PR: Damon Graulus immediately at cruising speed
The international race of Lacapelle-Marival was for many participants a final dress rehearsal for the first MXGP in Qatar. For Damon Graulus it was his first race in a long time. Damon had to get to work straight away in an exceptionally strong field.
Just a few days earlier, the 22-year-old Belgian had been introduced to the 2017 Honda CRF450R. This made Lacapelle the perfect trial by fire to put the new engine through its paces in competition conditions. The fact that Graulus recorded good chronos in the morning without blinking says a lot about his hard work last winter and about the potential of the 2017 Honda CRF450R. With a standard engine he placed 6th in the free practice. In the qualifying training, Damon finished 7th ahead of Paulin, Tonus, Simpson, Nagl, Boog and Aubin.
The 24MX Honda started fourth in the first moto. In the first lap he had to let Tonus pass, but Graulus quickly kept up with the pace of the leading group. There were sporadically strong gusts of wind all day long. On a big double jump, Damon was surprised by the wind. Motorcycle and rider were unceremoniously blown off the track. Graulus fell with a hard blow and hurt his head.
In the second series Damon was again well away. Due to an aggressive maneuver by Aranda, the 24MX Honda rider lost a lot of ground, but it was also clear that he was not going as smoothly as earlier in the day. Ultimately, the former French MX2 champion finished 12th.
Damon Graulus: “I have mixed feelings about this match. In terms of speed it was good, surprisingly good actually! Of course I knew that my own shape was fine, but I didn't expect to be able to compete with the top riders like that with a standard bike. Those surprising mistral winds played tricks on more riders. To be honest, I don't know if I could have handled it differently. Shaun Simpson, who was sitting behind me, watched as I was blown literally yards aside. Immediately after the crash I lost track for a moment. I thought I had recovered enough to start the second moto but that turned out to be an unfortunate decision. In terms of driving it was completely smooth. With a few days of rest I should be back to normal soon. In any case, I am looking forward to continuing to work with the new engine.”
INTERS MX1 SERIES 1
1. Clément Desalle, 2. Jordi Tixier, 3. Gautier Paulin, 4. Kevin Strijbos, 5. Arminas Jasikonis, 6. Arnaud Tonus, 7. Max Anstie, 8. Shaun Simpson, 9. Max Nagl, 10. Gert Krestinov, 11. Xavier Boog, 12. Maxime Desprey, 13. Nicolas Aubin, 14. Kevin Bonnesset, 15. Yentel Martens, 16. Jéremy Delincé, 17. Andy Baumgartner, 18. Kevin Fors, 19. Alain Schäfer, 20. Gautier Laurens, DNF Damon Graulus (24MX Honda)
INTERS MX1 SERIES 2
1. Arminas Jasikonis, 2. Jordi Tixier, 3. Clément Desalle, 4. Kevin Strijbos, 5. Arnaud Tonus, 6. Shaun Simpson, 7. Gautier Paulin, 8. Greg Aranda, 9. Gert Krestinov, 10. Maxime Desprey, 11. Nicolas Aubin, 12. Damon Graulus (24MX Honda), 13. Jéremy Delince, 14. Andy Baumgartner, 15. Max Nagl, 16. Kevin Fors, 17. Yentel Martens, 18. Alain Schäfer, 19. Kevin Bonnesset, 20. Gautier Laurens
INTERS MX1 FINAL STANDING
1. Clément Desalle 45 ptn, 2. Jordi Tixier 44, 3. Arminas Jasikonis 41, 4. Kevin Strijbos 36, 5. Gautier Paulin 34, 6. Arnaud Tonus 31, 7. Shaun Simpson 28, 8. Gert Krestinov 23, 9 . Maxime Desprey 20, 10. Nicolas Aubin 18, 11. Max Nagl 18, 12. Max Anstie 14, 13. Greg Aranda 13, 14. Jéremy Delincé 13, 15. Andy Baumgartner 11, 16. Yentel Martens, 17. Xavier Boog 10, 18. Damon Graulus 9 (24MX Honda), 19. Kevin Bonnesset 9, 20. Kevin Fors 8
SUPERFINAL, Damon did not start in the super final
1. Clément Desalle, 2. Arminas Jasikonis, 3. Jordi Tixier, 4. Kevin Strijbos, 5. Benoit Paturel, 6. Arnaud tonus, 7. Jeremy Seewer, 8. Shaun Simpson, 9. Thomas Kjer Olsen, 10. Gautier Paulin , 11. Max Nagl, 12. Hunter Lawrence, 13. Brent Van Doninck, 14. Alvin Ostlund, 15. Gert Krestinov, 16. Maxime Desprey, 17. Anthony Boissiere, 18. Greg Aranda, 19. Nicolas Aubin, 20. Conrad Mewse
Photos: Media cross
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