Gajser sixth, as Fernandez walks away from Finland
Team HRC’s Tim Gajser and Ruben Fernandez leave Finland knowing that things can get better after a tough day of racing at the Vantaa circuit, near Helsinki. For Gajser, it was his highest points tally since returning from injury, but he is aiming for the level of performance which saw him dominate the 2022 MXGP World Championship and while this was a solid showing, he now has a couple of weeks to keep the upward trend and get even closer to that sort of level.
Fernandez will be using this weekend off to recover from a serious crash in moto one that thankfully saw the Spaniard avoid any serious injury, but meant that he had to watch from the sidelines as the second MXGP gate dropped. It was a shame because the #70 was third in the qualification race yesterday and was in fifth when a nasty kicker launched him over the front of the bike midway through today’s first moto. It was a big impact that saw the doctors immediately on the scene, but after a number of checks post-race, it was deemed that he was okay to leave the on-site medical centre under his own steam. Further hospital tests when he gets back home will determine his status but the hope is that he will return in Sweden.
Slovenian Gajser will also be using this break to recoup and assess his progress after three races in three weekends, on what has been a tough return to action after breaking his femur in February. The sand of Vantaa wasn’t as deep as Lommel last time out, but the tight layout, combined with the heavy rain that fell yesterday meant it was still a difficult track to negotiate, as he looks to climb back to the top of the MXGP podium.
The first moto saw the #243 gradually move up from eighth to sixth over the course of the 19 laps, while race two was a battle as he tried to hold onto fifth place, against riders who have won races in 2023. Eventually, he came home sixth, which gave him sixth overall and meant he left Finland knowing there is still work to be done in the remaining five rounds of this campaign. While there isn’t any pressure on specific results, the goal for the Honda CRF450R rider is always to be near the podium, and with more time on the bike, as well as more favourable circuits, that is certainly a possibility as the championship enters its final quarter.
Next up is Uddevalla in Sweden, which is a bigger layout on a harder surface, where Gajser has won twice previously in his career. Fernandez doesn’t have such a storied history there, but his main aim now will be to recover, and then once he’s on the start-line, he can focus on challenging for the podium alongside his Team HRC colleague.
Tim Gajser 243
Another week and improvements were definitely made. Of course I’m not completely happy with the results but I can see progress and I can also see where things can be better, so that’s important. Now I have a weekend off so I can get some good practice in and just work on some things, so that hopefully I can be challenging further forward in Sweden, which is a track that I like.
Ruben Fernandez 70
Things were going well, until they weren’t. After a third in the qualification race yesterday I was feeling good about today. I had a decent start and was not too far from the podium spots and was preparing to put in some strong laps to finish off the race but when I came over the jump near the pitlane I hit a bit of a kicker and went over the handlebars. It was a big crash, but thankfully after getting checked out by the doctors, I was told there was nothing serious, just a lot of bangs and bruises. Now the plan is to rest up and have another check-up by the doctor sometime this week to make sure I’m back to 100% by the time Uddevalla comes around in a couple of weeks.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas
It was such a shame to see Ruben crash out of the first moto, because he was doing well. He’d made a really impressive pass to get into fifth and then it was scary moment over that tabletop, so we’re just glad that he is okay, as his health is the most important thing. Tim also showed some good signs, putting in two consistent motos, even if he couldn’t quite match the riders in front. We know that is coming though and this weekend off will give both riders a chance to regroup and come out better in Sweden.
Race 1
Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Febvre Romain | 3 | FRA | 25 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki | 34:11.808 |
2 | Seewer Jeremy | 91 | SWI | 22 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha | 0:01.341 |
3 | Prado Garcia Jorge | 61 | SPA | 20 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas | 0:04.529 |
4 | Coldenhoff Glenn | 959 | NDL | 18 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha | 0:20.353 |
5 | Vlaanderen Calvin | 10 | NDL | 16 | Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing | Yamaha | 0:29.129 |
6 | Gajser Tim | 243 | SLO | 15 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda | 0:32.550 |
7 | Forato Alberto | 303 | ITA | 14 | SM Action Racing Team Yuasa Battery | KTM | 0:34.128 |
8 | Herlings Jeffrey | 84 | NDL | 13 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 0:37.678 |
9 | Van Horebeek Jeremy | 89 | BEL | 12 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda | 0:41.939 |
10 | Bogers Brian | 189 | NDL | 11 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda | 0:45.907 |
11 | Evans Mitch | 43 | AUS | 10 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki | 0:55.219 |
12 | Östlund Alvin | 161 | SWE | 9 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda | 1:00.675 |
13 | Koch Tom | 226 | GER | 8 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM | 1:03.327 |
14 | Spies Maximillian | 71 | GER | 7 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM | 1:08.030 |
15 | Krestinov Gert | EST | 6 | 1:13.914 | |||
16 | Gerhardsson Albin | 52 | SWE | 5 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna | 1:27.561 |
17 | Sihvonen Miro | FIN | 4 | 1:30.345 | |||
18 | Watson Ben | 919 | GBR | 3 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta | 1:43.188 |
19 | Brumann Kevin | 87 | SWI | 2 | JK Racing Yamaha Active | Yamaha | 1 Lap |
20 | Haavisto Jere | FIN | 1 | 1 Lap |
Race 2
Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Prado Garcia Jorge | 61 | SPA | 25 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas | 33:50.401 |
2 | Febvre Romain | 3 | FRA | 22 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki | 0:02.319 |
3 | Coldenhoff Glenn | 959 | NDL | 20 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha | 0:03.755 |
4 | Herlings Jeffrey | 84 | NDL | 18 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 0:05.683 |
5 | Seewer Jeremy | 91 | SWI | 16 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha | 0:11.470 |
6 | Gajser Tim | 243 | SLO | 15 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda | 0:38.334 |
7 | Vlaanderen Calvin | 10 | NDL | 14 | Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing | Yamaha | 0:43.163 |
8 | Van Horebeek Jeremy | 89 | BEL | 13 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda | 1:03.007 |
9 | Östlund Alvin | 161 | SWE | 12 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda | 1:04.857 |
10 | Evans Mitch | 43 | AUS | 11 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki | 1:05.648 |
11 | Paturel Benoit | 6 | FRA | 10 | De Baets Yamaha MX-Team | Yamaha | 1:14.044 |
12 | Bogers Brian | 189 | NDL | 9 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda | 1:18.287 |
13 | Haavisto Jere | FIN | 8 | 1:22.802 | |||
14 | Spies Maximillian | 71 | GER | 7 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM | 1:25.060 |
15 | Watson Ben | 919 | GBR | 6 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta | 1:26.197 |
16 | Koch Tom | 226 | GER | 5 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM | 1:29.410 |
17 | Krestinov Gert | EST | 4 | 1:32.542 | |||
18 | Forato Alberto | 303 | ITA | 3 | SM Action Racing Team Yuasa Battery | KTM | 1:36.510 |
19 | Sihvonen Miro | FIN | 2 | 1:39.481 | |||
20 | Brumann Kevin | 87 | SWI | 1 | JK Racing Yamaha Active | Yamaha | 1 Lap |
Rider standings
Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Prado Garcia Jorge | 61 | SPA | 720 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas |
2 | Febvre Romain | 3 | FRA | 622 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki |
3 | Seewer Jeremy | 91 | SWI | 550 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
4 | Coldenhoff Glenn | 959 | NDL | 525 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
5 | Fernandez Ruben | 70 | SPA | 489 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda |
6 | Vlaanderen Calvin | 10 | NDL | 477 | Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing | Yamaha |
7 | Herlings Jeffrey | 84 | NDL | 418 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
8 | Forato Alberto | 303 | ITA | 350 | SM Action Racing Team Yuasa Battery | KTM |
9 | Guillod Valentin | 92 | SWI | 276 | Team Ship To Cycle Honda SR Motoblouz | Honda |
10 | Paturel Benoit | 6 | FRA | 204 | De Baets Yamaha MX-Team | Yamaha |
11 | Guadagnini Mattia | 101 | ITA | 203 | Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing | GasGas |
12 | Renaux Maxime | 959 | FRA | 202 | Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team | Yamaha |
13 | Watson Ben | 919 | GBR | 189 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta |
14 | Evans Mitch | 43 | AUS | 188 | Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP | Kawasaki |
15 | Östlund Alvin | 161 | SWE | 172 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda |
16 | Bogers Brian | 189 | NDL | 168 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
17 | Lupino Alessandro | 77 | ITA | 131 | MRT Racing Team Beta | Beta |
18 | Koch Tom | 226 | GER | 123 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM |
19 | van Doninck Brent | 32 | BEL | 113 | JM Honda Racing | Honda |
20 | Van Horebeek Jeremy | 89 | BEL | 110 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
21 | Spies Maximillian | 71 | GER | 100 | KTM Kosak Team | KTM |
22 | Gajser Tim | 243 | SLO | 78 | Team HRC - MXGP | Honda |
23 | Jonass Pauls | 41 | LAT | 56 | Standing Construct Honda MXGP | Honda |
24 | Roosiorg Hardi | 75 | EST | 52 | JWR Honda Racing | Honda |
25 | Petrov Petar | BUL | 43 | |||
26 | Brumann Kevin | 87 | SWI | 43 | JK Racing Yamaha Active | Yamaha |
27 | Haavisto Jere | FIN | 33 | |||
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 | Maksum Hilman | IDN | 17 | |||
34 | Koch Tim | 86 | GER | 15 | Wildcard Rider | Suzuki |
35 | Sterry Adam | 811 | GBR | 13 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
36 | Kerhoas Lionel | 988 | FRA | 12 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
37 | Ivanov Michael | 97 | BUL | 11 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
38 | Leok Tanel | EST | 10 | |||
39 | Goupillon Pierre | 57 | FRA | 10 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
40 | Krestinov Gert | EST | 10 | |||
41 | Dickinson Ashton | 115 | GBR | 9 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
42 | Tonus Arnaud | SWI | 8 | |||
43 | Gerhardsson Albin | 52 | SWE | 8 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
44 | Sileika Tomass | 637 | LAT | 7 | Wildcard Rider | GasGas |
45 | Monticelli Ivo | ITA | 6 | |||
46 | Jost Simon | 53 | SLK | 6 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
47 | Sihvonen Miro | FIN | 6 | |||
48 | Scheu Mark | 991 | GER | 5 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
49 | Lusbo Andero | EST | 5 | |||
50 | Poli Joaquin | 179 | ARG | 5 | Wildcard Rider | Kawasaki |
51 | Mewse Conrad | 426 | GBR | 4 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
52 | Alberto Paulo | POR | 4 | |||
53 | Kohut Tomas | 45 | CZE | 3 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
54 | Purdon Tristan | 141 | RSA | 3 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
55 | Koch Nico | 260 | GER | 2 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
56 | Joergensen Mathias | 221 | DEN | 2 | Wildcard Rider | Yamaha |
57 | Croci Simone | 771 | ITA | 2 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
58 | Malaval Adrien | FRA | 2 | |||
59 | Jazdauskas Domantas | 181 | LTU | 2 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
60 | Poli Agustin | 98 | ARG | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Kawasaki |
61 | Ubach Simeo | 724 | SPA | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Husqvarna |
62 | Van Berkel Lars | 107 | NDL | 1 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
63 | Jasikonis Arminas | 2 | LTU | 1 | Wildcard Rider | GasGas |
64 | Clochet Jimmy | 520 | FRA | 0 | Wildcard Rider | Honda |
65 | Sandner Michael | 766 | AUT | 0 | Wildcard Rider | KTM |
66 | Outeiro Luis | 147 | POR | 0 | Wildcard Rider | Yamaha |