Febvre on pole for German MXGP, Coenen third

RGrandma Febvre emerged as the winner of the MXGP qualifying race in Teutschenthal on Saturday. The Kawasaki rider grabbed the holeshot in a hectic start and held off Tim Gajser by more than a second until the finish. Lucas Coenen will line up third on the starting gate.

The start was immediately the most turbulent moment of the race. There was some fierce battling, including contact between Coenen, Jeffrey Herlings, and Gajser. Febvre emerged victorious and took the lead, with Gajser, Coenen, and Herlings close behind. That order—typical of Teutschenthal—would remain until the checkered flag fell.

Gajser stayed right on Febvre's exhaust for the entire race, looking for an opening, but the Frenchman didn't budge. Still a strong performance from the Slovenian powerhouse, as his participation this weekend had long been uncertain due to a painful knee sustained in the French GP. A collision with a backmarker in the closing stages later cost the Yamaha factory rider valuable time in his hunt for victory. Behind him, Herlings fought his way to P4 behind World Championship leader Lucas Coenen.

Andrea Adamo passed Pauls Jonass on the outside line and rode on to fifth place. Kay de Wolf was on course for sixth, but a late mistake cost him dearly. The former MX2 world champion crashed and dropped to seventh, allowing Ruben Fernandez to capitalize and finish sixth. Calvin Vlaanderen steered his Ducati to eleventh place, and wildcard rider Roan Van de Moosdijk—timed the best wildcard in timed practice—finished sixteenth.

Former teammates Jago Geerts and Rick Elzinga qualified 18th and 20th, respectively. For world champion Febvre, it was his first qualifying victory of the season.

MXGP Qualifying Race GP Germany

1. Romain Febvre (FRA, Kawasaki), 25:27.569; 2. Tim Gajser (SLO, Yamaha), +0:01.192; 3. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:02.238; 4. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, Honda), +0:04.011; 5. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:28.641; 6. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Honda), +0:31.113; 7. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:36.153; 8. Pauls Jonass (LAT, Kawasaki), +0:38.076; 9. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, Ducati), +0:43.008; 10. Alberto Forato (ITA, Fantic), +0:43.848; 11. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Ducati), +0:46.007; 12. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, Honda), +0:47.376; 13. Brent Van doninck (BEL, Fantic), +0:48.429; 14. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +0:51.037; 15. Jan Pancar (SLO, KTM), +0:57.030; 16. Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, KTM), +1:01.904; 17. Tom Koch (GER, KTM), +1:04.332; 18. Jago Geerts (BEL, Beta), +1:07.382; 19. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +1:13.594; 20. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), +1:16.159; 21. Ben Watson (GBR, Triumph), +1:19.335; 22. Kevin Brumann (SUI, Husqvarna), +1:34.034; 23. Cato Nickel (GER, Honda), +1:35.689; 24. Jorgen-Matthias Talviku (EST, Yamaha), +1:36.693; 25. Noah Ludwig (GER, KTM), +1:37.881; 26. Nico Koch (GER, KTM), +1:47.721; 27. William Voxen Kleemann (DEN, KTM), +1:51.018; 28. Peter Koenig (GER, KTM), -1 lap(s); 29. Jakub Teresak (CZE, KTM), -1 lap(s); 30. Nico Greutmann (SUI, Honda), -1 lap(s); 31. Mark Scheu (GER, Husqvarna), -1 lap(s); 32. Max Thunecke (GER, Suzuki), -1 lap(s); 33. Federico Tuani (ITA, Honda), -1 lap(s); 34. Romain Pape (FRA, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 35. Mike Gwerder (SUI, KTM), -1 lap(s); 36. Albin Gerhardsson (SWE, Yamaha), -1 lap(s); 37. Filip Olsson (SWE, Honda), -1 lap(s); 38. Maximilian Spies (GER, KTM), -8 lap(s); 39. Tom Vialle (FRA, Honda), -12 lap(s); 40. Brian Hsu (GER, Honda), -13 lap(s);

MXGP WK stand

1. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), 294 points; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, HON), 291 p.; 3. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 241 p.; 4. Tim Gajser (SLO, YAM), 232 pp.; 5. Tom Vialle (FRA, HON), 219 p.; 6. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 218 p.; 7. Kay de Wolf (DOWN, HOUSE), 191 p.; 8. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 182 p.; 9. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 177 p.; 10. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, DUC), 126 p.; 11. Pauls Jonass (LAT, KAW), 118 p.; 12. Alberto Forato (ITA, FAN), 115 p.; 13. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), 89 p.; 14. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, HON), 85 p.; 15. Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, KTM), 69 p.; 16. Brent Van doninck (BEL, FAN), 55 p.; 17. Jan Pancar (SLO, KTM), 49 p.; 18. Ben Watson (GBR, TRI), 45 p.; 19. Jago Geerts (BEL, BET), 41 p.; 20. Thibault Benistant (FRA, HON), 40 p.; 21. Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, KTM), 39 p.; 22. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, DUC), 34 p.; 23. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, DUC), 30 p.; 24. Tom Koch (GER, KTM), 8 p.; 25. Enzo Lopes (BRA, HON), 7 p.; 26. Adam Sterry (GBR, KTM), 7 p.; 27. Jorgen-Matthias Talviku (EST, YAM), 5 p.; 28. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 5 p.; 29. Joaquin Poli (ARG, KAW), 5 p.; 30. Noah Ludwig (GER, KTM), 4 p.; 31. Maximilian Spies (GER, KTM), 4 p.; 32. Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 3 p.; 33. Brian Hsu (GER, HON), 3 p.; 34. Lars van Berkel (NED, FAN), 3 p.; 35. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, YAM), 2 p.; 36. Bogdan Krajewski (FRA, YAM), 1 p.;

Photos: Pascal Haudiquert