MX GP Round 7 - Montevarchi (I)
By TMX Archives on 11th Jun 06
MX1 : Everts again, Italy falls to the factory Yamaha's World Championship siegeRound: 7 - 2006 GP of Montevarchi, Italy
The list of adjectives to describe MX1 World Championship leader Stefan Everts and his YZ450FM is growing perilously short after the reigning number one maintained his 100% record this season by winning the Italian Grand Prix in front of 26,000 fans at Montevarchi today.
The 33 year old claimed both motos to stretch his haul of consecutive victories to eleven, and seven from seven Grand Prix. His career total now stands at a phenomenal 94 and he has eight remaining rounds from which to reach a magical 100.
Everts claimed his second pole position of the season and his second inside one week on Saturday with a lap-time over a second quicker than nearest pursuer Suzuki's Kevin Strijbos. The result of the Timed Practice ran straight into the first moto where the World Champion enjoyed the holeshot and promptly set his own pace ahead of the Suzuki representative. Despite running close together Everts was again faultless and stretched his run of consecutive moto victories to ten.
The Montevarchi course was dry, fast and twisty under sunshine and windy conditions but the Yamaha Intur Sports representative proved that he is a true master of all terrain by leading both races from start to finish. He was handicapped slightly by a cracked exhaust in the second heat. The Yamaha YZ450FM was extremely close to exceeding noise limits and Everts himself had to weather a fiercer attack from Strijbos but he reeled off a series of laps at a crucial stage to again break his countryman.
Cedric Melotte was feeling better after his light concussion from Bulgaria last Sunday even though he is still endeavouring to regain full fitness after a recent blood test revealed deficiencies in his body's vitamin levels. The Belgian's confidence can best be described as fragile after his poor luck with physical problems and a lack of results to justify his obvious speed. He did however obtain a decent start in the first moto and was holding third for the first half of the race until he was swamped in the final stages and slipped back to eighth. Later in the afternoon a collision with KTM's Jonathan Barragan led to a broken rear brake and he retired for the third time in the last four motos.
Everts has stretched his lead to 89 points with almost half the season gone. Melotte rests in tenth spot.
The eighth round of the World Championships will commence the second half of the 2006 campaign and ends a busy three week consecutive run of events. The British Grand Prix will get underway next Saturday at the new Matterley Basin circuit.
Stefan Everts, Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team:
"I don't get bored with winning because every race is a hard job! Kevin did well today to put some pressure on me, especially in the second moto. He is keeping me focussed lately and I have to keep pushing to stay in front. It was a good close race for the crowd. It is not coming that easily for me. Every weekend is a new challenge, there are still many races to go and I want to stay in good shape."
Cedric Melotte, Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team:
"I am just riding to do my best and enjoy myself now. In the first race I made a great start and could follow the leaders for four or five laps. I had to slow down because I needed to find my own rhythm. We have a set-up on the bike from the start of the year and because of my problems we have not been able to work on it. I hope to test after the British GP to help get me riding smoother on the bike because I cannot make that same speed from the first ten minutes of the moto for the entire duration. The bike was moving around a lot and it was frustrating to lose those positions but I did my best. In the second race I crashed together with Barragan and he took away my front wheel. I restarted but the rear brake was broken and I had to stop. I enjoyed the first part of the day but the track was horrible."
Carlo Rinaldi, Team Manager, Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team:
"Stefan once again was close to perfection. He had very good starts and the pattern of the races was similar to one we have already seen this season. He made the gap just big enough to keep the lead and his concentration. Cedric was looking better after Bulgaria and had recovered quite well during the week. In the first moto he proved that the speed is still there but physically he is not 100%. It was a shame that Barragan's bike broke his rear brake and he could not continue. Stefan had a small crack on the exhaust in the second moto but it was not very loud and everything turned out OK."
Race classification MX1
Round: 7 - 2006 GP of Montevarchi, Italy
Circuit: Montevarchi
Circuit Length: 1650
Race 1: 21 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 S. Everts Yamaha BEL 39' 58.623
2 K. Strijbos Suzuki BEL +7.556
3 K. De Dycker Honda BEL +15.670
4 S. Ramon Suzuki BEL +20.976
5 J. Barragan KTM ESP +23.426
6 J. Garcia Vico Honda ESP +24.285
7 T. Leok Kawasaki EST +27.861
8 C. Melotte Yamaha BEL +45.620
9 J. Bill Yamaha GBR +1' 1.739
10 P. Leuret Honda FRA +1' 5.510
11 A. Salvini Suzuki ITA +1' 9.784
12 L. Freibergs Suzuki LVA +1' 10.435
13 G. Crockard Honda GBR +1' 10.905
14 R. Jelen Suzuki SVN +1' 22.435
15 C. Desalle Suzuki BEL +1' 26.128
16 D. Theybers Suzuki BEL +1' 26.501
17 J. Moze Suzuki SVN +1' 31.077
18 B. Jorgensen Honda DNK +1' 32.498
19 M. Priem Yamaha BEL +1' 37.790
20 K. Salaets Yamaha BEL +1' 43.482
Race 2: 21 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 S. Everts Yamaha BEL 40' 26.487
2 K. Strijbos Suzuki BEL +8.683
3 T. Leok Kawasaki EST +26.828
4 S. Ramon Suzuki BEL +40.982
5 J. Garcia Vico Honda ESP +46.607
6 B. Jorgensen Honda DNK +1' 7.361
7 K. De Dycker Honda BEL +1' 13.155
8 P. Leuret Honda FRA +1' 17.459
9 M. Priem Yamaha BEL +1' 23.597
10 M. Van Daele Honda BEL +1' 23.750
11 J. Noble Honda GBR +1' 33.642
12 A. Pyrhonen TM FIN +1' 38.337
13 D. Theybers Suzuki BEL +1' 38.801
14 L. Freibergs Suzuki LVA +1' 40.490
15 A. Salvini Suzuki ITA +1' 41.047
16 J. Bill Yamaha GBR +1' 46.482
17 R. Jelen Suzuki SVN +1' 47.245
18 W. Avis KTM RSA +1' 58.566
19 J. Dobes Suzuki CZE +1 lap(s)
20 G. Crockard Honda GBR +1 lap(s)
Championship standings MX1
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Points
1 Stefan Everts Yamaha BEL 342
2 Kevin Strijbos Suzuki BEL 253
3 Tanel Leok Kawasaki EST 245
4 Ken De Dycker Honda BEL 231
5 Steve Ramon Suzuki BEL 227
6 Jonathan Barragan KTM ESP 166
7 Pascal Leuret Honda FRA 147
8 Manuel Priem Yamaha BEL 120
9 Brian Jorgensen Honda DNK 120
10 Cedric Melotte Yamaha BEL 118
11 Javier Garcia Vico Honda ESP 115
12 Marvin Van Daele Honda BEL 108
13 Julien Bill Yamaha GBR 107
14 Sebastien Tortelli KTM FRA 99
15 Antti Pyrhonen TM FIN 91
16 James Noble Honda GBR 89
17 Danny Theybers Suzuki BEL 73
18 Alex Salvini Suzuki ITA 47
19 Wyatt Avis KTM RSA 46
20 Stephen Sword Kawasaki GBR 40
Manufacturers standings MX1
Pos. Manufacturer Points
1 Yamaha 342
2 Suzuki 289
3 Kawasaki 245
4 Honda 241
5 KTM 221
6 TM 91
MX2 : Cairoli runner-up at home Grand Prix thriller
Round: 7 - 2006 GP of Montevarchi, Italy
Circuit: Montevarchi
Date: 11 June 2006
Crowd: 26000
Temp: 26oC
Weather: Sunny
World Champion Antonio Cairoli entertained his many fans with two exciting motos at a sunny Montevarchi today for the seventh round of the MX2 FIM World Championship. The De Carli Yamaha rider had the 26,000 attendance on its feet as he fought with friend and rival David Philippaerts for victory until the last laps but eventually had to settle for a brace of runner-up positions.
Cairoli aced his qualification heat yesterday and, along with Philippaerts, looked easily the strongest rider on the tight and stony course. 'Toni' started well in both motos but lost the lead to KTM's Philippaerts and then second place to Tyla Rattray in the first race as he struggled with a sore wrist that was numbing his arm. He eventually found a better rhythm to pass Rattray and set off after the leader resulting in the first of two finales that proved to be the highlights of the Grand Prix.
The second race quickly became 'part two' of the all-Italian scrap and Cairoli was again powerless to pass Philippaerts who had recovered well from a crash while leading that had dropped him to third.
With Christophe Pourcel not enjoying one of his best days, Rattray falling out of the second moto and De Reuver also registering a DNF because of a faulty gearbox, Cairoli has narrowed the margin in the World Championship standings and now lies 15 points from second place.
Kenneth Gundersen could, and should, have finished higher than his final classification of 10th. The Norwegian started badly in the first moto and rose only as high as 8th, without a rear brake, on a track that was not easy to pass and afforded varying levels of grip. A promising start and third position was squandered on the first lap when the front wheel of his YZ250F slid out and dumped the number '12' on the floor. His resulting effort terminated with 17th spot by the chequered flag.
Davide Guarneri was unlucky not to take pole position on Saturday as the Italian's silencer on the Ricci Racing Yamaha unbelievably came loose again (as in Bulgaria last week) and the resulting one minute penalty for violating noise regulations meant that he had to qualifying for his home Grand Prix via the Last Chance session and confirmed 26th spot. He was 7th in the first moto but could not make the finish in race two.
Bike it Yamaha's Billy Mackenzie was no match for the Italian's speed on home turf. The Japanese GP winner was taken out of the race by Luigi Seguy in the first foray and slipped back to 13th after a decent start in the second outing. The 22 year old is still bothered by a broken bone in his left hand.
Alessio Chiodi could not avoid the fallen Fabio Mossini on the first lap of the second MX2 heat yesterday and the crash relegated him to the back of the pack. The former multi World Champion left his fast lap late in the Last Chance session (and needed the help of team-mate Guarneri) and disappointedly entered the gate in 28th. During the motos he was always struggling to make up ground but tried his best in front of a willing partisan crowd. He finished the day with 18th and 11th for 14th overall.
The eighth round of the series will take place at the new Matterley Basin circuit in England for the British Grand Prix. The visit to the UK will end a hectic three week spell of consecutive races.
Antonio Cairoli, Team Yamaha De Carli:
"For sure I wanted to win in my country but today David was very fast. I lost concentration in the second heat when I saw Rattray and Goncalves crash. I was riding a bit stiff and didn't have a good feeling but afterwards when David came back I was able to pick up my speed. It was very hard to pass him here and I didn't want to make a mistake because the standings would be much closer. For me and for the Championship this is a good GP."
Kenneth Gundersen, Yamaha Team Ricci:
"I felt really good in the first race but after twenty minutes I lost the rear brake. Otherwise I believe I could have finished top three in that race. In the second moto I lost the front end and was half a lap behind before I was really going again. Normally I could have finished on the podium at a track like this but again bad luck."
Alessio Chiodi, Yamaha Team Ricci:
"I have to say thank you to Davide in the Last Chance yesterday because he gave me a tow and helped me qualify. I did not have the speed to make a single lap like that. To be low in the gate was not good but I tried my best. The first moto was not that bad but I crashed and hit my knee again and after that it was so difficult. One point is better than none though so I kept pushing. This was a hard GP for me. I am disappointed for the fans because their support was fantastic. I hope I will be OK for the British GP, I have one more week to recover now."
Race classification MX2
Round: 7 - 2006 GP of Montevarchi, Italy
Circuit: Montevarchi
Circuit Length: 1650
Race 1: 21 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA 39' 36.141
2 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA +0.574
3 S. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +16.917
4 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +17.706
5 T. Rattray KTM RSA +23.075
6 G. Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA +36.401
7 D. Guarneri Yamaha ITA +45.930
8 K. Gundersen Yamaha NOR +53.511
9 M. De Reuver KTM NED +55.889
10 A. Leok Yamaha EST +1' 1.470
11 R. Goncalves KTM POR +1' 6.108
12 M. Monni KTM ITA +1' 9.536
13 M. Seistola Honda FIN +1' 12.376
14 C. Nunn KTM GBR +1' 16.020
15 T. Searle Kawasaki GBR +1' 16.379
16 C. Campano KTM ESP +1' 23.003
17 P A. Renet Honda FRA +1' 23.712
18 A. Chiodi Yamaha ITA +1' 24.317
19 M. Schiffer KTM GER +1' 32.455
20 J. Wing KTM SWE +1' 36.226
Race 2: 20 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA 39' 12.775
2 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA +3.369
3 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +23.136
4 G. Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA +27.544
5 S. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +32.296
6 R. Goncalves KTM POR +35.024
7 T. Searle Kawasaki GBR +52.100
8 C. Campano KTM ESP +56.315
9 M. Seistola Honda FIN +56.779
10 L. Seguy Yamaha FRA +1' 1.998
11 A. Chiodi Yamaha ITA +1' 2.677
12 C. Nunn KTM GBR +1' 8.173
13 B. MacKenzie Yamaha GBR +1' 13.787
14 F. Mossini Suzuki ITA +1' 14.195
15 P A. Renet Honda FRA +1' 15.457
16 A. Pellegrini Suzuki ITA +1' 25.976
17 K. Gundersen Yamaha NOR +1' 30.079
18 A. Meo Honda FRA +1' 32.919
19 M. Schiffer KTM GER +1' 37.490
20 J. Wing KTM SWE +1' 43.147
Championship standings MX2
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Points
1 Christophe Pourcel Kawasaki FRA 274
2 Marc De Reuver KTM NED 246
3 Tyla Rattray KTM RSA 235
4 Antonio Cairoli Yamaha ITA 231
5 David Philippaerts KTM ITA 210
6 Billy MacKenzie Yamaha GBR 168
7 Carl Nunn KTM GBR 159
8 Sebastien Pourcel Kawasaki FRA 140
9 Kenneth Gundersen Yamaha NOR 139
10 Gareth Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA 134
11 Rui Goncalves KTM POR 132
12 Tommy Searle Kawasaki GBR 129
13 Alessio Chiodi Yamaha ITA 124
14 Davide Guarneri Yamaha ITA 94
15 Luigi Seguy Yamaha FRA 94
16 Manuel Monni KTM ITA 73
17 Anthony Boissiere Yamaha FRA 66
18 Aigar Leok Yamaha EST 64
19 Matti Seistola Honda FIN 61
20 Patrick Caps Honda BEL 46
Manufacturers standings MX2
Pos. Manufacturer Points
1 KTM 318
2 Yamaha 306
3 Kawasaki 280
4 Honda 114
5 Suzuki 13