Putting in two strong performances at the Frauenfeld circuit, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Gautier Paulin wrapped up round 15 of the 2017 FIM Motocross World Championship by earning a solid runner-up overall result at the MXGP of Switzerland.
With the rutted Swiss circuit providing few chances for passing, Paulin got off to two good starts in the final MXGP class races and remained fast and mistake-free until the end of each moto. Securing fourth in moto one before a strong runner-up result in moto two, the Frenchman found himself battling for the overall victory in Switzerland. Collecting equal points with the overall winner Jeffrey Herlings, Paulin had to settle for second overall due to Herlings’ better result in moto two.
Continuing to build on his speed, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Anstie enjoyed a season best moto result claiming a well-deserved runner-up spot in the opening MXGP race. Together with his second place finish in Saturday’s qualifying race, it was a great weekend for the MXGP class rookie. Frustratingly, unable to get a good start in the second MXGP moto Anstie finished 12th and had to settle for fifth overall at the GP.
Showing some good speed in both motos, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Nagl collected 13-7 results to earn 10th overall at the MXGP of Switzerland.
In the MX2 category, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thomas Covington came close to securing a podium result in Frauenfeld. Battling through a bad start to claim seventh in moto one, the young American found himself leading moto two for a few laps. Settling for the runner-up spot in moto two, he wrapped up his weekend fourth overall at the GP.
Involved in some close battles in both motos, Thomas Kjer-Olsen collected a pair of sixth place results in Frauenfeld for sixth overall at the Swiss GP.
For Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s MX2 class rookie Conrad Mewse the GP ended with the young Brit claiming 17th overall in the 250cc class.
The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team will return to action at round 16 of the 2017 FIM Motocross World Championship in Uddevalla, Sweden on August 19/20.
Gautier Paulin: “I’m really happy to be back on the podium. We had a big fight for the overall win here in Switzerland and eventually I ended up sharing the same number of points with Jeffrey Herlings. It feels good to be back up to speed and I can’t thank my team enough for all their hard work and dedication. The pace was high in both motos. I got two good starts and that was positive. It also felt great to be leading the second moto for some laps. Overall, this GP has been a big step in the right direction and I will keep pushing to take this momentum into the coming events.”
Max Anstie: “It’s been a good weekend for me. Getting the holeshot and then going on to finish second in the qualifying race was a good confidence booster. I was feeling good on the bike so was looking forward to the final motos. Getting another great start in moto one I managed to get a good race pace right from the first laps. I spent the first half of the moto pushing hard to pass Arnaud Tonus for the lead but then decided to settle for second and save some energy for moto two. My start wasn’t bad in the second moto but another rider hit neutral in front of me in turn two so I ended up losing a lot of time. Taking the positives out of this GP I got two holeshots and a strong runner-up moto result. This is very positive for the next rounds of the championship.”
Max Nagl: “It was hard to find a good rhythm at this circuit. The weekend started with a downpour on Saturday morning but the track dried up pretty quick. I had a good qualifying race where I finished ninth. Conditions during the final motos were different. I could not get the start I wanted and that made my life a lot harder in both motos. My jumps out of the gate were quite good but I could not keep my speed going into the first corner. My best moment came in the second moto where I found myself battling for the top eight. I made some passes and ended up getting seventh at the chequered flag.”
Thomas Covington: “I’m really happy with my performance in moto two. With the track being one-lined in most parts, you had to push hard to stay fast. Getting a bad start in moto one I had to dig pretty deep. Making many passes I managed to get seventh at the chequered flag. Then in moto two I got off to a great start and then was able to lead the race for a couple of laps. To get second at the finish line shows that the speed is there. My pace was really good but as we were getting closer to the end of the race I felt like I was running out of energy. I might have narrowly missed the overall podium in Switzerland but we will keep working to get back on it in the coming rounds.”
Thomas Kjer-Olsen: “Getting sixth overall is a good overall result but I was expecting more from this round. I did my best for some good results in both motos but I just couldn’t match the speed of the riders in front. The track was one-lined and it was very tough to make passes. There were some very deep ruts so it was also very physically exhausting. We’re now heading to Uddevalla in Sweden and I’m hoping for some improved results there.”
Conrad Mewse: “It’s been an on and off weekend for me. There were times in both motos where my speed was good and I had some nice battles with the frontrunners. In the opening race I started right outside the top 10 and went on to cross the line in 14th. Then in moto two my start was not good, so I had to push hard. I was not able to get a good race pace so I had to settle for 18th at the line. We keep the positives and continue the hard work.”
Download the high-res images from the MXGP of Switzerland here.
Results – FIM Motocross World Championship, Round 15
MXGP – Overall
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 40pts; 2. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 40; 3. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 38… 5. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 31… 10. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 22… 16. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 10… 21. Jernej Irt (Husqvarna) 2
MXGP – Race 1
1. Arnaud Tonus (Yamaha) 16 laps, 34:40.671; 2. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 34:41.553; 3. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 34:42.090; 4. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 34:49.234… 13. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 35:27.690… 18. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 36:13.579; 19. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 36:16.429… 22. Jernej Irt (Husqvarna) 36:48.152… 31. Nicolas Bender (Husqvarna) 15 laps, 35:44.987
MXGP – Race 2
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 16 laps, 34:26.611; 2. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 34:31.168; 3. Romain Febvre (Yamaha) 34:34.236… 7. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 35:11.314… 12. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 35:27.761… 14. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 35:35.010… 18. Jernej Irt (Husqvarna) 36:32.136… 26. Nicolas Bender (Husqvarna) 15 laps, 35:45.636… 28. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 10 laps, 23:24.789
MX2 – Overall
1. Benoit Paturel (Yamaha) 47pts; 2. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 41; 3. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 40; 4. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 36… 6. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 30… 17. Conrad Mewse (Husqvarna) 10; 18. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 9; 19. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 9; 20. Giuseppe Tropepe (Husqvarna) 4… 24. Lars van Berkel (Husqvarna) 1
MX2 – Race 1
1. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 16 laps, 35:16.002; 2. Benoit Paturel (Yamaha) 35:16.622; 3. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 35:39.090… 6. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 35:55.421; 7. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 35:57.104… 12. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 36:11.356… 14. Conrad Mewse (Husqvarna) 36:22.624… 18. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 37:00.496… 20. Lars van Berkel (Husqvarna) 37:33.530… 26. Giuseppe Tropepe (Husqvarna) 15 laps, 36:11.120
MX2 – Race 2
1. Benoit Paturel (Yamaha) 16 laps, 35:22.061; 2. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 35:26.887; 3. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 35:32.104… 6. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 35:48.094… 15. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 36:25.956… 17. Giuseppe Tropepe (Husqvarna) 36:33.637; 18. Conrad Mewse (Husqvarna) 36:37.265… 23. Lars van Berkel (Husqvarna) 36:59.954
Championship Standings (After Round 15)
MXGP
1. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 605pts; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 508; 3. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 486… 7. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 358… 12. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 307… 14. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 167… 19. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 105… 24. Harri Kullas (Husqvarna) 35… 33. Evgeny Mikhaylov (Husqvarna) 10… 35. Yentel Martens (Husqvarna) 6… 44. Jernej Irt (Husqvarna) 3… 48. Sven Van der Mierden (Husqvarna) 2
MX2
1. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 629pts; 2. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 580; 3. Benoit Paturel (Yamaha) 476; 4. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 467… 6. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 387… 16. Conrad Mewse (Husqvarna) 161; 20. Iker Larranaga (Husqvarna) 105; 21. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 89; 22. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 87… 30. Lars van Berkel (Husqvarna) 42… 33. Giuseppe Tropepe (Husqvarna) 30… 37. Caleb Ward (Husqvarna) 14; 38. Karel Kutsar (Husqvarna) 14… 48. Ivan Petrov (Husqvarna) 1… 52. Aaron Tanti (Husqvarna) 1