Loket. Grand Prix of Czech Republic 2014. A hard and slippery track. YZ450FM and Yamaha Factory Racing. An intense duel with world champion Antonio Cairoli. A 2-1 scorecard: all facts that constitute Jeremy Van Horebeek’s very first victory in the premier MXGP class of the FIM Motocross World Championship finally achieved today in round fourteen of seventeen in the 2014 series. The Belgian was superb on one his preferred circuits to give Yamaha their first MXGP success since Lierop (Netherlands) last summer and for his works team since the 2011 Swedish Grand Prix.
21,500 fans were thrilled by Van Horebeek’s showdown with Cairoli in the all-decisive second moto of the day run in cloudy conditions. JVH had earlier taken a solitary second position behind runaway victor Kevin Strijbos in Moto1 but the stage was set with a long and patient stalk of the reigning number one in Moto2. Van Horebeek kept close to the Sicilian and in the last three laps ‘pulled the pin’ to pressurise his friend and rival. When Cairoli bobbled and missed a rut on the entry to the corner at one of the lowest parts of the hillside track then Jere had his chance and squeezed through to lead and hold his advantage to the flag for an emotional end to a bumper day for Yamaha (Kiara Fontanesi won her third MXW title and Christophe Charlier walked the MX2 podium for the first time this year).
After previously accumulating eleven podium finishes in a row up until his fourth position in Finland two weeks ago, Van Horebeek was back on the box in style and with the added bonus of trimming the deficit to Cairoli in the MXGP standings to 57 points with 150 still to win.
Bike it Yamaha Cosworth’s Rui Gonçalves was seventeenth overall after experimenting and struggling with his set-up choices in the motos. Full credit to 2B Yamaha’s Milko Potisek after his eleventh position in the final MXGP listing (thanks to results of eighth and fourteenth; he hit the start gate at the launch of the second sprint) represented the best of his season so far.
DP19 Yamaha Racing’s David Philippaerts was ruled out of the Grand Prix at the last minute. The Italian caught and twisted his left foot in Sunday morning warm-up and was taken to the medical centre with a suspected broken lower leg. The 30 year old will have another scan in Italy on Monday but the initial diagnosis was ligament damage and possibly also a fracture. DP is already thinking about a return to Grand Prix competition and if the extent of the injury is too much to miss round fifteen in Belgium next week then he will have almost a month to get ready for the Brazilian round at the beginning of September.
The sand of Lommel will entertain a Grand Prix for the first time since 2011 next weekend for the last fixture in Europe before MXGP heads to South America.
Jeremy Van Horebeek
“It is difficult to explain how this feels. I think this is one of my best days ever. It is a special one but it won’t be my last one. The first moto was pretty good but the start wasn’t great and I had to come through the pack and Kevin had already gone. In the second I was second right away with Tony. I had to fight the whole moto and we were both sliding around and losing control. We were on the limit. With two laps to go I knew I had a great chance but I wanted to do it cleanly. I showed my front wheel once on the uphill just to let him know I was there and then did it. I’m so stoked. It is unbelievable. Once I started to get on the podium every weekend this season I knew I had to work harder and also get the rest I needed. I did a great job and I feel really fit. The bike has also felt better and better because this is my first year with the team and every GP you learn about it [the bike]. I think the combination of my personal development and with the Yamaha made this result. I’m looking forward to Lommel now. Tony is one of the best sand riders in the world and I plan to have something special for my fans. First we’ll enjoy this for a day and then start work for that one.”
David Philippaerts
“I hit a hole that twisted my leg and I went down pretty hard. I knew something was wrong and it felt like my ankle. They made a scan and gave me an injection for the pain and at the moment it might only be the ligaments and maybe also a piece of the bone. I will know a bit more tomorrow but I want to come back on the bike as soon as possible because this season half of the season had been pretty strong.”
Rui Gonçalves
“Definitely not the results I was looking for. We tried our best, and different set-ups with tyres to get the bike working well with the track. I think we learned from what we did even if the results do not show our progress. We need to take the positives through our work and the new stuff we tried in the second moto. I messed up the start and I cannot blame anybody but myself. I’m definitely looking forward to next weekend and getting nearer to the results I know I am capable of. I don’t want to put pressure on myself but everybody knows I can ride the sand. I cannot thank the team enough for their support and giving me everything I need to try and make myself and the bike better.”