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2005 WORLD MX

2005 WORLD MX: R7 of 17, June 5, 2005 - Matchams Park, UK

• Grand Prix of Great Britain
• Matchams Park
• Crowd: 27000; Temp: 16ºC

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 GREAT BRITAIN

MX1 MOTO1

• 1 S. Everts Yamaha BEL 41' 10.607
  2 S. Ramon KTM BEL +30.834
  3 B. Townley KTM NZL +1' 5.531
  4 J. Coppins Honda NZL +1' 8.034
  5 K. De Dijcker Honda BEL +1' 19.421
  6 D. Theybers Suzuki BEL +1' 22.743
  7 J. Smets Suzuki BEL +1' 26.038
  8 A. Pyrhonen TM FIN +1' 29.358
  9 M. Van Daele Honda BEL +1' 57.659
  10 P. Cooper Honda GBR +2' 7.821
  11 J. Barragan KTM ESP
  12 J. Garcia Vico Honda ESP
  13 M. Pichon Honda FRA
  14 P. Leuret Honda FRA
  15 M. Hucklebridge Honda GBR

MX1 MOTO 2

• 1 S. Everts Yamaha BEL 39' 53.543
  2 J. Coppins Honda NZL +33.129
  3 J. Smets Suzuki BEL +43.937
  4 J. Barragan KTM ESP +56.873
  5 B. Townley KTM NZL +1' 6.173
  6 M. Van Daele Honda BEL +1' 9.299
  7 T. Leok Kawasaki EST +1' 17.665
  8 M. Pichon Honda FRA +1' 22.234
  9 S. Ramon KTM BEL +1' 28.515
  10 D. Theybers Suzuki BEL +1' 43.260
  11 K. De Dijcker Honda BEL
  12 P. Leuret Honda FRA +
  13 Y. Atsuta Suzuki JPN
  14 J. Noble Honda GBR
  15 J. Garcia Vico Honda ESP

MX2 MOTO 1

• 1 C. Nunn KTM GBR 41' 0.681
  2 A. McFarlane Yamaha AUS +1.404
  3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +18.459
  4 A. Chiodi Yamaha ITA +25.391
  5 S. Sword Kawasaki GBR +41.504
  6 T. Church Kawasaki GBR +49.127
  7 W. Avis Honda RSA +1' 1.589
  8 N. Aubin Yamaha FRA +1' 6.737
  9 M. Maschio Yamaha FRA +1' 11.547
  10 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +1' 15.196
  11 M. Bonini Honda ITA
  12 M. Seistola Honda FIN
  13 R. Goncalves Yamaha POR
  14 J. Dougan Honda GBR
  15 W. Smith Honda GBR

MX2 MOTO 2

• 1 A. McFarlane Yamaha AUS 40' 53.200
  2 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +3.358
  3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +15.369
  4 B. MacKenzie Yamaha GBR +22.905
  5 P. Caps Honda BEL +38.771
  6 A. Leok KTM EST +42.718
  7 R. Goncalves Yamaha POR +45.352
  8 S. Sword Kawasaki GBR +1' 8.348
  9 D. Guarneri Yamaha ITA +1' 13.030
  10 E. Eggens Honda NED +1' 14.529
  11 M. Seistola Honda FIN
  12 W. Avis Honda RSA
  13 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA
  14 C. Nunn KTM GBR
  15 M. Nagl KTM GER

YAMAHA REPORT:

MX1 : Everts clinches first double of the season

• Round: 7 - Grand Prix of Great Britain
  
  Reigning World Champion Stefan Everts dominated the seventh round of the FIM MX1 World Championships this afternoon at Matchams Park for the British Grand Prix. The series leader and eight times number one completed his first double moto haul since the GP of France last June signifying his fifth victory of the season and the 84th career success.
• In front of a noisy and passionate gathering of 27,000 fans at a cold, breezy and wet Matchams Park, Everts grabbed the lead of both MX1 motos on the first laps and fronted the pack from start to finish with little hindrance. The Belgian was an instant master of the new layout that was physically demanding and very technical, becoming increasingly rougher as the day wore on. The sandy terrain saw many riders making mistakes and the energy-sapping surface was too much for Everts' main Championship rival Mickael Pichon(Honda) who could only take tenth overall and lost twenty-nine points to his Yamaha peer.
• Brian Jorgensen was ruled out of action due to a crash during practice and qualification on Saturday that saw the Dane briefly knocked out and needing a hospital visit. He was advised to miss the Grand Prix in an incident similar to his prang at the GP of Portugal.
• Stefan Everts(Yamaha L&M Motocross Team) - Overall winner
  "Today was physically very hard even if I had a fairly easy race. I was riding relaxed and could pull away when I wanted. I had two good starts and took the holeshot when Ben Townley went down in front of me. In the second moto I had a nice little race with Josh coming into the second turn but the good starts meant that I could control the races and find the best lines on the track. I have been looking for this double win for a long time and I am really happy with that. I have to keep going and try not to make many mistakes like in Teutschethal; as long as I am on the podium consistently then this is good enough."
• Brian Jorgensen (Yamaha L&M Motocross Team)
  "The crash was not as bad as Portugal where I lost seven hours of my life and this time it was only one minute! We are progressing! I don't know why these things keep happening to me. This week we completely changed the bike and finally things became easier. Unfortunately I could not show it this weekend. I did many laps in the first training and set some fast times but the accident was caused by hitting a rock or something on the track and I went over the handlebars and hit my head. Most of the track is sandy but at that spot it was very hard. I wanted to ride and there was nothing wrong. The track came really easy to me because of the different set-up on the bike but they would not let me out there due to the fact I was unconscious and these things need time to correct. I had to respect what they said but it was a sad situation for myself and the team."

COPPINS / HONDA REPORT: MX1

Coppins races to second in British GP.

• Over thirty thousand, motocross mad, spectators turned out to witness a world class field at the seventh round of the MX1 GP series. Josh Coppins and his English based CAS Honda team were please to come away with second overall in Matchams Park. More importantly, the 4-2 result has moved the Kiwi racer into 3rd in the points standings.
• Coppins managed to avoid a first turn pile up in race one and was placed in fifth position on lap two. He then had to deal with fellow countryman, Ben Townley, who was involved in the first turn pileup and had blazed through the pack. Coppins and Townley fans were cheering over the fence as all eyes were focussed on the two Kiwi’s. For five consecutive laps, there was no love lost between the two friends as they raced around the demanding Matchams circuit. Coppins finally had to succumb to his younger house-mate however he managed to latch on as the duo moved into third and fourth respectively. By the time the chequered flag was waved, the CAS Honda had to be content with fourth.
• A much better start this time saw Coppins battling with Stefan Everts for the lead. Another Belgian in the form of Joel Smets managed to sneak past into second but a few laps later he would hit the dirt. In turn Coppins’ second place was short-lived when another Coppins-Townley re-match ensued with Townley again getting the better of his mate. “Lizzard” was determined not to let Townley get away this time so he grit his teeth and chased the orange bike with determination. With five laps to go, Townley went down and Coppins was certain of second place and second overall for the British GP.
• “I wasn’t happy with my first race. I lost my goggles on lap four and got a lot of sand and mud in my eyes. I was a bit disappointed as I thought I could produce a better race but I suppose it is a bit dangerous when you can’t see anything. The second race was much better and the fans were just awesome. I have a really good following here and it was nice to get a good result in front of my fans. I have past Joel in the championship and have moved closer to Pichon. Racing with Ben was also really good. I tried to pretend it was just like training so I followed his lines and tried to relax which really helped. The organisers worked hard to make a great track and as you could see from the spectators today, motocross in the UK is really strong,” said a content Coppins.

KTM / TOWNLEY REPORT: MX1

Townley fights for podium at British GP.

• British MX fans were treated to a great days racing at the magnificently prepared Matchams Park circuit. KTM star, Ben Townley, stole the hearts of the partisan crowd with an exciting come back race in race one and a thrilling second heat battle with fellow countryman Josh Coppins.
• Townley’s awesome Saturday pole position gave the kiwi first pick of the start line for the first heat. As the gate dropped, Townley and Everts were rubbing elbows going down the start straight with the KTM breaking later and the hole-shot seemed in the bag – Unfortunately for Townley, Mickael Pichon could not avoid BT and a first turn pile up ensued. Townley was a crash victim and quickly picked up his 450cc machine and gave chase to the pack. In an amazing show of speed, he picked off riders left right and centre and was up to tenth by the second lap! Townley continued his fight through the pack and before long he was setting up Joshua Coppins to move into third position. The two house-mates battled for a while before Townley made his final move and succeeded in pulling a slight gap over Coppins. With one lap to go, he was safely in third and content to settle for an amazing come back ride from last position.
• Stefan Everts was certain not to give his younger challenger any room to move on the inside of the start gate in race two and after the two jumped, the Belgian moved straight across, almost sending Townley into the ropes. Once again, Townley had some work to do as he was boxed in around tenth place. In no time at all, the Kiwi had disposed of a bunch of riders and was up to third and pressurising Coppins. BT managed to pass Coppins, which went easier than in the first heat however Coppins was not so eager to let his compatriot get away. The two put on exciting two way battle lap after lap however it was Townley who made a small error in a sandy turn and went down. He managed to fight back to fifth which was enough to give him third overall for the day.
• Said Townley, “The whole track was really demanding today with the layout up and down hills and soft ground made it really tough and a lot of holes formed which made it even more difficult. I found it tough today. I recovered well in the first race but used a lot of energy as well coming back to third place. Going into the second race I knew it was going to be tough so I tried to ride consistent. Racing with Josh today was pretty cool. He is clean to race with and it’s great for the television coverage in New Zealand and the people back home. I thought Isle of Wight was good but this GP has been even better. There was a big crowd here all weekend and they were really into the racing. It was a good atmosphere and the track was prepared really well. I think it was a great Grand Prix.”

MX2 REPORT

McFarlane seals third win of the season

• Ricci Racing rider Andrew McFarlane took his third victory of the season by ruling the MX2 British Grand Prix at Matchams Park this afternoon, the seventh round of seventeen in the FIM Motocross World Championships. The Australian now leads the points table for the first time in his career as title rivals Antonio Cairoli, Alessio Chiodi and Stephen Sword experienced 'off-days'.
• McFarlane was unable to overtake a resurgent Carl Nunn in the opening race of the GP schedule but managed to overhaul David Philippaerts (KTM) on lap thirteen of nineteen and celebrated his second moto triumph of the year. He now holds the 'red number plate' by seven points from Cairoli. His team-mate and former World Champion Alessio Chiodi was fourth in the first moto but a big crash, from which he emerged unharmed, enforced a second moto DNF; a trend which seemed to curse his fellow Yamaha riders.
• Local hope and Japanese Grand Prix winner Billy Mackenzie had some rear brake trouble in the first race while holding third place that led to a crash and eventual DNF. The Scot passed Patrick Caps (Honda) in the second heat to earn fourth position.
• Cairoli clashed mid-air negotiating a large double with fellow Italian Davide Guarneri on the sixth lap of the first moto which saw both riders go to ground. The accident caused the De Carli Racing representative to pick up his second DNF of the season and also sustain some damage to the scaphoid bone in his right wrist. The injury limited his effectiveness in the second race where he could only take thirteenth after another spill. The teenager will undergo a medical check tomorrow morning to learn the extent of the damage.
• Cédric Melotte was unable to complete the second moto after he misjudged a jump and landed on the flat; instantly hurting his already injured wrist and forcing a retirement. He could only take two points for nineteenth earlier in the day after a first lap crash. David Philippaerts (KTM) and Christophe Pourcel (Kawasaki) joined McFarlane on the podium, both riders sampling their debut champagne celebrations.
• Castigilione del Lago, located in the scenic region of Umbria, is the scene of the Grand Prix of Italy next week and the eighth round of a close MX2 series.
• Andrew McFarlane (Ricci Racing) - First overall: "This is the first time that I have led the Championship since I came to Europe and everything went really well today. From the bike set-up, to the choice I made for the tyres combined with two good starts. The track was very difficult and many riders paid the penalty of a tough circuit. In the first race Carl rode really well and when I caught him he was able to pull away a little bit more so credit to him. He made a mistake in the second moto which made things easier for me. With the rain, sand and roost I wanted to save my roll-off so I tried to keep my distance from Carl and wait for the right time to pass. I didn't manage it in time but second was good for the points and the Championship. The season feels long already but I want to take each race at a time because as we saw with Antonio and Cedric anything can happen in motocross racing."