A busy Glen Helen simmered in late summer heat but the coolest racer on the block in San Bernardino was MXGP World Champion Romain Febvre who conquered the vast hills and speedy banks of the famos Californian venue to go 1-2 in the motos and celebrate one of his best Grand Prix triumphs of the eight he has snared on his works Yamaha this year.
The Monster Energy MXGP of USA landed back at Glen Helen for the first time since 2011 and with healthy presence from AMA competitors that created a decent mix of fast riders between the two championships. Febvre found opposition in the forms of brandmate Cooper Webb and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Josh Grant as he recovered from two mediocre starts to hunt his possibilities for victory.
In the first moto an intense and thoroughly entertaining little spat with Webb was decided with an immaculate and risky overtaking move down the outside of the longest and steepest hill on the layout. Febvre held his nerve, took the lead and won with three laps to go. “I was a long time behind Cooper and he was really good,” the 23 year old explains. “I could not find one line to pass him. I was really close on the uphill and I managed to ‘close the door’ but he took the inside and blocked me. I was again really close on the downhill and he tried again for the inside but I came a little bit faster on the outside and it worked…although I was not sure about it at the time!”
A tally of fifteen chequered flags was almost added to later in the day. Still in temperatures that touched the mid-thirties, Febvre chased Grant hard in the second race. The Kawasaki man needed treatment on a twisted right ankle during the break but did his best to hold-off the world champ who was closing fast with every lap. Another promising scrap for the top spot was denied when Febvre briefly dropped his Yamaha at the peak of the hill and Grant had the breather he needed to win; his 3-2 scorecard meaning second overall on the day. Febvre though rounded off a remarkable term with a thirteenth consecutive champagne bottle.
“I had to push a lot and I felt a bit better in the second moto than the first but Josh was just a bit too far to catch. My fitness was good again; which is a good point because it was so hot,” he said.
“Unfortunately I twisted my foot and had to go through the pain and it was hard without any stability,” offered local Glen Helen expert Grant. “I had to take it easy and it really screwed me up. I had great help from the Asterisk crew in getting it taped and ready for the next race. I put my head down. I’ve put in a lot of time at this track and I really wanted to do well. In that second moto I left it all on the table.”
Jeremy Van Horebeek recovered from some bad starts to finish eighth overall and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Tyla Rattray unbuckled his boots on a fourteen year career at the very top with fourteenth on his former hunting ground.
Over in MX2 and Mexican GP winner Thomas Covington was thirteenth overall and desperately unlucky to be knocked off on the first lap of the second moto by Monster Energy Kawasaki brandmate Chris Alldredge; the latter picked up a fast third in the opening race. Bulgarian Petar Petrov was eleventh but it was two impressive charges by Monster Energy DRT Kawasaki’s Max Anstie to fifth in the final MX2 classification that allowed the Brit to celebrate third place in the championship standings and confirmation of the best season of his career.
And with that the symbol crashed on MXGP for 2015. It has been a campaign – the longest in Grand Prix history – that has seen some of the fastest and toughest riders in the world bashed out while others haven’t missed a beat. Numerous players will rest ‘instruments’, think about winter supercross, brief holidays, team changes and fitness regimes for 2016 while a few others still have to tune-up and get ready for the 69th Motocross of Nations that will be played out around the amphitheatre setting and atmosphere circuit of Ernee next weekend.