The seventh round of the FIM Motocross World Championship at the legendary Maggiora Park, the MXGP of Italy, was an absolute cracker.
Team HRC Honda star Tim Gajser put in another display of controlled speed, on a tricky Maggiora track to win both motos of the MXGP of Italy, making it seven moto wins in a row and extending his lead at the top of the MXGP championship to 81 points.
After a dry Saturday, the overnight rain turned this iconic venue into a tricky, muddy venue for the early morning sessions.
However, by the time the MXGP class dropped their gate for the first time, the surface had dried considerably and this allowed for some creative line choices from the best motocross riders on the planet.
In both races, Slovenian rider Gajser worked his way into the top three by the time they crossed the line for the first lap and after studying the riders in front, he worked out exactly when and where to pass them in what were further examples of just how much control his has over his nearest MXGP rivals.
In race one, he waited until the final third of the race to make his move, whilst in race two it took him only four laps before he took the lead. And in both cases, he was able to pull out a gap immediately, and cruise to two more moto wins.
This takes the Slovenian’s tally to 10 out of a possible 14 race wins, and six overalls out of seven in what is an extremely impressive start to the 2022 season.
“Today the conditions were a lot different than yesterday and that allowed more lines to form, which gave me more opportunity to make the passes I needed,” said Gajser.
“I was able to get two good starts and move into the top three in both races early on. From there, I just had to choose the right time and the right place to make my moves and try to control the race afterwards.
“The track certainly wasn’t easy after the rain, but I enjoyed creating my own lines and I’m just really enjoying my riding out at the moment and this win was a nice moment.
“A big thank you to Team HRC for all their work with the bike, and just being great people to be alongside during a race weekend. Also thank you to all the fans who come to these races, it is much better this year having a good crowd to cheer us along.”
Photo courtesy Honda
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RESULTS & STANDINGS:
MXGP – Grand Prix Race 1 – Top 10 Classification:
1.Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), 35:54.476; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +0:05.940; 3. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +0:14.816; 4. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Yamaha), +0:17.013; 5. Pauls Jonass (LAT, Husqvarna), +0:32.750; 6. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Honda), +0:42.759; 7. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Beta), +0:47.237; 8. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Yamaha), +0:49.316; 9. Brian Bogers (NED, Husqvarna), +0:50.318; 10. Ben Watson (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:52.029.
MXGP – Grand Prix Race 2 – Top 10 Classification:
1. Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), 34:52.491; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +0:20.264; 3. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +0:30.434; 4. Ben Watson (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:32.382; 5. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Honda), +0:34.972; 6. Mitchell Evans (AUS, Honda), +0:37.428; 7. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Yamaha), +0:40.473; 8. Pauls Jonass (LAT, Husqvarna), +0:47.135; 9. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Beta), +0:49.210; 10. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +0:52.099.
MXGP – GP Top 10 Classification:
1.Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 50 points; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 44 p.; 3. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 40 p.; 4. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 32 p.; 5. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 31 p.; 6. Ben Watson (GBR, KAW), 29 p.; 7. Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 29 p.; 8. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, BET), 26 p.; 9. Mitchell Evans (AUS, HON), 23 p.; 10. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, YAM), 22 p.
MXGP – World Championship Top 10 Classification:
1.Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 336 points; 2. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 255 p.; 3. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 231 p.; 4. Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 220 p.; 5. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, YAM), 199 p.; 6. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 194 p.; 7. Brian Bogers (NED, HUS), 173 p.; 8. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, BET), 166 p.; 9. Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 149 p.; 10. Alberto Forato (ITA, GAS), 132 p.
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 1 – Top 10 Classification:
1.Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), 34:21.361; 2. Stephen Rubini (FRA, Honda), +0:09.035; 3. Isak Gifting (SWE, KTM), +0:21.906; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:25.604; 5. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), +0:28.005; 6. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:41.030; 7. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:42.637; 8. Tom Guyon (FRA, KTM), +0:46.328; 9. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:48.170; 10. Andrea Adamo (ITA, GASGAS), +0:49.999.
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 2 – Top 10 Classification:
1.Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 35:31.289; 2. Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), +0:01.505; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:35.047; 4. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:55.557; 5. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:56.827; 6. Stephen Rubini (FRA, Honda), +1:03.356; 7. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, Kawasaki), +1:07.566; 8. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Yamaha), +1:11.449; 9. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), +1:12.800; 10. Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, GASGAS), +1:12.902.
MX2 – GP Top 10 Classification:
1.Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 47 points; 2. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 41 p.; 3. Stephen Rubini (FRA, HON), 37 p.; 4. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GAS), 35 p.; 5. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 30 p.; 6. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, KAW), 30 p.; 7. Isak Gifting (SWE, KTM), 29 p.; 8. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 26 p.; 9. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KAW), 23 p.; 10. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 22 p.
MX2 – World Championship Top 10 Classification:
1. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 291 points; 2. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 285 p.; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GAS), 216 p.; 4. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 211 p.; 5. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, KAW), 211 p.; 6. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KAW), 199 p.; 7. Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, GAS), 172 p.; 8. Andrea Adamo (ITA, GAS), 169 p.; 9. Isak Gifting (SWE, KTM), 165 p.; 10. Stephen Rubini (FRA, HON), 158 p.
