MXGP Race 1
In the opening MXGP race it was Glenn Coldenhoff who took the FOX holeshot from Romain Febvre and Tim Gajser. Arminas Jasikonis was down in last after a crash in the first corner as well as Max Anstie who crashed in the first corner and struggled to get going again. Gajser moved into the lead while Jeremy Van Horebeek moved into the top ten.
After a lap the lead was a little more than a couple of bike lengths as Gajser continued to shine in the Belgian sand until Febvre moved into the lead on lap two.
Five laps in and Febvre had just two seconds over Gajser while Coldenhoff was closing up on the Slovenian. The top three remained close, but not close enough for any passing.
Jasikonis moved into eight position and dropped Gautier Paulin to ninth position. After nine laps the lead of Febvre was two seconds with Coldenhoff in third a further two seconds behind, Seewer was fourth and Jonass fifth.
Arnaud Tonus made a pass inside on Pauls Jonass for fifth while Van Horebeek closed up on those two. Febvre was starting to get away from Gajser on lap 10 with four seconds between himself and Gajser.
Gajser put in a quick lap time and close the lead to just two seconds and looked like he was going after Febvre, but then just as quickly Febvre put in a good lap and got the lead back to five seconds.
Febvre was pushing hard and the lead was seven seconds on lap 14 while Gajser had a four second lead over Coldenhoff. It was a kind of lonely race for the top three.
MXGP Race 2
In the second MXGP race it was Tim Gajser in the lead from Van Horebeek, Anstie, Coldenhoff, Koch, Tonus, Jonass, Strijbos, Monticelli and Tixier in 10th. Febvre started in 11th place. Anstie quickly moved into second place while Febvre was quickly into sixth position.
One lap in and Gajser was just ahead of Anstie, with Van Horebeek a further seven seconds back in third place. Jonass had trouble with the bike and had to drop in 14th while Febvre, Jasikonis and Seewer moved past. Anstie moved into the lead on lap four and after four laps it was Anstie, Gajser, Van Horebeek, Coldenhoff and Febvre to round out the top five.
Anstie was on fire up front as he pulled to more than four seconds ahead of Gajser, with Van Horebeek 17 seconds back, and Coldenhoff and Febvre right on him for third place. On lap eight Jonass again stalled on the track and tried to get his bike running.
Anstie pushed hard in the mid stages as he made the gap between himself and Gajser more than nine seconds and Van Horebeek 20 seconds behind the leader. Jasikonis passed Febvre and the Frenchman’s chances of a GP victory slipped away. Febvre did fight back and re-passed Jasikonis and around the same time Anstie went down and Gajser moved into the lead.
Things got interesting with Anstie, Van Horebeek, Coldenhoff and Febvre all right behind the Slovenian rider. Van Horebeek tried to get past Anstie, and it all helped Gajser who was suddenly more than six seconds in the lead.
Van Horebeek fell down after handing Coldenhoff third place and the Belgian also let Febvre into fourth position, but up front Gajser was in complete control. Anstie pulled back the lead by Gajser and passed the HRC rider on lap 14. Gajser though was too strong over the two races and won the overall with 2-2 scores.
Max Anstie won his first race of the 2019 Season and the first ever in top class ahead of Gajser and Coldenhoff while Tim Gajser won the GP with 2-2, for the Slovenian is the first Belgian GP win ever and it marked the first win for Honda in the premier class in Lommel. Romain Febvre missed the GP win for 1 point shy as for Glenn Coldenhoff was the first podium appearance of the season.
Tim Gajser 2-2
“It was a great weekend, finishing two-two for first overall in Lommel. My riding was good, especially because in the past I’ve struggled here but we’ve worked hard this year with the team and it really paid off. We’ve prepared a lot better for these tough conditions and it was certainly helped by two good starts, just like we have done so often this year. I wasn’t able to win a moto but I rode smoothly and smart and I minimised any mistakes. I’m just so happy to win here in Lommel, because it is a special GP and a good test and just shows how much I’ve progressed as a rider.”
Romain Febvre 1-4
“This weekend was good. I took the holeshot in the first moto which made life easy, and I won that race, so I am happy about that. My speed was good. I didn’t get a good start in the second race and had to work hard to fight back which cost a lot of energy. I knew I was close to winning the GP, but I could not make it, so I am pleased with second overall.”
Glenn Coldenhoff 3-3
“It is great. Two weeks ago I didn’t feel good in the sand, but the team helped with a great bike and I give it to those guys. I am happy to be back up here and I enjoy it. The sand always suits me well, and it is easier than hard pack for me. Yesterday I felt good. I went into qualification to save energy for today’s race and maybe that was wrong, because I couldn’t find my rhythm and I struggled a bit. I pushed this morning and had that good feeling again pulling also the FOX Holeshot. I have to thank my boss and the whole team. We have been through difficult time, but we are back. The team has done an amazing job to have me comfortable in the sand.”
Jeremy Seewer 4-5
“The first moto was one of the toughest races I have had all season. I slept really bad last night, and I think I was still sleeping on the starts today. I was catching up on sleep in both races on the gate. They kept the gate really long and a lot of guys kept trying to jump it. I worked hard to get into the top-five. I happy with my consistency. This is always the goal. Overall, fourth place in Lommel is really good because it is easy to crash here. Now I look forward to a few days rest before we go again.”
Source: MCNews.com.au