MXGP

South African rider Tyla Rattray is very much a rider who works hard on his craft. Having won the 2008 MX2 world championship Rattray knows how to win titles, but injuries in 2014 saw him really struggle in the tough MXGP class.

Now with a change to the Monster Energy Kawasaki outfit Rattray is looking at showing that the speed is still there. Teaming up with American Ryan Villopoto also gives the South African a lot to look forward to in what could be his last challenge to the biggest motocross championship in he world.

We caught up with Rattray as he visited Belgium and his team for 2015.

Q: Tyla, 2014 was a season you would probably want to forget?

Rattray: It was tough, the season started getting hit with a rock in my hand at the Italian championships, the finger was cracked, and I took time off trying to recover. I talked to the doctor and he said it should be ok with a little rest. I went to Qatar hoping the finger would be ok. Obviously it wasn’t good to take so much time off riding before the first round, but it had to be like that.

Q: Yes it didn’t work out that well did it?

Rattray: I figured two weeks off and my finger would be ok, but then I went to Qatar and on the Friday (practice) my finger still didn’t feel right. I went and had x-ray on Saturday morning and it showed the finger was completely broken, then I knew straight away it needed surgery. In the first x-ray after the accident in Italy didn’t show much, but in Qatar it was clearly broken.

Q: Once you came back after that injury you seemed to be finding your speed, with some good results, but then you got injured again.

Rattray: True, I didn’t start the season well with the injury, and then it wasn’t good coming back with all the other riders already getting into the swing of things. I started slow, and I got some top six spots, then top five, and then I crashed and got another injury. I was a bummer for sure and my season was over.

Q: As all racers do, you can really only look forward and start preparing for 2015. How is that going?

Rattray: The preparation for 2015 is going great. I have a bike and we did some testing in Europe, and then I headed back to America to do some more training. I can’t wait for 2015, it can’t come quick enough.

Q: And riding with Ryan (Villopoto), how are you looking forward to that?

Rattray: The guy has shown he wins if he’s fit. I think he will be okay and I look forward to helping him in Europe and showing him the ropes a little, what to expect in some places. It should be fun.

Airoh, the amazing family owned and operated helmet brand that has taken the world by storm over the last few years, continued to protect some of the worlds best riders throughout MXGP’s season 2014 such as Antonio Cairoli, Jeffrey Herlings, Jeremy Van Horebeek, Clement Desalle, and Jordi Tixier among many more. Click HERE to watch a action packed video featuring some of the best moments for the ‘Airoh’ sponsored athletes. 

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 23 October 2014 - Youthstream is pleased to announce that the relationship between Monster Energy and the FIM Motocross World Championship has been extended for a multiyear term.

The agreement confirms Monster Energy as the exclusive energy drink partner of the series and sets again Monster Energy as title sponsor of the FIM Motocross of Nations and the MXGP of USA.

Monster Energy will also be the exclusive energy drink sponsor of the European EMX125 and the EMX250 Championships.

The agreement includes, as well, a series of initiatives to further strengthen and elevate the leading role of the FIM Motocross World Championships in the off-road universe.   

Mr Mitch Covington, Monster Energy Vice-President, said: “Monster Energy is, once again, proud to be partnering with Youthstream and the FIM Motocross World Championship. The fact that the series now travels to 16 nations and 4 continents truly makes it a world championship. The competition also comes from all over the globe and has reached a world class level creating the planet’s elite motocross championship. Motocross racing is in our DNA at Monster Energy, so it is a perfect fit for our brand and a great stage for our world-class racers and famous Monster Girls to meet the passionate motocross fans. 2015 will be especially exciting to see two active legends of the sport, Ryan Villopoto and Antonio Cairoli, come together to fight for national and global pride – And lets not forget the other championship level riders that are very capable of spoiling it for them both. Coupled with our sponsorship of the Monster Energy Supercross Series in the US, and the MXGP’s, we feel we have a nice presence around the world of motocross.”

‘YS is delighted that Monster Energy continues with MXGP, it’s proof that our vision, investments and work is going in the right direction.’ Mr Giuseppe Luongo, President of Youthstream said. ‘We thank Monster Energy for the trust they have given us, Monster Energy is the right partner for MXGP as they are very active and extremely passionate for Motocross.  Over the last 4 years we have made a great road together achieving many goals and the future will be even better continuing with our task of bringing Motocross into all the homes around the world.’

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Monster Energy

Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team's newest MXGP title threat, Ryan Villopoto, has been out tearing up the sand of Grevenbroich, Germany over the last few days. Click HERE to watch the GoPro footage. 

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 17 October 2014 - The PS4™ Demo version of MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame, the Official Motocross World Championship Videogame has been released by Milestone.

Every motocross fan may test the following content inside the Demo version:

• Tutorial Mode
• Grand Prix Mode
• Up to three official riders from MX1: Antonio Cairoli, Clément Desalle, Gautier Paulin
• Tracks available: Italy – Arco di Trento

By clicking here you will be able to watch the PS4™ trailer.

Based on one of the most adrenaline filled and challenging championships ever, dust, emotion, realism, authenticity, amazing jumps and the fight for first position are key elements of the new videogame. A lot of new features have been included into the game that will inspire motocross lovers, but not only them. By playing, new generations of riders/players are brought to life, characterized by Milestones latest masterpiece. The aim?  Win the MXGP World Championship race by race.

MXGP – The Official Motocross Videogame features all the riders, teams, bikes and rules from the official MXGP 2013 calendar including a redesigned career mode for living the feelings of Motocross.

Developed by Milestone Studio, one of the most recognized racing videogame developers and publishers for consoles and Windows® PC, MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame is available from today October 17^th on PlayStation®4 (Release date may change depending on the country).

The game was already available on Xbox 360® (59.99€), PlayStation®3 (59.99€), PlayStation®Vita (39.99€) and Windows PC® (39.99€). PC players will also be able to download it from Steam by clicking here.

Follow us on Facebook, on the official Youtube Channel or check the #mxgpvideogame hashtag.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Milestone

Dylan Ferrandis, a member of the French team which won the Motocross of Nations, has signed a long-term agreement with Kawasaki to continue in 2016 the MX2 World Championship before moving to the USA.

A member of the Kawasaki family for several years, Dylan Ferrandis was already one of the main protagonists of the FIM MX2 Motocross World Championship this season. The winner of the opening race in Qatar and with four Grand Prix podiums, Dylan ended the season with a prestigious win at the Motocross of Nations with Team France. The young Frenchman has always dreamed to continue his career in the USA, and Kawasaki offers him this opportunity through a long-term agreement; the 20 year old kid from Southern France will race for the Monster Energy Kawasaki MX2 Racing Team in next year's GPs before moving to the Kawasaki 250 Team in the USA.

Dylan Ferrandis: “I’m very happy to sign this long-term deal with Kawasaki. I’ve been riding for them for several years now, and I feel so comfortable on these bikes. We’ve got a great relationship and our common goal is to win in Europe but also in the USA; that’s been a dream of mine for many years. I hope to get great results in the MX2 Grand Prix series with the MX2 team, and then move with the same goal in the USA. I’d like to thanks all the people who trust in me and made this deal possible.”
 


Jean Jacques Luisetti: “When we started working with Dylan this season we already knew that he had a great potential, so we’re happy to finalise a long-term deal with him thanks to Dylan and his manager Jeremy. He will race with us in 2015-2016 and later, following in the footsteps of Arnaud Tonus, he will move to the USA with Kawasaki. There’s now a great connection between the two continents, and once more Kawasaki has shown that they want to have a long-term relationship with their best riders.”
 


Let us begin at the beginning with our two reigning champions and one all conquering manufacturer.

Jeffrey Herlings, thwarted by injury at the tail end of 2013 and energised to the extreme to make it the perfect season in 2014.

Antonio Cairoli, carrying the remnants of an ankle injury into the opening round of the year and a sense of riding himself into his usual energetic and dominant form.

The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing dream team that has nurtured and dominated MXGP and MX2 for the last 5 years began 2014 with the same single minded purpose: to put their two World Champions on the top step of the championship come seasons end.

Fast-forwarding past the first 15 rounds brings us to the ones that really matter, the title deciders. This year, for the first time since 2010 in Campo Grande, Brazil, we were going to have World Champions crowned away from European soil as the title chases in both classes came down to the wire at the year ending fly away races.

MXGP has consistently given us the closest battles for the lead this year, be it Clement Desalle, Gautier Paulin or Max Nagl, there has always been a thorn in the side of the Cairoli charge, and yet with 100 points still up for grabs at the start of race 1 at the MXGP of the State of Goias there was little doubt that the 7 time world champion would make it 8 by the chequered flag.

It is remarkably true that he actually doesn’t look at the overall championship positions during the season, that’s not to say that he is surprised every time that he gets the red plate handed to him on the podium, more that he knows that if he can go and do what he loves, which is winning races, then the championship will come to him at the end.

To read the rest of this feature, cick HERE! 

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 16 October 2014 - The third Batch of PS4™ screenshots devoted to MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame, the Official Motocross World Championship Videogame has been released by Milestone.

The new screenshots are a preview of what the PS4™ players can experience when choosing one of the four new tracks: Lierop – Holland / Sevlievo – Bulgaria / Loket – Czech Republic / Arco di Trento – Italy.

Check the gallery on the official Facebook page www.facebook.com/MXGPvideogame

Based on one of the most adrenaline filled and challenging championships ever, dust, emotion, realism, authenticity, amazing jumps and the fight for first position are the key elements of the new videogame. A lot of new features have been included into the game that will inspire motocross lovers, but not only them. By playing, new generations of riders/players are brought to life, characterized by Milestones latest masterpiece. The aim?  Win the MXGP World Championship race by race.

MXGP – The Official Motocross Videogame features all the riders, teams, bikes and rules from the official MXGP 2013 calendar including a redesigned career mode for living the feelings of Motocross.

Developed by Milestone Studio, one of the most recognized racing videogame developers and publishers for consoles and Windows® PC, MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame will be available from *October 17^th on PlayStation®4.

The game is already available on Xbox 360® (59.99€), PlayStation®3 (59.99€), PlayStation®Vita (39.99€) and Windows PC® (39.99€). PC players will also be able to download it from Steam by clicking here.

Follow us on Facebook, on the official Youtube Channel or check the #mxgpvideogame hashtag.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Milestone

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 14 October 2014 - The Developer Diary devoted to MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame, the Official Motocross Championship Videogame has been released by Milestone.

Teutschenthal, 28 September 2013. Motocross of Nations – MxoN. Milestone’s team of audio developers met Antonio Cairoli. They placed on him: a jacket with 3 High Fidelity Microphones and a GoPro Camera. Once the preparation had ended they started recording the environmental audio and the sound of Cairoli’s KTM. What was achieved: a High Definition level of audio quality like never before. These are the ingredients in the “making of” video that will satisfy even the most demanding players.

By clicking here you will be able to watch the video.

Based on one of the most adrenaline filled and challenging championships ever, dust, emotion, realism, authenticity, amazing jumps and the fight for first position are the key elements of the new videogame. A lot of new features have been included into the game that will inspire motocross lovers, but not only them. By playing, new generations of riders/players are brought to life, characterized by Milestones latest masterpiece. The aim?  Win the MXGP World Championship race by race.

MXGP – The Official Motocross Videogame features all the riders, teams, bikes and rules from the official MXGP 2013 calendar including a redesigned career mode for living the feelings of Motocross.

Developed by Milestone Studio, one of the most recognized racing videogame developers and publishers for consoles and Windows® PC, MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame will be available from *October 17^th on PlayStation®4.

The game is already available on Xbox 360® (59.99€), PlayStation®3 (59.99€), PlayStation®Vita (39.99€) and Windows PC® (39.99€). PC players will also be able to download it from Steam by licking here.

Follow us on Facebook, on the official Youtube Channel or check the  #mxgpvideogame hashtag.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Milestone

After a great year in off-road motorsport, France’s motorcycling federation, the FFM, and the top French motocross riders, the FIM Motocross World Champion Jordi Tixier and the Motocross of Nations winners, Gautier Paulin, Steven Frossard and Dylan Ferrandis, have all been honored by the French Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Tixier, Paulin, Frossard and Ferrandis joined other top off road motocyclists, Enduro riders, Kenny Foray, Mathieu Genès, Pierre-Alexandre Renet and Christophe Nambotin, Side Car rider Grégory Cluze and Supermoto rider Thomas Chareyre, as well as the president of the FFM, Jacques Bolle and the Nation Director of the FFM Philippe Thiebaut at the awards.

This was proud moment for the French federation; for being recognized at an event of this caliber is a good indication that off-road motorcycling as a chosen sport in France is strong.