MXGP
Team HRC’s Tim Gajser gave himself a fighting chance of a sixth world title, battling through the field in the MXGP of Castilla La Manche qualification race to finish in third place. In what is the final round of the 2024 MXGP World Championship, Gajser now needs to try and win both GP-scoring races tomorrow in order to make up the nine point deficit he currently finds himself in, if he is to claim what would be an extremely hard-fought winner’s trophy.
In what is a brand-new circuit on the calendar, Gajser adapted to conditions pretty quickly and was second fastest in both practice sessions, giving himself a good gate-pick for the qualification race. Unfortunately, on what ended up being a difficult track to pass-on, the #243 wasn’t able to come out of the first few turns with the leaders and instead had to make some passes to on the hard-pack Cozar terrain. By the end of the lap, he was up to fourth, but with top riders in front of him, the leader was able to pull away gradually as he couldn’t make a way higher up the standings. Eventually, just after the mid-point of the race, he got into third and immediately set about posting the fastest lap of the race, but by that time the lead pair were out of touch and he had to settle for eight points in this tight championship battle.
Behind him, teammate Ruben Fernandez was battling it out for seventh place and another good performance in his comeback from injury. Enjoy the support of his home Spanish crowd, the Honda CRF450R rider wasn’t quite able to replicate his China exploits, where he led over half of the moto, but he still acquitted himself well and knows that there is more to come in the races tomorrow.
With 50 points up for grabs, winning is really the only option for Gajser if he wants to win his sixth world championship – the fifth in the MXGP class, but as he has shown at numerous times during the season, he is fully capable and knows that if he can get out front early-on, there is the real possibility of making it happen.
MX2
Ferruccio Zanchi had a tough race in the MX2 qualification, but he never gave up and made a pass on the last lap to finish in eighth place. The tight and twisty hard-pack terrain didn’t make things easy for any of the riders but Zanchi found some speed in free practice, posting the fifth fastest time. He was then inside the top 10 in timed practice, but wasn’t able to translate that into a better start and instead found himself right on the points-scoring bubble. Trying to finish the season on a high, he kept pushing and with his fastest lap on the last lap, he got himself up into eighth and collected another three points and with it, secured a top 10 championship finish.
- Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), 25:27.674; 2. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:16.605; 3. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:23.090; 4. Quentin Marc Prugnieres (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:23.739; 5. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:24.370; 6. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Triumph), +0:32.221; 7. Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:38.457; 8. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), +0:41.007; 9. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:44.228; 10. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +0:45.860;
Tim Gajser 243
We knew before the race that the start was going to be very important as the track was one-lined and a lot of the guys were going the same speed. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the best jump and had to work my way through and that wasn’t really what I was after. I came into the weekend knowing I needed to win races and that hasn’t changed, so tomorrow I just need to execute off the line and get as many points as I can, and see what happens from there.
Ruben Fernandez 70
It is good to be here in Spain, and seeing a lot of my fans and just enjoying the atmosphere around the track. It wasn’t so easy on the track as it is very technical and there isn’t a lot of speed anywhere round the circuit, but even though today wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be, I am fully motivated to doing better tomorrow and challenging further up the field.
Ferruccio Zanchi 73
I wasn’t really happy with my riding in the qualification race, so I know I can do better in the races tomorrow. It isn’t an easy track and if you don’t get a good start, it is even more difficult so I know I need to try and get myself with the top riders from the very beginning and if I do that, I really think I can run their pace.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas
HRC General Manager – MXGP
Coming into this track, we didn’t really know what to expect because it was brand new for everyone. Tim showed good speed in the practices but as has been the case all season, the starts are critical and if you don’t get out front then the job becomes much harder. Still, we will keep on fighting until the very end and try finish off the year with some wins on Sunday.
We’re also hoping that both Ruben and Ferruccio can raise their level just a little bit higher tomorrow and challenge nearer the front. Both have shown that they are capable, so it’d be nice for the pair to get some top five finishes in this last round of the season.
Photocredits Ray Archer
