Tom Vialle showed signs that he back to his best, as he came fourth in the MXGP of South Africa qualifying race. The Frenchman led the trio of Honda CRF450RW riders through the chequered flag at what is a new venue for everyone in Johannesburg.
The Terra Topia track has been extensively revamped for this break-through event, and was met with universal praise from the riders as they took to the circuit for the first time today. Due to the winter sun, the schedule was moved forward one hour, but with a sold-out crowd in attendance, it didn’t affect the enthusiasm from the spectators, who haven’t witnessed world championship motocross since 2008.
Jeffrey Herlings set the fastest time in free practice, picking up where he left off after victories in Italy and Portugal at the previous two rounds. However, a poor start in the qualifying race left him way down the field, and he had to work extremely hard to make his way up to sixth place.
Instead it was Vialle, who hasn’t had the best of times since returning from injury, who scored the best points, making some quick passes in the first couple of turns to move into fourth place and hold off any challengers from behind. It was good to see him maintain the pace for the entire moto and he’ll be looking at the podium spots once again as he tries to get back to his early-season form.
Ruben Fernandez had a tougher day, with a crash in practice, and then one in the qualifying race when he was running in sixth place. In the end the Spaniard finished in 10th place, but his speed was better than his end result suggests and he’ll once again be hoping to fight it out for top five places in the two motos tomorrow.
In the MX2 class, Valerio Lata also struggled out of the gate, and by the time he got into his rhythm, the main pack had got too far away. He did fight back to 10th place but he’ll also be hoping that the races go better, on what should be another action-packed day of racing in the glorious winter weather of South Africa.
MX2 Qualification
- Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 25:26.339; 2. Guillem Farres (ESP, Triumph), +0:06.577; 3. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:14.976; 4. Janis Martins Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:15.910; 5. Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:23.784; 6. Liam Everts (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:25.325; 7. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:29.992; 8. Maxime Grau (FRA, Honda), +0:48.831; 9. Jens Walvoort (NED, KTM), +0:55.195; 10. Valerio Lata (ITA, Honda), +0:57.489;
Rubén Fernández 70
Honda HRC PETRONAS
The track was fun today, but I made a couple of mistakes which took away some enjoyment. Nothing too serious, but just sometimes it happens and now I have things a little bit more difficult than they could have been. Still, I want to enjoy myself tomorrow and I think I can get some good results on what is a fun track to ride. I just need to get some good starts and keep it consistent.
Tom Vialle 16
Honda HRC PETRONAS
It felt a lot better today, and I felt comfortable for the entire moto. I was riding a good pace and had third place in front of me, but I couldn’t really find anywhere to make a pass. I’m happy though as it is a good step in the right direction and I’m excited to do even better tomorrow. I think they did an excellent job with the track and it has been a good experience so far down here in South Africa.
Jeffrey Herlings 84
Honda HRC PETRONAS
Unfortunately our gate-pick strategy didn’t work out the best and I was well down the field round the first turn. It was hard work getting to the front after that as everyone was running a good pace, so sixth was all I could manage. I think we’ll probably change things for the motos tomorrow, but I know I need to step it up if I want to make it three GP wins in a row.
Valerio Lata 18
Honda HRC PETRONAS
I never really got up to speed today, which isn’t usually the case. Normally I have been able to post some good laptimes in practice, but today I just never felt right. Unfortunately that continued into the moto and when I didn’t get a good start, I found it hard to come through the field. I definitely need to improve for the races tomorrow.
Marcus Pereira de Freitas –
Honda HRC PETRONAS
Not our best day overall, but there were some positives and we know that tomorrow can go better. I think the team adapted well to the new environment and early-on we had some good laps in practice. However, that didn’t translate into the finishing positions in the races, so that’s something we’ll be looking to fix before the moto gatedrops. I think Tom was a good ride though and now we want the other guys to be up there with him, on what is an excellent motocross track here in Johannesburg.
📸 @shotbybavo
