KTM's Antonio Cairoli took his fifth overall victory of the '10 season after dominating in both motos.
Antonio Cairoli dominated both heats in the Limburg GP obtaining his fifth overall victory of the season and also being the fastest on yesterday’s qualifying race. In MX2 it was Ken Roczen who went out victorious and it has been his so expected first Gran Prix win of the season.
Max Nagl struggled a little bit on the Belgian track but he succeeded in being on the second step of the podium after his third and second place on today’s races. Third was home rider Clement Desalle who finished third and fourth in the heats.
Ken Roczen did not win both heats but his first and second places made him win his first GP of the season. Second of the MX2 class was race two winner Jeffrey Herlings and third was current Championship leader Marvin Musquin.
Belgian Pascal Bal won his home round in Lommel and his victory has left the FIM Veterans World Cup to be decided on the last round in Lierop. Second was red plate holder Mats Nilsson and third was Erwin Hendrickx.
MX1
Red Bull
KTM Factory Racing MX1’s Cairoli was back at the top of the podium and proved that Lommel is like his second home GP – as mentioned in the back of his racing pants through the patch “I also live in Lommel”. The Italian dominated both heats from beginning to end choosing the best lines of a track which is known as one the roughest of the Championship. Cairoli has now increased the advantage in the Championship with second classified Desalle being now 79 points behind the leader.
Above: Max Nagl (#2) returned to the podium in second-place after a long absence. Below: Rockstar Teka Suzuki's Clement Desalle took third after difficult battle in both motos with David Philippaerts.
"It was a nice race,” said Cairoli. “I like to ride in the sand and this is my favorite track. It's hard and rough and you have to be really technical. You also have to be very fit to win here. It proves my training is going well and my speed is good, also that my technical riding is good so I am pretty satisfied about the weekend and the wins here in Lommel."
The second step of the podium was for his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MX1 teammate Nagl who recovered his confidence after a long time absence from the podium due to his collarbone injury from the French GP. The German took both holeshots of today’s races and although he managed to follow Cairoli’s lines and kept himself steady at the top, he admitted that he was riding on the edge.
"I'm very happy to be on the podium this weekend and I never expected that,” said Nagl. “I had some problems yesterday because I couldn't find my rhythm and I wasn't fast enough. Things haven't been going so well for me and I was having a few negative thoughts but last night I had a good talk with Stefan (Everts) and today everything was different.”
For third classified Rockstar Teka
Suzuki World MX1’s Desalle it was not the weekend he had expected, as he wanted to show his Belgian fans why he is second in the standings of the Championship. Once again the Belgian starred in a tight battle with Philippaerts both in heat one and two, with Desalle passing the Italian in both occasions to finish third and fourth.
"It was a difficult GP so I am happy I am on the podium and my shoulder was OK in the sandy conditions,” said Desalle. “Physically it was hard and I was not that happy with my riding today; I can be better than that. I'm pleased I did not crash or make a big mistake and had some more fun fighting with Philippaerts. Loket is next and I won there last year. It is a good track for me and I like the place a lot. As ever, I will go to the next GP hoping to do my best."
Yamaha Monster Energy's David Philippaerts went 4-5 in Belgium after he struggled finding his rhythm.
Monster Energy Motocross’ Philippaerts could not keep the rhythm of his rivals and after starting third in both heats he could only finish fourth and fifth. However, he could have had the possibility of being on the podium if he had not crashed during the second race, but he had to settle down for a fourth position overall.
Fifth classified was LS Motors
Honda’s Leok who missed the podium due to his numerous mistakes in race one, where he could only be 13. During the second moto he moved up from ninth to second showing everybody his speed and potential on the sand.
Belgian De Dycker was just sixth overall in his home GP, where last year succeeded in winning the race, and his compatriot Ramon finished eighth in a race where he experienced many ups and downs. Ramon was fighting for the top three in both races but Lommel’s ruts made him crash twice losing all his chances for being on his home GP podium.
"I had good starts and my riding was good and it was a shame that the results did not come.” Ramon said. “I did not feel so quick in the first moto; I was not very comfortable and was losing concentration. The second moto was going better. I passed Max and just kept the same speed but in the entry to one rut approaching a jump I lost a bit of balance, went off the track and the bike threw me over the bars.”
Gonçalves had to work really hard to finish seventh. The Portuguese did not have really good starts but recovered in both heats to take sixth and seventh.
Bobryshev was not lucky in Belgium this weekend and finished eleventh overall. The Russian was involved in a tumble in the start of the first race but pushed really hard to reach the tenth position. However, he made a mistake and dropped back to an eventual 12th. On the second moto he did not have a good start either and could only finish ninth. Japanese Yu Hirata finished 31st but he is looking forward to being back next weekend on the Bonver Grand Prix of Czech Republic in Loket.
Kawasaki Racing was unlucky this weekend not having Boog on today’s races due to his left leg injury during yesterday’s qualifying race, Pourcel could finish neither of the heats and Barragan was 14th on his first race after his long absence.
2010 FIM Motocross MX1 Belgium Results:
1. Antonio Cairoli, ITA (KTM) 1-1
2. Maximilian Nagl, GER (KTM) 2-3
3. Clement Desalle, BEL (Suzuki) 3-4
Suzuki's Steve Ramon had a difficult time with ruts at Lommel, which caused him to crash in both motos.
4. David Philippaerts, ITA (Yamaha) 4-6
5. Tanel Leok, EST (Honda) 13-2
6. Ken de Dycker, BEL (Yamaha) 7-5
7. Rui Goncalves, POR (KTM) 6-7
8. Steve Ramon, BEL (Suzuki) 5-11
9. Joshua Coppins, NZL (Aprilia) 9-8
10. Gareth Swanepoel, RSA (Honda) 8-10
2010 FIM Motocross MX1 Championship Points:
1. Antonio Cairoli, 484
2. Clement Desalle, 405
3. David Philippaerts, 364
4. Maximilian Nagl, 348
5. Steve Ramon, 341
6. Ken de Dycker, 299
7. Xavier Boog, 276
8. Tanel Leok, 249
9. Evgeny Bobryshev, 244
10. Davide Guarneri, 213
MX2
Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2’s Roczen succeeded in winning his first GP of the season and in showing his skills on the sand of Lommel. He overtook five riders in the first race to take the lead and open a consistent gap from his
Teka Suzuki's Ken Roczen won his first GP event of the season in the sandy loam of Lommel.
pursuers. After the day’s first win, Roczen settled for second in the final heat. The German rider could not hide his happiness after winning the GP as he has been very close to the victory many times but misfortune has always been his biggest rival.
"This weekend was perfect for me,” said Roczen. “Saturday started things well and Sunday was even better! I have improved a lot in the sand and I am really happy about that because I remember when I rode here two years ago I was not that good at all! This feels special and we have spent a lot of time at Lommel so this is a race a bit different to the others.”
At the moment he is still second in the Championship but he is 78 points behind red plate holder Musquin and 23 points ahead of third classified Frossard.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MX2’s Herlings had a bittersweet ending with the second position obtained in one of his favorite sandy tracks. The Dutch led the first race for a couple of laps but a mistake in one of the deep ruts in the Lommel track made him lose the lead and could only finish third. However, the second race was dominated by the sand specialist, riding safely up to the checked flag and being able to clinch the second step of the podium.
"On Saturday I had my ups and downs and crashed a few times but I managed to get second in the qualifying heat for second on the grid,” said Herlings. “Then on Sunday I
After leading for a few laps in Moto 1, KTM's Jeffrey Herlings made a mistake and was pushed back to third. However, the sand specialist came back strong in the second moto to earn second overall.
put down a really good start in the first heat. I was second then I got past Marvin after about two laps. I was in the lead and I tried to make a gap but then I had a little slide. I stayed in third place and also finished third. It wasn't great but it also wasn't that bad.”
The rostrum was completed by Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MX2’s Musquin who struggled more than what he expected, and despite his usual outstanding starts on his KTM machine, he could not keep the rhythm of the frontrunners. He is still on the top of the MX2 standings but he will have to focus on next weekend’s race in Loket, a track which has never brought him good results –a broken foot in 2008 and a technical problem in 2009- if he wants to reinforce his leadership.
"Today I finished second and third and in the second moto I could come back on Roczen towards the end of the race,” Musquin said. “I was not fast enough but for sure it is good for the championship even though I would like to have won. Next week in Loket the track will be hard pack - hard and slippery and that will be better for me. I would like to win there!"
Nestaan JM Racing KTM’s Roelants finished fourth in his home Grand Prix with a fourth and fifth position in the races, which he got after two solid recoveries.
Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross’ Paulin completed the top five with a seventh and a fourth place and moved up two positions in the standings of the Championship. The French will now arrive eleventh at the next Grand Prix. Kullas finished right after Paulin and was tied in points with seventh placed Simpson.
Frossard finished eighth after winning his maiden GP in Sweden. The French rider knew that it would not be an easy weekend for him as he could not score any points in last year’s GP. On the other hand, his teammate Van Horebeek finished ninth overall.
2010 FIM Motocross MX2 Results:
1. Ken Roczen, GER (Suzuki) 1-2
2. Jeffrey Herlings, NED (KTM) 3-1
3. Marvin Musquin, FRA (KTM) 2-3
Marvin Musquin struggled after getting poor starts in both motos. Despite this, he finished third overall in Belgium.
4. Joel Roelants, BEL (KTM) 4-5
5. Gautier Paulin, FRA (Yamaha) 7-4
6. Harri Kullas, FIN (Yamaha) 6-6
7. Shaun Simpson, GBR (KTM) 5-7
8. Steven Frossard, FRA (Kawasaki) 10-8
9. Jeremy van Horebeek, BEL (Kawasaki) 9-9
10. Arnaud Tonus, SUI (Suzuki) 8-11
2010 FIM Motocross MX2 Championship Points:
1. Marvin Musquin, 480
2. Ken Roczen, 402
3. Steven Frossard, 379
4. Jeffrey Herlings, 371
5. Shaun Simpson, 298
6. Zach Osborne, 290
7. Joel Roelants, 274
8. Jeremy van Horebeek, 268
9. Arnaud Tonus, 266
10. Harri Kullas, 233
