The main races of the Belgian Grand Prix took place today in Bastogne and the 19000 people that crowed the Wallonie track could see their local hero Clement Desalle on the top of the podium, while Antonio Cairoli and Evgeny Bobryshev completed the top three.

Ray Archer image above

In MX2 Dean Ferris broke KTM’s winning hegemony by placing his Yamaha on the first step of the rostrum and Jordi Tixier and Glenn Coldenhoff were second and third respectively.

Jeffrey Herlings followed the doctor’s advice and yesterday evening went straight back home where tomorrow will have some further exams on his left shoulder. The Dutch rider still felt a lot of pain today, so he fears he will need to stay away from his KTM longer than expected.

Pauls Jonass won the sixth round of the EMX125 European Championship, while Brian Hsu obtained his maiden podium of the season in second and Nicolas Dercourt ended third. In the Honda EMX150 European Championship Filippo Grigoletto won the final race and took the red plate of the series, while Enzo Toriani and Mitchell Lewis completed the top three.

MX1
Rockstar Energy Suzuki World’s Clement Desalle achieved his main goal and won the Belgian Grand Prix in his front home crowd, something that he had never done before. In the first race he rode second behind Antonio Cairoli since the very beginning and when he tried to change the lines to catch him in the last lap, he made a mistake and he crashed. Fortunately for the Belgian, he could recover himself quickly and he crossed the finish line second. In the final race he reached the first corner behind Cairoli but Desalle managed to overtake him in the second turn and dominated the heat until the chequered flag.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Antonio Cairoli could not win his title in Bastogne, but he finished tight in forty-seven points with Desalle. The Italian obtained the Get Athena holeshot award in the first race and he led until the end, but in the second one he could not catch Desalle and he had to settle down with the second position. At the moment Cairoli leads the championship with 90 points advantage over Desalle and there are a maximum of 100 points left to win, so it is very likely that the Italian will be crowned 2013 FIM MX1 World Champion already after the first heat of the British Grand Prix next weekend.

Honda World Motocross’ Evgeny Bobryshev was back on the third step of the podium after finishing fourth and third in today’s races. The Russian explained that he is back on his full training program and they have also changed some settings of the suspensions of his bike, so he is now feeling much better and he believes he can also be racing for the top three positions in the races to come. Today Bobryshev only missed to have good starts, as he started around the sixth position in both heats. However, he managed to find the good rhythm and the good lines to move up some places in the beginning of the race. The Russian made a mistake in the first race when he was riding fourth, but he succeeded to recuperate such position by the end of the race.

Rockstar Energy Suzuki World’s Kevin Strijbos was a bit disappointed with his fourth overall positions because he felt he could have finished on the podium today. In the first race the Belgian had a really good start in third, but he admitted that he had no feeling with the track, he struggled a lot to find the good lines and he lacked the confidence in himself to keep his initial position. Strijbos made several mistakes which made him finish seventh. In the second race he also had a good start, but he went too wide in the first corner and dropped down several positions, but this time the Belgian was able to push hard and he was even able to overtake Jeremy Van Horebeek to finish fourth in the race and fourth overall in the Grand Prix.

The fifth overall position was for another Belgian rider; Jeremy Van Horebeek crossed the finish line fifth in both heats and he ended tight in thirty-two points with Strijbos. In the first race the Kawasaki Racing Team rider started around the twelfth place, but he was able to make an incredible recovery and he actually battled with Strijbos and Bobryshev during a long time for the fourth position. In the second race his start was much better, but he was only able to finish fifth again.

It was not a good weekend for Ken De Dycker, who was only able to finish sixth overall. In the first race the Belgian did not have a good start, but he succeeded to recuperate several positions very quickly, and after the first lap he was already sixth. De Dycker managed to move up to fifth after a couple of laps, but he then had a problem with his KTM and dropped down two positions. By the end of the race Strijbos was making quite a lot of mistakes in front of him and De Dycker passed him and crossed the finish line sixth. In the second race things were not much better for the Belgian and he ended eighth, which gave him the sixth overall position in the Grand Prix.

Tommy Searle had no good starts either and ended seventh overall after obtaining a 9-6 result. Shaun Simpson was eighth, and David Philippaerts, who managed to ride second during the first half of the secondrace, was ninth after crossing the finish line twelfth and seventh. Joel Roelants completed the top ten of his home Grand Prix.

Gautier Paulin rode a really strong first moto and he finished third, but he decided to retire from the second race while he was riding ninth. The French rider almost crashed with Simpson and he preferred not to take any risks, as he is coming from a heavy concussion on his head.

Sebastién Pourcel struggled a lot today in the Belgian track and he was only able to finish seventeenth overall.

MX1 Race 1 top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 39:13.105; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), +0:03.060; 3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:28.705; 4. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), +0:31.436; 5. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:32.371; 6. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), +0:39.778; 7. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:40.286; 8. Shaun Simpson (GBR, Yamaha), +0:40.852; 9. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:48.607; 10. Tanel Leok (EST, TM), +0:58.034.

MX1 Race 2 top ten: 1. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 39:22.241; 2. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:22.296; 3. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), +0:24.930; 4. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:27.905; 5. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:28.518; 6. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:29.982; 7. David Philippaerts (ITA, Honda), +0:47.488; 8. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), +1:20.260; 9. Joel Roelants (BEL, Yamaha), +1:22.047; 10. Shaun Simpson (GBR, Yamaha), +1:24.412;

MX1 Overall top ten: 1. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 47 points; 2. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 47 p.; 3. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), 38 p.; 4. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), 32 p.; 5. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 32 p.; 6. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), 28 p.; 7. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 27 p.; 8. Shaun Simpson (GBR, Yamaha), 24 p.; 9. David Philippaerts (ITA, Honda), 23 p.; 10. Joel Roelants (BEL, Yamaha), 22 p.;

MX1 Championship top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 690 points; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 600 p.; 3. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), 542 p.; 4. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), 485 p.; 5. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), 469 p.; 6. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 431 p.; 7. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 383 p.; 8. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), 314 p.; 9. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), 276 p.; 10. David Philippaerts (ITA, Honda), 268 p.

MX1 Manufacturers: 1. KTM, 705 points; 2. Suzuki, 628 p.; 3. Kawasaki, 583 p.; 4. Honda, 466 p.; 5. Yamaha, 296 p.; 6. TM, 218 p.

Click here to obtain the complete results
Photos of the whole round are available here

MX2
Monster Energy Yamaha’s Dean Ferris had a perfect weekend in Bastogne; yesterday he dominated the qualifying race and today he won the two races to obtain his first ever MX2 overall victory of his career. The Australian rider was able to have two good starts, and whereas in the first heat it took him a while to overtake his teammate Maxime Desprey who was leading the race, in the second one Ferris managed to make a quick move on Glenn Coldenhoff and he crossed the finish line first. The Australian was very happy with his overall victory, but he was also happy to have put his Yamaha on the top of the podium for the first time this season.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jordi Tixier had a very difficult weekend but he was happy for having been able to finish second overall. In both races a stone hit his goggles, and whereas in the first one he could keep them on until the end of the race, in the second one he had to take them off after the first five minutes. In the first race Tixier started third, but he lost one position with his compatriot Christophe Charlier because a lot of dirt was going into his goggles, but once he could see better, Tixier passed him back and finished second. The Red Bull KTM Factory rider was very confident to face the second heat, but having to race without goggles made him finish fifth.

Standing Construct KTM’s Glenn Coldenhoff had a bittersweet weekend because after a very tough first moto, the Dutch rider was able to obtain a strong second position in the final race. Coldenhoff admitted that he was not able to find the good lines and the good rhythm to ride with the front group and he could not stop the other riders to pass him and he finished eighth. However, in the second race he took the holeshot and he rode second behind Ferris during the whole heat. It is the second podium for Coldenhoff this season, so he is now looking forward to finishing among the top three in the last two Grand Prix.

There were many people in the paddock who were betting for José Butrón to be fighting for the overall victory today, but in the end the Spanish rider was only able to finish fourth overall. The KTM Silver Action rider did not have a good start in the first race and he was only able to finish seventh, but in the second one he obtained a consistent third position. Butrón finished in front of Christophe Charlier, so he keeps on holding the third position of the championship with only two more Grand Prix to go.

Wilvo Nestaan JM Racing KTM’s Romain Febvre made a good performance this weekend and he obtained the overall fifth position. In the first race the young French rider started out of the top ten, but he was able to find the good rhythm to move up to the fifth place. In the second race he started fourth, and although Christophe Charlier overtook him in the beginning of the race, he was able to recuperate such position because his compatriot crash.

Monster Energy Yamaha’s Christophe Charlier was quite disappointed with his result today because he was also one of the clear favourites to fight for the first step of the podium. In the first race the French rider started fourth and he starred in a tough battle with Tixier and they exchanged the third position several times. In the end Charlier crossed the finish line third behind Tixier because Maxime Desprey moved from first to fourth. In the second race Charlier crashed when he was riding fourth behind Butrón and from then onwards he struggled to recuperate the rhythm and he ended seventh, which gave him the sixth overall place in the Grand Prix.

Maxime Desprey made the best performance of the season this weekend by finishing seventh overall. In the first race he obtained the Get Athena Holeshot Award and he was able to lead more than half of the race. However, the French rider got tired and he ended fourth. In the second heat, he could not start in the front and he struggled during the whole moto and finished eleventh.

Jake Nicholls was eighth overall, and Jason Clermont and Max Anstie completed the top ten. Young riders Jeremy Seewer and Tim Gajser ended eleventh and twelfth respectively.

MX2 Race 1 top ten: 1. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 39:49.925; 2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +0:02.250; 3. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +0:08.949; 4. Maxime Desprey (FRA, Yamaha), +0:12.991; 5. Romain Febvre (FRA, KTM), +0:17.462; 6. Tim Gajser (SLO, KTM), +0:22.893; 7. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), +0:23.854; 8. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:25.969; 9. Max Anstie (GBR, Suzuki), +0:34.420; 10. Jason Clermont (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:38.677.

MX2 Race 2 top ten: 1. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 40:04.608; 2. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:01.752; 3. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), +0:15.570; 4. Romain Febvre (FRA, KTM), +0:17.751; 5. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +0:18.773; 6. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), +0:19.838; 7. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +0:20.959; 8. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:23.072; 9. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Kawasaki), +0:33.329; 10. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, Honda), +0:39.377.

MX2 Overall top ten: 1. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 50 points; 2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 38 p.; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 35 p.; 4. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 34 p.; 5. Romain Febvre (FRA, KTM), 34 p.; 6. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 34 p.; 7. Maxime Desprey (FRA, Yamaha), 28 p.; 8. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Jason Clermont (FRA, Kawasaki), 20 p.; 10. Max Anstie (GBR, Suzuki), 20 p.

MX2 Championship top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 692 points; 2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 553 p.; 3. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 470 p.; 4. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 439 p.; 5. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 412 p.; 6. Dean Ferris (AUS, Yamaha), 409 p.; 7. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), 370 p.; 8. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Kawasaki), 306 p.; 9. Max Anstie (GBR, Suzuki), 302 p.; 10. Petar Petrov (BUL, Yamaha), 267 p.

MX2 Manufacturers: 1. KTM, 741 points; 2. Yamaha, 556 p.; 3. Kawasaki, 425 p.; 4. Suzuki, 326 p.; 5. Honda, 316 p.; 6. TM, 62 p.; 7. Husqvarna, 1 p.

Click here to obtain the complete results
Photos of the whole round are available here

MXGP BELGIUM – QUICK FACTS
Circuit length: 1550m
Type of ground: intermediate ground
Temperature: 24° C
Weather conditions: changeable; sunny but with some showers during all day
Crowd attendance: 19000