Confidence high for Team HRC as 2023 season comes to a close
Matterley Basin in Great Britain this weekend, will bring to an end this highly entertaining and competitive 2023 MXGP season, with both Ruben Fernandez and Tim Gajser looking to finish on the podium.
Last weekend in Maggiora, Italy, it was the #70 of Fernandez who made his way onto the box after his five-three results got him third overall, whilst Gajser’s second place finish in the second moto saw him just miss out on those honours in what was an extremely close battle throughout on that historic circuit.
Now the riders head to Winchester, England for what is probably the consensus favourite track on the calendar amongst all the riders, with the unique start, big wide-open corners and huge jumps providing a perfect venue for the season-finale. Gajser has won here in the past and he will be looking to do so again, giving him the perfect boost as they head into the off-season and start preparations for 2024. A small mistake in Maggiora cost him the chance to add to his tally in Italy last weekend, but finishing just seconds behind the victor in race two proved once again that he is back up to speed and will be a major challenger once again.
While Fernandez hasn’t won in Matterley, he did get a podium in his last year in MX2, which also saw him get handed the red-plate, so he has fond memories of this track and will be aiming for podium number five, in what has been a successful campaign for the Spaniard. A crash in Finland meant that he wasn’t at his best for a few rounds but he proved in Maggiora that when he is fully-recovered, he is up there with the best motocross riders on the planet and he’ll be looking to make that point once again in Great Britain.
After the deluge of rain that hit Italy on Saturday, the paddock will be hoping for a dry weekend to finish off the season, but the unpredictable nature of British weather in late September, means that everyone is preparing for the worst, including the track crew, who worked so hard to make conditions rideable last weekend. Thankfully, the Matterley Basin track is still very good under even the worst circumstances, and so this 19th and final round of the 2023 MXGP championship should still be an extremely entertaining affair.
Ruben Fernandez 70
It was great to get back on the podium in Maggiora. It just proved to myself that when I’m feeling good, I can challenge the best riders, and although this season is coming to an end, it is a nice boost for the off-season and good motivation for the 2024 campaign. Of course, we still have Matterley and the Motocross of Nations, so still a couple of opportunities to do even better and that will definitely be my aim at these two races. I like the Matterley Basin track and I enjoy riding there and hopefully it will be a successful weekend.
Tim Gajser 243
I feel like my riding is getting back to where I want it to be. The Turkey victory really gave me confidence to go for the wins and even though it didn’t quite happen in Maggiora, I was still pleased by the second moto result. I always enjoy riding Matterley Basin, with the big jumps and wide circuit and just its good flow. I have won there in the past and I’m excited to try and do that again this year and really finish this season off on a high note.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas
To have both riders challenging for spots on the podium in Italy was exactly what we were hoping for when Tim returned, and it was really good to see them cross the line in second and third place. Although we only have one round left this year, we will be trying our best to get them both on the box and the way they are both riding, it is a definite possibility. Our team has worked extremely hard this year, in situations that hasn’t always been easy so a big congrats to them and now we want to have a really strong final round in Great Britain.
Rider standings
Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Prado Garcia Jorge | 61 | SPA | 890 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas |
2 | Febvre Romain | 3 | FRA | 807 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki |
3 | Seewer Jeremy | 91 | SWI | 719 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
4 | Coldenhoff Glenn | 959 | NDL | 655 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
5 | Fernandez Ruben | 70 | SPA | 612 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda |
6 | Vlaanderen Calvin | 10 | NDL | 565 | Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing | Yamaha |
7 | Forato Alberto | 303 | ITA | 490 | SM Action Racing Team Yuasa Battery | KTM |
8 | Herlings Jeffrey | 84 | NDL | 455 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
9 | Guillod Valentin | 92 | SWI | 334 | Team Ship To Cycle Honda SR Motoblouz | Honda |
10 | Renaux Maxime | 959 | FRA | 314 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
11 | Paturel Benoit | 6 | FRA | 263 | De Baets Yamaha MX-Team | Yamaha |
12 | Guadagnini Mattia | 101 | ITA | 249 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas |
13 | Gajser Tim | 243 | SLO | 239 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda |
14 | Watson Ben | 919 | GBR | 234 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta |
15 | Evans Mitch | 43 | AUS | 233 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki |
16 | Bogers Brian | 189 | NDL | 227 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
17 | Östlund Alvin | 161 | SWE | 211 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda |
18 | Lupino Alessandro | 77 | ITA | 167 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta |
19 | Koch Tom | 226 | GER | 162 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM |
20 | Jonass Pauls | 41 | LAT | 156 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
21 | Spies Maximillian | 71 | GER | 117 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM |
22 | van Doninck Brent | 32 | BEL | 113 | JM Honda Racing | Honda |
23 | Van Horebeek Jeremy | 89 | BEL | 110 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
24 | Petrov Petar | BUL | 53 | |||
25 | Roosiorg Hardi | 75 | EST | 52 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda |
26 | Haavisto Jere | FIN | 51 | |||
27 | Brumann Kevin | 87 | SWI | 43 | JK Racing Yamaha Active | Yamaha |
28 | Jacobi Henry | GER | 29 | |||
29 | Rubini Stephen | 38 | FRA | 27 | Team Ship To Cycle Honda SR Motoblouz | Honda |
30 | Stewart Lewis | AUS | 25 | |||
31 | Murray Nicholas | 167 | AUS | 21 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
32 | Kullas Harri | FIN | 20 | |||
33 | Monticelli Ivo | ITA | 19 | |||
34 | Maksum Hilman | IDN | 17 | |||
35 | Koch Tim | 86 | GER | 15 | Wildcard Rider | Suzuki |
36 | Gerhardsson Albin | 52 | SWE | 15 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
37 | Sterry Adam | 811 | GBR | 13 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
38 | Kerhoas Lionel | 988 | FRA | 12 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
39 | Ivanov Michael | 97 | BUL | 11 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
40 | Leok Tanel | EST | 10 | |||
41 | Goupillon Pierre | 57 | FRA | 10 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
42 | Krestinov Gert | EST | 10 | |||
43 | Dickinson Ashton | 115 | GBR | 9 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
44 | Tonus Arnaud | SWI | 8 | |||
45 | Sileika Tomass | 637 | LAT | 7 | Wildcard Rider | GasGas |
46 | Jost Simon | 53 | SLK | 6 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
47 | Sihvonen Miro | FIN | 6 | |||
48 | Purdon Tristan | 141 | RSA | 6 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
49 | Scheu Mark | 991 | GER | 5 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
50 | Lusbo Andero | EST | 5 | |||
51 | Poli Joaquin | 179 | ARG | 5 | Wildcard Rider | Kawasaki |
52 | Mewse Conrad | 426 | GBR | 4 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
53 | Karlsson Danne | 692 | SWE | 4 | Wildcard Rider | GasGas |
54 | Alberto Paulo | POR | 4 | |||
55 | Tondel Cornelius | NOR | 3 | |||
56 | Kohut Tomas | 45 | CZE | 3 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
57 | Jazdauskas Domantas | 181 | LTU | 2 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
58 | Nava Giulio | 848 | ITA | 2 | Wildcard Rider | Yamaha |
59 | Malaval Adrien | FRA | 2 | |||
60 | Joergensen Mathias | 221 | DEN | 2 | Wildcard Rider | Yamaha |
61 | De Waal Micha-Boy | NDL | 2 | |||
62 | Conijn Marcel | NDL | 2 | |||
63 | Koch Nico | 260 | GER | 2 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
64 | Croci Simone | 771 | ITA | 2 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
65 | Poli Agustin | 98 | ARG | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Kawasaki |
66 | Van der Mierden Sven | NDL | 1 | |||
67 | De Bortoli Davide | ITA | 1 | |||
68 | Ubach Simeo | 724 | SPA | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
69 | Van Berkel Lars | 107 | NDL | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
70 | Jasikonis Arminas | 2 | LTU | 1 | Wildcard Rider | GasGas |
71 | Clochet Jimmy | 520 | FRA | 0 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
72 | Sandner Michael | 766 | AUT | 0 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
73 | Outeiro Luis | 147 | POR | 0 | Wildcard Rider | Yamaha |
Location Information
matterley basin, Lower Baybridge Lane, Winchester, United Kingdom - View in Google Maps