MXGP 2021
MXGP of Russia – Orlyonok
The 2021 FIM Motocross World Championship kicked off with familiar faces topping the Russian opening round in Orlyonok, with defending champions Tim Gajser and Tom Vialle claiming the round overalls respectively, both walking away with a perfect 50-points.
MX2 also saw Australian Jed Beaton race 7-11 to claim seventh overall, while Wilson Todd finished 16-14, for 15th overall, despite a crash in race two.
MXGP Race 1
Tim Gajser proved why he is a two-time MXGP World Champion, as he took control of the opening race, leading the way from start to finish and eventually winning by 16.794 seconds from Romain Febvre, with Antonio Cairoli third.
Jorge Prado grabbed the first Fox Holeshot of the season, before Gajser was able to slip into the lead, with Prado being pushed to second ahead of Cairoli. Just a couple of laps later the Spaniard made a mistake and went down, to re-join down the field in 22nd leaving him with a lot of work to get back up to the leaders.
Gajser led Cairoli, Febvre and Alessandro Lupino, with the Italian getting off to a great start in the race. He later came under immense pressure from Jeffrey Herlings but was able to keep him at bay for the majority of the race (14 laps) before the Dutchman was able to fight his way through into fourth, where he eventually finished the race.
Jeremy Seewer had a strong ride to finish the race sixth after spending much of the racing keeping up with Herlings and Lupino.
Following his crash on lap two, Prado was eventually able to fight his way back up to ninth, with Thomas Kjer Olsen having a good ride on his first MXGP outing to finish the race in 10th.
MXGP Race 2
In race two it was Herlings who took the Fox Holeshot, leading Cairoli, Pauls Jonass and Febvre, while Gajser and Prado got caught in some start dramas which saw both riders pushed wide in the first corner. This left Gajser down outside the top 20, which meant he had to work hard to get back up to the front.
Herlings’ lead didn’t last for long, as he had a small crash letting Cairoli, Jonass and Febvre through, but re-joining the race ahead of Seewer who was fifth.
Further down the order, Gajser wasted no time, as by lap five he was already up into P3, making passes on Olsen, Seewer, and Lupino. A lap later he also made a move on Herlings, taking an inside line for P2.
There was a bit of drama for Febvre, with the Frenchman hitting the back of Jonass as he pushed to pass him, which left him on the side of the track. This mistake was costly, though by the end of the race the Frenchman was able to make some good passes to get back up into sixth after falling to 15th.
At the top of the field Cairoli still led the way keeping a good pace that saw him set a few fastest laps of the race. Gajser was catching quickly however and by lap 12 was the new race leader.
Cairoli was keen to challenge Gajser but had an unfortunate crash which left his bike too bent to finish, despite the nine-time world champion’s best effort.
In the end it was Gajser, Herlings and Jonass making up the podium while, Lupino and Seewer completed the top five of the second MXGP race!
Picking up right where he left off from the 2019 MXGP of Russia, Gajser stood on the top step of the podium in Orlyonok once again to take the overall victory and the red plate, with Herlings second and Febvre finishing third overall for the round.
Tim Gajser – P1
“First of all, I’m really happy that we are back racing. It has been a really long period without races and it is great to see so many fans here in Russia. In the first race my start was good, and my riding was smooth and consistent. I was able to get into the lead quickly and control the moto. Then in the second race my jump out of the gate was good but someone on the inside, crashed and pushed me off the track and I even jumped off the bike so when I remounted I was way back in the pack. I searched for some lines in the first few laps, trying to pass as many people as possible. I got into second and looked where best to make the move and once I got into first, I made a gap and took the win. I’m very happy with how it all went this weekend.”
Jeffrey Herlings – P2
“I started the day with P1 in time practice. In the first race I had a bad start, I was fourth or something and was struggling with the guys in front, managed to finish fourth which was decent, not good but decent and then in the second race I had a really good start and was leading. Then I made a small mistake, crashed and lost a few places, then worked my way to third then Tim passed me and I was back in fourth. I then passed Pauls [Jonass] for third. I felt a little off the pace, obviously I had a bit of luck with Tony [ Cairoli] going down which I feel sorry for him but managed to finish second and second overall, so it was a decent day, I mean I haven’t race GP’s for 9 months, my fitness is not there yet but I just need to get back in the groove. It’s a big improvement, obviously it’s [the foot] not like new, but I don’t have any pain.”
Romain Febvre – P3
“I had a good start in both races but the second could have been better, but I managed to get into third really soon, I saw that I was faster than the other riders but I kind of took my time to look for some lines and Pauls Jonass was in front, he was riding securing the inside line everywhere and at one point I was really close to him, at the last moment he cut his line and went for the inside line and I was there so he took my front wheel and I ended up in the fence. Managed to get the bike and when I stood up I crashed again, so I lost about 20 seconds. I managed to come back to sixth so it’s pretty good, I didn’t think I was on the podium on the last lap, it’s on your bad days that you can fight for the championship, so I’m really happy to finish sixth in the second race and third overall. I struggled with my injury that happened in 2019 but now it’s all good, I feel really good at the moment, my physical condition is pretty good, I’m really calm and I feel I can go fast, so I just need a couple of more races to get into the race condition.”
Jeremy Seewer – P5
“Considering how both motos went for me today, the result is not too bad. I managed some good points, which could have been a bad weekend. The track was sketchy; the speed is high. I am happy this one is done. I am in one piece. It felt like ice out there. Top five was the goal here and I think I achieved that. It’s a good place to start and good to have some points in the pocket. I am still not 100%, I am recovering from a problem I had before the season, but I feel good with the team and the bike. My time will come soon.”
Thomas Kjer Olsen – P6
“I’m super-happy with today. Coming into this race it was all a little bit of an unknown because I’ve not raced in this class before and there are so many good riders. My goal was to be in the top 10, so to finish sixth overall is really amazing. It took a little while to find my flow in race one but for race two I felt great on the bike, and I just felt physically strong all day. I made a couple of mistakes in race two but still came back to finish seventh. This result is a nice confidence boost early in the season and we’ll go back to work next week, keep doing what we’re doing and I’m really looking forward to round two.”
Jorge Prado – P7
“A very tough day, one of the toughest race-days from the last few seasons. Just bad luck because I had good speed in an easy way. I could have done very well today. I was a bit nervous because it has been so long since we’ve raced. I made a mistake on the third corner of the first moto. On the second lap I completely lost the back wheel coming down the hill and many guys passed me. I came back to 9th from outside the top twenty and that was very good on a track that is difficult for passing. I was a bit disappointed. In the second moto a few guys just didn’t brake, and ran me off the track in the first corner. I got up to 6th but I had to hit the brakes to avoid some of the marshals at a place that was just too slippery and sketchy. My bars were bent and I couldn’t do much. P8 in the end. Somehow I took top ten finishes today which is not what I want…but the best I could do.”
Tony Cairoli – P10
“I’m quite disappointed with my mistake, especially with three laps to go and in a place where many people crash. It shouldn’t have happened and I should have thought a bit more. I was a bit distracted and crashed hard. Luckily, I didn’t hurt myself and wanted to restart as I had some time over the guys behind but the clutch was broken and bar was bent. It’s disappointing because I was feeling very good on this track after struggling in previous years. Let’s regroup and see what we can do in England.”
Source: MCNews.com.au