Chief mechanic of repute and long-time Honda and HRC stalwart, Marcus Pereira de Freitas stepped up to the management side of HRC’s Motocross World Championship campaign in 2018 and continues that role for the 2024 season, after title-winning campaigns in 2019, 2020 and 2022.

One of the really nice guys in the MXGP paddock and somebody with a lot of experience with the Honda team. More than two decades involved in Grand Prix motocross and having worked with some of the best riders of this era.

In the 2024 season the men at HRC have been working hard to fend off the challenge of Jorge Prado and Jeffrey Herlings and it has been a very intense season.

A victory by Tim Gajser in Switzerland slowed down the momentum of both Prado and Herlings and we caught up with the HRC team manager to ask how the feeling is under the red tent.

Also, some cool inside information about the HRC set-up at the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations, where six riders will be pitted out of the HRC awning.

MXLarge: Firstly, congratulation on Tim winning the last GP in Switzerland.

Pereira de Freitas: Thank you very much, it was a very important win for us.

MXLarge: Obviously Jorge was catching up points and gaining momentum and as you said, it was an important win for Tim, to get momentum back.

Pereira de Freitas: Exactly what you said. After the last two rounds in sand, Tim has never done well in those two rounds and after Lommel and Arnhem, we had a team meeting and we said, man, now we are going to start the season. We have four races to go, and we need to start the season from now on. We told Tim, don’t look at the championship, you just need to ride like you know you can ride, what you are capable of. We needed to go to Switzerland and show how he can race. You have to beat those guys; we need to win. He told us, I know that I am going to try my best and she showed us, a fantastic race. He went from around P10 and passed everyone, got to the front and them made a gap to everyone, that was amazing.

MXLarge: Because of the situation coming into Switzerland and obviously the team believes in Tim, and he has shown many times what a great rider he is, and he is one of the all-time greats of our sport, but with Jeffrey winning Lommel and Arnhem and Jorge winning Sweden, the feeling in the team must have been that this is really not going well. It must create some nerves and tension.

Pereira de Freitas: Yes, we were in a position that we had to win some races. That was clear, we couldn’t go to Switzerland and lose more points, and we might not be able to gain them again, so, as I said, we needed to show to the two riders there, that we were capable to win races. The speed was always there, but Tim just needed to put it all together. The only good outcome for us was that Tim win in Switzerland and luckily, he did it. It was a good boost for the team and for Tim. We are now going to Turkey, China and Spain and those type of circuits suit him better.

MXLarge: I often feel that Tim is so mentally strong, and he doesn’t seem to care what people think of him and doesn’t read what the media think of him. He just goes home to Slovenian and trains. I find that a really strong quality of his.

Pereira de Freitas: Yes, that is correct, and he has always been like that. If you read stuff on social media or whatever and it can upset, you and for sure if you are not really strong minded and Tim isn’t interested in that.

MXLarge: He has won five World championships and 49 Grand Prix victories. Another GP and he equals Joel Robert on 50 and another World title and he also joins Robert with six championships. That would be a great achievement and take him to becoming the third most successful GP rider of all time. Your team generally only celebrate GP wins and not podiums and stuff like other teams, but if he wins his 50th in Turkey, will there be a celebration of that, in some way?

Pereira de Freitas: Well, of course it would be an honour for Tim to reach the same GP wins as Joel Robert and why not do something for Tim when he reaches 50 GP wins. 50 Grand Prix wins, what an achievement and to be on the same level as the greatest one, Joel Robert and that is something we should remember. It would be great to do something for him.

MXLarge: You are probably the only team that only celebrates wins and no podiums or whatever. Why is that a decision by Japan, or from you?

Pereira de Freitas: No, actually, that is just how we do it. If you have an average rider who can make the podium, I understand to celebrate that, but if you have a rider who can win GPs and motos, then we just need to celebrate the wins. If you win, then we celebrate that, P2, no, we won’t celebrate that. You can have a second place, but nobody remembers that, but you just told me, 50 GP wins, everyone remembers who won, but not who came second or third.

MXLarge: In Lommel, Arnhem and Sweden, Tim obviously looks really so disappointed as expected, and maybe even a bit angry with himself. You are a very close team and very friendly with each other, but how is he in those moment. What are his emotions after these types of races when he goes back to the team for the team meeting?

Pereira de Freitas: Of course, after all press conferences we have those team meetings, and we all know when he is maybe sad or pissed off. He knows he lost ground in the points, and he knows he could have done better, and we as a team try and bring him up and remind him what he is capable off and we get it out of the way. After Arnhem, we said this is the race, that is the result, and we need to do better now. Of course, riders when they don’t perform, they are not happy.

MXlarge: Changing subject, at the Nations, you will have Tim for Team Slovenian, Ruben for Team Spain, The Australian team of the Lawrence brothers and Webster (who now races under the HRC US team for Nations), and I guess the Team USA MX2 rider, Chance Hymas. How can you work so many riders under the same tent?

Pereira de Freitas: We received contact with Lars from Honda America and trying to work out how we can support all of them. We have the space, but it is also Team Australia and now Chance Hymas for Team USA. Looks like four extra riders and we need to figure it out and we need to work out how we can fit everyone in.

MXLarge: I keep reading that American team riders often have to pay for their travel costs, or it costs them so much to race the Nations. Last year in Ernee, it was mentioned on one of the leading American media channels, that R. J. Hampshire paid 4000 dollars out of his own pocket, or something similar. I really struggle to believe that, and I cannot imagine Tim goes to the Nations and has to pay anything, but do you know of anything like that happening with GP riders?

Pereira de Freitas: That is something the federations should take care of (AMA in Hampshire case). They normally have to cover the cost of the riders and the mechanics and the travel and all that. Those expenses are normally covered by the federations. Obviously in Europe we have our semi and that is a cost for HRC, and it isn’t always on our budget and when we go to the US, that cost is on America Honda. I have never known somebody (like Herlings or Gajser) paying their own costs, they don’t pay anything for this race.

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