Two GP wins out of two for Gajser, as Evans as shows improvement

Team HRC’s Tim Gajser won his second MXGP in a row, going two-one in another confident display of riding at the MXGP of Lombardia, increasing his lead at the top of the world championship standings in the process. Teammate Mitch Evans also looked much improved from last weekend’s effort as he went 13-15 for 12^th overall.

After his victory in England last weekend, Gajser was looking for another win in Mantova, Italy, for what would be the first time in his career that he won the first two rounds. And after a qualification win yesterday, a large step had been taken, as it allowed him the inside gate-pick which is vitally important at this tight, tricky circuit.

In both motos, the Honda CRF450R rider capitalised on his position, rounding the first bend inside the top three and giving himself every opportunity to go for the moto win. Unfortunately, in the first race, he was unable to make it happen, despite pressurising the leader for the full 30 minutes plus two laps. He almost made the pass stick a couple of times, but in the end, he had to settle for second place, as he crossed just 1.3 seconds behind the winner.

Another good start in race two once again gave him the platform to go for the victory, something that would guarantee him the overall, and this time round he took full advantage. Before they’d crossed the line for the first time, the #243 was ahead and looking to pull away from the field. Putting in a number of hotlaps, including the fastest lap of the race, he had a nice cushion, but a small mistake meant that by the time he picked the bike up, he was having battle hard to keep his first position. Keeping calm, he held off the challenge and then set about pulling away again, eventually taking the chequered flag by over seven seconds. After winning both rounds of the 2022 season so far, Gajser is 12 points ahead in the MXGP standings, after taking 94 points from a possible 100.

For Evans, the sights are set a little lower, but this was another positive showing from the Australian who had missed the previous 15-months due to a wrist injury. An unfortunate problem in qualifying meant that he had an outside gate-pick and that meant he had very little chance of starting inside the top 10. Still, the #43 wasn’t to be discouraged and he tried his hardest to get out of the gate well. Race one went better, and as a result he was involved in a massive battle for the 10-15 positions, eventually taking home 13^th after non-stop fighting. Race two didn’t start as well, but he worked himself forward from 22^nd on lap one, into 15^th by the time he finished, giving him a much-improved 12^th overall.

Both riders will now have a weekend off, before heading down to the beautiful town of Villa La Angostura, Argentina for what will be the third round of the season. The track holds good memories for both riders and with confidence high, it should be another strong round for Team HRC in this competitive 2022 MXGP campaign.