12.09.2016
18th Rd. Motocross 2016 – Glen Helen (USA)
The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team on Sunday wrapped up the 2016 MXGP season on a high note with Jeffrey Herlings taking a 1-1 in MX2 to draw a line under a championship winning season and his career in the class. The final round was at the challenging Glen Helen circuit in the USA. In the MXGP, factory teammate Tony Cairoli also finished i form with a 2-2 in the premiere class for overall second behind a strong ride by American Eli Tomac. Third place went to Tim Gajser, the 2016 MXGP champion.
MX2Jeffrey Herlings leaves MX2 with three world titles and in excess of 60 GP wins and is already on his way to his career goal of more than 100 overall wins. At Glen Helen, with its speed and daunting hills, he answered the challenge from his MX2 rivals, and the participating top US riders. The Dutch rider was 10.16 seconds ahead of the competition on his
KTM 250 SX-F when he took the flag in the first race and 7.51 seconds ahead in the following moto for a clear overall victory. American racers Jeremy Martin and Mitchell Harrison took the minor podium places. Herlings had already wrapped up the title last week in Charlotte but the Glen Helen race secured second in the championship for Swiss rider Jeremy Seewer. Benoit Paturel of France was third.
Herlings:
“To finish off the season with a win is pretty amazing. Now I start to ride theKTM 450 SX-F and we’ll work from there. I think we had a very successful career so far and now its time to step up to the big boys. There’s not going to be much change. You stay with the same team and keep working with the same people.” Speaking of the Glen Helen race he commented:
“I think I had the strongest Americans here, except Cooper Webb. Jeremy Martin and Austin Forkner are the number two and three in my eyes. I beat those guys three times – on Saturday in the qualifying and twice in today’s motos. I also beat Cooper fair and square in the first moto in Charlotte then he beat me in the second race. I think I showed some great speed and good form, even though I was off the bike for 5-6 weeks and have only been back 3-4 weeks. I think I can say we had it under control.”Herlings admitted it wasn’t easy to draw a line under MX2 and move up a class.
“Its tough to close a chapter in your life where you have had so much success, so many race wins, emotions and injuries. But, hey, it’s done and hopefully now that I’m half way through the career I will step it up to the big boys and get some championships going there.” Pauls Jonass, Herlings teammate throughout the season did not ride in the US because he is still recovering from a race injury, but the Latvian can be satisfied finishing overall fifth in the championship after missing the last five rounds. Also out injured and unable to ride in the US rounds was KTM factory rider
Davy Pootjes.
Glen Helen was also an opportunity for the 15-year-old
Jorge Prado of Spain to show the skills that have given him a permanent berth in the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team MX2 squad. Already on the podium in Assen at the last European venue, Prado, a rider much less experienced and still growing physically, put in two good rides against a very strong field. He wrapped up his day at 16th overall, but also showed the sport’s insiders why he has won a place in the factory team at such a young age.
Prado:
“I’m really happy about the experience but today I’m a bit disappointed because I expected to be better. I wasn’t riding like I normally do, so we need to keep working. I was also a bit tired in my shoulders. I got the holeshot in the second moto but it was difficult to keep the speed until the end. We have to work much harder this winter to get ready for next year. I need to get stronger and then for sure the speed with be there.” Prado only contested the last three GPs of the season.
MXGPMultiple world champion
Tony Cairoli has been improving in form in the second half of the season after a string of injury problems earlier in the year. Now his second place to Tomac in Glen Helen and finishing the season second to Gajser is another chapter in his very successful and ongoing racing career.
Cairoli, who registered two decisive second places in the two races commented:
“I’m very happy to finish the season like this. My goal was the top spot of the podium but we ended up second in the world championship this year and that’s okay. I’ve been racing GPs for 13 years and only twice have I been out of the top three, so I’m happy and I can’t complain. We didn’t have the best year this year. There were a lot of struggles, but its nice to end the season like this. Tomac was very fast today and I didn’t have such a good week because I was ill in Charlotte and I wasn’t able to train much in the past days so my physical condition was not the best.”Cairoli’s teammate
Glenn Coldenhoff continued his run of improved form this weekend to finish 6-12 for overall sixth. He did not race the time practice on Saturday because he was ill, but bounced back to be 13th in qualifying.
Coldenhoff:
“I didn’t feel that comfortable with the bike and we’re not used to such fast tracks like this in Europe. But we slept on it and made some changes this morning, when I was actually feeling great. I pulled the holeshot in the first moto and really gave it all for those first few laps. I tried to stay in front but those guys were running a bit higher pace than me and I knew if I went with them it wouldn’t be good for me. I had a bad start in the second moto and it was already difficult. I came back to eighth but then I made so many mistakes and crashed a few times. I had to slow down otherwise I would have been on the ground. I got seventh in the championship, one place better than last year, and the second half of the season has been great. I have definitely improved a lot. I’m getting more confident and for sure it will be better next year.”Next Race: September 25, 2016 – Motocross of Nations, Maggiora (ITA) Results MXGP Glen Helen 20161. Eli Tomac (USA), Kawasaki (1-1)
2. Tony Cairoli (ITA), KTM (2-2)3. Tim Gajser (SLO), Honda (4-3)
4. Max Nagl (GER), Husqvarna (3-4)
5. Gautier Paulin (FRA), Honda (10-5)
Other KTM6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED), KTM (6-12)10. Shaun Simpson (GBR), KTM (12-9)
12. Dean Wilson (GBR), KTM (13-6) Final Standings MXGP 2016 after 18 of 18 rounds1. Gajser, 731 points
2. Cairoli, 6473. Nagl, 603
4. Romain Febvre (FRA), Yamaha, 564
5. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS), Honda, 545
Other KTM7. Coldenhoff, 40610. Simpson, 343
Results MX2 Glen Helen 20161. Jeffrey Herlings (NED), KTM (1-1)2. Jeremy Martin (USA), Honda (2-2)
3. Mitchel Harrison (USA), Yamaha (5-5)
4. Max Anstie (GBR), Husqvarna (8-4)
5. Jeremy Seewer (SUI), Suzuki (11-3)
Other KTM7. Brian Bogers (NED), KTM (9-7)
16. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP), KTM (16-16)DNS Pauls Jonass (LAT), KTMDNS Davy Pootjes (NED), KTM Final Standings MX2 2016 after 18 of 18 rounds1. Herlings, 739 points2. Seewer, 625
3. Benoit Paturel (FRA), Yamaha, 512
4. Anstie, 504
5. Jonass, 403Other KTM6. Bogers, 398
22. Pootjes, 94www.mxgp.com
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