Mantova: The second Italian triple-header!

While grand old Italian circuits like Imola, Gallarate, Maggiora and Arsago Seprio take us back to the 1960s, 70s and 80s, the circuit on Mantova, which will host this weekend’s first of three triple headers is very much one of the most important Italian facilities in recent years.

Back in 1991 Mantova held its very first Grand Prix, when American racer Trampas Parker won the Italian 250cc Grand Prix on his way to first 250 championship and his second World title (he also won a 125cc championship), and while the circuit hadn’t been used much in the 1990s, it has been a regular stop in the last 15 or so years.

Mantova is also a circuit where both MXGP contenders Antonio Cairoli and Tim Gajser have had success and Cairoli is without question the most successful rider in the circuits GP history, and it all started 13 years ago in the MX2 class.

Cairoli took his first ever victory at the Mantova circuit in 2007, going 1-1 in the MX2 class, on his way to his second World championship. He also won at Mantova in 2008 with a 4-1 performance, and again in the MX1 class in 2010 with 2-1 scores. He took his fourth and final victory at Mantova last year going 1-1 as he battled Gajser for the MXGP championship. No doubt, riding at home in front of his beloved Italian fans always gives the legend a little more motivation.

“It is always very nice to be back in Italy,” Cairoli said last year. “The race itself went perfectly and we knew the start would be important, especially on a track that was so rutted. It was completely different to what it was in qualification. It is very early to look at the points standings, so my focus is to stay in front as long as possible and try not to make a mistake.”

Mantova though has always been a mixed bag for the Slovenian, with victories, bone crunching crashes and everything in between. The HRC rider went 3-2 at Mantova in 2015 finishing second behind British rider Max Anstie in the MX2 class, then won his first GP at Mantova in 2016, going 1-1. Gajser, but since, he has had two poor results at Mantova, breaking his jaw in a pre-season race in 2018, and finishing with 10-6 results in the GP last year as he sat and watched Cairoli dominate. Surprisingly once Mantova was done in 2019, Tim Gajser made his charge, winning a handful of Grand Prix’s in a row and claiming his third World title in the process.

So what the 2020 version of Mantova brings is of course unknown, but you can nearly be sure, both Cairoli and Gajser will be involved at the pointy end of the results and who knows, this beautiful little circuit on the edge of the city of Mantova might add another piece of its own drama, just as Kegums and Faenza did with their triple headers.