Motocross

Jeffrey Herlings unstoppable at German MXGP

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Monday, May 21st, 2018

6:28 AM

Jeffrey Herlings unstoppable at German MXGP

Jeffrey Herlings‰Ûª mastery of the 2018 FIM Motocross World Championship rolled on with his sixth victory from eight rounds today at the Grand Prix of Germany. Photo: Ray Archer

Jeffrey Herlings has extended his MXGP championship lead with a commanding double win at the 8th stop of FIM Motocross World Championship‰Ûªs in Teutschenthal Germany.

In the MX2 class it was a battle of the team-mates with Spaniard Jorge Prado taking the victory in the MX2 class after sharing moto wins with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team-mate Pauls Jonass as the duo consolidate their battle for the 2018 championship.

A reworked track and sunshine led to perfect conditions in front of thousands of German motocross fans and created an amazing atmosphere for racing. The hills of Teutschenthal were filled with the some of the loudest and most energetic fans seen so far this season who would witness some of the most interesting racing to match.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing‰Ûªs Jeffrey Herlings continued to add to his winning resume this weekend with double race wins and both were by substantial margin over Team HRC‰Ûªs Tim Gajser and Frenchman Gautier Paulin.

Herlings hit the front by the second corner in both MXGP motos. Photo. Ray Archer

Race 1 started with a season first Fox Holeshot from Paulin but Herlings was right alongside the Frenchman and took the position almost immediately. In third behind the pair was Gajser and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP‰Ûªs Romain Febvre.

On the first lap Febvre‰Ûªs Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP teammate, Jeremy Van Horebeek, ran in 6th just behind Clement Desalle. However only a lap later the #89 of Van Horebeek was moved back by Red Bull KTM Factory Racing‰Ûªs Antonio Cairoli.

Cairoli proceeded to the back wheel of Desalle for several laps before he lost control in a rutted turn and dropped his KTM. The mistake cost Cairoli but only in the way of time as he remounted in the same position in which he fell.

HRC Honda's Tim Gajser carded a pair of seconds to take second place overall in the MXGP class. Photo: Youthstream.

Meanwhile Herlings again pulled away from the field leaving Paulin and Gajser to battle over second. On the 14th lap of 18 Gajser made a pass on Paulin and then pulled away from the Husqvarna rider. Across the finish Herlings won by just over 16 seconds with Gajser 2nd, Paulin 3rd, while Cairoli took 6th behind Desalle and Febvre.

Race 2‰Ûªs start was remarkably similar as Paulin took the Fox Holeshot but Herlings took the lead before the second corner. A mistake from Paulin on the opening lap allowed Gajser into second but Paulin quickly rejoined the race just ahead of his fellow Frenchman, Febvre.

Behind Febvre was Van Horebeek on lap 1 with Desalle and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing‰Ûªs Glenn Coldenhoff behind the pair of YZ450s. On the second lap Van Horebeek made a mistake which put him off the side of the bike and into the path of Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team‰Ûªs Julien Lieber. Lieber was able to remount his Kawasaki in 15th but Van Horebeek would not resume the race.

The incident helped Cairoli to move forward in the running order from 9th to 6th once again finding himself behind Desalle. In the following 15 laps the top 8 riders remained in the same position before Febvre dropped 3 positions in lap 16 and BOS GP‰Ûªs Evgeny Bobryshev lost a 8th position to TM Racing Factory Team‰Ûªs Max Nagl.

Frenchman Gautier Paulin scored both Holeshots in MXGP but ultimately dropped back to third in each moto to claim the last step of the MXGP podium. Photo: Youthstream

Nagl, racing at his home GP, had an impressive comeback to the 8th spot after starting in 16th, all with the help of the vocal support from his fans. Across the finish line Herlings beat out Gajser by over 28 seconds with Paulin, Desalle, and Cairoli rounding out the top five. In the overall result the math was easy for the consistent 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers, Herlings, Gajser, and Paulin. Cairoli would end up outside the top 5 in 6th with Desalle 4th and Febvre 5th.

‰ÛÏGood starts again and my riding was really good both motos," Herlings said at the end of the day. "I cannot ask for more than leading every single lap this weekend. I‰Ûªm really pleased and it‰Ûªs a bit of a dream weekend. This track is not one of my favourites ‰ÛÒ even if I don't really mind most of the circuits ‰ÛÒ but they prepped it better than yesterday and there were some more lines and it was a bit rougher. Onto the next one!‰Û

Spaniard Jorge Prado took the win in moto 2 of the MX2 class while team-mate Pauls Jonass took the first. Prado was awarded the win. Photo. Ray Archer

In the MX2 class racing was close throughout the field but especially among Red Bull KTM Factory Racing‰Ûªs Jorge Prado and Pauls Jonass, along with Team HRC‰Ûªs Calvin Vlaanderen, Kemea Yamaha Official MX2‰Ûªs Ben Watson, and STC Racing Husqvarna‰Ûªs Henry Jacobi.

At the start of Race 1 the KTM pair of Prado and Jonass rocketed out of the gate while Hitachi KTM UK‰Ûªs Conrad Mewse crashed down the start straight. Prado took the Fox Holeshot but just like Paulin in the MXGP class Prado was passed right away by the points leader, Jonass.

With Prado chasing Jonass for the lead on the opening lap the German MX2 hero Jacobi ran in 3rd. Unfortunately for Jacobi his bike lost traction as he jumped up onto the start straight causing him to bobble and letting both Vlaanderen and Watson past.

The MX2 class head into battle. Photo: Ray Archer

While Vlaanderen put his head down to catch Jonass and Prado, Thomas Kjer Olsen was battling with F&H Racing Team‰Ûªs Jed Beaton. The battle between the Aussie and the Dane ended badly however as Olsen scrubbed his Husqvarna into the side of Beaton‰Ûªs Kawasaki. The mid air mishap sent both riders down but both managed to continue the race. Beaton got back up in around 13th while Olsen was in 19th.

As the Beaton and Olsen worked their way forward, Prado was unable to find a way around Jonass as Vlaanderen was applying pressure to the Spaniard. Luckily for Prado, Vlaanderen was also struggling to find a preferred passing spot and both remained 2nd and 3rd whilst Jonass won the race. Well worth mentioning was Beaton‰Ûªs charge through the pack to finish 7th while Olsen only managed to reach 15th.

Race 2 started with another Fox Holeshot from Jorge Prado after hitting elbows with Jonass into the first turn. Prado clearly learned a lesson from race 1 and did not allow Jonass to take the lead early again.

After finishing on equal points as the winner, Pauls Jonass never lost anything in his championship lead. Photo: Ray Archer

Again in 3rd after the start was Jacobi who managed to hold the position longer. Just behind Jacobi with an amazing start was the number 931 of Andrea Zanotti from San Marino. On the 3rd lap Olsen found his way into the 4th spot but only 2 laps after taking the position Vlaanderen took it away. Olsen then came under heat from Watson who made it past the Dane on lap 11. Only a lap after that Jacobi was moved back by both Vlaanderen and Watson.

Prado crossed the finish 5 seconds ahead of Jonass leaving the #61 with the overall. Even though the pair leave tied in points the overall win for Prado was significant and it gave Claudio de Carli his 100th win as Team Manager. Vlaanderen took his 2nd third place finish of the day marking his best ever result and giving him his first MX2 podium of not only 2018 but also aboard his new HRC bike.

‰ÛÏThe first race was quite tough and in the second race I knew the start was really important, I don‰Ûªt know what happened off the gate‰Û_ but I went into to Pauls a little bit and we kind of fought into the first corner to see who would get the FOX Holeshot but I was on the inside and after that I could just lead every lap so I‰Ûªm pretty happy," Prado said.

South African Calvin Vlaanderen put his HRC Honda on the podium in MX2 with third place. Photo: Youthstream

Despite finishing second, Pauls Jonass, finished with equal points so lost none of his championship lead.

‰ÛÏI‰Ûªm feeling good; didn't lose anything, didn't gain anything," Jonass said. "I wanted the top step of the podium but I always tend to struggle a little bit on this track. That first moto was tough because Jorge was always pushing and then in the second moto he pulled a little gap and I just couldn't close it. He was riding really well this weekend. We‰Ûªll go back home and work on a few things and I know what we need to do.‰Û

Aussie Jed Beaton finished 5th overall and now sits in the same position in the championship standings.

MXGP Race 1 Top Ten:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 34:00.399
2. Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:16.255
3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:24.028
4. Romain Febvre (FRA, Yamaha), +0:30.534
5. Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:34.056
6. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:38.000
7. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:40.490
8. Julien Lieber (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:42.772
9. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:45.918
10. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Suzuki), +0:53.710.

MXGP Race 2 Top Ten:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 35:12.176
2. Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:28.620
3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:32.863
4. Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:48.723
5. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:58.165
6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +1:03.226
7. Romain Febvre (FRA, Yamaha), +1:10.615
8. Maximilian Nagl (GER, TM), +1:12.138
9. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Suzuki), +1:18.087
10. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +1:18.923.

MXGP Overall Top Ten:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points
2. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 44 p.
3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 40 p.
4. Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 34 p.
5. Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 32 p.
6. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 31 p.
7. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 27 p.
8. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, SUZ), 23 p.
9. Maximilian Nagl (GER, TM), 22 p.
10. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 21 p.

MXGP Championship Top Ten:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 386 points
2. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 338 p.
3. Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 278 p.
4. Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 258 p.
5. Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 255 p.
6. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 221 p.
7. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 207 p.
8. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 193 p.
9. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 176 p.
10. Julien Lieber (BEL, KAW), 149 p.

MX2 Race 1 Top Ten:
1. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 35:15.756
2. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), +0:01.421
3. Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, Honda), +0:03.062
4. Ben Watson (GBR, Yamaha), +0:04.047
5. Henry Jacobi (GER, Husqvarna), +0:30.914
6. Michele Cervellin (ITA, Honda), +0:32.752
7. Jed Beaton (AUS, Kawasaki), +0:33.692
8. Samuele Bernardini (ITA, TM), +0:36.420
9. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Honda), +0:46.183
10. Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, Husqvarna), +0:47.923.

MX2 Race 2 Top Ten:
1. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 34:32.231
2. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), +0:05.017
3. Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, Honda), +0:10.067
4. Ben Watson (GBR, Yamaha), +0:11.950
5. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), +0:25.126
6. Jed Beaton (AUS, Kawasaki), +0:26.579
7. Michele Cervellin (ITA, Honda), +0:33.729
8. Henry Jacobi (GER, Husqvarna), +0:35.520
9. Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), +0:55.600
10. Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), +1:00.888.

MX2 Overall Top Ten:
1. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 47 points
2. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 47 p.
3. Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 40 p.
4. Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 36 p.
5. Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 29 p.
6. Michele Cervellin (ITA, HON), 29 p.
7. Henry Jacobi (GER, HUS), 29 p.
8. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 22 p.
9. Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), 22 p.
10. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 20 p.

MX2 Championship Top Ten:
1. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 351 points
2. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 329 p.
3. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 288 p.
4. Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 246 p.
5. Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 203 p.
6. Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 196 p.
7. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 160 p.
8. Henry Jacobi (GER, HUS), 157 p.
9. Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), 140 p.
10. Michele Cervellin (ITA, HON), 139 p.