Paulin - Back to Back Wins

MX GP Portugal

maddix park mx

www.fullnoise.com.au  By: Aaryn Minerds

The beautiful layout and challenging red dirt of Agueda hosted the sixth Grand Prix of the 2013 FIM Motocross World Championship where Gautier Paulin secured his second overall victory in a row and Jeffrey Herlings dominated once again the MX2 class.

Kawasaki Racing Team’s Gautier Paulin was satisfied after winning his second Grand Prix in a row even, though he was not able to win both motos of the Portuguese Grand Prix. The French rider started behind Antonio Cairoli in the first race but he managed to overtake him in the early stages of the heat and Paulin kept the lead until the chequered flag.

After another good start in the second race Paulin tried to make the pass on Cairoli but was unable to complete the task at hand settling for a second place moto finish and securing his second GP win in as many rounds.

“Of course I'm delighted with this GP win, especially after the great battle in the first moto with Antonio." Paulin stated. "He wanted to win it as badly I did and for sure we both had a lot of fun, but I was able to pass him and then stay in front.

"It’s great to win two GPs in a row; it’s the first time in my career that I have achieved this and I want to thank all the people and partners who are behind me. I had a good feeling on the bike all weekend; now we must continue to work to stay in front as we have eleven more GPs to race," he added.

 


Cairoli maintained his championship lead with a podium performance - Credit: R.Archer
 

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Cairoli missed the overall victory for only two points after finishing 3-1 in today’s races. The Italian took the holeshot in both motos and while he succeeded in dominating the second one from the beginning to the end, in the first one it was not possible for the Italian re pass Paulin for the win.

Cairoli pushed hard from the beginning to pass Paulin back and in the last lap, closed in but suffered a big crash. Fortunately, Cairoli did not have any major injury and even with his KTM’s front brake damaged, he managed to finish the race in the third position. All in all the Italian was satisfied with his weekend and he admitted that he really enjoyed riding once again in the Portuguese track.

“Paulin was trying to attack all the time but I was still able to win." Cairoli explained, "It’s a shame it wasn’t enough to win the GP but it was still good for the points and the championship.”

 


Desalle managed to land on the podium despite a difficult day - Credit: Suzuki Racing
 

Rockstar Energy Suzuki World’s Clement Desalle started the weekend well by wining the qualifying race, but things got complicated for the Belgian rider even though he was able to finish third overall for the round.

In the first race he started third but he struggled to find his rhythm in order to give charge to Cairoli and Paulin. In the end Desalle crossed the finish line second taking advantage of Cairoli’s mistake.

Desalle had another good start in the second moto and this time he rode third behind Paulin for the majority of the race. However at the end of the moto, the Belgian suffered a hefty crash. Desalle managed to get back on his Suzuki and finished the race fifth with a lot of pain on his neck and back.

"What can I say, In the first moto I had good speed but I struggled the whole heat." Desalle commented. "I wasn't relaxed and couldn't find my rhythm. It was not so good, but also not so bad to finish third.

"In the next moto I was fourth at the start but it was the same thing: I was stuck behind Paulin and found it really difficult to pass. I couldn't find a way, and Cairoli was just ahead. In the last two laps I said to myself 'it's now or never'.

"I did a good lap-time and got really close to Paulin but had a big crash in the braking bumps and now I have pain everywhere. I picked up the bike and could finish the race but my neck and back is painful. I was in the medical centre and they said I was OK but if tomorrow it is worse then I will go for a scan on Tuesday.

"I just went into that jump a bit faster than previous laps and the bumps kicked me over the top. I can't remember if the bike hit me or not. It was a hard track but I liked it. I'm disappointed because I felt like I could win the GP.

"The two guys were just in front of me. Anyway, I did my best and I can only hope for some more fortune in the next races," he added.

 


De-dycker just missed the podium - Credit: R.Archer
 

The fourth overall position was for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Ken De Dycker who finished seventh and third in today’s races. It was not an easy weekend for CLS MX2 Kawasaki Monster Energy Pro Circuit’s Tommy Searle but he rode really well both motos and finished fifth overall just one point behind De Dycker.

Max Nagl claimed sixth overall for the round ahead of Jeremy Van Hoarebeek in seventh, with David Philippaerts, Kevin Strijbos and home rider Rui Gonçalves completing the top ten overall positions.

MX2

 


Herlings now has 12 straight moto wins in 2013 - Credit: R.Archer
 

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings was very satisfied with his starts this weekend after he rocketed to his first Get Athena Holeshot after being the first rider to reach the first corner in moto one.

Herlings dominated both motos from the get go, but in the second one he made a couple of mistakes while he was leading. However, Herlings had such a big advantage he was still able to cross the finish line with over a minute between himself and Australian Dean Ferris who finished second.

“This weekend I did my best and I worked hard on my starts." Herlings stated. "I took the three hole shots and was leading in every lap.

"The speed was unbelievable. I was as fast as the MX1 guys so I couldn’t ask for more,” Herlings added”

 


Aussie Dean Ferris was back on the podium at round six - Credit: Yamaha Racing
 

Monster Energy Yamaha’s Ferris was back on the podium after finishing sixth and second in the two moto format. The Australian rider succeeded in having two great starts and rode next to Herlings during the first few corners of both motos.

A mistake while in second place in the opening moto dropped him down to the seventh place. Ferris put in a consistent race in the second moto, racing to a solid second place finish to secure second overall and returned to the MX2 podium for the first time since round one.

“This actually feels better than the first podium in Qatar because I was really sick there and couldn’t really soak up what it meant." Ferris explained. This one is a bit more special.

"I’ve been coming back from injury and battling forward for the past six weeks and I’m pretty much fully fit now. I was in a tough battle throughout that whole second moto and that is probably the fittest I have ever felt in a Grand Prix.

"I actually messed up my start in the first moto and somehow ‘made it happen’ through the first two turns to end up second behind Jeffrey. I had broken away from third and had a few seconds over them when I had a silly tip-off in the turn before the step-up. It took me a while to get the bike up because the clutch lever was stuck in the ground.

"I was trying to keep it running. After that I couldn’t really get forward any more because there were about seven riders all going the same speed. I was pretty tough on myself afterwards because I had thrown away a lot of points and could have been a comfortable second but moto two was much better" he continued.

"The start helped and I tried to push hard to break away but must have made a big mistake somewhere because Tixier got very close for around fifteen to twenty minutes and it was very cat-and-mouse. Near the end he started being a bit defensive because Coldhenhoff was right with him and that gave me a bit of a gap.

"I was chasing my lap-times and watching the pit-board but I didn’t even know I was on the podium until I finished so it was a nice surprise with a 6-2. In the off-season I knew I could be a podium guy and hopefully now with some confidence I can establish myself as a regular.” Ferris concluded.

 


Tixier just missed the podium on the weekend but maintains a overall championship top three posiiton - Credit: R.Archer
 

Silver Action KTM’s José Butrón raced to his third podium of the season in front of loads of Spanish fans that had travelled from Spain to support him. Butrón had a good start in the first race and he kept his initial third position until the chequered flag, but in the second heat he struggled to find his rhythm and he could only finish sixth.

Butrón admitted that he was very happy for being on the podium again but his main goal now is to finish second of the Grand Prix.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jordi Tixier missed the podium this weekend by just one point, finishing fourth overall, while Monster Energy Yamaha’s Christophe Charlier rounded out the top five.

Australia's Joel Milesevic lined up for the first European MX250 race for 2013, but unfortunately was forced from his qualifying race on lap six and did no secure a position in the final points paying race.



And if you wan to check out the crashes, click here (Desalle) and here (Cairoli). 

FIM MXGP Round 6 Results: Portuguese Grand Prix

 


MX1 Podium - Credit: R.Archer
 

MX1 Overall Top Ten
1. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), 47 points
2. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 45 points
3. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 38 points
4. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), 34 points
5. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 33 points
6. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), 32 points
7. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 31 points
8. David Philippaerts (ITA, Honda), 26 points
9. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), 23 points
10. Rui Goncalves (POR, KTM), 22 points

MX1 Championship Standings Top Ten:
1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 280 points
2. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), 242 points
3. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 227 points
4. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), 217 points
5. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), 183 points
6. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 180 points
7. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), 132 points
8. Rui Goncalves (POR, KTM), 131 points
9. David Philippaerts (ITA, Honda), 112 points
10. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 109 points

 


MX2 Podium - Credit: R.Archer
 

MX2 Overall Top Ten
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points; 2. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 37 points
3. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 35 points
4. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 34 points
5. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 34 points
6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 26 points
7. Mel Pocock (GBR, Yamaha), 25 points
8. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 25 points
9. Alexander Tonkov (RUS, Honda), 22 points
10. Max Anstie (GBR, Suzuki), 22 points

MX1 Championship Standings Top Ten:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 300 points
2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 219 points
3. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 183 points
4. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 178 points
5. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 171 points
6. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 152 points
7. Max Anstie (GBR, Suzuki), 150 points
8. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 129 points
9. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Kawasaki), 123 points
10. Mel Pocock (GBR, Yamaha), 112 points

Top Image: Gautier Paulin secured his second straight MXGP win on the weekend
Credit: Kawasaki Racing

 
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