I was involved in some great battles in both motos. In such changing and difficult conditions my goal was to remain consistent and I think I succeeded in that. It was really hard to find a good feeling and push hard in these conditions and to keep putting consistent lap times was a struggle by itself. We’ve been working really hard with my team during the past few months and I think it won’t take long before all this hard effort pays off. We’re now heading to our team’s home race and the expectations are high from the GP of Belgium. We know this track really well so I’m confident it’s going to be a good weekend for me and the team.”
Kevin Strijbos
“A decent day even if the result is not perhaps what we wanted. The motos were pretty much the same; my starts were not great and then it was hard to take positions up until the point where my arms started to get a bit tired. In the second moto someone hit me and bent the rear brake lever and I had to get used to that but it was OK once I adjusted. It is always hard to come back in the middle of the season and after injury but we made a step today and now have to look towards Lommel.”
Antonio Cairoli
“I was back on the KTM 350 SX-F after almost a year. The race didn’t go how I wanted for sure but we had a good feeling with the bike in the time practice. I was able to improve my speed from before and I felt better on the bike overall. But we messed up the starts because it was almost a year since I started on the 350. On this track if you have a bad start you don’t go anywhere. You could see that with Nagl. He wasn’t the fastest in practice but in the races he had two good starts and he won.” Cairoli also confirmed he is looking forward to racing at Lommel next weekend. Because he lives part of the time in Belgium, it is like a home race for him.
Glenn Coldenhoff
“I already had a good day yesterday. I pulled the holeshot in qualifying and was in second place for quite a while, then I started to come off my lines and I still finished fifth for a good starting position today. The first moto was okay. I rode well and I finished sixth so it was one of my better motos. I was seventh at the start of the second moto but then I crashed and hit the ground pretty hard. I had to fight back from dead last. This could have been a good GP but I’m looking forward to the sand next weekend at Lommel and I think we are well prepared.”
MXGP Race 1 Top Ten
- Maximilian Nagl (GER, Husqvarna), 33:51.727
- Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:04.803
- Romain Febvre (FRA, Yamaha), +0:15.311
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:17.471
- Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:28.074
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:30.841
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:31.398
- Jordi Tixier (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:35.081
- Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:55.807
- Gautier Paulin (FRA, Honda), +0:57.863
MXGP Race 2 Top Ten
- Maximilian Nagl (GER, Husqvarna), 34:33.696
- Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:02.770
- Romain Febvre (FRA, Yamaha), +0:15.354
- Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:21.748
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:29.557
- Jordi Tixier (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:35.818
- Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), +0:38.013
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:49.530
- Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:55.739
- Valentin Guillod (SUI, Yamaha), +0:59.716
MXGP Overall Top Ten
- Maximilian Nagl (GER, HUS), 50 points
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 44 p.
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 40 p.
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 34 p.
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 34 p.
- Jordi Tixier (FRA, KAW), 28 p.
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 27 p.
- Tommy Searle (GBR, KAW), 24 p.
- Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, HON), 23 p.
- Kevin Strijbos (BEL, SUZ), 20 p.
MXGP Championship Top Ten
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 576 points
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 467 p.
- Maximilian Nagl (GER, HUS), 451 p.
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 448 p.
- Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, HON), 419 p.
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 385 p.
- Valentin Guillod (SUI, YAM), 286 p.
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 248 p.
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 244 p.
- Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 225 p.
MXGP Manufacturers
- Honda, 584 points
- Yamaha, 522 p.
- KTM, 478 p.
- Husqvarna, 466 p.
- Kawasaki, 344 p.
- Suzuki, 262 p.
MX2
With Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s main star Jeffrey Herlings opting to sit this weekend out after he broke his collar-bone at a local race three weeks ago, it was up to his Red Bull KTM teammate Paul Jonass to step up to the plate and fly the flag high for the orange army. The young Latvian got off to a blistering start this weekend with an emphatic win in the Qualifying Race yesterday which gave him the first pick at the gate in the main events today.
Jonass chose the inside gate in Race 1 and used that advantage to claim his fifth Fox Holeshot of the season. He led the opening lap with Ferrandis hot on his tail before it all came undone when he cased the step down and crashed spectacularly. Jonass has proven he’s some kind of superman because amazingly he is OK.
As the only rider that has beaten ‘The Bullet’ this year Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Dylan Ferrandis was easily the favourite to win the grand prix this weekend. In fact, even if Herlings was here, he still would have had a decent amount of fans picking him for the win based on his hard-pack skill. Ferrandis rode silky smooth for the win in race one but had to work a little harder in race two with a fired up Max Anstie breathing down his neck. Despite the intense challenge, Ferrandis managed to stay cool and rode it home for his first ever double moto victory.
Team Suzuki World MX2’s Jeremy Seewer did what he needed to do. He kept it on two wheels and didn’t do anything silly which landed him on the second step of the podium. “I’m disappointed with my day, Max and Dylan had a little bit more than me today, so that was disappointing but I am looking forward to the sand next weekend.” He said.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Anstie finally came out of his shell this weekend and managed to string together two solid results for his second podium appearance this season. If it wasn’t in Anstie’s pedigree to crash, he could have topped the box today; after all he did set the fastest lap time in the final race before crashing on the penultimate lap when he caught his handlebar on Ferrandis while trying to pass.
Kemea Yamaha MX Official Team’s Benoit Paturel didn’t get off to the best of starts but is one of the most promising young talents on the line and managed to carve his way through the field in both races to go 4 – 5 for fourth overall while Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Petar Petrov rounded out the top five.
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Dylan Ferrandis
“In the first moto I was second behind Jonass but he crashed, and I was able to make the gap with my rivals to win this moto; I just tried to save some energy for the second moto and that was necessary as my start was not as good as the first one. I had to fight with the guys to come back to the front of the pack; it was a nice battle even if this race was tough with the rain as we lost some traction. At the end of the moto Max Anstie was pushing really hard; he tried to make a move but finally crashed. That’s racing ! Of course it was a good weekend with two moto wins. Everyone in the team is happy and we are all rewarded for the hard work we have put in since the beginning of the season. But there is no time to celebrate this win; next weekend we have the most difficult race in the world with the GP at Lommel, and we’ll move to Belgium on Monday to prepare for this race.”
Max Anstie
“It was a solid weekend for sure and we can be happy with it. All of my practise sessions and races were good and I felt pretty good on my bike. It was nice to get a podium result in this track, even though I know we could have done even better. In moto one I didn’t get a good start and had to battle through the pack for second. Then in moto two, Ferrandis and I had almost the same speed and it was really hard to make a pass on the track. I tried really hard to pass him for the overall win, but it didn’t end up so well. I’d used a lot of my energy trying to come forward in moto one so there was not much left in the tank. It’s just one of those things. We just have to make the best of it and go again next week. We’re now heading to Lommel. I really like the track and I won there the last two years, so It should be good.”
Jeremy Seewer
“I’m pretty happy. I had a little bit of fear of pushing too hard today; Loket is a special track and you can very easily get things wrong and make a big mistake. The weather changed quite a bit and it was tricky out there. Anstie and Ferrandis just had that extra half a second a lap today but I’m quite pleased to make the podium again and take some good points. Anyway, onto the sand now!”
Benoit Paturel
“I spent a lot of energy in the first moto because I had a bad start. For sure I am happy with the result today, because after three weeks it’s easy to lose fitness and technique. With the team we are working very hard every week on the bike and the starts, and I think that next week in Lommel will be a hard race for everybody.”
Petar Petrov
“It’ been a while since I had a consistent weekend and that’s good to get a fifth overall here in Loket. During the summer break we did a lot of good work on the bike, and I also had time to recover from my injuries so we came here in better condition. We’re building up, injuries and everything are coming better and I felt good this weekend; when you have a few rounds without the results you expect it’s never easy to find back the confidence again but we did just that and we are top five again, where we were at the beginning of the season. It’s a positive weekend; we’ll continue to work and I know that Lommel could be a good opportunity for me to do even better.”
Thomas Covington
“It was a pretty difficult weekend, but I finally managed to figure things out in the second moto. In the first moto I got my bike spinning too much behind the gate so I ended up getting a really bad start. I started from the back of the pack and battled my way to 15th. Then in the second race I was second off the start and run up front with the top for most of the race before ending up fourth. I’m really happy with the second moto, as I showed that the speed is there to battle for the podium. Conditions were tough, the track was slippery and full of hard bumps. But we got things figured out in the second moto and hopefully we can keep the momentum going to Belgium.”
Conrad Mewse
“Overall, I’m satisfied with my performance. The times were pretty close at this track and there weren’t many places where you could make passes. I had a very good qualifying race on Saturday. I got a great start and battled with the top MX2 guys for fifth at the chequered flag. Then on Sunday my starts weren’t bad, but I felt a bit tired. I struggled with line choices and ended up getting two ninth places. I feel that I’m learning a lot every time out and it’s also very positive that I’m consistently getting top ten results now. It’s definitely a step forward compared to the start of the season and I’ll keep working hard to get even better. I’m really looking forward to the next round in Belgium and hopefully I can battle for two top five finishes.”
Davy Pootjes
“My speed was okay the whole weekend and I finished eighth in the first moto. It’s not really my favorite track so I didn’t take any risks or make any mistakes and I was quite happy with that. But when I came back I had some pain in my wrist and I checked with Dr. Claes, who was at the race and he told me my wrist was inflamed again. I’ll go back to the hospital tomorrow and hopefully the inflammation will be gone by nest weekend for Lommel.”
Brian Hsu
“I’m still struggling a little bit for the full motos so my goal was to come here and have fun and see where we could end up. The track was nice to ride; quite technical because you had to mix throttle control and technique.”
Bas Vaessen
“It was an awesome experience today. I messed up the start of the first moto and crashed on the first lap but still made a lot of positions to almost get some points. In the second moto my start was much better and I finished 13th; which was great! It wasn’t the easiest track to do your first GP of the year but it went better than I expected.”
MX2 Race 1 Top Ten
- Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), 34:36.392
- Max Anstie (GBR, Husqvarna), +0:03.834
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki), +0:13.228
- Benoit Paturel (FRA, Yamaha), +0:26.934
- Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), +0:30.045
- Petar Petrov (BUL, Kawasaki), +0:31.779
- Adam Sterry (GBR, KTM), +0:35.178
- Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), +0:42.328
- Conrad Mewse (GBR, Husqvarna), +0:50.567
- Samuele Bernardini (ITA, TM), +0:53.306.
MX2 Race 2 Top Ten
- Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), 35:02.295
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki), +0:04.477
- Max Anstie (GBR, Husqvarna), +0:20.509
- Thomas Covington (USA, Husqvarna), +0:21.619
- Benoit Paturel (FRA, Yamaha), +0:22.607
- Samuele Bernardini (ITA, TM), +0:43.943
- Petar Petrov (BUL, Kawasaki), +0:47.368
- Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), +0:47.844
- Conrad Mewse (GBR, Husqvarna), +1:11.432
- Ivo Monticelli (ITA, KTM), +1:16.457.
MX2 Overall Top Ten
- Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, KAW), 50 points
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, SUZ), 42 p.
- Max Anstie (GBR, HUS), 42 p.
- Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 34 p.
- Petar Petrov (BUL, KAW), 29 p.
- Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), 29 p.
- Samuele Bernardini (ITA, TM), 26 p.
- Thomas Covington (USA, HUS), 24 p.
- Conrad Mewse (GBR, HUS), 24 p.
- Adam Sterry (GBR, KTM), 18 p.
MX2 Championship Top Ten
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 597 points
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, SUZ), 470 p.
- Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 403 p.
- Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 359 p.
- Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, KAW), 358 p.
- Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, YAM), 320 p.
- Max Anstie (GBR, HUS), 316 p.
- Petar Petrov (BUL, KAW), 282 p.
- Samuele Bernardini (ITA, TM), 279 p.
- Brian Bogers (NED, KTM), 246 p.
MX2 Manufacturers
- KTM, 626 points
- Kawasaki, 485 p.
- Suzuki, 470 p.
- Yamaha, 450 p.
- Husqvarna, 406 p.
- TM, 279 p.
- Honda, 241 p.
EMX300
Over the last few years the EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing class has picked up some serious momentum. Fans love it because it helps motocross stay true to its roots, and seriously, who can resist the sweet smell of pre-mix? Racers love it because it gives talented riders the opportunity to race on the world stage, which helps the likes of the championship leader, Mike Kras, one rider without a big team behind him, the chance to prove he’s got the goods, which is exactly what he did this weekend with his first overall victory of the season.
In Race 1 Saturday, GL12 Yamaha’s duo of Brad Anderson and Lewis Gregory were on another level. Both Yamaha boys came from behind to finish first and second in that order, ahead of Mike Kras who was third.
Race 2, Sunday, might have been the most action-packed EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing race of the season. It had everything, drama, excitement, devastation and heartbreak. The championship leader Mike Kras managed to extend his points lead this weekend with an emphatic victory in Race 2 which landed him on the top step of the podium for the first time this season. It wasn’t an easy feat for the Dutchman who took a while to pass the Czech superstar Petr Bartos, for the lead, but managed to make it happen when it mattered most.
Kras took the checkers and now leads the championship by 15 points with only one round to go, “This was a very important race to win,” he said, “now I don’t need to win at the last round in Lommel, I just need to stay on two wheels.”
The local legend, Petr Bartos, was the super spoiler this weekend and held Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Yentel Martens off for second place in the race and second overall. A mega frustrated Martens, who finished third in the race and third overall, said, “I gave everything I had, but it just wasn’t enough, anyway I will fight for the championship to the end.”
It was a devastating end to the season for the runner-up in Race 1, GL12 Yamaha’s Lewis Gregory, who crashed out of the race on the opening lap, while his GL12 Yamaha teammate, and Race 1 winner, Brad Anderson also faced a heart-breaking loss after scrapping his way from outside the top 20, into fourth and on the heels of the leaders, only to have his bike let-go with 3 laps to go. A first place and a DNF left him in sixth overall, but you have to tip your cap to the Brit; he was absolutely hauling this weekend.
The drama didn’t stop there. Thomas Marini and Matt Moffatt collided on lap one. Both riders went down. Moffatt managed to bounce back for fifth, behind another Czech hotshot, Vaclav Kovar who finished fourth after crashing on lap three.
EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing Race 1 Top Ten
- Brad Anderson (GBR, Yamaha), 29:24.624
- Lewis Gregory (GBR, Yamaha), +0:01.883
- Mike Kras (NED, KTM), +0:12.216
- Kenny Vandueren (BEL, KTM), +0:18.274
- Petr Bartos (CZE, KTM), +0:19.565
- Yentel Martens (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:25.456
- Matthew Moffat (GBR, KTM), +0:26.477
- Thomas Marini (SMR, Husqvarna), +0:28.717
- Vaclav Kovar (CZE, KTM), +0:29.936
- Aaron Pipon (GBR, Yamaha), +0:34.548.
EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing Race 2 Top Ten
- Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 29:53.465
- Petr Bartos (CZE, KTM), +0:02.176
- Yentel Martens (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:05.186
- Vaclav Kovar (CZE, KTM), +0:05.312
- Matthew Moffat (GBR, KTM), +0:47.491
- Dani de Vries (NED, Yamaha), +0:49.735
- Nolan Cordens (BEL, KTM), +1:13.230
- Patrick Vos (NED, KTM), +1:25.315
- Dietger Damiaens (BEL, KTM), +1:28.839
- Dominik Prochazka (CZE, CZ), +1:30.934.
EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing Overall Top Ten
- Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 45 points
- Petr Bartos (CZE, KTM), 38 p.
- Yentel Martens (BEL, HUS), 35 p.
- Vaclav Kovar (CZE, KTM), 30 p.
- Matthew Moffat (GBR, KTM), 30 p.
- Brad Anderson (GBR, YAM), 25 p.
- Dani de Vries (NED, YAM), 24 p.
- Dietger Damiaens (BEL, KTM), 22 p.
- Lewis Gregory (GBR, YAM), 22 p.
- Kenny Vandueren (BEL, KTM), 18 p.
EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing Championship Top Ten
- Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 222 points
- Yentel Martens (BEL, HUS), 207 p.
- Brad Anderson (GBR, YAM), 174 p.
- Matthew Moffat (GBR, KTM), 134 p.
- Francisco Utrilla Antonio (ESP, YAM), 110 p.
- Lewis Gregory (GBR, YAM), 104 p.
- Dietger Damiaens (BEL, KTM), 101 p.
- Patrick Vos (NED, KTM), 89 p.;
- Aaron Pipon (GBR, YAM), 89 p.
- Joshua van der Linden (NED, YAM), 87 p.
EMX300 Presented by FMF Racing Manufacturers
- KTM, 227 points
- Yamaha, 214 p.
- Husqvarna, 207 p.;
- TM, 90 p.
- Honda, 37 p.
- CZ, 15 p.
EMX 65
In the European Championship EMX65 Saturday, young Dutchman Ivano Van Erp was on rails. He pulled a massive ‘holey’ and cleaned up for a convincing win in the opening race. Dane Mads Fredsoe also put in a good ride for second ahead of Latvian Edvards Bidzans, who finished third.
While Edvards Bidzans didn’t win the first race yesterday, he did set the world on fire with his super sick riding style, and amazing skill set, as one of the only riders to clear the finish-line jump. Bidzan proved what a good start can do in Race 2 when he took the holeshot and checked out for a huge race win, even though he did stall the bike at one point.
The battle for second was pretty epic. Belgian Yoran Moens was tapped-out for the majority of the race but a little mistake knocked him back to third with Dutchman Sem De Lange capitalizing.
No one was riding harder than Matteo Russi who crashed out of fourth but bounced back to pass Hungarian Laszlo Tecsi with three laps to go. The raw determination of Russi was obvious as he charged after the Belgian star, Moens.
With two laps to go Russi launched the step up and passed Moens for third in impressive style. The Italian’s speed made for a nail-biting finish with only a hair splitting him and the kid who finished second, De Lange. Moens held on for fourth ahead of Tecsi who fell on the last lap but managed to hold onto fifth.
After his win in Race 2, paired with his third place in Race 1, the young Latvian Edvards Bidzans struck gold this weekend and was crowned the 2016 European Champion in the EMX65 class. Italian Matteo Russi will go home as the vice-European Champion while Sem De Lange, from The Netherlands, rounded off the podium.
EMX65 Race 1 Top Ten
- Ivano Van Erp (NED, KTM), 17:29.150
- Mads Fredsoe (DEN, KTM), +0:04.442
- Edvards Bidzans (LAT, KTM), +0:07.372
- Matteo Luigi Russi (ITA, KTM), +0:12.121
- Valerio Lata (ITA, KTM), +0:13.534
- Pablo Gutierrez (ESP, KTM), +0:39.765
- Simone Pavan (ITA, KTM), +0:45.463
- Bence Pergel (HUN, KTM), +0:46.050
- Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, KTM), +0:46.822
- Sem de Lange (NED, Kawasaki), +0:52.926
EMX65 Race 2 Top Ten
- Edvards Bidzans (LAT, KTM), 18:00.758
- Sem de Lange (NED, Kawasaki), +0:10.839
- Matteo Luigi Russi (ITA, KTM), +0:10.894
- Yoran Moens (BEL, KTM), +0:15.525
- Laszlo Mark Tecsi (HUN, KTM), +0:22.041
- Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, KTM), +0:26.930
- Pablo Gutierrez (ESP, KTM), +0:29.163
- Gianni Barbier (FRA, KTM), +0:29.655
- Noel Zanocz (HUN, KTM), +0:30.145
- Bence Pergel (HUN, KTM), +0:30.679
EMX65 Overall Top Ten
- Edvards Bidzans (LAT, KTM), 45 points
- Matteo Luigi Russi (ITA, KTM), 38 p.
- Sem de Lange (NED, KAW), 33 p.
- Mads Fredsoe (DEN, KTM), 30 p.
- Pablo Gutierrez (ESP, KTM), 29 p.
- Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, KTM), 27 p.
- Laszlo Mark Tecsi (HUN, KTM), 25 p.
- Ivano Van Erp (NED, KTM), 25 p.
- Bence Pergel (HUN, KTM), 24 p.
- Yoran Moens (BEL, KTM), 22 p.
EMX65 Championship Top Ten
- Edvards Bidzans (LAT, KTM), 45 points
- Matteo Luigi Russi (ITA, KTM), 38 p.
- Sem de Lange (NED, KAW), 33 p.
- Mads Fredsoe (DEN, KTM), 30 p.
- Pablo Gutierrez (ESP, KTM), 29 p.
- Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, KTM), 27 p.
- Laszlo Mark Tecsi (HUN, KTM), 25 p.
- Ivano Van Erp (NED, KTM), 25 p.
- Bence Pergel (HUN, KTM), 24 p.
- Yoran Moens (BEL, KTM), 22 p.
EMX65 Manufacturers
- KTM, 50 points
- Kawasaki, 33 p.
- Husqvarna, 6 p.
EMX85
There’s nothing like a bunch of kids wringing the life out of their 85cc bikes. Yesterday, Austrian Rene Hofer took a spectacular win over Sweden’s Anton Nagy and Spaniard Oriol Oliver, while in Race 2 today, it was Eddie Jay Wade who got the jump but spun out before the end of lap one which handed the lead to Anton Nagy who had Hungarian Adam Kovacs on his case. Kovacs pulled up on Nagy to pass for the lead, which was eventually handed to him after Nagy landed in the biggest hole on the track and was bucked over the bars.
Meanwhile, the race one winner Rene Hofer started to pick up the pace and came around for lap three in second place ahead of Alessandro Facca, Oriol Oliver and Tom Guyon. It wasn’t long before Hofer dropped the hammer and charged it up the inside of Kovacs to take the lead and from there, never looked back.
Kovacs sat second for the entire race with a comfortable gap over Facca and Oliver, who were having an intense battle for third. In an odd turn of events, Kovacs either had a bike problem or he was spent because he faded back to fourth on the final lap. Meanwhile the battle between Facca and Oliver raged on as Oliver threw everything but the kitchen sink at Facca.
Facca managed to hold on for second forcing Oliver to settle for third ahead of a disappointed Adam Kovacs. Tom Guyon was fifth.
At the end of the weekend, Rene Hofer was rewarded the gold plate as the clear winner of the 2016 EMX85 Championship, while Oriol Oliver and Alessandro Facca rounded out the top three for this season, in that order.
EMX85 Race 1 Top Ten
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 24:31.550
- Anton Nagy (SWE, KTM), +0:04.559
- Oriol Oliver (ESP, Kawasaki), +0:05.431
- Lewis Hall (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:05.598
- Tom Guyon (FRA, TM), +0:09.377
- Alessandro Facca (ITA, KTM), +0:11.559
- Maksim Kraev (RUS, KTM), +0:17.362
- Svyatoslav Pronenko (RUS, KTM), +0:26.810
- Maks Mausser (SLO, KTM), +0:27.649
- Eddie Jay Wade (ESP, Husqvarna), +0:37.510.
EMX85 Race 2 Top Ten
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 24:29.669
- Alessandro Facca (ITA, KTM), +0:06.731
- Oriol Oliver (ESP, Kawasaki), +0:08.197
- Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), +0:13.650
- Tom Guyon (FRA, TM), +0:17.073
- Emil Jonrup (SWE, KTM), +0:17.868
- Maksim Kraev (RUS, KTM), +0:32.901
- Lewis Hall (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:36.797
- Maks Mausser (SLO, KTM), +0:38.459
- Gerard Congost (ESP, Kawasaki), +0:51.841.
EMX85 Overall Top Ten
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 50 points
- Oriol Oliver (ESP, KAW), 40 p.
- Alessandro Facca (ITA, KTM), 37 p.
- Tom Guyon (FRA, TM), 32 p.
- Lewis Hall (GBR, KAW), 31 p.
- Maksim Kraev (RUS, KTM), 28 p.
- Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), 24 p.
- Maks Mausser (SLO, KTM), 24 p.
- Svyatoslav Pronenko (RUS, KTM), 22 p.
- Anton Nagy (SWE, KTM), 22 p.
EMX85 Championship Top Ten
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 50 points
- Oriol Oliver (ESP, KAW), 40 p.
- Alessandro Facca (ITA, KTM), 37 p.
- Tom Guyon (FRA, TM), 32 p.
- Lewis Hall (GBR, KAW), 31 p.
- Maksim Kraev (RUS, KTM), 28 p.
- Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), 24 p.
- Maks Mausser (SLO, KTM), 24 p.
- Svyatoslav Pronenko (RUS, KTM), 22 p.
- Anton Nagy (SWE, KTM), 22 p.
EMX85 Manufacturers
- KTM, 50 points
- Kawasaki, 40 p.
- TM, 32 p.
- Husqvarna, 14 p.
