Bobryshev’s potential doesn’t reap the rewards in Thailand

Honda World Motocross rider Evgeny Bobryshev endured a tough day at the office for round two of the World MX1 Championship in Si Racha, Thailand today, as heat exhaustion cost him third place in the opening moto, along with a mistake on the last lap of the second race, which resulted in two finishes outside the top 10.

With temperatures soaring to above 37°C and humidity levels above 50%, it was set to be challenging for all the Grand Prix racers from the start. Bobryshev, whose teammate Max Nagl sat out of proceedings with illness, had been feeling comfortable all weekend, and got a superb start in the opening race, as he tussled with Antonio Cairoli for the holeshot. A few corners in Cairoli made a mistake and Bobryshev took the advantage aboard his Dunlop-shod factory CRF450R to lead the field for the opening 12-minutes of the race, before a small slip off due to losing the front on a rock in the ground.

Bobryshev maintained a good third position until the final stages of the race, when Clement Desalle began to put some pressure on the 25-year-old Russian, who tried to respond. With the intense heat Bobryshev lost concentration, and ran on in a corner just two laps from the end, as he felt totally disorientated and drained. In this condition he struggled to start his stalled machine, but eventually got going to bring it over the line in 18^th place.

Bobryshev spent some time trying to recover from the heat exhaustion that had affected him so badly in the opening moto, but didn’t get the best of starts in the SuperFinal. Bobryshev started outside the top 15, but with more composed and calculated riding than in the first moto, he easily picked his way through the field to fifth position. Bobryshev looked to be holding off a hard charging Rui Gonçalves late on in the race, but a mistake on the last lap caused him to crash hard and wind himself badly. With a sore foot, that had been hit by his footpeg as he went down, Bobryshev got back on the bike and reached the chequered flag in 11^th place in the MX1 class, giving him 14^th overall.

Evgeny Bobryshev #777: 14^th overall
“In the first race I had such a good start, and came to the inside with Tony. After half a lap he made a little mistake, so I passed him and I was feeling good with the track, while finding some nice lines. I pulled away a little, but I made a mistake, as I hit a rock in the track, which made me lose the front. The crash broke my rhythm, but I was still in third and everything was going fine, with a good speed. In the last few laps I felt so hot, which made it really hard to concentrate. I knew Desalle was coming, so I tried to increase the speed a bit, but that was a mistake. My body was tired, and I didn’t listen like I normally do. I tried too hard and gave everything I had left, so when I hit an impact on the front in the last few laps, I had no power left, and I felt really dazed. I went into a corner and ran on, stalling the bike. I was so hot and trying to kick the bike, but by the time I managed to get going, I was a long way back. I was completely empty after the race and feeling a little confused with being so hot. In the second race I had a bad start, but I stayed relaxed, didn’t push and was careful, as I didn’t have much energy after the first heat. I was happy with the riding, and managing the situation with the weather while making good passes. I was concentrating on a nice flowing rhythm, not pushing and breathing properly, but unfortunately on the last lap my hand came off the bars on the whoops section and I crashed. I winded myself, so I couldn’t breath, and I hit my foot really hard. I got going again to finish 11^th in MX1 but overall it’s been a massive disappointment today. The team has worked so hard, and all we can do is learn from it; we have some positives to take away, but I need to bring it all back together to get the results. The weather was a real low point for me, but I know physically I am fit, so the following races should be much better.”

Lorenzo Resta: Honda World Motocross Team Manager
“The first moto showed a step forward from Qatar with a good start, as well as spending some time at the front of the field, and being even higher in position for most of the moto. Bobby was riding really well, fighting with the top of the class and showing his level, but the problem is we have come away with no results and not made the best of the opportunity to finish in these positions. We have to work harder, as we have come away disappointed; we’ve not just had bad luck but the results for us are not acceptable, and as a team we have to work to improve that. We weren’t sure Bobby would be okay for the second moto, with him feeling so empty, but again until the last few laps it was a big success. He got up-to fifth position in the SuperFinal, which was fourth in MX1, from outside the top 15 off the start, and he was riding really well. A mistake a few corners from the end cost him this result. Now we will regroup, and concentrate on Valkenswaard in a few weeks, where we look forward to being back at full strength with both riders.”

 

1	Antonio Cairoli	95 pts	ITA	KTM	Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
2	Clement Desalle	87 pts	BEL	SUZUKI	Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
3	Gautier Paulin	78 pts	FRA	KAWASAKI	Kawasaki Racing Team
4	Ken De Dycker	70 pts	BEL	KTM	Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
5	Tommy Searle	64 pts	GBR	KAWASAKI	CLS Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit
6	Kevin Strijbos	55 pts	BEL	SUZUKI	Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1
7	Rui Gonçalves	52 pts	POR	KTM	ICE1 Racing
8	Steven Frossard	47 pts	FRA	YAMAHA	Monster Energy Yamaha
9	Evgeny Bobryshev	47 pts	RUS	HONDA	Honda World Motocross
10	Xavier Boog	41 pts	FRA	KTM	ICE1 Racing
11	David Philippaerts	37 pts	ITA	HONDA	Honda Gariboldi
12	Tanel Leok	33 pts	EST	HONDA	Route 77 Energy Honda
13	Davide Guarneri	33 pts	ITA	KTM	Marchetti Racing
14	Shaun Simpson	26 pts	GBR	TM	TM Ricci Racing
15	Joel Roelants	25 pts	BEL	YAMAHA	Monster Energy Yamaha
16	Jonathan Barragan	19 pts	ESP	KTM	Team STR KTM
17	Maximilian Nagl	15 pts	GER	HONDA	Honda World Motocross
18	Jeremy Van Horebeek	14 pts	BEL	KAWASAKI	Kawasaki Racing Team
19	Augusts Justs	9 pts	LAT	HONDA	Latvia Elksni Honda
20	Kenny Van Dueren	6 pts	BEL	KTM	KTM Scott Racing
21	Jens Getteman	6 pts	BEL	HONDA	LS Honda Racing
22	Jason Dougan	4 pts	GBR	HONDA	Route 77 Energy Honda
23	Jamie Law	4 pts		KTM	Team STR KTM
24	Masanori Ito	2 pts	JAP	YAMAHA	Yamaha Wildcard