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Germany - Rider Comments

Germany - Rider Comments

Jun 2

  • Interview

Yes, win number 108 and another special day in the life of five time World motocross champion, Jeffrey Herlings. In MX2, 2023 MX2 World champion starts to take hold of the 250 class, with yet another victory. Here are the rider comments from last weekend.

Jeffrey Herlings: “There have been a lot of ups-and-downs but to win today was amazing. Obviously, the competition is strong, and the track was really tricky. In the first moto I was battling with Lucas, and I have so much respect for him, being only 18 and handling that type of pressure every weekend and not making any mistakes. In the second moto we had the mud, so I saved my goggles and waited for the lapped riders. I managed to pass Romain and then Lucas with a good line that nobody else had seen, it’s great to come back and win again. Hats-off to the competition. I feel like I am getting close to their level again and I’m just trying to be there every single weekend. I want to get as many podiums and wins as I can.”

Lucas Coenen: “I did two good motos, two good starts. You know when you are in the lead, and you hit ‘traffic’ then you can make a mistake because those guys don’t know you are coming. I had some sketchy moments. Jeffrey had some good lines. I looked over at him across the jump and I thought ‘maybe I still have it…’ but he came through the inside. 2nd, and 2nd overall with the same points. I’m just enjoying myself and I’m really happy to share a podium with these guys. When I was small, I looked up to them and now I’m on the podium with them and fighting with them also.”

Romain Febvre: "Everyone has a bad weekend during the season, so I am happy that I was still able to make the podium; we are only halfway through the series and consistency will be the key. It was just so challenging to pass here; everyone saw that, particularly in the first moto when we went 1-2-3-4 in each other’s wheels the entire moto and could not pass. My speed was good, and I tried everything, but the inside line was the fastest everywhere and I was inevitably making mistakes when I tried other lines to pass. My starts were not so good all weekend and I paid the price. The track opened up a little in race two after the rain, but it was really annoying with the lapper when Jeffrey passed me. I am just happy that we go to Kegums next weekend because in sand you can pass."

Andrea Adamo: “I did two smart races. When I passed Sacha in the first moto, I did not push to make a twenty-second gap because it was easy to make a mistake on this track. It was difficult and tight. In the second one, well, if you don’t holeshot in these mud races then you have more to lose than to gain. I was in a pretty decent spot in P4 and when I was getting closer to Kay [De Wolf] I was getting full of mud, so I decided to hold back because I didn’t want to risk a crash. Sacha then made a mistake, and I went to P3. I knew that was good enough for the overall but wasn’t sure if meant the red plate. Like I said in Ernee [France], the championship is long and while the red plate is nice – and the mechanics will put it on the bike next week – it’s not important. We are halfway through and there are many fast guys. We’ll keep the focus.”

Simon Laengenfelder: “A difficult weekend and I made the race hard for myself because of the starts. I wasn’t the best in the first laps and lost positions there. In the first race I could fight back to 3rd when the track was really, really difficult for passing and I also had the fastest lap. I was struggling a bit with the suspension in the rain during the second race and I also hit a neutral, which made me crash. It was chaos and I couldn’t come back higher than 9th. Still, we’re 2nd in the championship and so close for points. The fans were amazing, let’s go for Latvia.”

Sacha Coenen: “The first moto was quite good: holeshot and 2nd place. Second moto another holeshot and rode good for almost the whole way but the back end slid away on the take-off of the triple, and I ended up in the fence. We’ll keep the positives: we had great starts. The GP victory was almost there and that makes us even more motivated for Latvia.”

Kay de Wolf: “Honestly, it was a really tough weekend. I took a hard hit earlier in the event which made things more difficult, but I just kept digging deep and didn’t give up. Saturday wasn’t ideal, and I had to work hard in the first moto to come through the pack. Then the rain before the second race completely changed the track - it was like riding a totally different circuit. But I managed a strong start and rode smart in the mud to bring it home in second, which gave me the podium overall. I’m proud of the effort and happy with the result. Big thanks to the team for sticking behind me - now I’m looking forward to building on this next weekend.”

Liam Everts: “It was not a bad weekend for me. In the first moto, I had a good start and was able to ride quite consistently in sixth place. The second race was really tricky with the rain - the track changed a lot, and it was not easy to find the right lines. I had a small moment with a back marker but stayed on the bike and finished eighth, so that was okay. Sixth overall is not amazing, but I felt quite good, and we are making progress. I’m looking forward to the next one and will keep working.”

Ruben Fernandez: Definitely not how I hoped the day would go, as I was actually feeling pretty confident about the racing. I got a good start and tried to make a pass into second place and made a mistake on the double and crashed. I knew how important track position was because it is always so difficult to pass here, so I wanted to make the moves as quickly as possible, and it cost me. Now I need to get further tests and see exactly what has happened, which is obviously extremely disappointing. I feel confident I will be back quickly though, as I was enjoying my riding and looking good in the championship.

Valerio Lata: It is frustrating to finish on the same points as a podium but just miss out, however I have to be happy with how I rode, especially in the muddy second moto. I have been practicing in the bad conditions, and it definitely has paid off because I was riding much better in that race and I felt I could have made the pass I needed to get on the podium. Still, this whole weekend has gone well, and we are improving step by step and now my goal is definitely to get on the podium. A big thanks to everyone for all their work and I’m excited for Latvia now.

Jeremy Seewer: “The first moto was very positive with the fifth place. My riding was good, closer to the pace of the frontrunners. I got another good start, which was very positive too. I didn’t have the best start in moto two. I got caught up in the second corner, but I was still placed quite okay, actually. My riding was good, I had great speed, I passed some guys, and I was going for P7. And then, unfortunately, I had two crashes and found myself struggling. It's just those mud races at the moment are not our friends but that's how it is. We need to improve the negative points, especially in the mud again, where we've made too many mistakes.”

Mattia Guadagnini: “In qualifying, I had a very outside gate and got off to a really bad start. I tried to recover, but overtaking was difficult, and I finished 21st, which gave me an even worse position for the two races on Sunday. In the first moto, I was far behind. I made a few overtakes, but it was almost impossible to come back. In race two, the conditions were different, with a lot of mud. I didn’t get a good start - I slipped and had to restart from last. From there, I made a strong comeback, riding well and reaching 13th, but unfortunately a technical problem forced me to retire. I take little from this weekend in terms of results, but I’m happy with how I rode in race two. Now we head to Latvia confident we can do better.”

Guillem Farres: “To get a race win and second overall is amazing! Coming into today, we made some small changes to the bike, and they made a really big difference. My first race wasn’t so good as I made a mistake while sixth and I dropped to ninth. But the second race went almost perfectly. I started second, the leader crashed, and I controlled the race to the finish. The goal now is to keep the ball rolling and be up front all the time. Thanks to the team again for doing such a great job with the bike.”

Camden McLellan: “Some positives but also negatives this weekend. I need to be better on Saturday so that I qualify better for the GP races, and then I can get better starts. We’re back on the sand next weekend, so I’m excited for that. With a good week of training, the goal is to be running up front again, where I should be.”

Mathis Valin: "I caught the wheel of Adamo out of the start in race one; it was quite a big crash but I'm still on two feet and was looking forward to race two, but this was just not my day."

Maxime Renaux: A positive GP. Consistent results, and they were good for the championship. However, it’s not where I want to be, but the positives are no injuries and a good feeling on the bike. Hopefully, we don’t have any more mud races and now it’s onto Latvia next weekend.

Calvin Vlaanderen: All weekend I’ve had a good feeling on the bike and today was a bit up and down. My first race was really good, battling with the guys and finishing third. Race Two was going well until I twisted my knee in a rut. After that I just focused on riding smoothly to the finish. I ended up 10th for fifth overall, so it’s not been too bad really.

Jago Geerts: I had a pretty good day, but the results don’t show it. I had to start from the outside, but my starts were good. I was running 11th until the end of Race One, and then a hay bale fell into a rut I was in, and I crashed. Then in Race Two, a stone broke my goggles in the second corner. I came in the pits for a new set, but then later in the race the same thing happened, although I was able to finish 12th. So, my speed is good, so that’s a positive to take away.

Thibault Benistant: I’m struggling with my starts at the moment and that made for a tough weekend. I’ve been working on them, although I’m still not quite there with them, but I’ll keep on working. The second race today was tough with the rain. I was riding well and then fell off with two laps to go. So that was frustrating, but my riding was good, so I’m feeling positive for the next Grand Prix.

Karlis Reisulis: The weekend is over now, and despite not having the speed, we made some changes with the bike. They were all positive, so, with what we’ve learned as a team I think we will be better at the upcoming races.

Brian Bogers: “It feels good to have such a positive and consistent weekend! P8 in race 1 was already solid, I was happy to be back in the top 10 after quite a while. For race 2, we had a lot of rain and, as we know, I like these conditions. Also, I took a good start, moved up to fourth and stayed there for most of the time. Only one rider passed me in the end, otherwise it could have been fourth overall, but still – I am happy with fifth in race 2 and sixth overall. I will take this result with both hands and want to bring the positive vibes to the next GP in Latvia.”

Glenn Coldenhoff: “It was a tough one. I didn’t have the best week leading up to the GP – I wasn’t training, just trying to recover. At first, I didn’t feel comfortable, but we made some changes going into Sunday, and the feeling was better. If you just look at the results, they are obviously disappointing, but I took some confidence from my riding. It is very easy to start doubting after a few bad races in a row, but I feel like the confidence is coming back after today. I will do some good training this week – and we are heading to one of my favorite rounds in Latvia. I have a good feeling, and hopefully, we can be back on the podium there.”

Andrea Bonacorsi: “I did everything I could to be as ready as possible for Sunday’s races, despite feeling unwell. Of course, the issue at the start of race 2 was disappointing, but my focus has already shifted to the next GP. The goal is to be fit and ready for Kegums!”

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