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2005 WORLD MX

2005 WORLD MX: R10 of 17, July 3, 2005, Uddevalla, Sweden

• Grand Prix of Sweden
• Crowd: 21000; Temp: 23ºC

SCHEDULE:

• Practices: Saturday 9.30 am
• Qualifying: Saturday 2 - 5pm
• Race: Sunday
• MX2 races 12.05 and 3.02 pm
• MX1 races 1.05 pm and 4.05 pm

2005 RACE RESULT - MX1 SWEDEN

MX1 MOTO1

• 1 Coppins Joshua, Nzl, Honda, 40:13.675
• 2 Townley Ben, Nzl, Ktm, 40:14.111
• 3 Barragan Jonathan, Spa, Ktm, 40:46.799
• 4 Everts Stefan, Bel, Yamaha, 40:57.900
• 5 Ramon Steve, Bel, Ktm, 41:04.649
• 6 Leok Tanel, Est, Kawasaki, 41:11.943
• 7 De Dijcker Ken, Bel, Honda, 41:18.030
• 8 Noble James, Gbr, Honda, 41:20.139
• 9 Leuret Pascal, Fra, Honda, 41:22.137
• 10 Pyrhonen Antti , Fin, Tm, 41:23.605

MX1 MOTO 2

• 1 J. Coppins Honda NZL 40' 40.278
  2 J. Smets Suzuki BEL +7.246
  3 B. Townley KTM NZL +10.466
  4 S. Everts Yamaha BEL +11.312
  5 S. Ramon KTM BEL +19.794
  6 J. Noble Honda GBR +56.531
  7 P. Leuret Honda FRA +58.025
  8 D. Theybers Suzuki BEL +59.455
  9 Y. Atsuta Suzuki JPN +59.808
  10 N. Kornel Suzuki HUN +1' 11.320

MX2 MOTO 1

• 1 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA 41' 5.807
  2 A. McFarlane Yamaha AUS +7.149
  3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +12.697
  4 C. Melotte Yamaha BEL +17.897
  5 M. Maschio Yamaha FRA +20.268
  6 D. Guarneri Yamaha ITA +21.055
  7 C. Nunn KTM GBR +28.824
  8 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +39.843
  9 T. Church Kawasaki GBR +47.966
  10 G. Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA +50.064

MX2 MOTO 2

• 1 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA 39' 8.681
  2 A. McFarlane Yamaha AUS +2.963
  3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +20.184
  4 C. Nunn KTM GBR +25.323
  5 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +33.019
  6 A. Chiodi Yamaha ITA +39.467
  7 M. Nagl KTM GER +43.327
  8 W. Avis Honda RSA +52.102
  9 C. Melotte Yamaha BEL +1' 2.754
  10 R. Goncalves Yamaha POR +1' 6.555

COPPINS / HONDA MX1 REPORT

Coppins on the top step with a double victory in Sweden.

• In yet another perfect weekend for Kiwi Motocross, Josh Coppins took away the win in both MX1 races to make it a perfect double at the Swedish MX GP in Uddevalla. Coppins’ victory marks his first of the season as he closes in on the MX1 championship lead.
• As race one got underway, Coppins held a tight line into the first start corner and came out second behind fast starter Jonathan Barragan. He tried to get pass the Spaniard as fast as possible but was being blocked at every opportunity. A few laps later, Barragan went down handing the lead to Coppins with fellow countryman, Ben Townley, following suit. “Lizzard” put together a string of consistent laps and proceeded to pull a slight gap over Townley. With three laps to go, thousands of Swedish spectators were cheering from the overlooking rock face as Townley was slowly closing the gap on the CAS Honda. A spectacular race ensued with Coppins holding off every advance from his younger challenger. It was a race to the wire with Coppins withstanding the pressure as he deservedly took home his first GP win of the season.
• The CAS Honda rider rocketed out of the start in race two to grab the all important hole-shot. “Lizzard” succeeded in pulling a sizeable gap over second place Joel Smets and Kiwi mate, Townley. He looked totally in control and on his way to a magnificent victory when a small crash on the final lap almost cost him the GP. Coppins quickly got going and claimed what was rightfully his.
• Marking his first ever double GP victory Coppins said: “It’s great to be on top and I made the points I need to challenge for the championship. I’ve left it a little bit late but I’m going to keep working hard and keep pressure on Everts. He has had some problems and there are some holes in his game at the moment so I need to keep pushing on and try and crack him and try to push for the championship. The team has been working very hard on the bike and we have got it set up now that I can push very hard. My biggest improvement today was my first laps – I was riding good from the start and managed to carry that through – I’m looking forward to South Africa but now I’m going to enjoy the moment.”

KTM / TOWNLEY REPORT: MX1

Townley backs up Kiwi podium in Uddevalla.

• Almost thirty thousand spectators over the weekend witnessed a 1-2 Kiwi podium at the picturesque circuit of Uddevalla in Sweden. Having won his first ever GP in Sweden as a rookie 125cc rider, KTM star Ben Townley was eager to win on Scandinavian soil once however the Kiwi would miss out on his GP hat-trick but would stand proud in second next to fellow friend and racer Josh Coppins.
• Townley’s KTM 450 had a great jump in the first heat however the factory machine was pushed wide in the first turn by fellow Kiwi Josh Coppins. Townley and Coppins were both trailing Spaniard, Jonathan Barrgan until he washed out and lost the lead to the New Zealand duo. Townley was having trouble with traction and almost lost his front wheel a few times enabling Coppins to pull a slight gap. Townley did not give up though and as the clock started running out, he made a last minute effort to catch Coppins. The crowd were on their feet as the two Kiwi’s battled it out right to the finish line with Townley not being able to break his older friend and rival – he had to settle for second.
• Unfortunately for BT his work would be cut out for him right from the start. He was caught in the middle of the pack and passed the KTM pit tent in twelfth position on the opening lap. From there he moved up the rankings picking off positions lap after lap and by the halfway mark he was into third and chasing, Smets and Coppins. BT tried all he could to make an impression on the time deficit but in the end he had to settle for third and a safe second overall.
• “I had two consistent rides but the second start I pretty much blew it and it cost me the win. I was going really good out there and had to push really hard from the first lap onwards and that made me quite tired and I used a lot of energy – I was happy that Josh won. I had some trouble with the front tire in the first race so we made some changes and I think it worked out well. It’s amazing you know, there were three New Zealanders racing here today with Katherine Prumm in the Woman’s cup. New Zealand is such a small country and to have three people on the podium today is really, really amazing,” said a proud Townley.

YAMAHA MX1 REPORT: SWEDEN GP 2005

Everts takes podium despite bad starts

• World Champion Stefan Everts was able to climb the lowest step of the podium after passing Steve Ramon for fourth position on the last lap of the second moto at Uddevalla this afternoon. The Grand Prix of Sweden, the tenth round of the 2005 FIM MX1 World Championship, took place in front of 21,000 spectators and under warm and sunny conditions.
• Everts still enjoys a healthy lead in the Championship standings even though a comprehensive double by Josh Coppins (Honda) this afternoon sliced fourteen points away from his advantage. Ben Townley took his fourth consecutive podium with the runner-up spot. Jorgensen has only been able to post eight points in the last two GPs and has tumbled to tenth.
• Everts suffered a brace of his poorest starts this season and was deep in mid-pack when he rounded the first turn in both motos. During race1 he ended the opening lap in seventh and quickly pulled through to fourth by lap four, however he wasn't able to close down the gap to Jonathan Barragan (KTM) in third, who was having the best race of his young career so far. Brian Jorgensen had been running in fifth behind his team-mate until a bike stall dropped him to ninth, the YZ450FM stuttered again the following lap and he was relegated all the way to twentieth. From that standing the Dane could only improve by one position.
• Everts, who confessed that he wasn't a fan of the fast Uddevalla inclines, actually fell while in deep traffic negotiating the 'S' section after the opening turn in moto2. The Belgian produced an excellent performance on a circuit that did not lend itself to easy overtaking by pulling back from eighteenth on the first lap to dramatically push past Ramon with less than one circulation remaining. Brian Jorgensen completed a disappointing 'semi' home Grand Prix when he crashed twice in moto2. The second incident, a collision with Luigi Seguy, forced his retirement.
• The World Championships now enjoys a brief pause and with few national competitions occurring next weekend it is the first authentic break for the Grand Prix stars. Preparations will begin earlier than usual however as the eleventh round of seventeen will take place at Sun City in South Africa on July 16th-17th.
• Stefan Everts (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team) - third overall
  "I blew it with my starts today and that has been my problem this year. My riding has been good enough but I was tense in the first race and not relaxed. I crashed at the start of the second one but I was catching up and the speed was much better. Physically I felt very good. Josh is gaining a lot of points at the moment and this is not a good situation. I am having a difficult time but there always seems to be one of these every year and I am sure I will turn things around sooner or later and get back on top. I will use the week and half break to go riding and try and do a bit better in South Africa."
• Brian Jorgensen (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team) - 23rd overall
  "I would love to have answer for what is going wrong at the moment. This was a terrible weekend for me regarding everything. This is the closest to a home GP that I have and it was not how I wanted it to be. I'm not a guy who makes excuses but it did not go to plan today. We have been doing a lot of testing between the GPs to set-up the bike to my particular style of riding and we haven't been able to find a good path. I was maybe a little bit unlucky today but luck comes with confidence and good riding and these elements are not coming together for me at the moment. The engine stalled twice today and the first time I thought that maybe I braked a little too hard but then it cut out again and I lost positions. In the break we changed the carb and a few things and it was better for the second moto. I was not riding well and put myself into some bad situations, because I can start well but when you are deep in the pack it can be tricky and risky. I went down the first time and
  then unfortunately I collided with Seguy. The throttle was stuck and the handlebars were bent. Now I want to go to my home in Denmark, take some rest, re-set and find some strength to pick things up in South Africa."

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