Team HRC’s Tim Gajser won an eventful MXGP of France after a second-moto rain deluge to take back the MXGP championship lead once again, and show that when the conditions get tough, the Honda CRF450R rider rises to the occasion.
There was initial confusion after the race as the FIM officials had to assess some yellow flag penalties handed out to other riders, but once those had been sorted out, it was confirmed that the #243 was the victor of the 2024 MXGP of France, after his one-four results.
In race one, when the track surface was back to its usual rutted, hard-pack self, Gajser put on a clinic to take his third moto victory of the season, moving quickly from third into first and pulling out a comfortable margin when he crossed the finish line. Winning that race gave him the virtual red plate as he came into this GP tied, but he knew he’d have to perform in a similar fashion in race two if he wanted to leave the hillside venue of St Jean D’Angely grasping the actual plaque.
One hour before their gate-drop, the predicted rain hit the track in full force, turning the surface into mud and puddles, just like in the qualification race yesterday. This time around he got stuck in third place, and with the wet roost, and the single fast-line, he found himself unable to move forward and gain the positions that would have 100%-secured him the overall. Instead, with time running out to make a move, he ended up making a mistake on a downhill and remounted down in sixth place, which is where he eventually crossed the finish line. However, the FIM officials had spotted that the two riders in front of him had jumped on yellow flags, which moved him up into fourth and gave him enough points to take his first overall of this 2024 campaign.
The Slovenian now holds a five-point gap over his closest rival as they head into an off-weekend, before the series returns on June 1-2 for the MXGP of Germany in Teutschenthal, another track which Gajser has a good history on and one where he’ll once again have the red-plate adorning his Honda CRF450R.
Tim Gajser: The circumstances aren’t how I’d like to win a GP, but I’m happy to take the overall as I felt my riding was good in what were extremely difficult conditions. The early-race passes in race one were very important as this track isn’t easy to make moves on, but once I got out front I was able to control the race and won with a nice gap. Then in race two, I felt confident about my skills in the wet, but I just wasn’t able to get the same passes done and instead ate a lot of roost trying to pass the rider in front. I thought that my mistake had cost me the overall, but as it turns out, I still was able to take the win and the red-plate. A big thanks to the whole team for their help as it wasn’t an easy one but I’m very happy and excited to go to Germany now.
