Bobryshev on the podium in Mexico; secures third in the world
Evgeny Bobryshev took a fighting third amid treacherous conditions in today’s MXGP of Mexico to stand on the podium for the fourth time this season, and for the third time in the last five Grands Prix.
Overnight storms left the track a mudbath this morning, and as a result the morning warm-up was delayed and still all but a handful of riders, Bobryshev and Paulin included, elected to sit the session out.
By the first race the track conditions were terrible – deep mud, deeper ruts, one line and incredibly slippery. At the start it was Gautier Paulin in third and Bobby in sixth, but as the big Russian steeled himself he pushed through the field to finish third, passing Paulin on the last lap.
By race two, conditions had improved and the sun had done its best to dry the worst of the mud. Paulin took the early lead with a great start, and again Bobby found himself in sixth. For a second time though, the Russian #777 fought his way through the field in a fantastic race. In the closing minutes, it was a Team HRC battle on track as Bobby and Paulin fought for the final step on the podium, but it was Bobby who came out on top to take third overall.
With one Grand Prix of the 2015 season remaining, Paulin remains second in the World Championship with Bobryshev just behind in what is now a guaranteed third. Honda also move into third in the Manufacturers’ Championship, and the fight for second will go down to the wire at the last round, the MXGP of the USA next weekend.
Roger Harvey
“Today was really a day of two significantly different halves because of the conditions. In the morning the mud was deep which made it really hard, but by the afternoon the track was closer to the usual hard pack surface of Mexico. Bobby rode an excellent day today to take another podium and continue his strong consistent run, and in conditions that in the past he’s not been the best in. He also secured third in the World Championship, which is the goal set at the start of the season. Gautier didn’t have such a smooth weekend, but he’s still second in the World Championship with just one race to go and that’s the long game we’re focused on now.”
Evgeny Bobryshev 777
“I’m really pleased with today – to have finished on the podium again and also to have secured third in the World Championship. Consistent weekends and finishing in the top three was the goal at the start of the season, so I’m really happy we’ve achieved this and I’d like to give big thanks to the team and HRC Honda for all their work and for believing in me. This morning was tough, but I had some good battles coming through the field. In the second race especially the track was good though as they prepared it very well, and there were some good lines so you could race and didn’t have to just follow. I had a good clean battle with Gautier at the end and passed him with a few laps to go, so for me it was a good race and a good weekend.”
Gautier Paulin 21
“I had a good feeling – it’s a shame I couldn’t make a good result in the end. In the first moto I had a huge crash and hurt my knee a little bit. In the second moto I had a really good start and was feeling good. After Simpson passed me, Bobryshev came past but then I passed him back. I took an outside line, where I’d never been before, and there was really a lot of mud so I had to stay wide open to make it through, but then I just found some grip and lost the bike over the back. The results weren’t there, but it is like this and now we focus on America.”
Race one
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Race two
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Rider standings
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Location Information
Parque Ecológico Metropolitano de León, Mexico - View in Google Maps
