MXGP #74 October 2019 by MXGP MAG

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T N E T N O C

TCH A C CING A R P. 18

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P. 8 RA T U O T H A LS L FE CRU A I COO C PE AHA BLU S 8 9 P. YAM

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MXGP MAG Chief Editor: Marionna Leiva Photos: Youthstream YOUTHSTREAM Media World Trade Center II Rte de Pré-Bois 29 1215 Geneva 15 Airport Switzerland MXGP Mag #74 OCTOBER 2019 The articles published in this

magazine do not necessarily reflect �� P.7 � � � � the official position of Youthstream. � � � �� Then content of this publication is �� P.8 �� based on the best knowledge and � � � � � �� information available at the time � � � L � � � A � � I 4 � � the articles were written. 1 � R . � � O �� P � �� EDIT � � � The copying of articles and �� OTS � � � H 8 � photos even partially is � 1 S � . � L �� P � � � O � � forbidden unless permission � � O � T � � C has ben requested from SHO �� E � � L � 6 � Youthstream in advance and � � O 4 � . � H P � reference is made to the H UP �� FOX � � � C � source (©Youthstream). � T � � A �� C � � 8 � � � G 4 � . � � ACIN ��P �� R � � � � E � � � � � � � AM �� L � .54 � OF F � A P � I � � � � � C � � S � SO IRL AY �� G � � � � � R � STE P �� N U O H M ATC ��P.82 � � C � � � � � G � IN RE �� U RAC T FEA �� L A I C �� P.92 � � � � � � � SPE WARDS � � A �� E FIM � FAM�� F P.96 � O � � � � � � L � � � HAL RATTRAY �� A �� TYL S K .98 AL P T � � � � K � � DOC E �� D R A U P EAT �� F L CIA LU CRU E P � P.10 S B � � � A � � � H A OR T YAM I D HE E T O ST N O I ST QUE

L A I R O T I D E

Giuseppe Luongo President of Youthstream Group

Dear MXGP fans, The season has ended with the climax of the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations, with the welldeserved victory of Team The Netherlands: Jeffrey Herlings, Glenn Coldenhoff and Calvin Vlaanderen. Right from the first practise they showed it was their year. The weather conditions were very difficult with a lot of rain, bringing with it even more uncertainties, and this was only what could have stopped the Netherlands, but the Dutch Dream Team showed to be even stronger than the terrible weather, and even if some of them made a couple of mistakes during the races they were always able to come back with a great result for the team, Coldenhoff was really exceptional like at the Nations in USA last year and during last races of MXGP this year. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really great to see him ride, because in difficult conditions like these heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always clean and seems to never force himself, but when you see his times you realise how fast

WERE PROUD TO BRING THE BEST OFFROAD SHOW TO THE BEST FANS IN THE WORLD. he really is, he will be a great contender for the 2020 MXGP title. It was a great surprise to see just how well Prado did with the 450cc, even without much training on this bike he showed his speed and his capacity to make great starts like he did with the 250cc. With a good winter preparation, like the Team De Carli is used to do, he will be sure a good contender for the overall MXGP podium in 2020. We want to really thank all the people involved in the organization of the 2019 Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in Assen, because with these weather conditions we were all able to respect all the timing, the safety of the riders and the preparation of the track, which needed a

lot of hard work after every race, and thank goodness we were in a permanent circuit with all the facilities, hard standing parking areas, tarmac paddock, etc. This helped everyone have a comfortable place to be able to rest in dry areas, enjoy the racing in the best possible conditions and also to be able to leave after the race without any problems. Unfortunately for our best race of the year, the date is not the best in terms of weather, it would be better if the FIM Motocross of Nations could be held one month earlier, but unfortunately teams and manufacturers prefer the event to be held after the World Championship and the American prefer it to be held after the Nationals, so we have to battle with the weather every year so that everyone is happy. Finally, we would really thank the thousands and thousands of fans who were present for the three days, and it was clear they thoroughly enjoyed themselves once again and we were proud to bring the best off-road show to the best fans in the world.

S T O H S L COO

T O H S E L O H X FO

FOX HOLESHOT

SEPTEMBER 14

THE FINAL FOX HOLESHOT UPDATE OF THE YEAR TAKES US THROUGH THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER, AND AN EXOTIC DOUBLE-DATE WITH AFYONKARAHISAR AND SHANGHAI. The first weekend of the month saw the paddock fly out to Afyon for the 2nd successive year. A plethora of spa hotels surrounding the state of the art facility meant the riders could save all their energy for the MXGP of Turkey, and it showed out of the gate. Well, it did if your name’s Jorge Prado.

through the first corner and in China got his 8th holeshot of the season.

Fresh from having a week off to absorb claiming back to back MX2 titles in Sweden a fortnight before, the Spaniard was determined to pick up a few more black plates to add to his collection. The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing man streets ahead across the holeshot line in Race 1 in Afyon, never to be headed, and almost as dominant out of the gate in race 2 as well, his 22nd Fox Holeshot of the season, as he closed out yet another 1-1. However, the long flight from there to Shanghai, for the inaugural MXGP of China, didn’t seem to agree with Mr Holeshot. Beaten to the first ever Chinese black plate by his own team-mate Tom Vialle. The young Frenchman has exceeded all expectations placed upon him for his debut season, including with his pace

The final race of the season was a fitting time for Prado to crown another dominant year out of the gate with his 23rd Fox Holeshot of the season (on his way to a 14th 1-1). Not quite up to the 26 the #61 managed in 2018, but then this year Prado only took to the gate 34 times, 6 less than last year. This a man with more than an edge over everyone else through that first corner, and about to put the cat among the pigeons with his forthcoming move up to MXGP for 2020. In the final reckoning that Red Bull KTM was responsible for 31 of 36 Fox holeshots in the MX2 class in 2019. 5 other riders took a single black plate away from the season. Roan Van de Moosdijk was the first rider from outside that team to take a holeshot, and that was in the 2nd race in Portugal, the 12th of the year, as a wildcard up from EMX250. Henry Jacobi, who will admit to not being the

best out of the gate, grabbed a holeshot on the same F&H Kawasaki in the 2nd race in Semarang. Darian Sanayei, on a Bike IT DRT Kawasaki, also grabbed a black plate in the opening race in Russia, in a year largely lost to the Epstein-Barr Virus. Thomas Kjer Olsen finally got it together with his Husky off the line in Semarang’s opener, not that he got to enjoy that feeling very long before ringing his bell in a huge incident in the opening corner of the following race. While Jago Geerts also somehow got in on the act for the 2nd race at Imola. That after a season of the Belgian mostly having to slash his way through the field after getting another poor getaway. The moral of the story being that you probably need look no further that Red Bull’s line up for next year to predict the winner of 2020’s Fox Holeshot award in MX2. Step forward Tom Vialle, and new signing, 17-year-old Austrian prospect Rene Hofer. In MXGP, with the title done and dusted, all eyes were on Tony Cairoli’s defence of the top spot in the Fox Holeshot standings. The 9-time world champion was 1 holeshot ahead of 15

2019 champion Tim Gajser going into the last 4 races of the season, despite being out of action with a shoulder injury since Latvia, way back in mid-June. But the opening race in Turkey saw Pauls Jonass give a little reminder of the skills that helped him to obtain the MX2 world title in 2017. It has taken a while for the Latvian to make himself comfortable in the premier class, but he is starting to show his true colours as he took a first holeshot for Husqvarna, although he couldn’t prevent Jeffrey Herlings taking a first win of his 2nd injury comeback of the season. In the 2nd race in Afyon, Gajser thought he might have nailed an 8th black plate of the season, but the Slovenian had Herlings nudging just up his inside, and neither could compete with Jeremy Seewer on a much tighter line, motoring through for his 4th Fox Holeshot of the year. Gajser’s Team HRC once again had the grunt out of the gate in China; in race 1 he had another golden opportunity to take his 8th holeshot of the year, but he ran wide, allowing Glenn Coldenhoff up the inside to take his 4th of 2019 instead. Tim had one last chance to match Cairoli in the final race of the season, but once again found Coldenhoff up his inside, with Seewer able to find pace with a tighter line to take a 5th and final black plate of the season, although his quest for a first MXGP race victory continues.

In the end, those 8 black plates in half a season were enough for Antonio Cairoli to carry away the Fox Holeshot award yet again. Having taken 19 of 40 holeshots on his way to the 2018 title. Tim Gajser coming up just 1 short in the end, despite a valiant effort, while a late surge from Jeremy Seewer saw the Swiss rider take the bottom step of our virtual podium. Coldenhoff was the best of the rest with 4 black plates, alongside Arnaud Tonus, who will race alongside Seewer in the new Factory Yamaha team next year. Romain Febvre, who is making the switch from Yamaha to Kawasaki for 2020, managed 3 holeshots before ending an injury-ravaged season in Sweden. Jeffrey Herlings took 2 black plates from just 7 starts in 2019, matched by Julien Lieber, while Pauls Jonas ended the year all alone at the bottom of the table on one. A year where the margin between success and failure has often been a matter of fractions is now over. But the countdown to 2020 starts here, ahead of another season of handing out Fox Holeshot Black Plates all around the globe. A last throw of the dice However, for the lucky few, there was one last shot at Fox Holeshot immortality. The end of the month saw the 73rd edition of the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations take place at the Cathedral of Speed, Assen, up in the north of the Netherlands. The

hosts heavy favourites to clinch a first ever Nations title, but how would they shape up out of the gate? Ahead of Sunday’s first race for the MXGP and Open class riders, the big question was just how well Prado would fare at the start. The king of the holeshot in MX2 was about to make his debut in the MXGP class, but not having it all his own way. Beaten off the line in his qualifying race on the Saturday, and then again in his opener the following day, this time with MXGP champion Tim Gajser beating him to the holeshot cheque for Slovenia, but only just. The day’s 2nd race was reserved for MX2 and Open competitors, throwing up the big surprise of the weekend. Despite a field packed with big-name talent, it was Harri Kullas of Estonia that broke the FOX holeshot line first, just ahead of home hero Glenn Coldenhoff. In the Nations finale for the MXGP and Open classes the pressure was on the Dutch to start fast with the Nations title on the line. However, Jeffrey Herlings was sluggish, while Coldenhoff struggled to make an impact from an outside gate pick, although he would go on to anchor the Dutch to that longawaited title. Instead it was Gajser again claiming the black cheque, leaving even Prado trailing in his roost. Expect the Spaniard to come out swinging in 2020 though, as he looks to keep his title as ‘Mr Holeshot’ on his move up to MXGP for the season ahead.

P U G H N ATC I C A C R

L A E S S â&#x20AC;&#x2122; G N L I A K V E O TH APPR OF 19

WITH THE 2019 MXGP SEASON FINALLY OVER WITH THE CONCLUSION OF THE MXGP OF CHINA, ALL FOCUS SHIFTED TO THE BIGGEST RACE ON THE PLANET AND THE 73RD EDITION OF THE MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS AT ASSEN IN THE NETHERLANDS, AN EVENT THAT THE HOST NATION HAD NEVER WON. IN THE PAST, THIS EVENT HAS BEEN RUN ON DUTCH SHORES ON NO FEWER THAN EIGHT PREVIOUS OCCASIONS, INCLUDING THE FIRST EVER MXON WHICH WAS HELD AT WASSENAAR ON THE NORTH WEST COAST, JUST NORTH OF THE HAGUE OR DEN HAAG AS IT’S KNOWN LOCALLY. 20

That first ever MXoN featured just three nations; Great Britain, Belgium and The Netherlands, with each nation fielding two teams made up of six riders per team; Great Britain ‘A’ and ‘B’, Belgium ‘A’ and ‘B’ and The Netherlands ‘A’ and ‘B’. In order to be classified with in the final standings, a team needed to have three riders finish both races, and when all was said and done, Great Britain A were the outright winners with Fred Rist, Bill Nicholson and Bob Ray. Second overall were Belgium B with Belgium A finishing behind them in 3rd overall. Fourth overall was Great Britain B with both The Netherlands teams being Non-Classified as they both failed to get three riders over

the finish line. Team A managed to get two riders over the line, whilst the B team could only manage one. So even with just three nations, the home nation was unable to make the final podium. At Norg in 1954 Holland missed the podium again and in 1961 at Schijndel the host’s failed to even qualify, but in 1967 at Markelo, The Netherlands placed 4th overall. When the event returned to Norg in 1972, situated 20 minutes from Assen, the home nation made it to the podium for the 4th time, but for the first time on home soil, and since then, they had made the podium on the three other occasions that the MXoN was hosted in its homeland, including 2nd overall at Sint Anthonis in 1976 where Peter Herlings, father of Jeffrey, finished 3rd in Race Two behind two of the sports all-

time greats, Roger Decoster and Heikki Mikkola. At the most resent editions to be held on home soil, The Netherlands, placed 3rd overall at Valkenswaard in 1991 and 2nd overall at Lierop in 2004, the last time the country played host. So, what could we expect in Assen fifteen years later? Leading up to the event, all of the talk and hype was of a Dutch victory, especially since they had finished 2nd on the last three occasions at Maggiora (Italy), Matterley Basin (GB) and Red Bud (USA) in 2018, but as always with this event, there are way more variables to consider than there are when a rider lines up individually for an MXGP race, and it all starts with the Ballot. The Ballot is the process in which each team is allocated a start gate position for the Qualifying Race on Saturday and it works like this. There are two, clear Perspex boxes

each containing the same amount of plastic balls, and as there were 34 nations entered, there were 34 balls in each box. One set of balls contains a number from 1-34, whilst the other set contains the name of a country. The first ball to be pulled out contains a country and the second is a number and the process continues like that until there are no balls remaining. The first country to be pulled out was Croatia, followed by the number 12, which meant that Croatia would have the 12th gate pick for all three of its riders for the Qualifying Races on Saturday. The order in which the countries were pulled out and the gate position they were allocated can be seen below, but there were a few ooooh’s and aaaaah’s and gasps when certain nations were called out, which always makes for fascinating viewing for all those present in the Media Centre as it’s happening. Prior to the Ballot there was the Press Conference that this year featured two groups; the first contained the defending 21

champions France, The Netherlands, Great Britain and Australia, with Group 2 containing The USA, Belgium, Spain and Italy. The purpose of this is to ask the riders and the team managers their thoughts and expectations ahead of the race to hopefully alleviate some of the media commitments on what is a very busy weekend.

WATCH THE VIDEO

Following on from that was the Pit Bike of Nations, where Yamaha provided the bikes, and Monster Energy and Fox providing prizes to the winners in the form of a Fox helmet painted with the Monster Energy logo. With a short circuit laid out on the start straight it was a moment of fun before the weekend kicked off for real and something for the fans to embrace and feel a part of the whole atmosphere that was now starting to build.

WATCH THE VIDEO QUALIFYING If you are new to motocross and have never witnessed a MXoN event then you are probably unfamiliar with the scoring process as well, so let’s bring you up to speed. By now we have already had the Ballot, but now we need to reduce the entry list from 34 nations to 20, and for that we have to go through the qualifying process. With three classes – MXGP, MX2 and Open there are just too many riders for one qualifying race, so the FIM split them up into individual classes, starting with the MXGP Class, then MX2 and then Open. The Qualifying Race is 20 minutes plus 2 laps duration and is scored as 1 point for 1st, 2 points for 2nd 3 points for 3rd … with 34 points for 34th (34 being the number of nations). The teams with the lowest number of points qualifies 1st and therefore will have the first gate pick as a nation for Sunday’s races. Let’s 22

say Team USA wins the MXGP and MX2 Qualifying Race, their total at the time is just 2 points and that is the lowest score possible, since each team can drop its worst score. However, only 19 teams will make it directly to the main event, with the 20th team being decided by way of a B-Final, which takes place on Sunday. In this instance, with just 12 teams still to qualify, all three of the nation’s riders would line up behind the gate, and their best two scores would count. When all was said and done and in what were very tough conditions due to heavy rain, Ireland made it through once again, so after a 20-minutes plus 2 laps encounter, they got to do it all again just over an hour later. Top of the pile and going to the gate first would be Belgium who had the lowest score from Saturday’s qualifying races and from there the team needs to determine who goes to the gate first and who goes twenty-first (since there are twenty countries qualified). If you qualified 2nd then it’s 2nd and 22nd choice etc, etc. What was the highlight of the session? Probably Justin Cooper’s amazing Fox Holeshot from gate pick number 31 over on the far side of the gate. Of course, there was some fantastic action as well with Jeremy Seewer winning the MXGP Qualifying Race from Tim Gajser and Jeremy Van Horebeek. Jorge Prado led briefly before slipping off but still recovered to 4th. Jeffrey Herlings had an up and down race, suffering with a bad start and one or two errors before making his way back to 5th ahead of Jason Anderson. By now the rain was coming down pretty hard as well. The defending champion’s France, were represented by Gautier Paulin but he could only manage 8th whilst Nathan Watson of Great Britain put in a solid performance for 11th. MX2 Qualifying was won by Justin Cooper after his amazing holeshot whilst Calvin Vlaanderen made his way from just inside the top ten to take 2nd from Kyle Webster of Australia who had been impressive all race long. Jago Geerts probably expected more but he too suffered

with the tough conditions, and after a poor first half of the race, he eventually crossed the line in 4th. Alby Forato was 5th, finishing ahead of Thomas Olsen, Dylan Walsh and Kevin Horgmo as Alvin Ostlund and Maxime Renaux rounded out the top ten. A difficult race for Adam Sterry of Team GB meant his 13th would be the lowest GB score to be dropped unless Shaun Simpson finished lower than that in the final race. The Open Class was won by Pauls Jonass of Latvia who also celebrated by becoming the first Latvian to win a MXoN race. Kevin Strijbos was next for Belgium and always kept PJ in his sights – was this a sign of things to come for the main event on Sunday? Glenn Coldenhoff rode steady for the home team to take 3rd, meaning that it was Herlings’ 4th that was dropped after the three races, and when you can drop his score in a sand race then you know you are already in a good place mentally. Simpson took 4th and was over the moon with his performance and so too was Harri Kullas of Estonia, who trailed him home in 5th. Regan Duffy of Australia, who usually rides a 250cc in the Junior Championship at home – he’s not even at pro level – came home in 6th and no doubt caught the eye of a few MXGP team bosses for possible future reference. Jordi Tixier and Zach Osborne rounded out the top eight. SUNDAY MUDDY SUNDAY If you sing it loud, that title almost sounds like a well known U2 song …! After perfect conditions on Saturday, the heavens opened from around 21:30 Saturday night and never really left the Assen Circuit until well after the event was over; apart from a brief period of around one and a half hours after the B-Final which allowed the track maintenance crew to fix it up! And as (bad) luck would have it, just as the riders were heading to the Waiting Zone before the first race, it started to rain … again! As always, the first race of the day would see the MXGP riders line up against the MX2 riders, meaning two riders per nation in the first race, with the goal of scoring the least amount of points as possible. The Qualifying Races determined the grid positions and the revised order 27

now looked like this: Belgium (1), The Netherlands (2), USA (3), Australia (4), Italy (5), Latvia (6), France (7), Great Britain (8), Denmark (9), Switzerland (10). RACE 1: MXGP + MX2 With the riders now behind the gate, the FLY Racing 15-second board was hoisted for the first time and with the crowd on their feet looking from the elevated seating point, when 40 riders rounded the first turn, the noise was electric, and it was Tim Gajser who took the first Fox Holeshot of the day by a slender margin over Jorge Prado, but it was the Spaniard who led coming out of turn two. Through the next wave section out of turn three was our first bit of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;nations drama as the two American riders Justin Cooper and Jason Anderson fell in the same incident; it looked as though both made good starts inside the top ten, but then Cooper (MX2) got off-line and weaved into the path of his teammate, who had nowhere else to go. Anderson was up first but Cooper was slow to his feet, and nursing what seemed like an injured left hand. Worse for him was that his clutch perch was also broken in the crash meaning he rode the whole race without a clutch; 25th was a good effort given the circumstances. Up front, Prado was looking good on his new 450cc as he led Gajser, Van Horebeek and Monticelli. Seewer was 5th but Herlings and Paulin were outside the top ten, looking to move forward. Watson (12th), Geerts (15th), Vlaanderen (16th), Sterry (19th) and Renaux (26th) hinted that this was going to be tough MXoN, and as the race went on things eventually started to unfold. Herlings was able to make his way to 2nd with three laps to go when he passed Prado as he came in to the Goggle Lane for new goggles. Despite slipping to 6th, Prado made his way back to 3rd for what was an impressive debut. Seewer, Paulin and Van Horebeek filled the next three positions with the Belgian being forced to back off to preserve his engine. He was also displeased to learn that Geerts suffered a mechanical whilst in 11th with four laps to go!

Olsen was therefore the best MX2 rider in 8th with Vlaanderen next in 10th, but there were some big teams with some serious work to do after a tough first encounter and going into Race Two the overall looked like this: The Netherlands 12 – Switzerland 23 – France 23 – Spain 25 – Norway 29 – Sweden 30 – Slovenia 32 – Estonia 34 – Belgium 36 – Australia 38. RACE 2: MX2 + OPEN This time it was Harri Kullas of Estonia who grabbed the Fox Holeshot, but it was short lived as before the end of the opening lap, Coldenhoff was the new leader, and just as he did in Red Bud twelve months ago, the Dutchman maintained his composure to walk away with the win, in front of his home fans. Pauls Jonass looked as though he would challenge GC in the latter stages but as he closed in, The Hoff pulled clear once more. After Team GB’s Race One performance that saw them languishing down in 17th when Nathan Watson (36th) suffered a clutch malfunction and Sterry (24th) fell, Shaun Simpson looked to take on the captain’s role to restore some national pride, and did so with not only a great start but also an even better result with 3rd. Kullas brought home a 4th for Estonia whilst Zach Osborne was solid in 5th for Team USA. France secured 6th with Tixier as Geerts, on his spare bike, was the first MX2 rider in 7th, edging out Olsen in 8th. The Dane (8-8) went 1-2 in his class to secure the individual class win in MX2. With Vlaanderen, Duffy and Sterry filling the next three positions, the overall classification now started to have a different look about it, but there was now one very clear leader, and with all four races counting, it was The Netherlands: The Netherlands 23 – France 59 – Belgium 60 – Estonia 63 – Australia 63 – Spain 66 – Denmark 66 – Sweden 69 – Great Britain 75 – Norway 75. Team USA with an injured Cooper were now 11th with 76 points. 32

RACE 3: MXGP + OPEN As is always the case, the final race sees a lot of shifting of positions because of teams being able to drop their worst score. With Tim Gajser securing the final Fox Holeshot of the day, his lead lasted for just three laps; a mistake when he lost the front end enabled both Van Horebeek and Coldenhoff to take advantage as they moved into 1st and 2nd respectively. Coldenhoff though was in no mood for hanging around and before the end of the lap he was past the Belgian and into the lead. The roar of the crowd as he did so was spectacular. By this stage, the King of The Netherlands, WillemAlexander was up in the SkyBox watching on as his star men were on the verge of making history. Coldenhoffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s teammate, Herlings, was having another, one of those races despite being given the inside gate ahead of Coldenhoff; the number 4 was 19th at the end of the first lap after a fall in the second wave section. He would fall twice more on his way to an eventual 4th place. It was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened, but behind the host nations, the final podium places were constantly changing. Early in the race, Team GB had taken over 2nd with Belgium 3rd and France 4th. Then around the mid-point of the race, Belgian had moved into 2nd and with three laps to go France were 3rd with Great Britain 4th. However, that all changed on the final lap when Gautier Paulin disappeared from 10th. He later stated on his Social Media channel that he ran out of fuel, putting GB back on the box in the process. When the chequered flag went out to Coldenhoff, who had just won his 4th straight nations race, there were joyous scenes from his team and his fans as they had just become the 10th different nation to win this prestigious event since it began in 1947. More important though was that this was the first time that The Netherlands would stand on the top step, after thirteen previous visits to the podium, the last three all being 2nd overall. Stefan Everts 36

previously won 4-in-a-row when he won two races at Foxhills in 1998 and then Indaiatuba, Brazil in ’99 and Tony Cairoli also managed this feat when he went 4-from-4 at Lommel and Teutschenthal in 2012/2013, so Coldenhoff had another reason to hold his head high. And in case you’re wondering, Tim Gajser took the MXGP individual honours with his 1-2 results, and his race win was the first for a Slovenian in the MXoN. THE HISTORY BOYS So, The Netherlands won the 73rd edition of the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in more than convincing style, with Coldenhoff going 1-1 once again for his nation. He also secured the Open Class win just like he did twelve months earlier, so it was a case of collecting ‘doublegold’ this time around. Herlings provided cover once again with a 2-4 and was torn between elation and disappointment; elation because he’d finally secured the one medal he hadn’t won, but disappointed because on a personal level he expected so much more from himself. Vlaanderen also played his part perfectly, thus making up for his performance last year – he openly admitted that he felt like he was to blame for Team NL only taking 2nd overall last year when he was forced out with an eye injury. But his 10th place in both races – and one could be dropped – was more than enough to secure gold in front of the King. Even more special is that the Team Manager’s name is Patrice ASSENDELFT and so he too has made his mark on the event. For this edition, the stars were perfectly aligned for the home nation to walk away with the top prize. As well as gold plates and gold medals, the team collected a Tag Heuer watch and championship ring as well. Congratulations to you all. Belgium secured 2nd overall which saw them on the podium for the first time since 2015 at

Erneé and so another medal was placed around the neck of Jeremy Van Horebeek making it a total of 7 now for the Jerry Man. Kevin Strijbos received his 5th medal in the competition, his first being back in 2004 at Lierop which just happened to be gold at his first attempt and Jago Geerts added a silver to the bronze he collected for his 3rd overall in the MX2 world championship in China. Great Britain was 3rd overall, not bad considering where they were after Race 1 and just like the Belgian team, there were reasons to celebrate all-round. Shaun Simpson, riding in his 7th MXoN finally got his hands on a medal after missing out on so many occasions and the joy on his face was plain to see. His two teammates were rookies to this event and both walked away with a medal. For Adam Sterry it was the perfect way to round out his MX2 career and for Nathan Watson, he joins brother Ben as a Nations winner, the former picking up a belated bronze from Red Bud. Which brings us to this: In the history of the MXoN there have only ever been two sets of brothers that have won medals; Sylvain and Eric Geboers, and Ben and Nathan Watson, and one set of father and son medals winners in the likes of Peter and Jeffrey Herlings. There has also only ever been one father/son winner and that of course is Harry and Stefan Everts. Finally, Rene Hofer collected the Ricky Carmichael Young Rider Award, adding his name to an already illustrious list of winners. And with that, the MXoN was done and dusted and the MXGP season officially comes to an end, but we will be back to do it all again next year. Thanks for your support, either at the racetracks or via MXGPTV, we hope you’ve enjoyed what 2019 had to offer and we, like you, are already looking forward to the 2020 season. 41

MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS

RESULTS

NATIONS CLASIFICATIONS 1. The Netherlands 2. Belgium 3. Great Britain 4. Estonia 5. France 6. USA 7. Germany 8. Latvia 9. Spain

MXGP CLASIFICATION 1. T. Gajser 2. J. Herlings 3. J. Seewer 4. J. Prado 5. J. VanHorebeek 6. J. Anderson 7. T. Kach

MX2 CLASIFICATION 3 p. 6 p. 9 p. 10 p. 12 p. 25 p. 26 p.

1. T. Olsen 2. C. Vlaanderen 3. A. Ã&#x2013;stlund 4. K. Horgmo 5. A. Sterry 6. J. Geerts 7. K. Webster

2019 MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS

TV NUMBERS LIVE Coverage: 77k Views Users: 177K Sessions: 364K Page views: 1,015K Top 5 Countries: USA France Netherlands UK 44

Italy

18 p. 47 p. 58 p. 64 p. 68 p. 68 p. 72 p. 73 p. 73 p.

OPEN CLASIFICATION 16 p. 20 p. 30 p. 35 p. 36 p. 37 p. 37 p.

1. G. Coldenhoff 2. P. Jonass 3. S. Simpson 4. H. Kullas 5. Z. Osborne 6. J. Tixer 7. D. Ullrich

2 p. 5 p. 13 p. 16 p. 18 p. 22 p. 27 p.

L A I C O S P G X M

@keybmx Amazing week in Netherlands for Mxon with boys #netherlands#mxon

@anna_slawinski #mxon were awesome! Weather definitely could have been better, but the races and the Freestyle Shows from Hodges, Twitch, Golden, Wanky & Co made that worth it. Stoked to see them in person Thanks @h_finn for capturing my fangirl moment

After a year thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taken MXGP everywhere in the world, the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations took place at the TT circuit of Assen, where has been made the 73rd edition of the event. Team Netherlands finally got their hands on the Chamberlain Trophy after so many misses, in front of the King of the Netherlands and thousands of fans. Watch the highlights of the races here:

@needham201 What a weekend really feels good to be apart of this team this year. And being the first Dutch team to win the mxon great job

Watch the best moments from the 13th stop of the 2019 FIM Motocross world Champonship, the MXGP of Czech Republic!!

@sun_ny.521 MX des Nations 2019. Congrats @jeffrey_ herlings84 ! #mxon #mxdn #motocross #mx #mxgp#assen #moto #ktm #redbull

@saraboschii first #MXoN

@halseyybradleyy Yeah.......Amsterdam was alright! â&#x153;&#x201D;ď¸?đ&#x;&#x2DC;&#x2021; #mxon #weekend #throwback #upthebrits #podeum #thirdplace #fun #amsterdam #britain

@murphy125 MXON #amsterdam #assenttcircuit #mxon #teamireland

@sofos_of #motocrossofnations #assen#netherlands #greece

P G X M # D OF ORL W HE IN T

Have a look at the Assen track which hosted the 2019 edition of the Monster Energy FIM MXoN on board of Team Netherlandsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Glenn Coldenhoffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s KTM bike presented by Paul Malin: 47

R E S T L S R I N G MO

P U G H N ATC I C A C R

L A N I F G N E I H N T CKO RE 55

Neck and Neck

AFTER SIXTEEN ROUNDS OF COMPETITION AND TWO WORLD AND EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS CROWNED THE FINAL TWO ROUNDS OF MXGP OF THE SEASON HEADED EAST TO TURKEY AND CHINA, WHERE THE LATTER WOULD BE HOSTING A FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND FOR THE FIRST TIME IN GP HISTORY. BUT DESPITE THE MXGP AND MX2 TITLE CHASES BEING DECIDED IN ITALY AND SWEDEN RESPECTIVELY, THERE WERE STILL TWO MORE TITLES UP FOR GRABS; WMX AND EMX2T, SO LET’S START THERE, SHALL WE?

The 2019 season saw the introduction of a new EMX category in the form of a 250cc two-stroke championship, which replaced the EMX300 class that ran for 5 years from 2014-2018. Over the course of the season we have seen the same two riders work their way to the top once more, but no-one could have foreseen Brad Anderson and Mike Kras arriving in Turkey at Afyon for the final round tied at the top of the standings with the same number of points. However, it was ‘Ando’ who had the championship leader’s Red Plate strapped to the front of his Verde Substance KTM

by virtue of more race wins; Ando had won four, Kras had won three! To recap, Anderson won the first round at Matterley Basin with a solid 1-1 after Kras went 2-DNF and the Brit continued to lead the championship despite a 13th in Race One at Mantova. However, after going 8-2 in Portugal, Round Three, to Kras’ 1-1, suddenly we had a new leader after three rounds. The question was; could Kras keep his Eco Maxx Fuels KTM ahead until the end of the season? The answer was ‘No!’ and after Russia, Kras saw his 1-point lead overturned and left Round Four, 8 points adrift of Ando, who’d re-gained the Red Plate, but that didn’t last long either as Kras snatched it straight back in Latvia with a 2-2 compared to Anderson’s 5-4. When the EMX2T

championship, presented by FMF Racing arrived in Italy at Imola, Kras held a 2-point advantage over Anderson, and as Wildcard rider Manuel Iacopi cruised to his first ever double-win, Anderson’s 5-2 and Kras’ 3-5 meant they left the penultimate round all square. With all-eyes on the battle for supremacy, it was the Imola winner Manuel Iacopi who turned in the fastest lap in Time Practice, but when the gate dropped, it was not long before Kras was up front and pulling away, putting all the pressure on Anderson in the process. However, his plan started to unravel and by mid-distance a small mistake saw Iacopi, who had already disposed of Ando, capitalise on the Dutchman’s error to take over the lead. It also meant that Anderson was also within striking distance and within a lap, he too was past the ‘55’ and into 2nd position.

When the flag went out at the end of the race, Anderson was once again the new leader by two points and we were still none-thewiser as to who would be crowned champion in Race Two. The first half the race was almost a carbon copy of Saturday’s encounter, with Kras taking full advantage of a great start, clearing off into the distance once more. Anderson was 2nd with Iacopi in 3rd, but by the halfway mark, the Italian was past Ando and closing in on Kras. For Kras to win the title, he needed to just stay ahead of the Brit, and for Ando to win he needed to finish ahead of Kras. There was another intriguing factor though and that was that’s if Iacopi could pass Kras, then the two contenders would leave Turkey all square but with Anderson taking the title by virtue of more race wins; and it almost played out that way. As the race drew to its conclusion, Iacopi was in fact catching Kras and was once again within striking distance when his 57

bike expired with just over 4 laps remaining, and when that happened, Kras knew the title was his. When he crossed the line, there were joyous scenes as he celebrated his second EMX title in the 2-stroke division, his first back in the old 300cc class in 2016. For Anderson, the opportunity of a hat-trick of titles fell by the wayside and his disappointment was clear for all to see as he took to the second step of the podium. MXGP Magazine: ‘Mike, when you arrived here in Turkey, you said that if anyone had have told you you’d be tied on points going into the final round, you’d have taken it all day long; what were your thoughts after your DNF in Race Two at Matterley?’ Kras: ‘After Matterley I knew there were some sand races coming up so I knew I could make up some good points. When I saw the track in Turkey last year, I thought it was flat and easy with many jumps and this is my style, but when I came here it was deep, it was rutty and the first race was nothing that I like, so I just had a hard time. I was doing okay but one mistake cost me, but I knew that Sunday is mostly better for me because they rotovate the track again and there is more traction; I knew yesterday that if I won today it was still okay, and with the track-prep a little bit better than yesterday I knew my chances were good. I just rode my race and it was the longest race of my life and like what people say, ‘you are only as good as your last race’ so people will remember me as a champion. This is my last race in the European Championship because my body can’t take it anymore with work and two kids; I also do overtime at work so I have no time to train; Brad is just fitter than me so it’s not equal anymore and it’s not fun anymore, it’s a must for me now so next year I just come to the traces to enjoy it, so good luck to all the racers and I want to thank them for the good times. I will always look back at the 58

races with a smile and this is what I’m gonna do next week, look back and smile.’ MXGP Magazine: ‘So, retirement beckons?’ Kras: ‘Yes!’ Three In To One Will Not Go Heading into the final round of WMX, there were still three riders that had a mathematical chance of winning the title; Courtney Duncan, Larissa Papenmeier and Nancy Van de Ven. However, it was the Bike It DRT Kawasaki rider Duncan that held a 23-point advantage over Papenmeier after having won the last six races in a row. In fact, the only ‘blip’ on her season coming into the final round was her 7th in Race Two at the opening round at Valkenswaard. Behind her, 2nd position had been disputed between the two Yamaha’s of Van de Ven and Papenmeier and just 3-points separated them heading into Turkey. And no matter what happened in Afyon, it would be the first time that either of these three girls would be crowned WMX World Champion. And here’s how it played out. Just as she did in Imola, Duncan topped the Time Practice session once again, and by quite a hefty margin as well; three point one seconds in actual fact! But none of that means anything without a good start. After pulling a holeshot, the ‘151’ led going into the second turn, but by the time she was done with the next few corners, the Kiwi Girl found herself pushed back to 4th as Van De Ven, Sara Andersen and Papenmeier all came steaming through. Once past the German, Duncan set her sights on Van De Ven who’d been demoted to 2nd after Andersen blitzed past on Lap 2 and started to pull away. By Lap 3, Duncan was into 2nd but had to wait another three laps before she could work her magic

on Andersen, and on Lap 6 the Kiwi was past the Dane and into the lead. Andersen crossed the line in 2nd to register her careerbest race finish but by then the focus had shifted to Duncan who crossed the line victorious to clinch her first ever WMX world championship title. Duncan: ‘I’m lost for words, it’s indescribable. In 2016 I came out and won my first WMX race and I expected big things out of myself and everyone around me did also. I just had to take my time and learn from all these mistakes and failures. When we felt like quitting, we kept going and here we are, world champion!’ ‘This season has been amazing, I’ve had so much fun riding my bike this year; I’ve really enjoyed myself. I’ve had nine victories from ten starts but to get here has been tough, both physically and mentally and going through those tough times has made me really appreciate the good times, and I’m going to cherish and appreciate this championship for the rest of my life.’ With the title decided, our eyes were averted to the final two podium positions, but after a difficult first race that saw Papenmeier fall from 4th to 8th, the points gap between her and Van De Ven was now 4 points, with the Dutch rider taking over 2nd position after her 3rd in Race One. It later transpired that Papenmeier had been struggling with a virus all weekend and told the media after the second race that she was unsure as to whether she would actually ride at all, and as ‘VDV’ crossed the line in 3rd, the final two steps were ultimately decided. Van De Ven was 2nd overall for the third time in her career whilst L-Pap was forced to be content with 3rd overall. The final podium of the year in WMX was Duncan (1-1) and Andersen (2-2) for what was a first time visit to the podium for the

Dane, with Van De Ven 3rd with 3-3. Firing On All Cylinders Our first visit to Afyon for the MXGP of Turkey was twelve months ago and that GP did not disappoint; the battle in MX2 between Jonass and Prado is still very much talked about to this day, and this year there were even more delights in stall for us. After the success of 2019, ‘Moto Fest’ was back and so too were the crowds, who flocked to the circuit in their tens of thousands. One of Turkey’s most prominent sports starts Kenan Sofuoglu stated during his pre-grid interview that last year, the public didn’t quite understand the concept of MXGP, but this year they returned in even greater numbers because they liked what they saw. And we liked what we saw this year as well. In MX2, the best place to be was out front; well, that was Jorge Prado’s logic any way! But behind him, there was mayhem and the rider showing the most urgency was Maxime Renaux who latched on to the rear wheel of Prado, but then fell as he tried to keep the two-time champ in his sights. Geerts then inherited 2nd with Vialle, 7 points behind him in the fight for 3rd in the championship, keeping him under close scrutiny. Thomas Olsen, who had secured 2nd in the championship picked up a food virus and although he started the race, he was forced to retire just after the halfway mark, and would not line up for Race Two. After falling from 2nd, Renaux was back on the charge and made light work of Mathys Boisrame and Vialle, but his luck ran out again as he challenged Geerts for 2nd; another fall broke his rhythm and when all was said and done, he crossed the line in 4th. After his successful Wildcard appearance in Portugal where he placed 6th overall, the newly crowned EMX250 champion, Roan van de Moosdijk lined up in the class he will race full-time next 61

year, and after a poor start, made his way through to an eventual 5th, as Vialle eventually faded to 8th, losing ground to Geerts in the process. Race Two ended with a Red Bull KTM 1-2 as Prado and Vialle pretty much bossed the race, but the surprise package was van de Moosdijk who claimed an impressive 3rd, which combined with his 5th in Race One secured him his first ever podium in MX2 with 3rd overall. After 2nd in Race One Geerts battled to an eventual 5th, good enough for 2nd overall and a 10-point gap over Vialle heading into the final round of the season. Another notable performance came from another Wildcard rider; Mattia Guadagnini took 11-10 for 10th overall on one of his first rides on a 4-stroke machine. The penultimate podium of the series was Prado 1-1, Geerts 2-4 and van de Moosdijk 5-3. Turkish Treats In the premier class Tim Gajser celebrated turning 23 but realised he’d ordered the wrong birthday present on the opening lap of Race One. A trip over the ‘bars left him down in 14th and his chard charge through the field saw him place an eventual 6th which included a last lap pass on Arnaud Tonus. Up front the racing was close but static, with Jeffrey Herlings taking the race win with a much more measured approach to the race, unlike his first attempt in Sweden at the previous round. Pauls Jonass took a fantastic 2nd ahead of Jeremy Seewer, who pulled a couple of points on Gautier Paulin in the distant battle for 2nd in the championship. Race Two was shaping up to be a classic as Glenn Coldenhoff, Herlings and Gajser rounded out the top three positions early on. That was until Gajser slipped off in a loose turn, handing the reigns to the Dutch riders who were separated by not a lot at the head of the field. As the race neared its conclusion, JH84 inched 64

closer to his compatriot, who by now was starting to feel the heat from behind, and when Herlings slipped up on the exit of the first turn at the start of the final lap, the 259 must have thought the win was his. But there’s a reason why his chaser is a four-time world champion and after a couple of attempts over on the far side of the race track but without success, it was a case of now or never for The Bullet, and has he fully committed to the turn, his persistence paid off and he was rewarded with the win just four corners later. His double victory was his first double-win since Imola 2018 and it earned him his first GP win of the season, or win number 85 if you like! The Bullet was back on top but there is still a long way to go before he is anywhere near the rider he was last year, but he will take that … for now, at least! Herlings took to the top step of the podium once again, flanked by Coldenhoff, whose 2nd overall (32) left him just 11 points off Paulin in what was now looking like a battle for 3rd in the championship in a final round showdown. Pauls Jonass made it back-to-back podiums with another 3rd overall; the Latvian clearly getting to grips with the bigger bike and MXGP in general. Close Encounters With Turkey in the books there was just one more country to head to as our MXGP journey prepared to draw to a close once more, at the Just1 MXGP of China presented by Hehui Investment Group. China had never previously hosted a round of the FIM Motocross World Championship and so for the first time in sixty-two years, or since the championship began in 1957, the dream became reality. Officially known as The People’s Republic of China, MXGP’s first venture into pastures new took place around 50km/30 miles south of Shanghai at the Shanghai International Off-Road Circuit, Fengxian, Shanghai. This brandnew circuit had us all guessing the

type of terrain in advance of our arrival but the mix of sand and dirt put everyone in a positive frame of mind ahead of the very first training session. Before we go down that road though, the final stop on the 2019 MXGP tour saw us travel around ten and a half hours from Istanbul in order to get there. Shanghai itself is awash with modernity and for those of us that had the opportunity to experience the wonders of the city we were completely wowed by its cityscape; the modern architecture is amazing, with the tallest building, The Shanghai Tower being a whopping 632m/2073 feet tall, boasting no fewer than 128 floors, making it the tallest building in China and the second tallest in the world. However, standing just a couple hundred metres lower is the Oriental Pearl Tower, which boasts even more floors; 153 to be precise and with 15 different observatory levels and a revolving restaurant just under 300m up, it really is a must-see building to gain a great overview of Shanghai. By day you are in awe of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s skyscrapers, but by night you are in awe of its lit-up beauty; it really is stunning. About an hour or so south is the circuit and for a first-time attempt at hosting a round of MXGP the organisers H&H Sports Protection Group Ltd. did not hold back when it came to putting everything in place for the final GP of the year. On Friday evening the MXGP regulars were treated to the official welcome dinner in the prestigious Ballroom of the Sheraton Shanghai Baohua Hotel where they were treated to a Live Chinese music show followed by a banquet of local cuisine. As always with an official welcome, riders from various teams are invited to enjoy the experience along with dignitaries from the organisers of MXGP, the GP hosts themselves and local government officials, and after delivering their speeches, the event was officially declared open.

Coming into the final round and with the top two positions in MX2 already decided, the battle for third was still very much at stake and involved Jago Geerts and Tom Vialle, who were separated by just 10 points and so both riders needed to be on the very top of their game in order to collect that bronze medal. In Time Practice they were separated by just 0.246s but in the Qualifying Race it was a different story. As Jorge Prado cruised to his fourteenth Pole Position of the year, Vialle showed nerves of steel to take 2nd, whilst Geerts suffered from one or two costly errors that saw him place 8th. In the first race, Vialle was on fire again as he grabbed his 8th Fox Holeshot of the campaign, but maybe his flames were burning a little out of control, because before the end of the first lap the rookie sampled the Chinese dirt and fell from 1st to 3rd. He was fortunate to pick himself up quickly however, and just ahead of Geerts in 6th. As Vialle and Geerts sat in 3rd, MX2â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s silver medal recipient, Thomas Olsen, had worked his way from just inside the top ten to work his way past both bronze medal challengers within six laps, but it was short lived as just four laps later Vialle had moved into 3rd with Geerts following into 4th on the same lap. As Prado crossed the line for race win number 30, Calvin Vlaanderen followed him home in 2nd, less than two seconds adrift. After the race, the two-time world champion commented that it was a difficult race for him as he struggled to find his usual rhythm. Maybe the time riding the KTM450SX-F ahead of the MXoN was starting to cause a chink in the Spaniardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unbreakable armour. As for Vlaanderen, his 2nd position did no harm whatsoever in attracting the attention of Team NL boss, Patrice Assendelft, who was still debating the MX2 rider between CV10 and Roan van de Moosdijk, who suffered an untimely technical problem with five laps to go.

Race Two was a similar story, with Prado taking the final, and his 23rd Fox Holeshot of the year and whilst he went on to lead every one of the eighteen laps once again, he was always under the very watchful eye of Vialle, his daring young teammate who pushed JP all the way to the chequered flag. With a 3rd place start, Jago Geerts only needed to maintain a mistake-free race and finish just behind Vialle to secure the bronze medal, and that’s exactly what he did. The top three on the day saw Prado on the top step in what was his final MX2 GP before moving up to MXGP in 2020, with his fourteenth 1-1 of the season, a sixteenth GP win of the year his thirty-first race win and GP career win number thirty-one as well. He also made another piece of history which we will share at the end of this article. Vialle’s 3-2 secured 2nd overall on the day and his 7th podium of the campaign, whilst Vlaanderen also said farewell to MX2 with a podium in his final outing with a 2-4. Double Dutch As we reached the final GP of the season it almost seemed like an eternity since the title was won by Tim Gajser all the way back in Imola, three and a half rounds ago! However, the next two positions needed to be decided, although Jeremy Seewer had one and a half hands on the silverware as he sat 43 points ahead of Gautier Paulin. In his own words, ‘it would need to take something catastrophic to deny him, plus Paulin would need to at least win a race as well.’ However, Seewer was not really Paulin’s main concern as just eleven points behind him was Glenn Coldenhoff, whose last eight races leading into China looked like this: 3-3, 1-1, 1-2, 3-2. He had also been in the podium at those four GPs as well, going 3-1-1-2 overall, so he was very much a man in form when he arrived ahead of practice. As the gates dropped for Qualifying, the result hinted at what we ought to expect from race 72

day, or to a certain degree at least. After sealing his first Qualyfing race win a week earlier, The Hoff clearly had a taste for success and it was he who took advantage of a Gajser error to record back-to-back wins. It was also good to Arminas Jasikoins mixing it with GC259 as well as he came home in 2nd to equal his best qualifying of the year. Seewer was solid in 3rd ahead of Jonass but it was Herlings who set the fastest lap on the final lap as he ‘struggled’ in 5th. Hoff was back to race-winning ways as he led every single lap of Race One, despite mounting pressure from Herlings and Gajser, who followed him home in 2nd and 3rd respectively. Seewer had earlier attempted a brief run at the lead, until he took a trip over the ’bars on Lap three. He had already taken a rock to the eye from the rear of Glenn’s rear wheel, and it transpired that this was the reason for a second crash later on in the same lap; a blood splattered lens made it difficult to see clearly, but he battled back to 4th at the flag which was good enough to secure the silver medal. With Paulin crossing the line in 8th, Coldenhoff now held 3rd in the standings, by a single point over the Frenchman. As the gate dropped for the final race of the year, it was the new silver medal holder Seewer who took the final Fox Holeshot of the season and his fifth of the campaign, although Coldenhoff wasted no time in getting to the front once again. Gajser was in 3rd with Herlings 4th and it stayed like this for the first five laps, until Gajser over-jumped the finish line, ran off track and into some trackside advertising banners, which got lodged around him and his handlebars. When he re-joined the race, he was back in 6th and a long way off the leading group. Herlings was the main beneficiary and with clear track he pounced on Seewer seven laps later to move into 2nd, setting up a final race showdown with Coldenhoff once again. Déjà vu anyone? In a rerun of Turkey, Race Two, the two Dutchies were running the show

once more, and with just over a lap to go, Herlings made a decisive move on The Hoff to take over the top spot. With the pass complete, Coldenhoff immediately backed off, as he looked to secure his first ever world championship medal. Seewer crossed the line ahead of Gajser and Jeremy Van Horebeek who rounded out his season as a privateer with another credible performance in 5th. For Herlings it was career win number 86; for Coldenhoff it was a 5th consecutive podium of the campaign in 2nd overall. The Netherlands will look forward to Assen knowing that two of their star performers are right at the very top of the game once again. On Sunday evening, it was announced that they will be joined by Calvin Vlaanderen once again, his podium at the final round clearly giving him the nod over van de Moosdijk. The final championship standings in MXGP 2019 was Gajser, Seewer and Coldenhoff, but now back to the little piece of history we mentioned earlier. Leading into the final GP in China, Tim Gajser held a 202-point advantage over Seewer whilst Jorge Prado held a 195-point gain over Olsen. A quick look through the ages revealed that only one other person had won a title by more than 200 points, and that was Stefan Everts in 2006 who won the title by 210; his final world championship winning campaign. As the weekend came to a close, Prado surpassed Everts with a win-margin of 213 over TKO. As for Gajser he remained 203 points clear of Seewer, and as it stands now, there are now just three riders in ‘The 200 Club’ and it’s headed up by Prado. Congratulations guys on a fantastic season. And with that, the curtain falls on the 2019 MXGP season, but fear not. Elsewhere in this issue we will bring you bang up to date with the final race of the year, the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations, so what are you waiting for?

FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

STANDINGS MXGP CHAMP. STANDINGS

MX2 CHAMP. STANDINGS

1. T. Gajser (SLO, HON) 2. J. Seewer (SUI, YAM), 3. G. Coldenhoff (NED, KTM) 4. ,G. Paulin (FRA, YAM), 5. A. Tonus (SUI, HUS), 6. P. Jonass (LAT, HUS) 7. A. Jasikonis (LTU, HUS), 8. J. Van Horebeek (BEL, HON) ,, 9. R. Febvre (FRA, YAM) 10. A. Cairoli (ITA, KTM)

MX2 MANUFACTURERS

1. Honda 2. KTM 3. Yamaha 4. Husqvarna 5. Kawasaki

1. KTM 2. Husqvarna 3. Yamaha 4. Honda 5. Kawasaki

MXGP Lifetime numbers of fans for each platform Facebook: 2.8M Page Likes Twitter: 70K Followers Instagram: 851K Followers Youtube: 193K Subscribers 90M Views

1. J. Prado (ESP, KTM) 2. T. Olsen (DEN, HUS) 3. J. Geerts (BEL, YAM) 4. T. Vialle (FRA, KTM) 5. H. Jacobi (GER, KAW) 6. A. Sterry (GBR, KAW) 7. M. Renaux (FRA, YAM) 8. C. Vlaanderen (NED, HON) 9. M. Boisrame (FRA, HON) 10. B. Watson (GBR, YAM)

MXGP MANUFACTURERS

SOCIAL MEDIA

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E L R A U I T C A E E SP F

S D R A W A P G X M 9 1 0 2

AS EVERY YEAR THE ANNUAL MXGP AWARDS CEREMONY TOOK PLACE AT THE FAMOUS ASSEN TT CIRCUIT DURING THE MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS. FOLLOWING THE MXON QUALIFYING RACES, THE PARTY MOVED TO THE EXPO HALL, WHERE RIDERS, JOURNALISTS, PHOTOGRAPHERS AND TEAMS PLUS MORE GATHERED TO CELEBRATE THIS YEAR’S ACHIEVEMENTS.

The MXGP Awards is a prize giving ceremony designed to celebrate the accomplishments from this season in the MXGP paddock. The awards were hosted by the voice of MXGPTV Commentator Paul Malin and MXGP-TV Presenter Lisa Leyland, and it was live streamed worldwide on MXGPTV.com. To kick off the Saturday night’s festivities, Youthstream President Mr. Giuseppe Luongo, FIM Vice President Mr. Jacques Bolle and Region of Drenthe Deputy Mr. Henk Brink took to the stage to welcome the MXGP guests for the 2019 MXGP Awards. Youthstream President Mr. Giuseppe Luongo: “Ladies and Gentlemen, dear motocross friends, first I wish to thank everybody for a fantastic season. The first thanks go to all the riders and the teams, they work always very hard. What you have done and what you achieve year by year, putting the level always higher is absolutely fantastic. This show is great, this sport is fabulous, and I never have enough words to describe it”.

“And a great thanks goes to all the organisers, because of the work we have done together which is huge, you see from all parts of the world, the standard is very high and we also try to push the level up every year by having better tracks, better welcome, better paddock, etc. And I know it’s hard for the organisers but they make a great job and when you see the standard now, you can be in Europe, in Asia, you can be in South America, everywhere in the world the MXGP standard is respected and the organisation is great. Thanks to the national federations as with their support the organisers can always improve, and last but not least a great thank to the FIM for believing in all of us and permit us to manage and help make the sport grow. Thank you to the local and national governments, who support our sport. In many parts of the world, the governments actively support the organisation and that is very important and very necessary. So, we are where we are today, we are in a fantastic place at high standards which is fantastic. Thank you to all Youthstream staff, we’ll still be here many

years from now to see how amazing our sport is”. FIM Vice President Mr. Jacques Bolle: “On behalf of the FIM and the President Jorge Viegas, who is not here because there is another national event, I want to give you a warm welcome. First of all, I want to congratulate all the champions who will get a prize this evening and I want to also congratulate our promoter Youthstream, today the level of motocross is so high with many spectators, with lots of TV coverage; together the FIM and the promoter Youthstream we work hard and we increase the standards of the motocross. And today I want to personally thank you Giuseppe, for your work and for what you to do for the motorcycle sport and I’m sure we can continue to work together and to improve motocross in the next year”. Region of Drenthe Deputy Mr. Henk Brink: “Welcome everybody, welcome to our beautiful province and the city of Assen and I say this on the behalf of the board, of the province of Drenthe and also the municipality of Assen. It’s a great pleasure for me to welcome you here today at the famous TT-circuit. It’s a very special place and for the first time in 15 years the Netherlands will be hosting the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations. It’s an honour to have this event here, in the cathedral of speed in the sporting province of Drenthe”. “This weekend we will witness some amazing motocross performances, where the riders will push their limits in a battle for the best, the best for themselves but also the best for their country. Organising this big event is only possible because of the cooperation of many people and many volunteers. Together with Mr Lee van Dam and his team, the municipality of Assen, the ministry but also all the people 87

and companies who are involved with this, we are thankful for the support. I would also like to wish the riders the best of luck for the races and I hope they’ll enjoy it. And speaking for the professional board and the municipality of Assen, I would like to show our appreciation for the organiser of this great event, the Motoclub of Assen. His Royal Highness the King of the Netherlands will also come on Sunday, and we are proud to welcome him here in Assen. Enjoy this evening, enjoy tomorrow and I hope you enjoy the hospitality from all the people in our region”. Youthstream President Mr. Giuseppe Luongo and FIM Vice President Jacques Bolle personally awarded the seasons’ most prestigious awards to the 2019 FIM Motocross World Champions, Tim Gajser and Jorge Prado at the end of the celebration while Youthstream CEO David Luongo together with FIM Europe President Martin De Graaff awarded the the 2019 European Champions, Roan Van De Moosdijk, Mike Kras, Mattia Guadagnini, Edvards Bidzans and Vitezslav Marek. David Luongo was joined later

on by FIM/CMS Director Antonio Alia to award the WMX and the Junior World Champions. Tom Vialle picked up the Jan de Groot Award that honours the most promising young talent. Also receiving an award was Max Anstie, who was awarded this year’s Fair Play Award for helping Romain Febvre, who was trapped under his bike, during the MXGP of Germany in Teutschenthal. Unfortunately, Anstie was not present to collect the award in person. As the evening moved on, Heinz Kinigardner was presented a cheque of 10,000 euro as a donation to the Wings For Life charity. And taking the emotional atmosphere on stage Mr Gregoire Courtine and Mrs Jocelyn Bloch from the International Foundation for Research in Paraplegia (IRP), joined Paul Malin and Lisa Leyland on stage to tell more about the very important work that they do as part of the IRP foundation. The IRP specialise in the rehabilitation of life changing injuries, especially those suffering from paraplegia. Over the last 20 years they have been working hard to raise funds to

• MXGP Manufacturer World Champion: Honda • MX2 Manufacturer World Champion: KTM • WMX Manufacturer World Champion: Kawasaki • MXGP Winning Team: Team HRC • MX2 Winning Team: Red Bull KTM Factory Racing • WMX Winning Team: Bike it DRT Kawaski • Mechanic of the Year: Luigi Rossini “Cippa” • Lifetime Career Award: John Van Den Berk • Photojournalist of the Year: Adriano Dondi • Best Digital Platform: MX Vice • “Jan De Groot” Award: Tom Vialle • Fair Play Award: Max Anstie • MXGP Best Cooperation: MXGP of Russia • MXGP Best Race Track: MXGP of Argentina • MXGP Best Media Centre: MXGP Italy, Imola • MXGP Best Paddock: MXGP of Turkey • MXGP Best Promotion: MXGP of China • MXGP Best Infrastructure: MXGP of China • MXGP Best Organiser: MXGP of Latvia 90

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

finance the best research projects in the field of neurosciences and the regeneration of the spinal cord, in the hope of finding a cure for the condition. It was a special moment, as on stage they showed the public, the extent of the work that the foundation carries out. The IRP and MXGP have been in collaboration to raise funds for more important research carried out. World Champions, Tim Gajser and Jorge Prado were both presented as the winners of the Tag Heuer Fastest Lap competition, receiving a finelooking Tag Heuer watch as an award while Fox Head General Manager, Julien Bretagne awarded this year’s Fox Holeshot competition to Antonio Cairoli and Jorge Prado with their prize. Both riders have previously won this contest in 2018. For the complete list of award winners, see below:

WATCH THE VIDEO

Wings for Life: Heinz Kinigardner EMX 65 European Champion: Vitezslav Marek EMX 85 European Champion: Edvards Bidzans EMX 125 European Champion: Mattia Guadagnini EMX 250 European Champion: Roan Van De Moosdijk EMX2T European Champion: Mike Kras 65cc Junior World Cup Winner: Vitezslav Marek 85cc Junior World Champion: Valerio Lata 125cc Junior World Champion: Mattia Guadagnini Women’s World Champion: Courtney Duncan TAG HEUER Best Lap Challenge - MXGP & MX2: Tim Gajser & Jorge Prado FOX HOLESHOT Award - MXGP & MX2: Antonio Cairoli & Jorge Prado MX2 World Champion: Jorge Prado MXGP World Champion: Tim Gajser

L L A H

E M A F F O

TYLA ‘RATTERS’ RATTRAY TYLA RATTRAY IS ONE OF THESE SOUTH AFRICAN KIDS WHO REACHED THEIR DREAM AFTER LEAVING HOME TO JOIN EUROPE AND THE MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. INJURIES NEVER DIVERTED HIM FROM HIS GOAL, AND HIS SEVENTH ATTEMPT WAS THE GOOD ONE FOR THIS HARD WORKER GUY WHO CLAIMED THE MX2 WORLD TITLE IN 2008 BEFORE MOVING TO THE US FOLLOWING THE FOOTSTEPS OF SOME OTHER FAMOUS COUNTRYMEN.. Born on 12th November 1985 in Durban, Tyla was not at all involved in motorcycles when he was a kid, in fact it was his mum that gave him his first bike when he turned five. He entered a local race and immediately enjoyed racing, but the financial situation was tough as his parents split when he was young and the family had to make a lot of sacrifices so that Tyla could continue racing. Tyla had the chance to join Tinus Neil’s team when he was thirteen years old, and the South African manager provided him all the facilities to race in decent conditions. He became South African champion in 1999 and had the opportunity to travel to Europe to enter the first ever 85cc World Cup in Gaildorf, where he scored his first International podium with a third overall. Tyla was only twelve years old when he left his friends to move to Europe as a member of the Vangani Team run by Tinus Neil. In 2000 he mainly raced national championship events in

Germany and the Netherlands, and joined the European championship in 2001. One year later he was racing the 125cc World Championship alongside Ben Townley and Tanel Leok, and got his first ever podium in Genk during the Belgian GP when he was only sixteen years old. After two seasons and two top seven places (7th in 2002 and 6th in 2003), Tyla was ready to join the factory KTM team with whom he won his first Grand Prix in Spain during the second round of the season. With three GP wins and thirteen podiums, Tyla finished runner up in the series between his teammate Ben Townley, who won the World Title that year, and Antonio Cairoli. Starting the 2005 season with a win in the opening round at Zolder, Tyla dislocated his shoulder in Portugal and missed most of the season. He was back racing for the last three rounds of the season and he won all of them showing that he was ready to be a title contender, but a series of injuries kept him away from challenging his rivals.

2008 was finally Tyla’s year and claimed the MX2 World Title, but it was a tough season as Tommy Searle never gave up, but thanks to his determination and twelve heat wins the South African clinched the title during the final round in Italy. KTM offered him the possibility to join the MX1 factory team, but Tyla was dreaming to race in the US and for the second time in his life he left behind all his friends to enter another challenge.

1999:

1South Africa 80 champion (Honda)

3rd in the FIM Junior World Championship

2001:

15th in the 125 European Championship (KTM)

2002:

7th in the 125 World Championship (KTM)

2003:

6th in the 125 World Championship (KTM)

Dutch 125 champion

2004:

2nd in the MX2 World Championship (KTM). Winner of 3 GP’s

2005:

15th in the MX2 World Championship (KTM). Winner of 4 GP’s

2006:

4th in the MX2 World Championship (KTM). Winner of 4 GP’s

Tyla went back to Europe in 2014 and race the MXGP championship for two more seasons before he retired when he turned thirty. Afterwards, he moved back to the USA and put all his experience and knowledge to train young riders. Renowned for his work ethic and dedication to the sport, he remains involved in the sport with the Troy Lee KTM team and who knows? Maybe one day one of his three children will follow his footsteps!

2007:

4th in the MX2 World Championship (KTM)

2008:

MX2 World Champion (KTM). Winner of 4 GP’s

Text & Photos: P. Haudiquert

2013:

Once again he had to fight against injuries and he had to wait until 2010 to enter his first full series in the outdoors, where he was on the top of the podium twice and finished runner up of the championship. He was definitively more successful in Motocross than in Supercross, as he finished once more vice MX champion in 2011 while he only got four podium finishes during two supercross campaigns.

2009: 9th in the US 250 Motocross championship (Kawasaki) 2010: 2nd in the US 250 Motocross championship (Kawasaki) 2011: 2nd in the US 250 Motocross championship (Kawasaki) 7th in the US 250 Supercross championship West coast 2012: 10th in the US 450 Motocross championship (Kawasaki) 8th in the US 250 Supercross championship West coast (Kawasaki)

2014: 17th in the MXGP World Championship (Husqvarna) 2015: 13th in the MXGP World Championship (Kawasaki)

S K L A T K C O D PAD 2

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Prime entertainment for the fans at the Monster Energy area at MXGP of Turkey.

2 Heads up for all the volunteers at the Just1 MXGP of China presented by Hehui Investment Group. 3 Certina presented Jeremy Seewerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s limited edition watch in China. 4 Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra played for the MXGP paddock at the Trees Future Arts Centre. 5 Our race director Ingo Partsch celebrated 200 GPs in China. 6 The so precious MXoN trophies and Tag Heuer watches. 7 Dunlop presented the new Dunlop Geomax MX53 at Assen. 8 Future Nagl generation! 9 Monster Energy put together a fantastic BMX and FMX show at the MXoN. 10 The so expected Monster riot during the MXoN. 11 A very warm farewell to Michele Rinaldi hosted by the Yamaha family. 12 The fans of the MXoN are always one of the best parts of the event. 13 Art School Charmkid visited the Chinese Grand Prix.

E L R A U I T C A E E SP F

YZ BLUCRU RIDERS WRAP UP 2019 SUPERFINALE

AFTER TWO THRILLING DAYS OF RIDING ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE FOR THE FIRST TIME AT THE MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS, THE 2019 YZ BLUCRU FIM EUROPE CUP STARTED ON SATURDAY AS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE HISTORY THE BLUCRU PROGRAM WAS SPLIT INTO 65CC, 85CC AND 125CC CLASSES, TOTALLING NEARLY 100 OF THE MOST PROMISING YOUNG YAMAHA RIDERS IN EUROPE RACING ON THE SAME TRACK AS THE PRO MXGP RIDERS.

Photo: P. Haudiquert Beginning with a damp opening free practice session in the morning, the YZ65 youngsters were the first competitors to ride the newly built sand track. Followed by the 85cc and 125cc classes, the YZ bLUcRU relished the opportunity to test their machinery and talents on the world stage for the first time, having made the cut for the SuperFinale based on their respective national championship results. The YZ65 and YZ85 classes held their SuperFinale races on Saturday also, putting on two thrilling races for the packed Assen grandstands. In the YZ65 field of 36 entries

local rider #484 Dex Kooiker set the pace in timed practice on a lap of 2’17.979, followed by Latvian rider #727 Jëkabs Kubulins and Swedish rider #777 Freddie Bartlett. As the race came around and the gate dropped Kubulins took the holeshot, establishing a commanding lead at the front. Behind him a close fight for second and third ensued, Swedish rider Bartlett starting well to hold second ahead of Dane #80 Frederik Rahn Stampe. With the sun shining track conditions improved and aided Kubulins in maintaining his lead to take the chequered flag by 12.2s, joined on the podium by Bartlett and Rahn Stampe in second and third. Following straight on from the youngest riders, the YZ85 class took positions at the gate. In

timed practice Dutch rider #567 Levi Schrik set the pace with a 2’04.096, just edging out Norwegian #78 Adrian Bolviken in second ahead of Swedish rider #192 Hamilton Eriksson. As anticipation built for another gate drop in quick succession, the 27 YZ85 youngsters took their starting positions. Schrik made a quick getaway ahead of Bolviken, with a strong start from Swede #910 Olle Mårtensson propelling him up the order. A close battle for the top five places ensued, Mårtensson dicing with Schrik for the lead while Bolviken and Eriksson battled for the final podium place. Ultimately Mårtensson’s pace proved strongest, taking victory by 11 seconds ahead of Schrik and Bolviken who fended off a tough attacked from Eriksson. The top three finishers and two carefully chosen wildcards 99

second and third respectively to complete the podium at the weekendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most difficult and entertaining bLUcRU SuperFinale race. The YZ125 riders faced heavy rain and different conditions on Sunday at the TT Circuit Assen, contesting the last 2019 SuperFinale race after the YZ65 and YZ85 riders competed on Saturday. in each SuperFinale category will now be picked to attend the bLUcRU Masterclass 18, 19 & 20 November in Spain, where they will hone their skills further under professional tutelage as they begin their international racing journeys. The YZ125 riders had their race on Sunday to close the 2019 YZ bLUcRU FIM Europe Cup SuperFinaleand begin another exciting chapter in the Yamaha story. 100

As the gate dropped practice leader Pumpurs took the holeshot to establish a very strong lead. Behind him Bruce also built on his practice pace to take second, battling with Spanish rider #252 Raul Sanchez behind. As the track got more challenging every rider put their head down over the 20-minute race. With Pumpurs sitting unchallenged in first place he took the victory nearly a minute clear, followed home by Sanchez, who battled past Bruce, in

For Pumpurs, Sanchez and Bruce, the bLUcRU Masterclass awaits on 18, 19 & 20 November in Spain, where they will be joined by two carefully selected YZ125 wildcards as they further develop their riding skills under expert tutorials and guidance. From the Masterclass, one of the five YZ125 riders will then win a place with the MJC Yamaha Official EMX125 team for the 2020 EMX125 Championship. At the same time, a new chapter begins for every YZ bLUcRU rider at the SuperFinale as they have made the first steps towards careers in international racing.

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S N R O O I T T I S E ED E U QO TH T ❝

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I’m about to buy 2020 MXoN weekend ticket and I was wondering if they include camping? Josh

Hey, I went to the MXoN event in Assen and I thought that I would be able to watch the replays online afterwards if you bought a ticket for the event? Felix

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Hi Josh, Standard weekend ticket doesn’t include camping but you can purchase camping spaces separately. Regards MXGP

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can you let me know which content is available to view in streaming from the MXoN? Karen

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Can you please tell me how to pay for and watch the 2019 MXON fully? Peter

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Hi Peter , The 2019 MXoN is available in the 2020 mxgp-tv early bird package. Regards MXGP

Dear Karen, the program for the Monster Energy FIM MXoN is very busy ;-) We show LIVE the Opening Press conferences, the teams’ presentation on Friday, plus the ballot to decide the starting grid, as well as the qualifying races and all the 3 MXoN races on Sunday. Besides, the 65cc, 85cc and 125cc bLU cRU Superfinale will be also LIVE on MXGP-TV. Best Regards MXGP

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Is there going to be a British Grand Prix or not? Jon

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Hi Jon The final calendar will be published shortly on www. mxgp.com Stay tunned! Thanks MXGP

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Hi Felix this is correct, check your paper ticket and follow the instructions there. You’ll find a QR code and an access code to enter. Enjoy! MXGP