FIM World Motocross Championships – Round 4 – Trentino
The 2018 MXGP of Trentino has concluded at the spectacular Pietramurata circuit with over 30,000 enthusiastic Italian motocross fans witnessing Jeffrey Herlings and Jorge Prado taking home the MXGP and MX2 victories respectively while keeping KTM’s winning streak alive.
MXGP Report
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings has struggled off the start of nearly every race this season up until this weekend when he took his first Fox Holeshot of the season in the opening MXGP Race ahead of Romain Febvre, Clement Desalle, Tim Gajser, and Antonio Cairoli.
By the end of lap one Desalle made his way forward past Febvre into 2nd but Cairoli dropped from 4th to 8th which he later stated was due to an issue with his front brake. Once back to normal Cairoli started to charge back to the front passing riders such as his teammate Glenn Coldenhoff and later Gajser among others.
While Cairoli tried to regain positions Desalle kept Herlings in sight for the majority of race leaving Febvre in a race of his own. At the finish Herlings won by a little more than 5 seconds over Desalle who had Febvre another 7 seconds behind him. Cairoli took rebounded to finish the race right where he started, in 4th.
In race two Cairoli took his 6th FOX Holeshot of the 8 races this season but Herlings was right in tow along with Glenn Coldenhoff making it a perfect start for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team. Another good start was taken by Clement Desalle who led Benoit Paturel and Jeremy Van Horebeek.
For the first three laps Herlings chased Cairoli but on the uphill just after the finish Cairoli missed his breaking point and expected Herlings to go wide who instead dove to the inside instead and took the lead.
Following the pass Cairoli briefly lost touch with Herlings before reeling the #84 back in. Herlings consistently put in one fast lap after another to which Cairoli was unable to match while Gautier Paulin spent 17 laps looking for a way around Van Horebeek in 5th and with only 2 laps remain took the spot from the Belgian.
Herlings finished the race 20 seconds ahead of Cairoli to take the overall and reclaim the red plate, winning every race the weekend, and claiming his 70 GP Overall win. Herlings in the press conference said: “I really enjoyed my time here for sure all the fans were rooting for Tony but that is normal, he is Italian, he is a legend in this sport but still they cheered for me which was very respectful. I really like coming here, it was a great 2 days, I enjoyed it a lot and I am looking forward to Portugal in one week time.”
Desalle’s 2-3 finishes topped the 4-2 result of Cairoli for second and third overall respectively. Desalle in the press conference: “It was a good weekend, really consistent and I knew coming here that the start would be important. Overall it is a really positive and consistent result again everything is going good and heading in the right way.”
Antonio Cairoli who finished the MXGP of Trentino in third: “For the championship it is good to finish on the podium always but I know that we could have done better today. Jeffrey was very fast in the second race and I have to say that it was very difficult to beat him with his speed and consistency during the whole race. It was difficult but this is racing and next time we will try to be more consistent.”
MXGP Overall Top Ten
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 42 p.
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 40 p.
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 34 p.
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 32 p.
- Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 31 p.
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 29 p.
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 26 p.
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 24 p.
- Maxime Desprey (FRA, KAW), 19 p.
MXGP Championship Top Ten
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 191 points
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 181 p.
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 145 p.
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 135 p.
- Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 129 p.
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 111 p.
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 104 p.
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 83 p.
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 77 p.
- Julien Lieber (BEL, KAW), 72 p.
MX2 Report
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing has been unstoppable so far this year and while the first 6 successful races of the season were thanks to wins Pauls Jonass, his younger teammate Jorge Prado has been on the brink of taking a GP himself.
Prado took both of the MX2 FOX Holeshots and in race 1 led every lap on his way to a dominant win. Prado closest competition in race 1 came from STC Racing Husqvarna’s Henry Jacobi.
Jacobi battled to hold off Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thomas Kjer Olsen. For the first 11 laps Jacobi was successful but Olsen finally found a way by the #29. Jonass was then the next rider to catch Jacobi but instead of being passed Jacobi dug deep and instead passed Olsen 3 laps before the finish.
Prado crossed the line 7.6 seconds ahead of Jacobi with Olsen, Jonass, and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thomas Covington rounding out the top 5.
Race two was again led by Prado from the start but Covington followed closely. Team HRC’s Calvin Vlaanderen redeemed himself after crashing out of race 1 on the start by running in third to start race 2.
Jacobi also started well and by the second lap was around Vlaanderen and into 3rd. Kemea Yamaha Official MX Team’s Vsevolod Brylyakov had a break through performance in race 2 after starting in the top five and passing both Vlaanderen and Jacobi to take over third.
Vlaanderen returned the favor of being passed to Jacobi on lap 11. On the following lap Jonass and Jacobi came together sending both riders down. Both riders however were able to get up and finish the race.
At the front Covington pressured Prado one lap after another which was to no avail until the 19th and final lap where Covington took the lead and race win in a dramatic ending. Regardless of the 2nd in race 2 Prado took his second MXGP of Trentino overall victory in 2 years over Covington and Jacobi who took his first ever MX2 podium finish.
Martin Racing’s Michele Cervellin returned to the MX2 class at home this weekend after missing rounds 2 and 3 with a knee injury. Cervellin lives less than an hour from the Pietramurata circuit and made his hometown fans proud taking 7th overall after his 6th and 11th race finishes.
Jorge Prado commented: ‘It is good for me getting up closer to the leader in the points so it was almost a perfect weekend. Jonass is pretty strong and it wasn’t his best weekend but it is a long championship and there is still 16 races left this season’
Thomas Covington in the Press Conference: “First race was pretty decent for me. I have been struggling so far this season and that was a good ride for me. The second race I got a better start behind Prado and I really just tried to stick with him because he was riding a really good pace. I pretty much just went for it on the last few laps, a couple of times I thought I had him but finally made a pass stick on the last lap. It was an incredible race for me and one that I will always remember.”
Herny Jacobi shared his thoughts on his first Podium: I hope I can stick to this performance and continue to ride like that, I know I’m fast, I just need to finish it. In Valkenswaard I crashed and at Redsand also but I think if I find some consistency I can get some more top fives or podiums.
Pauls Jonass, keeping his red plate said: “I would say that the speed was there all weekend, like in free practice, warm up, time practice, everything went good but just didn’t get the best of starts. In a nutshell, the starts were not there, I made a couple of mistakes and crashed which summed up to going 4-9 in the races for 5th overall. Not the way we wanted the GP to go but we are going to keep working.”
Aussie Jed Beaton found himself initially down in twenty-fourth position in the opening MX2 moto but the Australian persevered throughout the thirty-five-minute race to advance to fifteenth at the chequered flag.
A better start in race two saw him complete the opening lap in thirteenth position and within two laps he was already ninth but he kept charging to finish the race eighth for a round result of 12th overall to now sit eighth in the championship standings. “This weekend wasn’t really good, in the first moto I collided with another rider and had no front brake in the race but came back from twenty eighth to fifteenth. My start in the second moto was much better and I came in the top ten within a few laps; I was seventh with sixth in front of me for most of the race but lost one position later. My second moto was much better and I ended the weekend on a pretty good note, but I expect more for the next GP in Portugal.”
MX2 Overall Top Ten
- Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 47 points
- Thomas Covington (USA, HUS), 41 p.
- Henry Jacobi (GER, HUS), 33 p.
- Vsevolod Brylyakov (RUS, YAM), 32 p.
- Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 30 p.
- Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), 28 p.
- Michele Cervellin (ITA, HON), 25 p.
- Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 25 p.
- Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 24 p.
- Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 22 p.
MX2 Championship Top Ten
- Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 180 points
- Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 152 p.
- Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 145 p.
- Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 105 p.
- Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), 100 p.
- Hunter Lawrence (AUS, HON), 99 p.
- Thomas Covington (USA, HUS), 91 p.
- Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 91 p.
- Vsevolod Brylyakov (RUS, YAM), 86 p.
- Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 79 p.
WMX Report
Italy also hosted the first round of the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship where nearly 50 women entered this weekend’s racing filling the class with riders both new and old to the championship but taking the overall victory was the familiar face of the #423, Larissa Papenmeier.
Papenmeier has been a part of the Women’s Motocross World Championship since the inception of the series in 2008. Larissa became the first Women’s World Championship individual race winner 10 years ago and today claimed her first overall win since 2010.
On Saturday Nancy van de Ven was the early race leader but Papenmeier took the spot from the Dutch rider on lap four. Later on Papenmeier had to hold off the charges of the defending and 5 time world champion Kiara Fontanesi.
Fontanesi started the race in 10th position but after just one lap made her way to 5th, in the remaining 9 laps she worked her way up to the back wheel of Papenmeier. However on the last lap Fontanesi pushed hard and lost the front end of her Yamaha allowing Papenmeier room to breathe as van de Ven and Amandine Verstappen took over second and third with Fontanesi crossing the line in 4th.
Sunday’s race two started with a holeshot from Verstappen over the #131 of Line Dam and Kiwi Courtney Duncan. Fontanesi again suffered a bad start completing the first lap in 9th while Duncan took the lead from Verstappen.
Duncan took full advantage of her top five start and early lead leaving Verstappen to battle with Papenmeier and Fontanesi. On lap 5 Papenmeier took over second from Verstappen who was also passed by Fontanesi and van de Ven before the finish.
Duncan took the race win but Papenmeier claimed the overall with Duncan, Fontanesi, and van de Ven all tied for second with 40 points. Race 2’s result decided the podium and left van de Ven 4th.
Duncan has had limited time back on her bike after rehabilitating from surgeries over the off-season but was pleased with her progress.
“It was a solid start to the season. Obviously yesterday’s mistake was disappointing but I’m happy to rebound today with a win and second overall is a good start to the season.”
“We have already moved our focus to Portugal this coming weekend and we are hoping to improve again,” Duncan says. “I felt solid but still the feeling is not there yet. I haven’t had a long pre-season on the bike but the more I race, the more confident I feel. We can only get better,” she says.
WMX Overall Top Ten: 1. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 45 points; 2. Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 40 p.; 3. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 40 p.; 4. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 40 p.; 5. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), 36 p.; 6. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 27 p.; 8. Emelie Dahl (SWE, YAM), 23 p.; 9. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Virginie Germond (SUI, KTM), 22 p.
WMX Championship Top Ten: 1. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 45 points; 2. Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 40 p.; 3. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 40 p.; 4. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 40 p.; 5. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), 36 p.; 6. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 27 p.; 8. Emelie Dahl (SWE, YAM), 23 p.; 9. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Virginie Germond (SUI, KTM), 22 p.
EMX125 Report
Round two of the EMX125 championship presented by FMF Racing saw 97 entries into the class for the weekend and it was Italy’s own Emilie Scuteri was able to put together a winning performance.
In Saturday’s race one we saw a textbook performance from Emil Weckman who took the lead off of the start and stayed in front each of the 15 laps. Behind Weckman a battle kicked off between Emilio Scuteri and Mieco Vettik.
Scuteri had second position to his name the first lap but the following 6 laps Vettik led the Italian. At the half way point however Scuteri reclaimed the position and pushed toward the lead of Weckman. At the finish Weckman won by just less than 4 seconds over Scuteri who in turn pulled a 5 second gap on Vettik.
Meanwhile last round’s double race and overall winner KTM Junior Racing’s Rene Hofer rode an impressive comeback performance for 17th on lap 1 through the pack to finish 4th less than 3 tenths of a second behind Vettik.
Race two was the first event on the freshly watered and prepped track leaving the riders with far different conditions from Saturday. At the start Emilio Scuteri took the holeshot over Lion Guyon while race 1 winner, Weckman, completed lap 1 in 5th.
Scuteri managed to lead the entirety of race 2 from start to finish as Rene Hofer put himself in the difficult position of having to come through the field after starting outside the top ten for the second time in 2 days.
As Hofer worked his way forward so too did Weckman all at the expense of Guyon and Raf Meuwissen. At the finish Scuteri took the race and overall win from Weckman when they tied in points but the stronger race 2 from Scuteri decide it. Following the pair of race winners with 3rd and 4th respectively in both race 2 and the overall standings were Hofer and Guyon. In terms of the championship standings Hofer remains the red plate holder with 88 points over Weckman’s 82 and Scuteri’s 72.
EMX125 Presented by FMF Racing Overall Top Ten: 1. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), 47 points; 2. Emil Weckman (FIN, KTM), 47 p.; 3. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 38 p.; 4. Tom Guyon (FRA, KTM), 34 p.; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 30 p.; 6. Raf Meuwissen (NED, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Lion Florian (GER, KTM), 23 p.; 8. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), 21 p.; 9. Meico Vettik (EST, KTM), 20 p.; 10. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 19 p.
EMX125 Presented by FMF Racing Championship Top Ten: 1. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 88 points; 2. Emil Weckman (FIN, KTM), 82 p.; 3. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), 71 p.; 4. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 60 p.; 5. Tom Guyon (FRA, KTM), 59 p.; 6. Raf Meuwissen (NED, KTM), 51 p.; 7. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), 48 p.; 8. Mario Lucas Sanz (ESP, KTM), 46 p.; 9. Filip Olsson (SWE, HUS), 44 p.; 10. Lion Florian (GER, KTM), 40 p.
