Factory engines blared back to full volume to announce the end of the MXGP summer break at the Grand Prix of Czech Republic this weekend and across the fast, hilly and challenging Loket hard-pack it was Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Dylan Ferrandis who filled the role as protagonist at the thirteenth outing of eighteen in the 2016 FIM Motocross World Championship. The Frenchman posted two moto victories to earn just his second career MX2 triumph. Meanwhile in the premier MXGP class Monster Energy Yamaha’s Romain Febvre made a welcome return to the winner’s circle after his injury lay-off by finishing third overall.
For the first time this season MX2 was a blank canvas. Points leader and undefeated former champion Jeffrey Herlings was absent after collarbone surgery and his withdrawal from the Czech event represented a fantastic opportunity for another promising talent in the 250cc pack to hog the limelight. Ultimately it was Ferrandis who filled the mantle. ‘4’ ruled the first moto with an iron fist and then resisted a fightback from Max Anstie in the closing stages of the second race. The duel between two of just three riders in the entire MX2 collective at Loket to know the taste of Grand Prix victory champagne was thrilling, and although the vast 25,000 attendance around the Czech hillside were damp from rain showers they were nevertheless entertained by the spat. Ferrandis would prevail as Anstie crashed in the dispute for the lead.
“This feels great and everybody in the team is working for these kinds of results,” said Dylan who now has six podium trophies for the campaign (three in a row) and is fifth in the standings and one point from the top four. “The rain made it difficult to find traction and we had a great battle in the second race; Max pushed hard to pass me but he crashed and I could win both motos. It has been a great day but now we head into one of the hardest races of the championship.”
Wilvo Standing Construct Yamaha’s Alex Tonkov missed the chance to head the rostrum due to a back complaint that put the Russian on the sidelines. Countryman and Kawasaki ace ‘Seva’ Vsevolod was also missing due to a broken bone in his ankle sustained in a training crash prior to the Czech Republic. Kemea Yamaha’s Benoit Paturel secured a steady fourth position overall at Loket and was followed by Ferrandis’ Kawasaki teammate – Petar Petrov – in fifth.
MXGP saw championship leader Tim Gajser and works Husqvarna representative Max Nagl make the best starts and therefore duke-out ownership of the motos with the latter prevailing for his first success of the 2016 term after Gajser gifted the German a second moto win with a crash four laps before the chequered flag. On the third plinth of the box was World Champion Romain Febvre in his first active ride since missing Grand Prix motos in Great Britain and Italy due to a concussion. The Frenchman went 3-3 on the day.
“It is good to be back and on the podium especially,” he said afterwards. “I had to stop training for a month because of a problem with my eyes due to the crash. I didn’t miss much pace but physically I am low and not what I should be. I need a bit of time to be ready…I think I had arm-pump after five minutes of the first moto! I’m happy to get into the sand now. It will be very hard but I enjoy riding it.”
Five of Monster Energy’s riders in MXGP piled into the top eight. Kawasaki duo Clement Desalle and Jordi Tixier has decent outings to take fourth and sixth respectively. Febvre’s Yamaha teammate Jeremy Van Horebeek was fifth overall at the circuit where he tasted his first and sole MXGP spoils to-date in 2014 and Monster Energy DRT Kawasaki’s Tommy Searle rued some mediocre starts to fill eighth spot.
A perfect example of the diversity of circuits and challenges in MXGP will be highlighted this week. The summer hiatus was well-timed on the schedule as the riders head straight into the sapping and bump-ridden sand of Lommel in Belgium just one week after tackling the slick hard-pack of Loket. Lommel is a vastly different test of technique, stamina and bravery and means that the Grand Prix of Belgium is both feared and appreciated on the Grand Prix calendar.