Tim Gajser, Ruben Fernandez and Valerio Lata all put in fighting performances on the hard-pack Afyon circuit, as the Honda HRC trio finished in fourth, ninth and seventh positions in their respective qualification races.
Lata had started off the day excellently in the MX2 class, as he posted the fastest laptime in timed practice, giving him first gate-pick for the qualifying race. He then utilised that to great effect by rounding the first few corners inside the top three and then holding off the charging 250cc riders for the majority of the moto. Unfortunately the youngster wasn’t able to maintain that pace for the whole race and lost a few positions on the last couple of laps, but it was still a welcome return to see the Honda CRF250R rider battling with the top guys and showing he still has that raw speed.
In the MXGP class, Gajser was also looking a solid podium threat with fourth in free practice and then timed practice. He was then running in third for the first half of qualification before he dropped a position and finished in fourth place. This gives him a boost that he able to mix it up with the podium spots and he’ll be looking for that tomorrow in the longer motos.
It was an eventful race for Fernandez as the Spaniard started off just inside the top 10 for the first half of the moto. As he was looking to move forward, he collided with another rider and was left on the ground. Remounting around 15th position, he then put on a charge – on a track that was getting harder to pass on – to move himself back to ninth by the time he received the chequered flag. While the end result was disappointing, the manner that he rode in the second half of the race was positive, and the manner of the passes he made was extremely impressive.
MX2 Qualification Race
- Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 24:59.840; 2. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:06.823; 3. Guillem Farres (ESP, Triumph), +0:08.069; 4. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:08.784; 5. Liam Everts (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:09.274; 6. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), +0:10.804; 7. Valerio Lata (ITA, Honda), +0:12.477; 8. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Yamaha), +0:13.233; 9. Mathis Valin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:20.739; 10. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:24.897;
Tim Gajser 243
Solid day at the office. I’m pretty happy with my riding and the speed I was showing. Of course it would have been nice to have been battling for the lead, but overall, it was a good day and I feel like I have more to come tomorrow. Starts are going to be important here so I will continue to work with the team and give myself the best possible chance out of the gate.
Ruben Fernandez 70
It’s frustrating because I really felt strong out on the track, and I had some good lines and made a lot of passes. Unfortunately, the collision with the other rider cost me a lot of positions and instead of fighting towards the top four, I was fighting to get back to where I started. Still, now I know I can make some moves, so if I get a good start tomorrow I feel confident of a lot of points
Valerio Lata 18
It was really nice to get the fastest lap in timed practice and show everyone my speed. I know the past few GPs haven’t been the best and I wanted to show that myself and the machine are still capable of putting in those quick times. The race also went a lot better than in previous weekends, but I still need to keep my momentum until the chequered flag and not lose my focus if I lose one spot. I kept battling though and it is still an improvement, which is what I want at this stage of the season.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas
HRC General Manager – MXGP
Some good results, but we always want to be up the front and challenging for the top positions. Still, it was good to see all three of them fighting hard and just making sure that these flyaway races would be a good ending to the year. Tim is close to those podium spots and I think he could make the step tomorrow with more riding like today. Ruben also showed a lot of speed and with a good start, could be in the mix with those guys and allow him to try and match their pace. It was also nice to see Valerio looking a bit more like himself. He showed that he is still going in the right direction, and while he still has work to do, it is encouraging that he is battling with these guys in his first full year in the class.
Qualification Race
Pos. Rider Num Nation Points Team Time/Gap
1 Coenen Lucas 96 BEL 10 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 24:34.601
2 Herlings Jeffrey 84 NDL 9 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 0:06.970
3 Febvre Romain 3 FRA 8 Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP 0:18.074
4 Gajser Tim 243 SLO 7 Honda HRC – MXGP 0:20.620
5 Renaux Maxime 959 FRA 6 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team 0:30.508
6 Jonass Pauls 41 LAT 5 Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP 0:33.109
7 Gifting Isak 517 SWE 4 JK Racing Yamaha Active 0:35.038
8 Vlaanderen Calvin 10 NDL 3 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team 0:38.253
9 Fernandez Ruben 70 SPA 2 Honda HRC – MXGP 0:46.764
10 Pancar Jan 253 SLO 1 TEM JP253 KTM Racing Team 0:47.870
11 Bogers Brian 189 NDL 0 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP 0:48.968
12 van Doninck Brent 32 BEL 0 JM Honda Racing 0:49.417
13 Bonacorsi Andrea 132 ITA 0 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP 0:50.764
14 Geerts Jago 93 BEL 0 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team 0:51.841
15 Guadagnini Mattia 101 ITA 0 Ducati Factory MX Team 0:55.759
16 Seewer Jeremy 91 SWI 0 Ducati Factory MX Team 0:59.278
17 Coldenhoff Glenn 259 NDL 0 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP 1:03.070
18 Prugnieres Quentin 319 FRA 0 Honda SR Motoblouz 1:04.912
19 Watson Ben 919 GBR 0 MRT Racing Team Beta 1:05.990
20 Koch Tom 226 GER 0 MRT Racing Team Beta 1:07.354
Rider Standings
Pos. Rider Num Nation Points Team
1 Febvre Romain 3 FRA 843 Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP
2 Coenen Lucas 96 BEL 814 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
3 Coldenhoff Glenn 259 NDL 617 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP
4 Fernandez Ruben 70 SPA 525 Honda HRC – MXGP
5 Vlaanderen Calvin 10 NDL 500 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team
6 Herlings Jeffrey 84 NDL 475 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
7 Bonacorsi Andrea 132 ITA 461 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP
8 Renaux Maxime 959 FRA 453 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team
9 Gajser Tim 243 SLO 375 Honda HRC – MXGP
10 Seewer Jeremy 91 SWI 346 Ducati Factory MX Team
11 Pancar Jan 253 SLO 278 TEM JP253 KTM Racing Team
12 Bogers Brian 189 NDL 274 Fantic Factory Racing MXGP
13 Watson Ben 919 GBR 271 MRT Racing Team Beta
14 Geerts Jago 93 BEL 260 Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team
15 Horgmo Kevin 24 NOR 243 Honda SR Motoblouz
16 Gifting Isak 517 SWE 230 JK Racing Yamaha Active
17 Jonass Pauls 41 LAT 209 Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP
18 Guadagnini Mattia 101 ITA 194 Ducati Factory MX Team
19 van Doninck Brent 32 BEL 177 JM Honda Racing
20 van de Moosdijk Roan 34 NDL 168 KTM Kozak Team
21 Sterry Adam 811 GBR 104 KTM Kozak Team
22 Koch Tom 226 GER 88 MRT Racing Team Beta
23 Brumann Kevin 87 SWI 78 Wildcard Rider
24 Guillod Valentin 92 SWI 72 Wildcard Rider
25 Forato Alberto 303 ITA 72 Honda SR Motoblouz
26 Spies Maximillian GER 47
27 Fredriksen Hakon 427 NOR 41 Wildcard Rider
28 Stauffer Marcel 411 AUT 38 Wildcard Rider
29 Cairoli Antonio 222 ITA 37 Ducati Factory MX Team
30 Prugnieres Quentin 319 FRA 31 Honda SR Motoblouz
