MXGP Opener To Max Nagl; Villopoto Has a Bad Night in Qatar

Germany’s Max Nagl gives Husqvarna a clean sweep in the MXGP class while Ryan Villopoto finishes seventh overall.

It may have been one of the most anticipated FIM Motocross World Championship openers in years, and Saturday’s GP of Qatar ended on an extremely high note for Germany’s Max Nagl and the Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing team.

Nagl scored a brilliant 1-1 sweep of the MXGP class at the Losail MX Track in Doha, Qatar, giving the revitalized Husqvarna brand the boost that it has dreamed of on the world motocross stage. He pulled the holeshot in the first MXGP moto and led every lap mistake-free to earn the moto win. Moto two was all but a carbon copy of the first for Nagl. After another great start, he quickly opened up a lead and stayed out of trouble to dominate the event and take an early lead in the 2015 MXGP championship standings.

“What can I say?” Nagl commented afterward. “This is the kind of perfect championship start everyone dreams of. It’s amazing that my season has started in this way. I’m so, so happy. Everyone in the team has worked so hard for this. We have to remember that this is only the first GP and that there are a lot of races ahead of us in the championship, but it’s a great start. I had two perfect races, but they were not easy. The track was really rough, especially in the second moto. You had to be completely focused all the time, it was so easy to make a mistake. Towards the end of the second race I started to get a little worried, because the track was really rough. My bike and suspension was incredible, and I know that helped me so much. Two wins is a great start for me and the team. Now we will keep working and soon begin our preparations for next weekend’s GP.”

Nagl will face tough company, as Belgian’s Clement Desalle looked great on his Rockstar Energy Suzuki as he passed and pulled away from reigning World MXGP Champion Antonio Cairoli of Italy and Gautier Paulin of France to go 2-2 for second overall.

“I am really happy with my riding at the moment,” Desalle said. “I feel good in my body and also on the bike.”

Paulin, who wore a blinding set of Fox riding gear, looked spectacular on his Team HRC Honda factory CRF450R. Paulin battled with Cairoli for the final podium spot on the weekend, emerging with the tiebreaker over the reigning World Champion to claim the sport via 4-3 moto scores.

“I’m really happy to start the season like this,” Paulin said. “It is always good to be on the box, actually on the top, but it is still a long season, so it is good to start with a third.”

But it was a less-than-spectacular night for Monster Energy Kawasaki’s American hero, Ryan Villpoto. Rather than thrill fans with a dominant run, the reigning AMA Supercross Champion (who vacated that title in order to contest the World Motocross Championship in what will be his final year of racing) suffered a crash in the first moto and generally struggled in the Qatari sand en route to 9-8 finishes for seventh overall.

“It was a tough weekend,” Villopoto said. But we’ll get there.”

In the MX2 class, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings got right back into rhythm now that he is well-healed from the femur injury that derailed what seemed like a certain championship title defense in the class last year. With only two weeks of testing time on his bike after almost six months of recuperation, Herlings may have even surprised himself with his awesome 1-1 moto performances.

“It was pretty amazing,” Herlings said. “We have had a tough time both mentally and physically because of the injury. I didn’t expect to win here, and this was something really special. I’ll remember it for a long time. Now I hope to keep up this rhythm and if I can put the bike on the podium again next week I am already happy.”

Herlings overcame a tough battle with early race leader Dylan Ferrandis, passing the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider on lap 14 to take the first-moto win. In the second moto, Herlings was out front by two seconds after three laps and was never challenged. Standing Construct Yamaha Yamalube’s Julien Lieber of Belgium had a strong second-place run in the second moto, and that was good enough to edge Ferrandis for second place overall after Ferrandis slipped to fifth in the second moto. American rider Thomas Covington finished a noteworthy 10th overall.

FIM Motocross World Championship
Losail Motocross Track
Doha, Qatar
Results: February 28, 2015 (Round 1 of 18)

MXGP Moto 1
1. Max Nagl-Hus
2. Clement Desalle-Suz
3. Antonio Cairoli-KTM
4. Gautier Paulin-Hon
5. Jeremy Van Horebeek-Yam
6. Romain Febvre-Yam
7. Shaun Simpson-KTM
8. Evgeny Bobryshev-Hon
9. Ryan Villopoto-Kawasaki
10. David Philippaerts-Yam

MXGP Moto 2
1. Max Nagl-Hus
2. Clement Desalle-Suz
3. Gautier Paulin-Hon
4. Antonio Cairoli-KTM
5. Jeremy Van Horebeek-Yam
6. Kevin Strijbos-Suz
7. Romain Febvre-Yam
8. Ryan Villopoto-Kaw
9. Evgeny Bobryshev-Hon
10. Glenn Coldenhoff-Suz

MXGP Overall
1. Max-50 points
2. Clement Desalle-44
3. Gautier Paulin-38
4. Antonio Cairoli-38
5. Jeremy Van Horebeek-32
6. Romain Febvre-29
7. Ryan Villopoto-25
8. Evgeny Bobryshev-25
9. Kevin Strijbos-24
10. Shaun Simpson-21

MX2 Race 1
1. Jeffrey Herlings-KTM
2. Dylan Ferrandis-Kaw
3. Julien Lieber-Yam
4. Tim Gajser-Hon
5. Jeremy Seewer-Suz
6. Jordi Tixier-Kaw
7. Max Anstie-Kaw
8. Valentin Guillod-Yam
9. Pauls Jonass-KTM
10. Aleksandr Tonkov-Hus

MX2 Race 2
1. Jeffrey Herlings-KTM
2. Julien Lieber-Yam
3. Aleksandr Tonkov-Hus
4. Pauls Jonass-KTM
5. Dylan Ferrandis-Kaw
6. Valentin Guillod-Yam
7. Tim Gajser-Hon
8. Jeremy Seewer-Suz
9. Jordi Tixier-Kaw
10. Thomas Covington-Kaw

MX2 Overall
1. Jeffrey Herlings-50 points
2. Julien Lieber-42
3. Dylan Ferrandis-38
4. Tim Gajser-32
5. Aleksandr Tonkov-31
6. Pauls Jonass-30
7. Jeremy Seewer-29
8. Valentin Guillod-28
9. Jordi Tixier-27
10. Thomas Covington-21