Rattray back on the top step in Ireland
By TMX Archives on 27th Aug 06
Red Bull KTM rider Tyla Rattray has ended a dry spell of almost four months by claiming his fourth MX2 victory of the season today at Desertmartin and the Grand Prix of Northern Ireland.
The South African unleashed a dominant display at the thirteenth round of fifteen and at the venue where he was triumphant in 2005. He gained pole position by owning his qualification heat and then disappeared with a searing pace in both motos; only a crash in the first race presented a blip on what was an authoritative return to the winner's circle. The 20 year old last won at the Grand Prix of Portugal and has since been fighting for full fitness from collarbone, ankle and shoulder injuries.
Desertmartin, renowned for it flowing, technical and rider-friendly layout, also carries a price with the fine soil creating a difficult and punishing test. The many bumps and ruts more akin to a sand track emphasised rider control and bike set-up. Over 18,000 spectators crowded a busy circuit despite a strong chilly wind and passing showers.
David Philippaerts and Marc de Reuver entered the overall MX2 top five. De Reuver placed fourth with finishes of 8th and 2nd. His ranking might have been higher in the first outing if he hadn't have been held up by a fallen Philippaerts.
The Italian gave the Austrian firm a great sight in the second race by crossing the finish line in 3rd for three 250 SX-Fs in the leading positions. He had earlier crashed on the first lap of Moto1 and had been struggling with a stomach illness over the weekend.
The fourth MX2 representative, Carl Nunn, could not make the podium again or repeat the results that saw him a winner at the Desertmartin British Championship fixture two months ago. He was 13th in the first race and then as high as 7th in Moto2 before he had to retire with a mechanical problem.
A crash saw Jonathan Barragan slip to 8th position in the opening MX1 bustle. The Spaniard also damaged his clutch, which did not assist his progress. The youngster was impressive in the second race and hounded Honda's Ken de Dycker for third position, eventually remaining as the last rider not to be lapped by victor Josh Coppins. The result was his sixth top three finish of the season and gave him 5th overall.
In the World Championship standings Barragan is 81 points from the MX1 top five but holds a 57 point gap over Josh Coppins in seventh. Philippaerts has 3rd place in MX2, 41 away from Cairoli in 2nd and 25 ahead of Rattray in 4th. De Reuver is 5th and Carl Nunn 6th.
The penultimate round of the World Championship will take place in just one week's time in the deep sand of Lierop for the Grand Prix of the Netherlands.
Tyla Rattray:
"In the first moto I got the holeshot which I was really happy about. Sebastien passed me but after about a lap I got him back. I upped my pace and eventually made a gap. I had a pretty big crash at one stage and scared myself a bit. In the second moto I again got into the lead on the first lap and put my head down. I pushed hard to breakaway from Marc in second. Overall it was a good day. I feel that I am back to 100% with my riding and my fitness.”
David Philippaerts:
"I had a bad night Saturday because I had a stomach ache and was sick. I had a lot of pain today and this did not help my concentration. I crashed on the first lap and it was very hard to come back but seventh place was OK. I was quite happy with my speed but Tyla was so fast today, I think going to America helped him!”
Marc de Reuver:
"My riding was better than the last few weeks but my starts were not great. I made the most stupid mistake yesterday in qualifying and should have won the heat. Anyway I was right behind David when he fell and basically had to wait until he got going before I could move. I was dead-last but came back to eighth which was OK. There was a big crash at the start of the second moto but I kept inside and was fifth or sixth. I reached second but the gap was too big to Tyla.”
Carl Nunn:
"I struggled in the first race and rode badly. I could not get a rhythm and it was like the first moto in Namur. I couldn't understand it because normally I love this place. We had made a small change to the bike from the setting I had here in the British Championship and we reverted back to the set-up we had then. The second race was better and I felt good. Gareth Swanepoel came past but I stuck with him and we were catching Pourcel when the bike stopped.”
Jonathan Barragan:
"The first race was a disaster. I had a crash which dropped me back and then I had to finish the moto without a clutch. I was eighth and disappointed because I lost points especially with Coppins doing well. I liked the circuit and felt good. The second moto was much better and I did not have any problems. I also got a decent start which was important. I was chasing De Dycker for a while and in the last ten minutes I was stronger. He was struggling and I was looking to catch him and that's why we were ‘playing' for a little while there. His pace was fast to begin with but then he started to slow down. The track was very hard physically and I feel pretty tired now. I have taken some confidence from this GP and we are improving the bike little by little. It was just a shame about that first race. We go to Lierop now and the sand. This is not my speciality but we will try our best.”
MX1 Moto1
1. EVERTS Stefan BEL YAMAHA 40:50.848
2. COPPINS Joshua NZL HONDA 40:51.570
3. DE DYCKER Ken BEL HONDA 41:49.453
4. STRIJBOS Kevin BEL SUZUKI 42:00.134
5. CROCKARD Gordon GBR HONDA 42:17.876
6. NEMETH Kornel HUN SUZUKI 42:42.323
7. PRIEM Manuel BEL YAMAHA 42:50.315
8. BARRAGAN Jonathan SPA KTM 42:52.162
9. PYRHONEN Antti FIN TM 42:53.132
10. BEGGI Cristian ITA HONDA 42:56.631
11. RAMON Steve BEL SUZUKI 40:53.309
MX1 Moto2
1. COPPINS Joshua NZL HONDA 40:51.512
2. EVERTS Stefan BEL YAMAHA 41:17.162
3. BARRAGAN Jonathan SPA KTM 42:56.188
4. DE DYCKER Ken BEL HONDA 41:06.483
5. STRIJBOS Kevin BEL SUZUKI 41:11.089
6. PRIEM Manuel BEL YAMAHA 41:18.150
7. NEMETH Kornel HUN SUZUKI 41:21.703
8. LEOK Tanel EST KAWASAKI 41:31.939
9. NOBLE James GBR HONDA 41:33.569
10. PYRHONEN Antti FIN TM 41:37.503
MX1 Overall result
1. COPPINS Joshua NZL HONDA 47
2. EVERTS Stefan BEL YAMAHA 47
3. DE DYCKER Ken BEL HONDA 38
4. STRIJBOS Kevin BEL SUZUKI 34
5. BARRAGAN Jonathan SPA KTM 33
6. PRIEM Manuel BEL YAMAHA 29
7. NEMETH Kornel HUN SUZUKI 29
8. PYRHONEN Antti FIN TM 23
9. LEOK Tanel EST KAWASAKI 22
10. CROCKARD Gordon GBR HONDA 16
MX1 World Championship standings after 13 of 15 rounds
1. EVERTS Stefan BEL 639
2. STRIJBOS Kevin BEL 458
3. RAMON Steve BEL 418
4. DE DYCKER Ken BEL 409
5. LEOK Tanel EST 387
6. BARRAGAN J. SPA 306
7. COPPINS Joshua NZL 249
8. LEURET Pascal FRA 242
9. PRIEM Manuel BEL 239
10. MELOTTE Cedric BEL 224
MX2 Moto1
1. RATTRAY Tyla RSA KTM 41:19.221
2. CAIROLI Antonio ITA YAMAHA 41:26.978
3. POURCEL Christophe FRA KAWASAKI 41:34.800
4. GONCALVES Rui POR KTM 41:39.578
5. POURCEL Sébastien FRA KAWASAKI 41:51.804
6. GUNDERSEN Kenneth NOR YAMAHA 41:53.828
7. PHILIPPAERTS David ITA KTM 41:59.327
8. DE REUVER Marc NED KTM 42:10.329
9. SWANEPOEL Gareth RSA KAWASAKI 42:13.998
10. LEOK Aigar EST YAMAHA 42:18.183
13. NUNN Carl GBR KTM 42:29.964
MX2 Moto2
1. RATTRAY Tyla RSA KTM 39:52.916
2. DE REUVER Marc NED KTM 40:13.712
3. PHILIPPAERTS David ITA KTM 40:22.846
4. POURCEL Christophe FRA KAWASAKI 40:35.718
5. POURCEL Sébastien FRA KAWASAKI 40:40.439
6. SWANEPOEL Gareth RSA KAWASAKI 40:41.603
7. CAIROLI Antonio ITA YAMAHA 41:09.126
8. GONCALVES Rui POR KTM 41:11.556
9. MACKENZIE Billy GBR YAMAHA 41:11.985
10. SCHIFFER Marcus GER KTM 41:20.498
24. NUNN Carl GBR KTM 25:49.317
MX2 Overall result
1. RATTRAY Tyla RSA KTM 50
2. POURCEL Christophe FRA KAWASAKI 38
3. CAIROLI Antonio ITA YAMAHA 36
4. DE REUVER Marc NED KTM 35
5. PHILIPPAERTS David ITA KTM 34
6. POURCEL Sébastien FRA KAWASAKI 32
7. GONCALVES Rui POR KTM 31
8. SWANEPOEL Gareth RSA KAWASAKI 27
9. LEOK Aigar EST YAMAHA 21
10. MACKENZIE Billy GBR YAMAHA 17
18. NUNN Carl GBR KTM 8
MX2 World Championship standings after 13 of 15 rounds
1. POURCEL C. FRA 496
2. CAIROLI Antonio ITA 468
3. PHILIPPAERTS D. ITA 427
4. RATTRAY Tyla RSA 402
5. DE REUVER Marc NED 373
6. NUNN Carl GBR 315
7. POURCEL S. FRA 291
8. MACKENZIE Billy GBR 281
9. SWANEPOEL Gareth RSA 278
10. GONCALVES Rui POR 267