Guillod back on the box as Fontanesi takes second double of the year in WMX
Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2015 5:35 pm
@Guillod back on the box as @Fontanesi takes second double of the year in #WMX
The Grand Prix of Germany was the platform for frantic scenes in the tenth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship and the latest appointment in the MX2 class of the series where Standing Construct Yamaha’s Valentin Guillod ran to third overall at a cloudy Talkessel in Teutschenthal. Also in action was the FIM Women’s World Championship and the penultimate outing of six was dominated by Yamaha’s Kiara Fontanesi.
Bumpy, quick, narrow and challenging hard-pack was the typical test offered by the Talkessel terrain at the staple venue for Grand Prix in Germany. With close lap-times and a lack of depth in choice of racing lines, starts were again a key factor. 32,000 spectators found space around the grassy banking of the venue and were treated to warmer conditions and a kinder wind compared to the wintery climate that blew across on Saturday.
The first MX2 moto blasted off with Alex Tonkov earning the holeshot. Guillod pursued a top five slot with team-mate Julien Lieber in close company. Kemea Yamaha Racing’s Benoit Paturel was also in the top ten. The second Kemea athlete, Brent Van Doninck was further back and also struggling to find a good feeling on the hard-pack. With Tonkov and Jeffrey Herlings crashing out, the race grew in tension. Guillod stalked the rear wheel of Jordi Tixer and finally moved past the world champion and into second place two laps before the finish. Lieber pushed Petar Petrov hard but could not overtake the Bulgarian and had to settle for fifth. Paturel rode largely by himself in seventh while Van Doninck came back from twenty-second to fifteenth.
Moto two almost ended before it began for Guillod as he nudged forward off the line too early and hit the gate. ‘92’ had to getaway from almost last place and then commenced a chase back to the top five with some accomplished and brave riding. In the final two laps Guillod was harrying Lieber’s rear wheel in fourth. The Belgian had been unable to track Jeremy Seewer ahead and then had to work to keep his team-mate at bay for his second top five result of the weekend. Lieber was assisted by a slip from Guillod that meant he ran out of time to launch another assault before the chequered flag was waved. Paturel was solid again in eighth and passed Brian Bogers to earn the position. ‘6’ was eighth overall for yet another appearance in the top ten in his first MX2 term. Van Doninck came home sixteenth for fifteenth overall.
In the fifth round of nine in the EMX250 European Championship Kemea’s Damon Graulus stalled his bike in the second moto and his recovery to fourteenth (aided by an exciting win from the first race on Saturday) meant fourth place overall in Germany. His work was still enough to give the Belgian second place in the competitive series that sees four riders split by just nine points with the next fixture taking place in a fortnight’s time in Sweden.
The penultimate meeting of six for the FIM Women’s World Championship saw Kiara Fontanesi on blazing form. The three times number one won both motos (for her second double and third victory of the year on the YZ250F) ahead of main title rival Livia Lancelot and has reduced the points gap to just two with the final race set for the Grand Prix of Czech Republic at the end of next month.
Guilod retains a decent third place in the MX2 points table and trails Jeffrey Herlings by 101 (and Tim Gajser by just 1) as MXGP enters the second half of the calendar. Lieber is ninth, Paturel twelfth and Van Doninck in sixteenth. More hard-pack and the shifting stones of Uddevalla will entertain the Grand Prix of Sweden (an event that has been a staple part of the calendar since the beginning of the century) in two weeks time.
Valentin Guillod
2nd and 5th for 3rd overall. Championship Position: 3rd
“I was feeling OK on the bike all weekend and my foot felt better…I actually have four broken metacarpals in my right foot. The first moto was difficult for the first fifteen minutes because it was so slippery but in the end I could push really hard to catch Jordi and almost caught Tim. In the second moto the gate took a bit of time to go down! I was sure it was going when I let my finger off the clutch but it didn't and I hit it. I started last and came back to fifth. I was close to pass my team-mate with two laps to go but made a mistake in a corner and crashed. Luckily I didn't lose too much time and pushed to get him again on the last corner but it didn't happen…but it was OK to finish third. I want to thank the Standing Construct team and all my sponsors. We are third in the championship but close to second.”
Julien Lieber
5th and 4th for 4th overall. Championship Position: 9th
“Not too bad today. I had two great results and was consistent. It was easier with better starts! I’m happy that I have been able to go back and start training with Yves [Demaria] in the last two weeks. I want to continue with the consistency now and improve my results further. My leg injury has been getting better and better and this is another positive point.”
Benoit Paturel
7th and 8th for 8th overall. Championship Position: 12th
“I’m satisfied with this weekend. Finally I managed to finish two races in the top ten and I enjoyed it. After the troubles with my finger and my teeth it is good to get some solid racing. I liked this circuit a lot, the bike worked great and I’m looking forward having more weekends like this.”
Brent Van Doninck
15th and 16th for 15th overall. Championship Position: 16th
“I didn’t get a good feeling all weekend long. I was struggling over and over again and could not find any fluid lines. I have no clear explanation for this and don’t have any excuses at all… It was an ‘off’ weekend, so let’s forget about it and move on to Sweden… At least I leave the track healthy and that’s the most important.”
Damon Graulus
1st and 14th for 4th overall. Championship Position: 2nd
“I don’t know how to feel right now. Teutschenthal is one of my favorite tracks on the calendar and I was really looking forward to it. From the first session on I felt good and my speed was good. In the first race I managed to stay calm and got to the lead in the second part of the race. It was good to win and I knew with some small changes I would be better on Sunday. I had a good start in the second moto but in the first lap I must have touched the rear brake without knowing it. I stalled the bike and could not get it going. I had to come back from dead last and gave all I had. Instead of gaining a lot of points, it was damage control as the other title contenders also made some errors. I had the best feeling of the year so far on the bike so that gives confidence. The championship is still open so I’ll work hard for the remaining rounds.”
Kiara Fontanesi
1st and 1st for 1st overall. Championship Position: 2nd
“It was difficult to keep my mind on the weekend but I knew if I wanted to win the championship then I had to come here and take home two victories. I put everything I had on the track and did my best. I had two good starts, found my rhythm and went 1-1; it was an amazing weekend. I am only two points behind Livia and we’ll fight for the championship at the last round.”
2015 MX2 Germany
Teutschenthal 21/06/2015 20 Laps
race I
1 Tim Gajser Honda SVN 34'33.547
2 Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 0'02.424
3 Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 0'10.352
4 Petar Petrov KTM BGR 0'24.474
5 Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 0'26.924
6 Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 0'48.349
7 Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 0'54.163
8 Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 1'04.767
9 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT 1'07.731
10 Henry Jacobi KTM DE 1'10.470
11 Brian Bogers KTM NLD 1'13.513
12 Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 1'14.628
13 Roberts Justs KTM LVA 1'21.724
14 Davy Pootjes KTM NLD 1'23.181
15 Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 1'32.359
17 Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR -1Laps
race II
1 Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 34'28.675
2 Tim Gajser Honda SVN 0'10.092
3 Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 0'14.706
4 Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 0'17.559
5 Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 0'18.381
6 Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 0'33.325
7 Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 0'39.126
8 Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 0'44.118
9 Brian Bogers KTM NLD 0'54.652
10 Henry Jacobi KTM DE 1'02.981
11 Davy Pootjes KTM NLD 1'04.213
12 Roberts Justs KTM LVA 1'04.736
13 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT 1'09.408
14 Ivo Monticelli KTM ITA 1'11.124
15 Ben Watson KTM GBR 1'24.131
16 Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 1'25.507
17 Kevin Fors Yamaha BEL 1'27.622
20 Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR -1Laps
MX2 World Standing
Rider Standings After Race 10 of 19
1. Jeffrey Herlings KTM NLD 398
2. Tim Gajser Honda SVN 298
3. Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 297
4. Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 288
5. Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 286
6. Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 275
7. Aleksandr Tonkov Husqvarna RUS 256
8. Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 248
9. Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 243
10. Dylan Ferrandis Kawasaki FRA 205
11. Petar Petrov KTM BGR 194
12. Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 172
13. Brian Bogers KTM NLD 153
14. Thomas Covington Kawasaki USA 141
15. Roberts Justs KTM LVA 123
16. Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 113
29. Kevin Fors Yamaha BEL 18
32. Damon Graulus
Yamaha
BEL 13
33. Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR 11
48. Yannis Irsuti Yamaha FRA 0
Circuit Length:
1780
Weather:
Dry
Last Years Winner:
Jeffrey Herlings
The Grand Prix of Germany was the platform for frantic scenes in the tenth round of the FIM Motocross World Championship and the latest appointment in the MX2 class of the series where Standing Construct Yamaha’s Valentin Guillod ran to third overall at a cloudy Talkessel in Teutschenthal. Also in action was the FIM Women’s World Championship and the penultimate outing of six was dominated by Yamaha’s Kiara Fontanesi.
Bumpy, quick, narrow and challenging hard-pack was the typical test offered by the Talkessel terrain at the staple venue for Grand Prix in Germany. With close lap-times and a lack of depth in choice of racing lines, starts were again a key factor. 32,000 spectators found space around the grassy banking of the venue and were treated to warmer conditions and a kinder wind compared to the wintery climate that blew across on Saturday.
The first MX2 moto blasted off with Alex Tonkov earning the holeshot. Guillod pursued a top five slot with team-mate Julien Lieber in close company. Kemea Yamaha Racing’s Benoit Paturel was also in the top ten. The second Kemea athlete, Brent Van Doninck was further back and also struggling to find a good feeling on the hard-pack. With Tonkov and Jeffrey Herlings crashing out, the race grew in tension. Guillod stalked the rear wheel of Jordi Tixer and finally moved past the world champion and into second place two laps before the finish. Lieber pushed Petar Petrov hard but could not overtake the Bulgarian and had to settle for fifth. Paturel rode largely by himself in seventh while Van Doninck came back from twenty-second to fifteenth.
Moto two almost ended before it began for Guillod as he nudged forward off the line too early and hit the gate. ‘92’ had to getaway from almost last place and then commenced a chase back to the top five with some accomplished and brave riding. In the final two laps Guillod was harrying Lieber’s rear wheel in fourth. The Belgian had been unable to track Jeremy Seewer ahead and then had to work to keep his team-mate at bay for his second top five result of the weekend. Lieber was assisted by a slip from Guillod that meant he ran out of time to launch another assault before the chequered flag was waved. Paturel was solid again in eighth and passed Brian Bogers to earn the position. ‘6’ was eighth overall for yet another appearance in the top ten in his first MX2 term. Van Doninck came home sixteenth for fifteenth overall.
In the fifth round of nine in the EMX250 European Championship Kemea’s Damon Graulus stalled his bike in the second moto and his recovery to fourteenth (aided by an exciting win from the first race on Saturday) meant fourth place overall in Germany. His work was still enough to give the Belgian second place in the competitive series that sees four riders split by just nine points with the next fixture taking place in a fortnight’s time in Sweden.
The penultimate meeting of six for the FIM Women’s World Championship saw Kiara Fontanesi on blazing form. The three times number one won both motos (for her second double and third victory of the year on the YZ250F) ahead of main title rival Livia Lancelot and has reduced the points gap to just two with the final race set for the Grand Prix of Czech Republic at the end of next month.
Guilod retains a decent third place in the MX2 points table and trails Jeffrey Herlings by 101 (and Tim Gajser by just 1) as MXGP enters the second half of the calendar. Lieber is ninth, Paturel twelfth and Van Doninck in sixteenth. More hard-pack and the shifting stones of Uddevalla will entertain the Grand Prix of Sweden (an event that has been a staple part of the calendar since the beginning of the century) in two weeks time.
Valentin Guillod
2nd and 5th for 3rd overall. Championship Position: 3rd
“I was feeling OK on the bike all weekend and my foot felt better…I actually have four broken metacarpals in my right foot. The first moto was difficult for the first fifteen minutes because it was so slippery but in the end I could push really hard to catch Jordi and almost caught Tim. In the second moto the gate took a bit of time to go down! I was sure it was going when I let my finger off the clutch but it didn't and I hit it. I started last and came back to fifth. I was close to pass my team-mate with two laps to go but made a mistake in a corner and crashed. Luckily I didn't lose too much time and pushed to get him again on the last corner but it didn't happen…but it was OK to finish third. I want to thank the Standing Construct team and all my sponsors. We are third in the championship but close to second.”
Julien Lieber
5th and 4th for 4th overall. Championship Position: 9th
“Not too bad today. I had two great results and was consistent. It was easier with better starts! I’m happy that I have been able to go back and start training with Yves [Demaria] in the last two weeks. I want to continue with the consistency now and improve my results further. My leg injury has been getting better and better and this is another positive point.”
Benoit Paturel
7th and 8th for 8th overall. Championship Position: 12th
“I’m satisfied with this weekend. Finally I managed to finish two races in the top ten and I enjoyed it. After the troubles with my finger and my teeth it is good to get some solid racing. I liked this circuit a lot, the bike worked great and I’m looking forward having more weekends like this.”
Brent Van Doninck
15th and 16th for 15th overall. Championship Position: 16th
“I didn’t get a good feeling all weekend long. I was struggling over and over again and could not find any fluid lines. I have no clear explanation for this and don’t have any excuses at all… It was an ‘off’ weekend, so let’s forget about it and move on to Sweden… At least I leave the track healthy and that’s the most important.”
Damon Graulus
1st and 14th for 4th overall. Championship Position: 2nd
“I don’t know how to feel right now. Teutschenthal is one of my favorite tracks on the calendar and I was really looking forward to it. From the first session on I felt good and my speed was good. In the first race I managed to stay calm and got to the lead in the second part of the race. It was good to win and I knew with some small changes I would be better on Sunday. I had a good start in the second moto but in the first lap I must have touched the rear brake without knowing it. I stalled the bike and could not get it going. I had to come back from dead last and gave all I had. Instead of gaining a lot of points, it was damage control as the other title contenders also made some errors. I had the best feeling of the year so far on the bike so that gives confidence. The championship is still open so I’ll work hard for the remaining rounds.”
Kiara Fontanesi
1st and 1st for 1st overall. Championship Position: 2nd
“It was difficult to keep my mind on the weekend but I knew if I wanted to win the championship then I had to come here and take home two victories. I put everything I had on the track and did my best. I had two good starts, found my rhythm and went 1-1; it was an amazing weekend. I am only two points behind Livia and we’ll fight for the championship at the last round.”
2015 MX2 Germany
Teutschenthal 21/06/2015 20 Laps
race I
1 Tim Gajser Honda SVN 34'33.547
2 Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 0'02.424
3 Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 0'10.352
4 Petar Petrov KTM BGR 0'24.474
5 Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 0'26.924
6 Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 0'48.349
7 Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 0'54.163
8 Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 1'04.767
9 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT 1'07.731
10 Henry Jacobi KTM DE 1'10.470
11 Brian Bogers KTM NLD 1'13.513
12 Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 1'14.628
13 Roberts Justs KTM LVA 1'21.724
14 Davy Pootjes KTM NLD 1'23.181
15 Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 1'32.359
17 Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR -1Laps
race II
1 Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 34'28.675
2 Tim Gajser Honda SVN 0'10.092
3 Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 0'14.706
4 Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 0'17.559
5 Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 0'18.381
6 Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 0'33.325
7 Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 0'39.126
8 Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 0'44.118
9 Brian Bogers KTM NLD 0'54.652
10 Henry Jacobi KTM DE 1'02.981
11 Davy Pootjes KTM NLD 1'04.213
12 Roberts Justs KTM LVA 1'04.736
13 Pascal Rauchenecker KTM AUT 1'09.408
14 Ivo Monticelli KTM ITA 1'11.124
15 Ben Watson KTM GBR 1'24.131
16 Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 1'25.507
17 Kevin Fors Yamaha BEL 1'27.622
20 Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR -1Laps
MX2 World Standing
Rider Standings After Race 10 of 19
1. Jeffrey Herlings KTM NLD 398
2. Tim Gajser Honda SVN 298
3. Valentin Guillod
Yamaha
CHE 297
4. Pauls Jonass KTM LVA 288
5. Jordi Tixier Kawasaki FRA 286
6. Jeremy Seewer Suzuki CHE 275
7. Aleksandr Tonkov Husqvarna RUS 256
8. Max Anstie Kawasaki GBR 248
9. Julien Lieber
Yamaha
BEL 243
10. Dylan Ferrandis Kawasaki FRA 205
11. Petar Petrov KTM BGR 194
12. Benoit Paturel
Yamaha
FRA 172
13. Brian Bogers KTM NLD 153
14. Thomas Covington Kawasaki USA 141
15. Roberts Justs KTM LVA 123
16. Brent Vandoninck Yamaha BEL 113
29. Kevin Fors Yamaha BEL 18
32. Damon Graulus
Yamaha
BEL 13
33. Maykal Grisha Ivanov Yamaha BGR 11
48. Yannis Irsuti Yamaha FRA 0
Circuit Length:
1780
Weather:
Dry
Last Years Winner:
Jeffrey Herlings