Norwegian Cornelius Tøndel of the Schmicker KTM Racing team has a background of hard grinding and in tougher conditions, more so than most of his MXGP competition. Having grown up where temperatures drop to deep in the – 20s and being a motocross racer make for interesting winters.

Last weekend in Portugal, with some of the worst conditions ever seen in a motocross race, the very friendly and intelligent racer showed that there is a toughness that will help him in the long-run in his chosen sport. We caught up with him and asked about his weekend in Portugal and how he feels his season is going.

MXlarge: Congratulations on your results in Portugal. While it wasn’t like racing motocross, but more like enduro or something, you must be very happy with that performance?

Tøndel: Yes, it was really incredible. In the first race I was maybe being too conservative, riding too much like it was enduro. I was waiting for other bikes to stop and other guys to crash. I was there in 8th or 9th position, so it wasn’t too bad and then my bike actually stopped when I was passing Guadagnini. It started again after about one and a half minutes, and I managed to finish the race in 12th. I don’t know if it was electronics or water got in somewhere, but at first it didn’t want to start. Second race I spun up on the gate and I was completely last on the start straight. In the first two corners, I went from almost last to fifth. Then I passed Seewer on the first lap and followed Febvre for fifteen minutes, or something like that. After he tipped over and I moved into third and I managed to finish in third place. I kept him behind for the rest of the race.

MXLarge: Is there a reason you are so good in those conditions? Do you ride Enduro back home or something like that?

Tøndel: I think, when I was riding at home and it was -20 degrees on the bike in the evening, with the light on my helmet and my grandfather screaming at me that I need to go faster, that was probably a part of it. I did it like that for many years. I had a track I rode in the winter and it was a minute 30 long and half metre deep ruts, with snow. I think that made me a good rider when it is deep ruts and heavy.

MXLarge: As I said, it wasn’t really motocross, but it was a massive spectacle. Is it just a matter of trying to survive, rather than trying to race or go fast?

Tøndel: Yes, for sure. I felt actually, I have never been in that position before (up front in MXGP) and normally, I would think being in that positive it would stress me out a bit, but actually, I was really calm. I could keep a cool head and ride my own pace. I think that was the key to pulling away from the other guys and keeping time with Febvre and seeing where he was faster than me and where I gained time on him. Just riding at 95%, because if you tried to ride 100%, you crashed.

MXlarge: Do you think because the conditions were so bad and you had to concentrate even more than normal, that is why you didn’t stress as much, your mind was full with finding lines and concentrating in those conditions?

Tøndel: Yes, I think so, and it was also nice that the pace was slowed down, it separated the riders and it was more about the rider than the bike and other things around. It was really up to the riders, because there is a big difference from the machinery I have compared to Prado or Febvre, or whoever.

MXLarge: I know that conditions last weekend were very different to normal motocross conditions, but does doing so well give you a lot of confidence?

Tøndel: Yes, I think for sure it gives me confidence. I was third place, so that is fantastic and I think the fact I could hold Febvre off in those last five laps and he really tried and gave up before we got to the finish line and it means I did something right. I am not saying I will finish third in dry conditions, but maybe I can get into the top ten and be more consistent with that. I think top ten is my goal.

MXLarge: Many motocross riders have told me the sport is 70% mental and the rest is talent and things like that. Would you agree and if that is the case, you showed you are very mentally strong, being able to run in those conditions and finish so well?

Tøndel: For sure. It is always nice to have a good race and good for the confidence, but like you said, our sport is so much mental and we all do the same things, we train the same, we sleep the same, we eat the same, but when you separate the riders somewhere, mentally is a huge part of it.

MXLarge: Did you have expectations of what you expected from this year?

Tøndel: It was so difficult to know, because you had a lot of guys coming up from MX2 and of course all the factory riders who were already in MXGP. Even more factory guys and so many guys who go so fast. From 10th until 20th, most of us have the same speed, it is just a matter of who has the best flow and the good mind-set on that day. In Arco, I finished 8th in the qualification race and I felt great, then on Sunday, I didn’t feel a lot worse and I finished 17-20. It is really about the riding in that moment and just, so many small things can flick a switch and you go from 10th to 15th.

MXLarge: I was speaking to Adam (Sterry) a couple of weeks ago and we spoke about finishing 20th in a Grand Prix and how that isn’t seen as anything great, but 20th in the World is pretty good really.

Tøndel: Yes, for sure. Like I said, we are all so close together and everyone has stepped up a level and it is just so close. That second group of riders, from 10th to 20th, there is nothing in it, so 10th in the World is very possible. You see on a dry track there can be three and a half seconds from pole to 20th place, which isn’t a lot and just a little second here and there.

MXLarge: Leatt have been a great for the sport and you obviously have sponsorship with them this year. Can you tell me how that experience is?

Tøndel: I worked with Leatt back in 2020 and I really liked it, with JWR Honda. I had a great experience and now I am close to them and with Jamie, we talk a lot and if I need something, he always gives me what I need. This last weekend, me and Adam (Sterry) were maybe two of four riders who didn’t throw their goggles away, that says something about their goggles. Everyone was covered in mud in their face and Adam and I had clean faces. The helmet is also very good, you don’t want to crash and see stars. I am very grateful to be riding with a brand that is so busy with the safety of the riders.

Bavo Swijgers/Full Spectrum images