MX2

Next weekend we will see the Grand Prix of Portugal once again return to the MXGP calendar, and as was the case in 2017, it should be a cracking event. One of the MXGP and MX2 riders’ favourite circuits on the calendar.

Despite some rain expected this week at Agueda, we have been informed that the sky is blue at the moment, and sunshine is expected for Saturday. Greg Atkins who is working on the track mentioned that the facility has a very good drainage system and that the track is in perfect condition.

“I am at the track now,” Atkins said. “It is in perfect condition and the trucks are already arriving. Monster are erecting their structures and its all systems go for the weekend.”

Pauls Jonass, the red plate owner in the MX2 class is looking forward to recovering from his less than impressive performance last weekend in the Grand Prix of Trentino, where the Red Bull KTM Factory rider finish off the podium, after scoring 1-1-1-1-1-1 in the first three Grand Prix’s of 2018. Even if it is a muddy race, Jonass is ready.

“I am really looking forward to it,” Jonass said. “It is a really nice track and It’s also a nice place, I like the ground over there. I preferred the old layout, but still it is a nice one and one of my favourites I would say. I used to ride in the mud a lot when I was living in Latvia, so I enjoy riding in the mud. I don’t really enjoy it in a race though, because then again, the start is the key.”

MXGP red plate owner, Jeffrey Herlings of the Red Bull KTM Factory team is also excited to get to the red dirt of Agueda, so show off his red plate, and continue his rich vein of form.

“If is a fun track,” Herlings said. “A bit sandy on top so you get some good lines there. It isn’t just Tony and me racing, there are 40 other guys who are fast. I won’t underestimate Tony and the other MXGP guys, because the level is a lot higher than the MX2 class from back in the day. I do feel like when I take good starts I can fight anyone, but it isn’t given that I don’t get passed, because Tony, Gajser, Febvre, any one of those guys on their day are super-fast. They can beat me straight up on their day.”

American racer Thomas Covington of the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna outfit, has shown good speed at the Agueda circuit and is looking forward to getting another shot at the MX2 competition. His second race victory at Trentino was the perfect preparation for Portugal.

“You know,” Covington said. “I feel like Agueda is similar to Trentino, a bit slippery, hard pack. I did well there last year, so I am looking forward to getting there. Good weather again and it should be fun.”

So, in just a few days’ time, the best motocross riders in the world will arrive at the Agueda circuit and prepare to once again put their bodies on the line in search of victory.

Polisport has teamed up with MXGP this weekend for the MXGP of Portugal and they are giving one lucky fan some amazing prizes!

All you have to do to enter is click the link HERE and enter your best guess of who will be on the MXGP podium in Portugal. Those who enter their prediction will automatically be in the draw to win a Polisport bike stand, an MXGP-TV season package, and the MXGP3 the Videogame!

Place your bets now and be sure to enter before the contest closes on Sunday the 15th of April at 17:00.

Click here to PLAY & WIN! 

To enter the competition trough your desktop or mobile phone please click HERE

AGUEDA (Portugal) 11 April 2018 - Just days after an amazing weekend in Italy MXGP has arrived to the 5th round of the 2018 season this weekend at the Agueda circuit for the MXGP of Portugal! The Portuguese GP returned to the calendar last year and provided excellent racing with Antonio Cairoli besting his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Jeffrey Herlings as Arminas Jasikonis took his first and only MXGP podium.

This weekend’s racing will again be one to remember with Cairoli looking to win again especially after just suffering a defeat at his home GP against the strong stars of Herlings. In addition wet weather the past days could make the circuit challenging and potentially lead to a new winner in both the MXGP and MX2 classes.

Not only will MXGP and MX2 race this time out but so too will the European 250 Motocross championship along with the second Women’s Motocross World Championship race of the season. In the EMX250 class Pierre Goupillon leads the points after winning the opening round of the series at Redsand but Tom Vialle also showed speed along with Mel Pocock and Martin Barr who each took a race win in Spain. In the WMX Championship Larissa Papenmeier has the red plate after winning her first race in 8 years at last weekend season opener in Trentino. Joining Papenmeier in Portugal will be Courtney Duncan, Nancy van de Ven, and Kiara Fontanesi among others.

In MXGP Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings comes off an emphatic win against his teammate and rival Antonio Cairoli at Trentino. Herlings’ win on Italian soil not only has given him bragging rights but also the championship leader’s red plate.

Last year Cairoli was the better of the pair on the Agueda circuit and of the 11 times he raced here in his career 5 were victorious, 5 more were podium finishes, and his worst result was 5th way back in 2004. Cairoli remains focused on the long term goal of the championship and has the extra benefit this weekend of Herlings not being a particularly strong mud rider in a time that may require just such a skill.

Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Clement Desalle who had his season best result of 2nd last week will look to improve on his 8th place from 2017. Desalle has however won the MXGP of Portugal 3 times in his career.

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP’s Romain Febvre currently holds down 4th in the championship only 6 points ahead of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Gautier Paulin. Febvre just missed the MXGP podium last year with 4th overall while Paulin finished 12th. Paulin’s Portuguese record is hit and miss with 1 win, 2 podiums, a 6th, 9th, and last year’s 12th.

Wilvo Yamaha Official MXGP’s Jeremy Seewer is last year’s MX2 winner from Portugal and so far in his rookie MXGP season he has been impressive as he sits 8th in points.

Honda Redmoto Assomotor’s Arminas Jasikonis has struggled in 2018 thus far. His struggles are likely due to his late 2017 injury and lack of prep on a team. Nevertheless Jasikonis is improving week by week and last year took his 1st and only MXGP podium of his career so far.

Also notable is Portugal’s Rui Goncalves’ return from retirement this weekend to race his home GP.

MXGP Championship Top Ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 191 points; 2. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 181 p.; 3. Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 145 p.; 4. Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 135 p.; 5. Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 129 p.; 6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 111 p.; 7. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 104 p.; 8. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 83 p.; 9. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 77 p.; 10. Julien Lieber (BEL, KAW), 72 p.

2017 MXGP of Portugal MXGP Top 3:

1. Antonio Cairoli
2. Jeffrey Herlings
3. Arminas Jasikonis

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Pauls Jonass suffered his first defeat of the season at the hands of his teammate Jorge Prado last week in Trentino. Jonass who finished second in Agueda last year to Jeremy Seewer will be looking to correct his starts after missing out the Holeshot last week.

Jorge Prado on the other hand will look to keep his momentum from Trentino and forget his 2017 MXGP of Portugal where he struggled in the heat scoring 24th in race 1 and not starting race 2. While a repeat is highly unlikely it will be interesting to see how performs.

Others such as Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thomas Covington and STC Husqvarna’s Henry Jacobi are trying to crash the KTM party. Jacobi had his career best finish and first podium last round.

While America’s Thomas Covington became the first non KTM rider to win a race in the MX2 category of 2018 at Trentino, he is just one of many potential winners in Portugal. Covington does have fond memories from Agueda as he took third here in 2017.

Covington’s Teammate, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thomas Kjer Olsen, has been one of the most consistent riders of 2018 finishing on the podium 3 of 4 races with the only exception being 8th last weekend. Olsen finished 4th in Agueda last year.

The 2 British riders, Kemea Yamaha Official MX Team’s Ben Watson and Hitachi KTM UK’s Conrad Mewse are currently 4th and 5th in the championship. This weekend we could see one if not both of them with breakthrough results especially in the wet conditions which Brits commonly excel in.

MX2 Championship Top Ten: 1. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 180 points; 2. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 152 p.; 3. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 145 p.; 4. Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 105 p.; 5. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), 100 p.; 6. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, HON), 99 p.; 7. Thomas Covington (USA, HUS), 91 p.; 8. Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 91 p.; 9. Vsevolod Brylyakov (RUS, YAM), 86 p.; 10. Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 79 p.

2017 MXGP of Portugal MX2 Top 3:

1. Jeremy Seewer
2. Pauls Jonass
3. Thomas Covington

All the photos of the MXGP of Portugal will be available HERE

TIMETABLE

Saturday: EMX250 Group 1 Free/Time practice 09:00; EMX250 Group 2 Free/Time Practice 09:45; WMX Free/Time Practice 10:30; MX2 Free Practice 11:30; MXGP Free Practice 12:00; EMX250 Last Chance Qualifying Race 13:00; MX2 Time Practice 14:00; MXGP Time Practice 14:40; WMX Race 1 15:25; MX2 Qualifying Race 16:25; MXGP Qualifying Race 17:10; EMX250 Race 1 17:55.

Sunday: WMX Race 2 09:45; MX2 Warm up 10:25; MXGP Warm up 10:45; EMX250 Race 2 11:30; MX2 Race 1 13:15; MXGP Race 1 14:15; MX2 Race 2 16:10; MXGP Race 2 17:10.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

FIM Europe

MXGP of Portugal

MXGP is ready to set in Portugal for Round 5 of the 2018 FIM Motocross World Championship.

Together with the Premier Classes MXGP and MX2 also the second round of the WMX and the EMX250 Championships are held in Agueda this weekend. 

Timetable is avilabel to downlod by clicking HERE while below all entries list are official.

MXGP Entry List

MX2 Entry List

EMX250 Entry List

WMX Entry Lists

MXGP keeps running the FOX Holeshot competition trough the 19 rounds of the 2018 FIM Motocross World Championship season together with MXGP Partner FOX.

The way it works is that 1 point is awarded per MXGP or MX2 championship race. The first rider who cross the white line painted on the ground at the exit of the first corner will be given a point. At the end of the season, the 2 riders – one per category - with the most FOX Holeshot points will win a mega prize.

At the MXGP of Trentino that took place on April the 10^th in Pietramurata Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings and Antonio Cairoli the FOX Holeshot in MXGP Race 1 and Race 2 respectively while in MX2 it was Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado who passed the Holeshot line at first in both races

Watch the FOX Holeshot Films

MXGP FOX Holeshot Film

MX2 FOX Holeshot Film

MONACO (Principality of Monaco), 10 April 2018 – 958 Santero bubbles continue to stay on the podium alongside the protagonists of the FIM Motocross World Championship for 2018. Once again, 958 Santero will enhance the prize-giving ceremonies following each MXGP event of the season and 958 Magnum bottles will be handed over to the top 3 riders on the MXGP and MX2 podiums.

Santero will also be present with its wide range of labels in the "Skybox Restaurant”, the VIP hospitality area dedicated to MXGP VIP Gold guests and partners, where invitees from all over the world would have the chance to taste the excellence of Italian wines and experience the innovative Santero products.

David Luongo, Youthstream’s Vice President: “The podium is always a special moment for our sport and it is very important for Youthstream to be associated with such a premium partner. While 958 Santero will receive a fantastic worldwide coverage, our VIP Gold Guests will be able to delight their top class products, so we would like to thank Mr. Santero to continue putting his trust into the MXGP World Championship”

Gianfranco Santero, Santero President: “Our goal is to further increase the popularity of our brand and thanks to our partnership renewal with Youthstream and MXGP we keep supporting the sport in its key moments: the celebration. It is several years now that Santero is representing the “Happy Moments” in motorsports and we are glad to toast our fourth year in a row in World Motocross”.

Again, this year the agreement between Youthstream and Santero Wines was managed by Slash, Monaco-based company operating in global action sports marketing. More details on Slash by clicking HERE

About Santero. Founded in 1958, Santero winery is located in Piedmont, Italy, at the heart of a wine-growing region, such as Monferrato hills. Santero represents the passion for the vineyard, an expert management of the wine cellar and the love for wine and sparkling wine. Today, the production department develops the firm from the grape harvest to the bottling phase, which takes place on-site in the completely restructured wine cellar where innovation and technology guarantee results with a modern look, but an age-old heart. Follow the website santero.it for more information.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Santero

TAG Heuer has been the official timekeeper of the FIM Motocross World Championship since 2014 and together with MXGP are running the fastest lap competition across each season.

The way it works is: at each and every round of the MXGP season, the rider that sets the best lap time in each class, MXGP and MX2, will receive 1 point in the TAG Heuer competition. The rider that has set the fastest lap at the most rounds throughout the season in MXGP and MX2 classes, and has the most points, will be awarded.

At the MXGP of Trentino held in Pietramurata, Italy, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings set the Tag Heuer best lap for the fourth time in a row while in MX2 it was the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Jorge Prado who was fastest during the weekend.

Here below you have the details:

MXGP: Jeffrey Herlings at Race 2 Lap 11 with 1.46:273

MX2: Jorge Prado at Race 1 Lap 3 with 1.49.674

Check out MXGP.com home page for the the Top 3 TAG Heuer Best Lap competition’s ranking.

PIETRAMURATA (Trentino, Italy) 08 April 2018 - The circuit of Pietramurata in Trentino region of Italy played host to many races this weekend from premier World Championship classes MXGP and MX2 to European Championship racing, however some of the most interesting action was from the first round of the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship. Nearly 50 women entered this weekend’s racing filling the class with riders both new and old to the championship. Taking the overall victory was the familiar face of the #423, Larissa Papenmeier.

Papenmeier has been a part of the Women’s Motocross World Championship since the inception of the series in 2008. Larissa became the first Women’s World Championship individual race winner 10 years ago and today claimed her first overall win since 2010.

On Saturday Nancy van de Ven was the early race leader but Papenmeier took the spot from the Dutch rider on lap four. Later on Papenmeier had to hold off the charges of the defending and 5 time world champion MXFONTARACING Yamaha’s Kiara Fontanesi.

Fontanesi started the race in 10th position but after just one lap made her way to 5th, in the remaining 9 laps she worked her way up to the back wheel of Papenmeier. However on the last lap Fontanesi pushed hard and lost the front end of her Yamaha allowing Papenmeier room to breathe as van de Ven and KTM Silver Action’s Amandine Verstappen took over second and third with Fontanesi crossing the line in 4th.

Today’s race 2 started with a holeshot from Verstappen over the #131 of Line Dam and Altherm JCR Yamaha’s Courtney Duncan. Fontanesi again suffered a bad start completing the first lap in 9th while Duncan took the lead from Verstappen.

Duncan took full advantage of her top five start and early lead leaving Verstappen to battle with Papenmeier and Fontanesi. On lap 5 Papenmeier took over second from Verstappen who was also passed by Fontanesi and van de Ven before the finish.

Duncan took the race win but Papenmeier claimed the overall with Duncan, Fontanesi, and van de Ven all tied for second with 40 points. Race 2’s result decided the podium and left van de Ven 4th.

WMX Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, Suzuki), 25:09.220; 2. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, Yamaha), +0:14.335; 3. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), +0:15.993; 4. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, Yamaha), +0:23.100; 5. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), +0:23.838; 6. Courtney Duncan (NZL, Yamaha), +0:39.492; 7. Emelie Dahl (SWE, Yamaha), +0:50.951; 8. Natalie Kane (IRL, Honda), +0:52.187; 9. Francesca Nocera (ITA, Suzuki), +1:25.191; 10. Line Dam (DEN, Honda), +1:26.227.

WMX Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Courtney Duncan (NZL, Yamaha), 25:03.913; 2. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, Yamaha), +0:20.318; 3. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, Suzuki), +0:24.899; 4. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, Yamaha), +0:28.690; 5. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), +0:30.198; 6. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), +1:06.276; 7. Natalie Kane (IRL, Honda), +1:07.326; 8. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), +1:09.206; 9. Virginie Germond (SUI, KTM), +1:27.094; 10. Anne Borchers (GER, Suzuki), +1:32.477.

WMX Overall Top Ten: 1. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 45 points; 2. Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 40 p.; 3. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 40 p.; 4. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 40 p.; 5. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), 36 p.; 6. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 27 p.; 8. Emelie Dahl (SWE, YAM), 23 p.; 9. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Virginie Germond (SUI, KTM), 22 p.

WMX Championship Top Ten: 1. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 45 points; 2. Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 40 p.; 3. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 40 p.; 4. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 40 p.; 5. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), 36 p.; 6. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 27 p.; 8. Emelie Dahl (SWE, YAM), 23 p.; 9. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Virginie Germond (SUI, KTM), 22 p.

WMX Manufacturers: 1. Yamaha, 47 points; 2. Suzuki, 45 p.; 3. KTM, 36 p.; 4. Honda, 27 p.; 5. Kawasaki, 1 p.

Click here to obtain the complete results

All the photos of the MXGP of Trentino will be available HERE

MXGP TRENTINO – QUICK FACTS

Circuit length: 1660m

Type of ground: hard pack

Temperature: 19°

Weather conditions: sunny

Weekend Crowd Attendance: 33,000

MXGP was available across the board in high definition and is also globally available to view live and in HD on MXGP-TV.com. Click here for the complete list of countries and cooperating MXGP broadcasting networks.

NEXT ROUND

The second round of the 2018 FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship will be held in 1-week time in Agueda, Portugal.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

MXGP of Trentino