Can series leader Tim Gajser strengthen even further his grip on the Motocross Grand Prix championship trophy when the competition resumes in Indonesia in just over a week’s time?
After a difficult time of late, Teutschenthal, near Leipzig, in the former East Germany, hosted round 11 of this year’s FIM Motocross World Championship, and that was time for the Slovenian rider to get to his winning ways and get his season back on track.
The Honda star took his seventh overall of the season and extending his points lead to 101 points over Swiss rider Jeremy Seewer.
Gajser’s Australian team-mate, Mitch Evans, also put in his best results of the season with an eight-six for seventh overall.
In what was almost a perfect weekend for Gajser, he had already posted the fastest times in free and timed practice, before winning the Saturday qualifying race too.
He then stormed off to a holeshot in race one, sweeping around the first turn and never looking back as he dominated that moto, posting a lap time almost one second quicker than anyone else.
In race two, he wasn’t quite able to match that feat, not getting quite as good a start and instead having to work his way through into second by the start of lap one.
Despite posting the fastest lap time once again, he wasn’t able to find his way past the leader, on a track that didn’t provide many passing opportunities, and instead settled for crossing the line in second and taking his seventh overall of what is already an excellent 2022 campaign.
Next up for the riders is a new circuit in Samota-Sumbawa, Indonesia on 25-26 June.
This gives Gajser and the other riders a weekend off to recover from this run of three races in three weekends, and prepare themselves for what should be a totally different experience on what will be a brand-new facility, built specifically for this upcoming GP.
“It was good to get back to winning ways, and taking another holeshot was a bonus too,” said Gajser.
“I really enjoyed the track this weekend and I think that showed in my riding. I was fastest in every session I think, and even had the fastest laps in both races, so to come away with the overall was the best way to end this event.
“Going 1-2 and extending my lead to over 100 points is more than I could have hoped for so I must thank the team and my girlfriend Spela, who’s birthday it was today for their support. We have all worked extremely hard and I couldn’t do it without the backing they give me.”
Photo courtesy Honda
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MXGP – World Championship Top 10 Classification:
1.Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 485 points; 2. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 384 p.; 3. Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 366 p.; 4. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 365 p.; 5. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, YAM), 330 p.; 6. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 304 p.; 7. Brian Bogers (NED, HUS), 252 p.; 8. Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 250 p.; 9. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, BET), 229 p.; 10. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 227 p.
MX2 – World Championship Top 10 Classification:
1. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 460 points; 2. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 452 p.; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GAS), 353 p.; 4. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KAW), 326 p.; 5. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, KAW), 319 p.; 6. Andrea Adamo (ITA, GAS), 282 p.; 7. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 266 p.; 8. Isak Gifting (SWE, KTM), 255 p.; 9. Stephen Rubini (FRA, HON), 249 p.; 10. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 231 p.
