DThe first leg has been taken. The Motocross World Championship kicked off in Argentina, in Bariloche. There were winners, there were those who were practically stuck between the cracks. And there were those who were disappointed. Here are a few quotes from the weekend…
Jago Geerts – Beta"It was a disastrous weekend for me in Argentina. I worked hard on this track on Saturday. Today I felt a bit better. On the first lap, I hit a rock after a jump. This caused me to fall badly and gave me chest pain. Fortunately, without any serious consequences."
Lucas Coenen – KTM"Saturday went pretty well. In the evening, I started having trouble with my eye. On Sunday, my vision wasn't great. Sometimes it felt like I was racing blind! I was riding safely to avoid making mistakes. We'll fix this for Spain."
Andrea Adamo – KTM"A lot of positives this weekend. I was happy with the qualifying race, especially with the speed at the beginning of the first moto. After that, my pace dropped off a bit. The second moto was better. The speed is there, the bike is great, and the team is working well."
Tim Gajser -Yamaha"We have to focus on the positives. Like the second moto. Things got better every session this weekend. That's something we can build on. Of course, I want to be fighting at the front, but that's still to come. I was battling with the course all weekend here. This is a very strange track, with little grip. We now have two weeks until the next Grand Prix. We have to keep working hard to be ready for Spain."
Maxime Renaux –Yamaha"Not a great start to the season. I felt uncomfortable on this circuit all weekend. I was constantly riding tensely. One positive: despite that bad feeling, I still managed to score some World Championship points. Not insignificant in a very long season. No matter how you look, you always have to look at the bigger picture. So, my focus is now on the next GP, in Spain."
Romain Febvre – Kawasaki: We made some changes to the bike on Saturday. The starts were much better. I even got the holeshot in the second moto before the red flag. At the restart, I was right behind Tom and had a better flow. It's always easier when you're at the front and can choose your own lines. I was in a good position, but I hadn't seen that Jeffrey had also passed Tom. I thought I had a huge lead. When Jeffrey closed in with ten minutes to go, I did one fast lap to maintain the gap. Then the roll-offs on my goggles broke. I knew it would be difficult with him on my wheel. My goal was the podium, and I achieved it; now I have someone to chase, and the difference is only two points.
Paul Jonass – Kawasaki: I had good speed all weekend – my best since joining Kawasaki last year. We've worked hard this winter, and it seems to be paying off. I was running fourth when the red flag ended the race. On the restart, I crashed into another rider. I'm happy with my riding, but naturally disappointed with the result. We'll keep working for better results.
Calvin Flanders – Ducati: The first GP is over. These aren't the results I wanted. My goal was the top seven. Realistically, I could have finished between fourth and seventh. I showed that today with my speed. In fact, I could easily have finished in the top five. I just missed the start and struggled to overtake in the first moto. In the second moto, I had a big crash at the first start. Luckily, there was a red flag, and I was able to restart. My right leg was really bothering me, but I was able to finish the race. We'll take the points and move on.
Brent Vandoninck – Fantic"A solid start to the season. Nothing spectacular, but two solid races with good points and, above all, no crashes. It was a weekend with many drivers experiencing incidents. I'm satisfied, because we definitely have something to build on. I always need a few races to find my rhythm. We'll keep working and improving from race to race."
Alberto Forato – Fantic: It was a pretty unlucky weekend. But I'm healthy, and that's a big plus. I felt good on Saturday, until I got something in my left eye during the qualifying race and could barely see anything. The races on Sunday were also chaotic. That's not how I wanted to start my season, but sometimes that's how it goes. Now we have to focus on the next race.
Mattia Guadagnini – KTM Van Venrooij: The speed and rhythm of the race were good, especially in the qualifying heat on Saturday. That went really well, and I finished eighth. I had a few crashes in the two motos. That affected the result, but the feeling was positive. With a good start and by staying out of trouble, we can definitely have strong races. It was only the first race of the season, so I'm looking forward to the rest of the year with confidence.
Oriol Oliver – Gabriel SS24 KTM"The first round of the MXGP is over. I'm not happy with the results. Still, I can take some positives from it. On Saturday, I had a three-place penalty, but P14 wasn't too bad of a starting position. On Sunday, I couldn't get the best starts. In the first moto, I hit another rider and broke my gear lever. I had to continue in third gear. That allowed me to come back to P14, while closing on the guys in front of me. The second moto simply wasn't good enough. A crash on the second lap didn't make things any easier. That's how I finished 16th. Now I'm looking forward to a good week of training and I'm going to enjoy the first round of the British Championship this Sunday in Hawkstone."
Jeffrey Herlings – Honda"Ending my first outing for Honda HRC PETRONAS with a double victory (1-1) is fantastic. A big thank you to everyone in the team who worked so hard over the past few months to make this possible. It wasn't easy. In the first moto, I suffered a bit from arm pump after taking the holeshot. Afterward, I studied Tom's lines and was able to pass him just before the end. The second moto was a bit chaotic because of the restart, but I felt I had my energy levels under control. I was able to close the gap and struck again at the end of the race. Taking the red plate with a 1-1 victory is pretty much the best-case scenario for today, so I hope to keep this up."
Tom Vialle – Honda"It feels really good to be on the podium here. I didn't really know what to expect beforehand. There are a lot of good riders competing in the GPs. Saturday was already good, of course, and I felt comfortable when I won the qualifying race. Today I felt good again. It was nice to lead for a bit of the race before Jeffrey passed me. My intensity was pretty high in the first few laps, but unfortunately I made a few mistakes later on. Overall, though, I'm very happy with my first weekend with Honda HRC PETRONAS."
Rubén Fernández – Honda"I thought the second moto went a lot better than the first. It was a shame the red flag came out, because I was in second place before we had to re-grid. Still, my riding felt good, and it's nice to finish on a positive note. I think I showed my speed, but I feel there's more to come. Now we're going to Spain; I'm really looking forward to that because it's a home GP for me."
