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Latvian GP - Rider Comments

Latvian GP - Rider Comments

Jun 10

  • Interview

A big day for the Red Bull KTM Factory team as they win both the MXGP and MX2 overall. Ray Archer made sure smiles all around with this great victory celebration.

Jeffrey Herlings: “Definitely happy. Yesterday was so bad but today I was able to show people I could still ride a bit! The podium was the goal but to come out with a win was amazing. I didn’t quite have the pace for Jorge and Tim in the second moto; I was able to close them down but didn’t have the speed to pass. Anyway, very happy and two good starts today. I hope to keep that going because it’s been a weak point. Pleased with my riding and it’s nice to finally get off that #103 to #104!”

Jorge Prado:"It was a pity about the first moto; yesterday, I was feeling super good on the bike, but I just couldn't make the pass on Tim in the qualifying race. Today in the first moto, I got a good start, but he [Tim Gajser] passed me on the first lap. I was actually feeling really good with my rhythm, but then I went aquaplaning into the face of a jump with all the standing water on the track. So that resulted in P7 in the first moto, which wasn't the best. But then, with drier conditions in the second moto, I got the holeshot and led until the end! I’m happy with my performance and form in the second moto for sure, and hopefully we can get the red plate back as soon as possible!"

Tim Gajser: I rode well all weekend, and am happy with the overall effort. Going one-two-two shows that my consistency is good and that my speed is good enough to win, but I wasn’t quite able to make it happen. I got the red-plate back so that is a positive and although there is still a long way to go, it is nice to ride with the red-plate on my Honda CRF450R, especially next week in Maggiora which is a special track.

Sacha Coenen: “Really nice to win my first GP. I’m feeling happy! I had good speed today and I knew I could do it! I had a really good start in the second moto and I just did my race. We need to focus and try to make every weekend a bit like this…and be on the podium as much as we can. Not many mistakes today and I kept on my wheels. This feels so nice.”

Simon Längenfelder: "I'm definitely pleased with the overall result. My performance in the first moto wasn't where I wanted it to be, but after making some setup changes, I felt much better in the second moto. Unfortunately, I made a small mistake in the last few laps while pushing as hard as I could. Congratulations to Sacha on the win. I'm already looking forward to the next race!"

Kay de Wolf: "I had a mixed weekend, but I think there are still lots of positives to take from it. I had a really good Saturday, and the first moto on Sunday was super positive with a win. But in the second moto, I just made too many mistakes. I had two stupid crashes and should not have made them. I threw away a possible GP win and finished fourth overall instead. So, I’m quite upset about that, but I’ll work on it and will come back stronger in Italy. We are making progress every weekend, so this is the most important thing!"

Lucas Coenen: "I’m super pumped for my brother to get the win. All those hard moments he went through, it’s great to see him up there. Of course, as a competitor, I want to do better though. I took some big hits (crashes) in the second moto, so I think it could have gone better from my perspective. I struggled the whole weekend, let’s say, so I think we need to build on this and look ahead to fighting again in Italy."

Liam Everts: “Hard weekend and one of my most difficult races yet. Sunday was a little bit more positive than Saturday. We need to keep on working and keep on pushing to be back at the top.”

Andrea Adamo: “Yesterday was good and I was happy with P4 but it felt like everything went badly today! In the first moto I had a little issue that meant I was down outside the top twenty and came back to 13th, and in the second I crashed in the second corner and had to come back from last again. The speed was good but the results were not. We need to wake up a bit, not make these silly mistakes and get back to the front and some consistency. Looking forward to Maggiora.”

Mattia Guadagnini: “Overall, I’m quite happy. Saturday was great, and I managed to find a really good rhythm in the sand. I’ve put a lot of effort into training, and I think this is paying off. I got a good start during the qualifying race, and then was riding in third for almost all the moto. I just couldn't quite hold that pace until the end, so some riders passed me, and I finished fifth. Then on Sunday, I didn't have the best start in the first moto, and I crashed on the second lap, so I was far back. I tried to fight back, but it wasn't easy. I think I dropped to 20th or more, but then I got to 13th. Then in the second moto, the start was better, and I made up a few positions in the first lap. I could not quite find as good a rhythm as before, but I finished ninth.”

Jeremy Seewer: "We really needed that second moto. After Germany we took a big gamble on settings and it didn't work out as we had hoped yesterday; we learnt from that and adjusted the settings for today but then it rained like hell just before our first race. The track changed completely and it's always difficult to push hard at the speed we are racing if you don't have confidence. I'm really happy to bring it back in race two. In fact if I could have started fourth I think I could have been there to the finish; the first-three are in a race of their own at the moment but I had the speed of anybody else. Next weekend is Maggiora and it's a super-fun track to ride and race with good memories; I took my second-ever podium there in MX2 back in 2015 and won the GP there last year. And it's close to home so the Swiss fans will be there to cheer me on."

Ferruccio Zanchi: My speed was good and I made a lot of passes on a track that wasn’t easy to pass on, but a few small moments cost me a top 10 overall. One was my fault, early in the first moto but the other two were frustrating and I hope I can learn from them and avoid that kind of thing in the future. Still, my fitness was good and I pushed until the end in both races so overall I am pleased with my progress and I’m really looking forward to a home GP in Maggiora next weekend.

Andrea Bonacorsi: "I had a bad crash last week in Teutschenthal and I still felt the consequences this weekend. As soon as I got tired, I had problems focusing. My vision started to blur. That makes it difficult and dangerous. That’s why I decided to abandon the race in the second moto. I really didn’t feel okay. I will have to rest a week now so that I can be fit at the start next weekend in Maggiora."

Jack Chambers: "It was a super tough weekend as one mistake in each race cost me. I got pushed into the trackside banners in the first race; it took me about thirty seconds to get unstuck and I came from last back to seventeenth. I had a good flow in the beginning of race two and stayed with the front pack for a while, but I just tucked the front wheel up the face of a wall jump. It was a stupid mistake on my part but I came back to sixteenth to finish it off. I need to turn some things around and have a couple of positive weekends."

Bobby Bruce: "It was a really tough day; yesterday we didn't even know if I would be able to race! My shoulder was already sore this morning so the plan was just to survive and put some points on the board; I got eighteenth in race one and the second moto was going really good. I raced top-ten for seven laps and was still P13 when my hand came off the bars and I had another big crash. It was so painful all day but I'm proud of my efforts and speed in such difficult circumstances; hopefully we'll be healthy next weekend and be able to show what we are capable of."

Mikkel Haarup: “What a weekend! It started really well with fifth in the qualifying race, and that gave me a good gate pick for today’s races. Unfortunately, in race one, I made contact with someone and crashed so I had to start from dead last. I battled hard though, fighting back to seventh and I felt really strong on the bike. I was hoping for the same feeling in race two, and although I had a good start, I was a little off the pace and lost a couple of positions. As I began passing riders, I clipped someone’s back wheel and crashed. After that I was able to make a couple more passes and finish sixth for seventh overall. I think if I can clean a few things up at the next races then I can be back on the podium again.”

Calvin Vlaanderen: “I’m happy with my riding and my speed but I’m not too happy with results. But that’s racing. I crashed twice in Race One and once in Race Two early on, so it was a challenging day to say the least. But I’m in one piece and fast so I’ll keep at it. I’m just pushing too hard early in the races as I see the guys up front creeping away and I’m rushing passes. I’m up to fifth in the championship now, but we have a lot of races to go. Obviously, it’s nice but my focus for now is to get back on the podium. I’ll be looking to fully recover ahead of next weekend in Italy, where I’ll be giving it my best shot again.”

Rick Elzinga: “Overall, it’s been a decent weekend and my speed was there for the top five. I didn’t have a great start in Race One. My jump was good but I got pushed outside, so I was around 12th early in the race. I made some good passes and moved into seventh, but then when I was riding by myself, I lost my rhythm a little bit. For the second race, I started around 12th again and made passes quickly. I fought hard to the end, held off Mikkel Haarup and caught up to third and fourth. It was close but not enough. I showed my fitness though and my speed, so I’m happy about how that race ended.”

Mathis Valin: "It was a tough weekend; not exactly what I was expecting after several good races. But I have to accept the situation; that’s life! Today I got a good start and was fast, but to be honest Valk and Lata were faster on this track. I had a good rhythm and was close to them but I crashed and lost a couple of positions; my fault. The track was rough; it’s always like that here and I’m happy to be going home safe and still leading the championship after six rounds. Now we have seven weeks to prepare for the next round in Lommel where the goal will be a podium."

Benjamin Garib: "We can take many positives from this weekend; top six overall and moving up in the points. The track was different to yesterday after the rain overnight; it was very slippery in some parts and more hardpack in others so it felt strange at first but I got a good start and made it happen. Now we have a break until the next round of the European series but we have the final round of the French Elite at Ernée next weekend and I'm really looking forward to that."

Glenn Coldenhoff: “I was going well all weekend, with a third place already in the qualifying race on Saturday. Right before the first moto on Sunday, we had another rain shower that made it kind of tough but all in all, it was not too bad, with 3-3-4 finishes and a fourth overall. It was just a pity that we missed the podium, I felt like we were close. In the second moto the pace was a bit off, the guys in front were far. I think I need to work on a few things and try to get better, also a little bit with the bike. Now we are going to Maggiora, Fantic’s home GP. They say it is going to rain again but we are used to it by now. Anyway, P5 last week and now P4 – it is going upwards. Hopefully also next weekend, that would be good.”

Brian Bogers: “I am happy with this GP. The speed was there already on Saturday. In the qualifying race I had a bad start but still finished eight. I had a feeling that I could do more and on Sunday I felt good directly from the warm-up. In the first moto it was a little bit muddy, again. I had a good start, around sixth place, I made some passes and finished fourth. In the second moto the track was good, I had another good start and made a few passes on the first lap to stay in P5 for the whole moto. 4th and 5th for another top 5 overall, I am really happy with that. Let’s keep building, I feel really good mentally and also physically we are getting there.”

Ivo Monticelli: I had a positive weekend in Latvia. I am happy with the way I run because compared to the previous races my pace was better. On Saturday I closed the qualifying session in 15th position even though the suspension set-up was not perfect. Before the titled heats though, thanks to the help of the KYB technicians, we made some changes that gave me a better feeling in the seat. In the warm-up I got the 9th fastest time but unfortunately on the first lap of race one I came into contact with an opponent on a long jump and we both crashed. I also lost time restarting because the bikes were stuck together. Once I got back into the race I started to make a comeback and finished 16th. In the second race I got off to a better start and in a few laps climbed to 12th place, but unfortunately, I was forced to retire. Physically I felt better and although I was never very fast in the sand on this occasion, I think I defended myself well.

Ben Watson: It's a really bad news... I'm sorry. In a crash in the Lugo GP I suffered a sprain to my right knee, but it didn't show up as an injury right away. I raced the last two GPs (France and Germany) but my knee kept giving me problems, I was in pain and it didn't allow me to train. Further medical investigations revealed an injury to the anterior cruciate ligament and a meniscus. Keeping up with training or racing would only make the things worse and with the doctors we have decided on surgery, which we are planning for as soon as possible, at the moment we don't have the date yet. It is likely that the recovery time will not allow me to return to the World Championship this season.

Ray Archer image

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