Interview with Romain Febvre the new MXGP star…
After last weekend's German Grand Prix, 23-year-old Frenchman Romain Febvre of the Yamaha Yamalube Factory Racing team has achieved something solid. With three consecutive victories in the MXGP class and also the Red Plate with #461 on board, it is something phenomenal that will certainly go down in the FIM Motocross history books after ten of the eighteen races in this World Championship. Febvre has won four of the last eight series and, due to the forced absence of Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna rider Max Nagl in his home GP, he defeated HRC rider Gautier Paulin and the still painful Tony Cairoli to take the lead. in the standings with a nine-point lead over the unfortunate German.
Febvre is one of the “Rookies” in the MXGP after finishing third in the MX2 class last season and is one of the coolest and calmest people in the paddock. So I've hardly seen him in a bad mood or really pissed off? Not yet. Febvre has even single-handedly managed to become the new owner of the Red Plate…
How can you say that the red plate doesn't mean anything to you?! It is a new milestone for you… because you have never been in the lead of the World Championship in MX2
Yeah, it's definitely nice to have that, but it doesn't really mean anything to me. I won't gain anything for the time being by already having the red plate. It's good to have them… but there are still so many games to go and like this weekend we saw that anything can happen. Nagl, Cairoli and Desalle have already fallen off in recent weeks. Herlings has too. It can happen anywhere, when you are just training, cycling or in a competition. But this was certainly a positive weekend for me with this GP victory.
You must have thought when you heard the news of Nagl's injury on Saturday evening that Sunday could be an interesting occasion...
I don't think about that much. It is of course nice to be at the top of the championship now, but if we were now towards the end of the championship it would have been much more interesting. I'm just going to try to win series and matches, that's the first goal and then we'll see where we end up and whether there is more to it.
You have now won on different types of tracks, such as the hilly and demanding one in France, the mud in Italy and now on a fast hard track. You certainly couldn't afford to make a mistake or you would drop out. Are you happy to know that you can compete at the front with this Yamaha on different surfaces?
Yes, I know the speed is there. My pace has been very good for the past three or four races and I know that with a good start I can be at the front. I did make a few mistakes in the first series here. Fortunately it ended well, because a crash would have cost me a few places. I know I have to be consistent and not take too many risks.
People might think OK, you won your home GP and you might have had some luck in the mud, they would think, but now you have to have a feeling that you can win anywhere...
That's for sure. In the first heat I already had the lead after three laps. So it was easier than in the second heat where Bobby (Evgeny Bobreshev) already crashed in the first corner and it was just like I hit him too. I think I was around tenth place. I felt the speed was good and made some good passages. I immediately wanted to push on towards Paulin, but a stone hit the glasses and the glass became loose and I had some problems with dust particles in my eyes. I could feel the wind hitting my glasses. So I decided to slow down a bit in the last three laps because it was very difficult to continue like this. I also knew that second place was enough to win the GP. It was nice to win on this circuit with its many ruts and bumps, especially the jumps were nice. They had sprayed a little too much in the first series and I spoke to the FIM between series to ask if they did not want to spray too much for our second series. It was slippery in places and we had to take some risks that were not necessary. I think we had some crashes this weekend because of the circuit and not because of the drivers themselves. The second series was a lot better without spraying. I also think the series was better because the pacing was a bit better and we got to see more fights.
France was special for you, Italy was special for Yamaha with their 60th anniversary and with this one in Germany, do you now feel like you are a rising star? You are now on the same page as Cairoli, Desalle, Nagl and Paulin…
Yes! The Rookie hey... I don't know what to say about that... it's fun for myself, the team and Yamaha. I think we can definitely see that they did a good job over the winter. We will therefore continue to work further. I also don't expect something new every GP. I just keep riding as I am and try not to take too many risks.
Apparently you're going to Assen next week for the MotoGP. It will be a fun experience for you to go number one in the MXGP…
It's certainly a special feeling... and Yamaha is at the top of the championship there too! I know the MotoGP riders also follow motocross, so it will be nice to get some satisfaction from those guys. It will be my first time visiting MotoGP and I'm really looking forward to it.
But the work continues and you still have a two-day test before you go to Assen. Why? It looks like you and the YZ450FM have already done a nice job...
That's true. It's not that we win or lose and finish fifth that we stop improving the bike. The team is already looking towards next year and they know we can still improve. They always have some good ideas. Sometimes we find a small improvement. We can't always make progress, but we still try to move in the right direction. I think I can also improve myself a bit in the coming matches and towards next season. I have not yet reached my limit with the bike, so we will continue to work.
Finally, you have signed a new contract with Yamaha for 2016 and '17. If you win this thing like this, is there any chance there will be a renegotiation?
Haha… I believe so.
Original: Adam Wheeler – ontrackoffroad.com – Dutch Version: @Kris…
Photo: Yamaha
Also to read
Andrea Bonacorsi on his move to MXGP: “That was the most difficult decision of my life”
Reigning EMX250 Champion, Andrea Bonacorsi, will move to the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team for the remainder of the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship season, replacing…Entry lists MXGP of Portugal
The Motocross World Championship will continue next weekend with the fifth race on the MXGP calendar. In Agueda, Portugal, in addition to MXGP and MX2, the boys from EMX250 and EMX125 will also compete…Tom Vialle is chasing the US title
There is one race left in the US East Coast Supercross Championship. It will take place in two weeks in Salt Lake City, the city that has become accustomed to…Perfect weekend for Maxi Nagl
The second race of the ADAC MX Masters was dominated by Maxi Nagl. The KMP Honda rider managed to triumph in three heats on the Dreetz circuit. Second place is…
Your reactions