Second overall brings Gajser to within touching distance of fourth title

Team HRC’s Tim Gajser went second overall at the MXGP of Trentino after one-four moto scores, to bring himself to within 27 points of his fourth world motocross championship title.

The hard-pack Pietramurata track in Italy is the host venue for this final triple-header, and the tight, technical track provided close racing throughout as riders found it difficult to make moves. This didn’t affect Gajser in race one though, as the Honda CRF450RW rider stormed out to another holeshot. He quickly pulled out a couple of seconds on the first lap and didn’t look back from there, controlling the race well and eventually pulling out a lead of almost 10 seconds to second place and over 30 seconds to third. Coming from a dominating display at the deep sand of Lommel, it was further evidence of just how well he is riding on any surface and there was real hope for another overall victory to add to his three already this year.

Unfortunately, a bad jump out of the gate in race two meant any thought of a race win was put to one side. Instead, the Slovenian had to battle through the field on the first lap, eventually getting up to seventh as they crossed the line for the first time. With each pass getting harder and harder, Gajser did manage to get up to fourth place, just one spot behind where he needed to be to take what would have been his fourth overall of the season. However, he had to settle for second overall, just one point from the lead, but knowing that he had taken another big step towards his third MXGP championship and his fourth world title. With four races remaining, the #243 sits 73 points ahead of second place, meaning that he needs just 27 points from the remaining four motos, or if he can beat his nearest rival by two points in the first moto of the penultimate round on Wednesday 4^th November, he will also be crowned the champion in another remarkable season of performances.