Race Report: MXGP of Czech Republic

Cairoli was already looking at a 41-point gap to Febvre, which crept up to 91 after Loket where Febvre went 1-1 for the second time this year. The 23-year-old rookie now heads every chart in MXGP (wins, podiums, moto victories, laps led) except for pole positions. He faced some opposition from Bobryshev and some repost from Desalle in the second moto—the Belgian returned from a right knee injury for his first race since the GP of Italy three rounds ago, but had only ridden the works RM-Z450 twice in seven weeks—but his blend of confidence, unfailing good starts, and attacking style is an unbeatable package at the moment. 

When asked why he has been so damn effective with the YZ450FM, this was all he could offer: “It is difficult to say. I think my riding style with the bike just goes very well. I know this because I was already doing well with the standard model this winter. For sure, with the factory bike, we can adapt everything to suit me. Even if we win some races and take some GPs, we still continue to work and progress with the bike, and that is the main thing. We can keep moving forward, and it is going well.” 

Emphasis in the championship tale has swung to HRC’s Gautier Paulin, who has been negotiating a consistent, yet unremarkable, first season on the works CRF450RW and mounting the weak beginnings of a duel to be the first French premier class world champion since Mickael Pichon took the 2002 250cc title. Paulin fell out of third place in the first moto and tweaked his right knee, although both rider and team insist it was not a big ailment. The Motocross of Nations winner instead stated that he simply couldn't find the feeling he wanted on the slippery and stony surface, even if some of his line choices were immaculate and a joy to watch. Paulin’s seventh-place overall did nothing to assure spectators or even his own fans that he has something in the locker to disrupt Febvre. The Yamaha rider was able to lift the trophy in the Czech Republic and also increase his lead in the championship to 88 over Paulin.

The last time MXGP went into the sand, Febvre posted his worst result of the season (at Valkenswaard for round five, where he was seventh), and Paulin was utterly dominant for his sole triumph to-date on the CRF450RW. Paulin will no doubt be wishing for a similar outcome at Lommel.

Belgians Kevin Strijbos and Jeremy Van Horebeek took up residence in the top five at Loket, and MXGP’s top privateer, Shaun Simpson, made the top six and was particularly quick in the second moto. Latvian Grand Prix conqueror Glenn Coldenhoff couldn't set the same speed that he managed in the fine soil of Kegums, and a second moto crash while closing on Paulin led to a painful neck. Searle went down twice in the same race while bearing the weight of the battle-weary KTM crew, and Philippaerts’s bike stopped over a jump, meaning the Italian was lucky to walk back to the paddock banged-up, with a slight concussion, and six stitches in his right arm.

Red Bull KTM’s Jeffrey Herlings once again made headlines on Saturday, and once more it was for the wrong reasons, as the Dutchman’s injury curse continued and prompted the 20-year-old, who, in the past year, has sustained a broken left femur, a stomach infection, further leg surgery, an injured heel, broken collarbone, ripped left little finger, and now a dislocated right hip to state “f--k 2015” on his social media channels.

After falling and being blamelessly struck by world champion and former teammate Jordi Tixier (the Frenchman needed stitches in a gashed arm, which meant he ended up in the same hospital and repeatedly stated his regret to his ex-team), Herlings needed some thirty minutes of treatment on track and was given two saline drips to cope with the pain of his dislocation. KTM later confirmed that Herlings had not broken any bones, but it’s another season-ending and championship-losing ailment for the luckless athlete.

After the shock of the episode had started to subside and KTM was coming to terms with the fact that it has only 50 percent of a six-rider roster currently active, there was little doubt that the repercussions of Saturday’s ugly incident would have an interesting effect on the MX2 series for the rest of the year, with five riders split by 65 points in the standings before the gate dropped in Loket. 

Valentin Guillod owned the class with a rampaging and unforgiving turn of speed. A slow tumble in the first moto dropped him out of third and a sure-fire run at Anstie, who was riding well to post his third race win on the trot. He fired back to depose Tixier for second on the last lap. Gajser was briefly in the mix until he hit some trackside banking that also flipped Jeremy Seewer into the dirt. The Slovenian was battling his own demons, with a right ankle injury from the Grand Prix of Latvia two weeks prior and a sore torso from crashing into a tree while training with a 450 in the days leading up to the Czech round. Seewer had inadvertently crunched the Honda’s exhaust, so Gajser registered a DNF. 

MX2 was Anstie’s to lose after a second-moto holeshot, and the Brit did just that while out front after five laps. Perhaps too comfortable through the waves adjacent to the start straight, he was sent flying and was winded for his trouble. “It probably wasn't the best idea: forgetting to hold on…” he deadpanned. Guillod and Gajser disputed the lead until the Swiss checked out for this third GP win of the season. The battle for third involved six riders, but Tixier ultimately took it. Red Bull KTM’s Pauls Jonass gave the Austrians some light relief with his second runner-up result in succession; the teenage Latvian remains in the hunt for MX2 honors.