Race Report: MXGP of Thailand

The champion and MX of Nations winner made life considerably easier for himself in the second moto by seizing the lead by the second corner and effectively clearing-off with only Rockstar Husqvarna’s Max Nagl for distant company. The rapid German was again struggling slightly for starts in Thailand and was unlucky to DNF the first moto with a bike problem.

Cairoli lost any chance of his first podium of the year after appearing to stall the bike in the first corner of the second race. He was almost hit by Gajser who had to fight back to fifth to ensure a second MXGP podium appearance in just his second outing in the premier class and back-up any accusations of good fortune or a freak result in his Qatar success the previous Saturday. Again the Slovenian 19-year-old was a picture of smooth power and control and upstaged his HRC brandmates Evgeny Bobryshev (fourth overall) and Gautier Paulin (7-9 and a crash in the second moto after being unable to avoid a sliding Valentin Guillod). Cairoli was part of a strange circumstance that saw the Sicilian running with the ailing Clement Desalle (the Monster Energy rider adding six points with his still-healing left arm) and Paulin for positions just inside the top twenty. He could only come back to twelfth by the chequered flag. The second moto start was pretty miserable for the Red Bull KTM squad with Glenn Coldenhoff appearing to clip the start gate; a moment that sent the Dutchman over the bars barely a metre into the track. He pushed hard up to thirteenth before running into more trouble and retired.

Jeremy Van Horebeek was an assured presence on the Yamaha in what is sure to be the Belgian’s toughest physical test of the season. A weary Van Horebeek staggered onto the podium in third place for what was a marked improvement over 2015 in which he struggled around the jumpy Nakhonchaisri layout. “I don’t know how they [the leaders] do it!” he said. “I always feel miserable after a race like this. I think you can still see the difference on the faces and I don't think I work any less than those guys…but I’m happy to be up here. It was brutal and the next time I am in Thailand I hope it will be on a beach.”

Credit to Townley for rebounding from his first race spill to take a safe second place after overhauling Nagl. The Kiwi admitted that he had to “talk myself to the finish” but his progress in just four motos in the Stefan Everts Suzuki era is in stark contrast to that of his teammate Kevin Strijbos who is battling a confidence-sapping bout of arm-pump and is at something of a loss as to how to fix the malaise.

Townley won the qualification heat on Saturday and was then bluntly outspoken in the press conference about the suitability (or lack of it) of Suphan Buri as a world championship venue. He stressed the honesty of his views but Youthstream were allegedly far from impressed and called their first world champion (Townley won the MX2 crown in 2004, the first year for the promoters) for an explanation and Everts was also apparently non-plussed by the overt criticism.

Suphan Buri seemed to carry the problems of a new build and the “bedding-in” factor that helps terrain in terms of creating an effective surface for racing. The temperatures meant that dust was a problem and the dry earth surroundings won’t help the circuit win any awards for scenic beauty. There is little doubt that the fourth Thai Grand Prix was another mammoth undertaking for the organisers and for that you only have to applaud their ambition and desire to make the GP happen. In general the reviews were less scathing that those directed at the compact and jumpy course twelve months earlier at Nakhonchaisri. With Youthstream announcing that Indonesia will host a fixture for the next three years it is hard to see what the future will be for the Thai MXGP and whether Suphan Buri can pop up on the schedule again for 2017. The riders apparently consulted with their part-time rep, Rui Gonçalves, on Saturday night to recommend some changes to the track. “We had a meeting yesterday and I think the track was much better today, so I hope this is a direction we can keep,” revealed Febvre.

Holding his breath over one of the jumps was Red Bull KTM’s Jeffrey Herlings who came close on the third lap of the second moto to what the Dutchman described as “another season-ending moment.” Unsure whether to cite his suspension as a possible reason for the near-miss it ultimately did not deter him from attacking the scarred surface with his usual relish and competence and Herlings now has a perfect scorecard after four motos and two rounds. “The heat was pretty bad and especially coming from Europe it was tough,” he said as one of a group of athletes who elected to head home directly after Qatar and arrive in Thailand just before the race. “I was really fast over the waves and I think the suspension bottomed out and I almost went over the bars. It is hard to explain but I felt like it was not really my fault but then who’s fault is it? We kept it safe. The bike is super, super fast but we can still improve a little bit. KTM has one of the fastest if not the fastest bike in MX2. I still haven’t had too much testing with the new bike and I need a bit more time, especially on tracks like this.”

Herlings, 21, was unbeatable for his forty-ninth win and is now poised to celebrate a fiftieth in three weeks on home turf at Valkenswaard on Easter Monday. He remains undefeated in the Dutch sand since 2010. Suzuki’s Jeremy Seewer gave the Everts-controlled crew reason for joy by following up his fourth place from Qatar with second overall and a first trophy of the year on the RM-Z250 while Wilvo Standing Construct Yamaha’s Aleksandr Tonkov battled back from a second moto engine stall while third—that saw him plummet to ninth but rally back to fourth—to post his first rostrum-walk in blue. Husqvarna’s Max Anstie recovered from a first moto mechanical to pip Seewer for second place on the last lap of the second moto and teammate Thomas Covington fell exiting the second corner of the same race. The American was thirteenth overall after failing to finish but earned merit for at least attempting the Grand Prix in spite of a bout of illness.

Febvre and Herlings are in control of the standings as MXGP heads back to cooler climbs. Febvre actually joked he was looking forward to “five degrees and sand” for round three at Valkenswaard. While MX2 is already in Herlings’ annual vice-like grip the premier class still has to see the best of the likes of Cairoli, Desalle, Paulin, Simpson and Coldenhoff.