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Motocross

Gautier Paulin wins Bulgaria GP, Herlings remains undefeated in MX2

Author: Aaryn Minerds

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Gautier Paulin and the Kawasaki Racing Team have won the Bulgarian round of the FIM World MX1 Motocross Championship at the glorious hillside track of Sevlievo for the second consecutive year.

Frenchman Paulin dominated proceedings from the word go as he set fastest time in both practice sessions and scored a runaway victory in the qualification race.

He then repeated the feat in the opening GP moto, leading from the first lap, before wrapping up the GP victory with a secure second place in race two, finishing behind championship points leader Antonio Cairoli.

His 47-point haul has lifted the 23-year-old to second in the championship after five races of the 17 round series.

‰ÛÏIt was a very good weekend, and it was great to race head to head with Antonio Cairoli as it had been difficult to accept him winning so many races in the earlier GPs." Paulin stated.

"I had a great feeling with the track and my Kawasaki right from the first practice session, and today I got two good starts. I got the holeshot in the first moto and won, then in the second I learnt a lot racing with Antonio.

"It‰Ûªs great to win a GP, the first one for me this season; I have now scored four podiums including this GP win in the first five GPs and look forward to yet more victories in the races still to come.

"The KRT team is working well and we know where we can improve yet further; and I want to thanks all the people who are working with me," he added.
Cairoli has a 40 point lead over Paulin in the MX1 Championship standings - Credit R.Archer
Reigning MX1 championship leader and current world champion Cairoli has never won the GP of Bulgaria in the MX1 class, with his last win in Bulgaria coming in 2007 in MX2.

He again had a tough start to his day finishing in fourth place in the opening moto. This left him a lot to do in the second moto and Cairoli did not disappoint.

After having switched to his favourite luminous ‰Û÷Valentino Rossi‰Ûª yellow boots and helmet, the Italian rider grabbed the holeshot but then slipped back into second after being passed by Paulin on lap one.

Then eight minutes into the race he took control, grabbed back the lead and stayed firmly in front until the checkered flag. At the end of the day, Cairoli picked up enough points to take the second podium spot and further advance his lead in the championship standings.

"I have two GPS where I didn‰Ûªt win. My goal was always to be on the top spot but hopefully I will be able to do my best in the next GP and things will go better for me." Cairoli commented at the end of the weekends racing.
Desalle claimed his first Podium in Europe for 2013 - Credit Suzuki Racing
Rockstar Energy Suzuki World‰Ûªs Clement Desalle was back on the podium this weekend after finishing third in both races. After two great starts Desalle had to battle with his teammate Kevin Strijbos to finish on the podium.

In the first race Desalle could not overtake Strijbos, while in the second one Desalle finished in front of his teammate, with Desalle at the end of the day just getting the overall podium position in front of his team mate.

"I'm happy to take my first podium in Europe," Desalle enthused. "I had some bad luck in the last two grands prix and I was disappointed about that so it feels good to be back.

"I had some good starts and I'm happy about that and was with Kevin for most the day. Some moves were really close and we had to be careful! It was a good battle for sure and we rode together for almost every lap.

"I tried some stuff to pass him in the first moto but then had two laps of making mistakes and he made a gap. I concentrated again and got close and then passed him but he came straight back; I didn't expect him to come so close.

"Anyway, no crashes, good fighting and this result feels good," he concluded.
Strijbos finished with the same amount of points for the round as his team mate, but missed the podium on count back - Credit Suzuki Racing
Strijbos was a little disappointed with his fourth position in the second race because a problem with his goggles stopped him from fighting for the the final podium position.

"It was good today. I got most of it right in the first race; at the end my team-mate passed me and I could get him right back, so I was happy with that." Strijbos stated.

"In the second race I felt OK, got a good start but Tony ran wide, hit the berm and I had to slow down a little bit so not to hit him. I was fourth and stayed there the whole time!

"I was pushing hard but on the fifth lap a rock hit my goggle and the lens popped out, and that was about it. I couldn't get close to Clement and every time I did I had sand in my face and it was flying around when I was going over the jumps.

"I wasn't happy about that but overall it has been a good weekend. I had good speed for the podium and now I'll work a bit more to try and make it happen in Portugal."
Van Horbeek rounded out the top five in Bulgaria
Kawasaki Racing Team‰Ûªs Jeremy Van Horebeek claimed his best result of the season this weekend finishing fifth overall. In the first race the Belgian rider started down in eighth and he rode behind Davide Philippaerts most of the moto, but in the last laps Van Horebeek closed the gap, overtook the Italian and crossed the finish line seventh.

In the second race Van Horebeek had a better start and he was riding fifth comfortably until he was overtaken by Ken De Dycker and had to settle for sixth place.

‰ÛÏI‰Ûªm happy to be back in the top five; it‰Ûªs so great to do some good motos." Van Horebeek stated. "I'm still not at my best as I couldn‰Ûªt train this week due to my shoulder injury, and the last ten minutes of both races were tough.

"But it‰Ûªs great to be back near the front; I have been so many times on the podiums in the MX2 class and now I want to be there in MX1.

"I had a great feeling right from the first practice session this weekend, and now I‰Ûªm confident as we have two weeks before Portugal; I will have time to work, and for sure I will be stronger there," he added.

Tommy Searle finished six over all, just ahead of De Dycker who stuggled with starts all weekend. Philippaerts finished 8th overall while Max Nagl and Davide Guarneri rounded out the top ten in ninth and tenth respectively.

MX2
Jeffrey the "Bullet" Herlings remains untouchable in 2013 - Credit R. Archer
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing‰Ûªs Jeffrey Herlings turned on the heat on the Sevlievo circuit in Bulgaria on Sunday to take two very dominant wins in the MX2 GP.

It was the Duch rider's first career GP win at this traditional and very popular circuit and leaves him unbeaten in 2013 with five GP wins from 10 race victories.

"So far so good! Its never easy, I‰Ûªve been making some mistakes but luckily they didn‰Ûªt happen on a Sunday so far." Herling commented after the second moto in Bulgaria.

"I haven‰Ûªt lost a moto yet and I keep on charging. For the moment the only one who can stop the bullet is the bullet himself," the Ducth rider added.
Tixier continues to impress in the MX2 class - Credit R. Archer
Herlings Teammate Jordi Tixier put up a good battle, especially in the first race where he took the holeshot and held off Herlings‰Ûª hard attacks until lap seven of the race.

In reality it was an event that was dominated by the two KTM riders, one Dutch and one French and while it was undoubtedly Herlings day, it is clear that Tixier is gaining in confidence in the face of fierce competition from his teammate.

"Sure I enjoyed that, I got a good start and I tried to push to stay in front of Jeffrey." Tixier commented. "It‰Ûªs my goal to be at the maximum and in the front.

"Jeffrey is a pretty good rider - the world champion in 2012. Now I just want to give my best all the time and if I can stay in front of him for 10 laps the next time, i will.

"I just want to learn from him because it is good for me and we‰Ûªll see what happens," he added.
Alessandro Lupino stood on the MX2 podium for the first time ever in the MX2 world championship in Bulgaria -Credit: Kawasaki Racing
It was a great day for Alessandro Lupino who was able to finish eighth and third to secure his maiden podium in the MX2 class.

The CLS MX2 Kawasaki Monster Energy Pro Circuit rider was riding with two ribs broken from a crash he suffered in Arco di Trento, but he admitted that he could not feel the pain when he was riding third in the second race.

‰ÛÏIt‰Ûªs so nice to be on the podium, the first one in my career! I didn‰Ûªt know that I was on the podium, and didn‰Ûªt expect that as I finished only eighth in the first race." Lupino stated.

"I have a great feeling with the team and my bike, but in the previous GPs I couldn‰Ûªt show that and it was difficult to accept it. I had some better starts today, in the top ten in race one and top five in race two and that makes things much easier, but I must still work to improve my starts even more.

"I had to take some pills for the pain as I broke two ribs last week; it was painful during the first ten minutes but then it was OK.‰Û
MX1 Podium - Credit: Kawasaki Racing
MX1 Race one - Round 5: Bulgaria
1. Gautier Paulin 40:14.945 FRA KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
2. Kevin Strijbos +0:04.689 BEL SUZUKI Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
3. Clement Desalle +0:06.006 BEL SUZUKI Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
4. Antonio Cairoli +0:30.205 ITA KTM Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
5. Tommy Searle +0:35.733 GBR KAWASAKI CLS Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit
6. Maximilian Nagl +0:40.606 GER HONDA Honda World Motocross
7. Jeremy Van Horebeek +0:45.322 BEL KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
8. David Philippaerts +0:52.735 ITA HONDA Honda Gariboldi
9. Ken De Dycker +1:05.573 BEL KTM Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
10. Davide Guarneri +1:14.625 ITA KTM Marchetti Racing
11. Joel Roelants +1:18.388 BEL YAMAHA Monster Energy Yamaha
12. Shaun Simpson +1:35.706 GBR TM TM Ricci Racing
13. Matiss Karro +1:39.459 LAT KTM Team STR KTM
14. Jonathan Barragan +1:43.270 ESP KTM Team STR KTM
15. Rui Gon̤alves +1:45.119 POR KTM ICE1 Racing
16. Xavier Boog +1:45.957 FRA KTM ICE1 Racing
17. Tanel Leok +1 lap EST HONDA Route 77 Energy Honda
18. Jason Dougan +1 lap GBR HONDA Route 77 Energy Honda
19. Augusts Justs +1 lap LAT HONDA Latvia Elksni Honda
20. Lauri Lethla +1 lap EST KTM KTM wildcard

MX1 Race TTwo - Round 5: Bulgaria
1. Antonio Cairoli 40:00.784 ITA KTM Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
2. Gautier Paulin +0:02.888 FRA KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
3. Clement Desalle +0:07.415 BEL SUZUKI Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
4. Kevin Strijbos +0:08.501 BEL SUZUKI Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
5. Ken De Dycker +0:40.876 BEL KTM Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
6. Jeremy Van Horebeek +0:44.408 BEL KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
7. Rui Gon̤alves +0:47.683 POR KTM ICE1 Racing
8. Tommy Searle +0:48.078 GBR KAWASAKI CLS Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit
9. David Philippaerts +0:56.418 ITA HONDA Honda Gariboldi
10. Davide Guarneri +1:01.838 ITA KTM Marchetti Racing
11. Maximilian Nagl +1:08.467 GER HONDA Honda World Motocross
12. Shaun Simpson +1:15.262 GBR TM TM Ricci Racing
13. Joel Roelants +1:26.397 BEL YAMAHA Monster Energy Yamaha
14. Jonathan Barragan +1:31.365 ESP KTM Team STR KTM
15. Tanel Leok +1:41.591 EST HONDA Route 77 Energy Honda
16. Augusts Justs +1 lap LAT HONDA Latvia Elksni Honda
17. Lauri Lethla +1 lap EST KTM KTM wildcard
18. Jason Dougan +2 laps GBR HONDA Route 77 Energy Honda
19. Xavier Boog +15 laps FRA KTM ICE1 Racing
20. Matiss Karro +21 laps LAT KTM Team STR KTM

MX1 Championship standings after round 5:
1. Antonio Cairoli 235 pts
2. Gautier Paulin 195 pts
3. Clement Desalle 189 pts
4. Ken De Dycker 183 pts
5. Kevin Strijbos 160 pts
6. Tommy Searle 147 pts
7. Rui Gon̤alves 109 pts
8. Maximilian Nagl 100 pts
9. Xavier Boog 90 pts
10. Evgeny Bobryshev 87 pts
11. David Philippaerts 86 pts
12. Tanel Leok 79 pts
13. Jeremy Van Horebeek 78 pts
14. Davide Guarneri 74 pts
15. Shaun Simpson 72 pts
16. Joel Roelants 61 pts
17. Jonathan Barragan 58 pts
18. Steven Frossard 47 pts
19. Matiss Karro 38 pts
20. Augusts Justs 33 pts
MX2 Podium - Credit:R.Archer
MX2 Race one - Round 5: Bulgaria
1 Jeffrey Herlings KTM NED 39'21.965
2 Jordi Tixier KTM FRA 0'25.397
3 Valentin Teillet Kawasaki FRA 0'36.700
4 Jose Antonio Butron KTM ESP 0'42.217
5 Glenn Coldenhoff KTM NED 0'44.519
6 Jake Nicholls KTM GBR 0'47.745
7 Christophe Charlier Yamaha FRA 0'55.354
8 Alessandro Lupino Kawasaki ITA 0'56.889
9 Max Anstie Suzuki GBR 0'57.541
10 Dean Ferris Yamaha AUS 1'10.358
11 Mel Pocock Yamaha GBR 1'12.338
12 Petar Petrov Yamaha BGR 1'13.528
13 Harri Kullas Honda FIN 1'43.583
14 Maxime Desprey Yamaha FRA 1'50.677
15 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT -1Laps

MX2 Race two - Round 5: Bulgaria
1 Jeffrey Herlings KTM NED 40'29.060
2 Jordi Tixier KTM FRA 0'40.387
3 Alessandro Lupino Kawasaki ITA 0'44.302
4 Max Anstie Suzuki GBR 0'47.967
5 Christophe Charlier Yamaha FRA 1'02.871
6 Dean Ferris Yamaha AUS 1'10.192
7 Jose Antonio Butron KTM ESP 1'11.042
8 Glenn Coldenhoff KTM NED 1'23.777
9 Dylan Ferrandis Kawasaki FRA 1'24.743
10 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT 1'36.000
11 Petar Petrov Yamaha BGR 1'38.307
12 Harri Kullas Honda FIN 1'38.771
13 Ivo Monticelli Suzuki ITA 1'50.746
14 Jake Nicholls KTM GBR -1Laps
15 Stefan Olsen Honda DNK -1Laps

MX1 Championship standings after round 5:
1. Jeffrey Herlings 250 pts
2. Jordi Tixier 185 pts
3. Glenn Coldenhoff 157 pts
4. Jose Antonio Butron 143 pts
5. Christophe Charlier 137 pts
6. Max Anstie 128 pts
7. Dean Ferris 115 pts
8. Alessandro Lupino ITA 109 pts
9. Jake Nicholls 104 pts
10. Romain Febvre 98 pts
11. Mel Pocock 87 pts
12. Petar Petrov 80 pts
13. Julien Lieber 71 pts
14. Pascal Rauchenecker 64 pts
15. Dylan Ferrandis Kawasaki 64 pts

Top Image: Gautier Paulin winning his first GP for 2013
Credit: (Kawasaki Racing)

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