Gajser leads the way in British qualification
Defending MXGP world champion Tim Gajser will have first gate pick after posting the quickest laptime in the timed qualification session, which replaced the usual qualifying race after a storm hit the Matterley Basin circuit overnight. Fellow HRC team-mate Mitch Evans also did well, and will line up eighth in what was is his first MXGP race.
With the decision made to cancel the morning free practice and the afternoon race, that meant the riders only had an abbreviated 10 minute warm-up before they had 20 minutes to navigate the muddy conditions and post their hotlap. Both Gajser and Evans got the job done in their third laps as snow fell, adding limited visibility to the windy, cold and wet weather.
Tomorrow’s forecast is a little bit better so hopefully the riders will be able to race in much better conditions and show their speed on a much nicer race track. First up is the warm-up session at 9.45am before the first gate drop of the season at 13:15. Race two then gets underway 16:10 which will decide the first overall of the 2020 world motocross championship.
Tim Gajser 243
Really crazy conditions out there made things very tough, but of course I’m happy to post the fastest laptime and get first gate pick. Hopefully the track will stay dry and I think if that happens, we can have some good races. I’m just looking forward to going racing again and getting this season started in a positive way.
Mitch Evans 43
It was good to finish 8th in timed qualification with a little bit of track time, after they cancelled the qualification race. Not sure what the track will be like tomorrow as the weather is changing all the time but those on-track conditions were nothing I’ve ever experienced before at a motocross race. I’ve never ridden in the snow before, and I swear it was hailing at one point too. It was pretty gnarly out there! I just need to focus on getting two good starts now as that will make the races a lot easier, and keep the vision clear. That’s definitely going to be key to winning the race.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas
It was a shame to limit today to just one session but at least the season is underway and it was great to see Tim out in front already in what were extremely difficult conditions. Mitch also proved his speed is good with his laptime and we head into tomorrow with two riders who are looking good and fully focused on the job at hand.
Timed Qualification
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
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Rider standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
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Location Information
matterley basin, Lower Baybridge Lane, Winchester, United Kingdom - View in Google Maps
