What the riders had to say following round five of the FIM MXGP World Championship.
Tim Gajser: (1st in MXGP) “I really enjoyed that second race especially! The whole weekend has gone really well and I’m really pleased to take the win again. In the first race we had a little problem with a stone in the rear brake, and then I bent the radiator guard so it wasn’t so easy to ride, but we could come back stronger in the second race. That was a really hard fight with Febvre and he was really pushing me, and the pace we both had was really fast so it was really a lot of fun! To have had the last two weekends go as well as they have done is just fantastic, and I’m just feeling so good at the moment. The bike is great, so big thanks to the team, and we’re all working so hard so it’s a great feeling to be winning.”
Romain Febvre: (2nd in MXGP) “I started the second race well and we’d changed the bike a little bit for that but Tim was in the lead very quickly and it was difficult out there. I was faster in the beginning but had different lines and once he changed then it was hard to pass. I made a few mistakes and the gap was bigger. I kinda gave up a little bit and I was disappointed about that. We still have the red plate and there is a long way to go.”
Max Nagl: (3rd in MXGP) “It was another positive weekend for us. My team has done a tremendous amount of work to prepare my bike for the high altitude of the track in Leon. We changed the setup for this race and managed to earn the holeshot in both motos. In the first moto I was fourth behind Bobryshev but kept pushing hard and managed to make a pass for third with two laps to go. In the second moto I got another good start and found myself in third position. Desalle and Bobryshev were really pushing to pass but I managed to improve my speed towards the end of the race and that’s positive. We are all working hard and I’m happy we’re getting closer to our goals every time out.”
Evgeny Bobryshev: (4th in MXGP) “We had a consistent weekend so I’m pretty much happy. Today I had less speed and confidence, and less flow, than yesterday though. Yesterday the speed and time was good, but today the track changed. There were big ruts and I was struggling to make the speed. To finish two times fourth is ok though, and I closed up to the top three in the championship, just one point from third, so I’m happy enough.”
Clement Desalle: (5th in MXGP) “I had a decent race day here in Mexico; with two top five finishes I got fifth overall and that’s not so bad as I’m still far from my best level and we can see that the level of the MXGP is higher than in the past. I did my best again this weekend and it’s nice to see that I can improve my results each weekend, even if I couldn’t ride the bike this week as we did not return to Europe. I’m pretty happy with the result; as I said last week I want to fight for podium results as soon as possible and we’re on the way. I missed riding my bike in the week; for sure when I’m back home I will be able to train normally to prepare for the next GPs as we have three races in a row. I’m also happy for the team; they worked hard and this weekend we got a decent result and of course we can soon expect even better.”
Antonio Cairoli: (6th in MXGP) “I didn’t feel so good all weekend. The track is very difficult compared to last week (in Argentina) when I was feeling comfortable, and better than I had before that. I had a very bad start in the first moto, but I came back to sixth, which was not so bad, but for sure not what I expected. The second moto was really not good. The riding was not how I wanted it, there were a lot of mistakes and also another bad start. It was just a weekend to forget. Hopefully we can be stronger and stronger over the next two weeks. I want to be in good shape and in the mood to attack for Latvia because that’s a track I like a lot.”
Tommy Searle: (8th in MXGP) “It has been a better weekend, I think it could have been even better. In the first race I made a good start but went too wide in the first few corners and dropped from fourth to twelfth. In the middle of the race I started to come back and I was eighth when I crashed with two laps to go. I finished twelfth and was disappointed with my couple of mistakes, then the second race was better with a sixth position, a solid result. I show good speed every week, even if the results haven’t been there, and we’ll go back home on a positive note with this top six. Yesterday I also had some good moments in qualification; I got a good start and ran in second for a long time but then we had a small problem with the seat. There’s a lot of positive from this weekend. We go away from the overseas events in one piece and now we go back in Europe; the goal will be to keep pushing and try to get closer to the front.”
Kevin Strijbos: (10th in MXGP) “Things went well in the Timed Practice and I was happy with the lap. The start and using first gear seemed to go better but I went a bit too wide on the second corner and lost a couple of places. I was chasing Tony but made some mistakes and lost the tow. I think if I can ride like I did in the first half of the race tomorrow then we will have some good possibilities. I need a similar start and we’ll see what happens. I pushed really hard in the first moto to come back from so far and was tired by the end of the race. In the second moto I crashed in the second corner and couldn’t find the rhythm that I wanted afterwards; I felt like my body did not have any more to give and just finished the race. I’m not happy again and only the first moto was any good. I feel sorry for the team and for letting them down. As they say “onto the next one” but I still feel frustrated and it is hard going out there at the moment.”
Jeffrey Herlings: (1st in MX2) “After losing my championship two years ago, to come here and dominate is just amazing. Second moto I came out with the win, number 52 already and 49 to go. I have to thank everyone and looking forward to Kegums in two weeks. I mean. It is a mixed feeling coming back to this track. Losing the championship here was a bummer and I gave it my all. At least I am not racing with a broken femur this time. It is very hot, so we see how it goes. I went down a couple of times last year making stupid mistakes and yesterday I took my time and got to the lead and we just want to go and win, doesn’t matter if its by 20 seconds or one second.”
Jeremy Seewer: (2nd in MX2) “I’m really happy to again be in second spot and to have a fourth podium in a row now feels amazing. I actually struggled all weekend – through the qualification race and the first moto – with the amount of water on the track, but I could push more in the second race. It was not easy this time and I fought hard. I’d like to thank everyone in the team because we are all trying so much and we will try to keep this consistency and see where we end up.”
Vsevolod Brylyakov: (3rd in MX2) “I feel amazing with this first podium in my career; it’s just great that it happens now! In the first moto I got a good start and was consistent; I was following Seewer and finally passed him and pulled away. It was good to score a second place in the first moto, but it also made me nervous for the second one! I had another good start but then it was a nightmare as I crashed and thought that I had lost any chance to be on the podium. But I just tried again to do my best, rode smoothly and when I saw that Jonass also crashed I thought there was maybe a chance for me to finally get this podium. I continued to push, caught a few guys and my mechanics helped me on the board to know what was happening. I can’t believe that I got this podium; my thanks to Steve Dixon, Monster Energy, Kawasaki, my teammate Tommy Searle, all our sponsors and Cosworth who did a great job – the engine is unbelievable good!”
Pauls Jonass: (4th in MX2) “The whole weekend I was ready to do a good race. The speed was there and I was convinced I could get good results. Then in the first heat I crashed and then had problems with the brakes for the rest of the race. I got a very good start again in the second moto but I came in contact with another rider and crashed. I fought back hard again, and I had very good speed to finish in the top five. Of course I am still very confident because I know I can give much more than I did so far, I just need a bit more luck. Now I’m looking forward to the next race in Latvia because it’s my home race and it will be great to be racing in front of all my fans.”
Petar Petrov: (6th in MX2) “On Saturday I had quite a good feeling with the track, but they worked on it and today it was one of the most difficult races I ever had. In the first moto I was struggling and the second moto was even worse. The track was becoming really dry and I made mistakes every time I pushed so I just tried to save as many points as possible. Everyone in the team is working really hard but this time I was not at my best. We must keep the positive; I was consistent in both races to finish sixth overall. Anyway it’s better than last year at this track; I finished both races this time and we’ll continue to work before we travel to Latvia. That track is one of my favourites so we’ll go there to show what we can do after two difficult weekends for us.”
Jorge Zaragoza: (10th in MX2) “It’s been a good weekend here in Mexico. In the first race I had a very strong start and was riding in fifth for a time and I was feeling really good. I made one mistake though and I felt a little bit of pain in the knee that I hurt last weekend in Argentina, so I lost a few positions and finished tenth. In the second moto I lost a bit in the first laps, but I’m happy to finish tenth overall. I’m improving every race and my goal is just to keep like this and keep getting better with each race.”
