Sixth and seventh in the sand for Team HRC duo
Evgeny Bobryshev and Gautier Paulin finished sixth and seventh respectively in qualifying for the MXGP of Belgium today in the demanding sand of Lommel.
With a packed running schedule, the track became increasingly rutted and bumpy as the day progressed, leading to a few mistakes and crashes throughout the pack. From the start Bobby and Paulin got good jumps but then got shuffled around in the first few corners to emerge in tenth and twelfth.
As the pack settled and got into a rhythm, the duo ran together for much of the race as they fought their way back towards the front, passing and re-passing each other a couple of times in the process.
With a combination of speed, consistency and staying the right side of the conditions when others fell foul, at the flag Bobby had worked himself into sixth and Gautier seventh. Being inside the top ten is crucial for the start here, so both riders have every chance of making it to the front in tomorrow’s two races.
Roger Harvey
“It’s not been the easiest of days. It’s a very difficult track, but of course it’s the same for everyone. We got out of the start pretty well, but it didn’t work out through the first corner with some jostling so the riders were down in 10th and 11th when the field settled down. Then it took a lot of time to get through the field which is the nature of this track. It’s very very tough, and tomorrow it quite possibly will be harder again with more heat, so riding clean and staying on will be the focus. Being the top ten, the start position isn’t so bad and they have the chance still to get out well.”
Evgeny Bobryshev 777
“I was feeling fine in the race. The track is really rough, there’re really no flat places. From the start I was top seven or something, and then for the first lap I don’t know why but I was just cruising and everybody was passing me like I was standing and then I was out of the top ten. But then I started increasing the speed and getting my rhythm and repassing people. I was behind Jeremy in sixth and I still was feeling strong at the end of the race but I wasn’t pushing so much as it’s not necessary today – I’m happy with sixth and it’ a good gate pick. Tomorrow will be heavy, but I want to do the same as today and again be strong until the end.”
Gautier Paulin 21
“It's tough but it was ok today. Lommel tomorrow will be a different day and I still have a good place on the gate. We’ll see tomorrow as the track again will be different to today as it gets more and more rough. It was quite tricky at the start with the dust as I couldn’t see much, but for today in qualifying it’s ok.”
Results Session
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
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Location Information
Dodenveldstraat, 3900 Overpelt, Belgium - View in Google Maps
