MXGP

Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing's Ryan Villopoto is no stranger to Grand Prix. He first visited the Belgian round of the FIM series in 2012 where, in the rain of Bastogne, he commented that he’d like to compete in MXGP one day. Now, three AMA championships later and another visit to Europe while crocked – he was recovering from more knee surgery – and that possibility seems closer. At 25 years of age Villopoto has won all there is to celebrate in the United States. A curiosity and fascination with life and cultures outside of the USA is syncing nicely with the last remaining challenge of an exemplary career: the premier class title owned by Tony Cairoli for the last five years. 

Praised journalist Adam Wheeler summarizes 'RV's' visit to MXGP of Germany last month.. Click HERE to get in the know.

Bike It Yamaha Cosworth rider Rui Goncalves hasn’t had his best season to date, yet despite that he is still in 11^th place in the MXGP points, and is just a handful of points off Gautier Paulin who holds down 10^th spot.

Since finishing second in the World in the 2009 MX2 championship Goncalves has moved up to the MX1/MXGP class and gone 11^th, 6^th, 10^th  and 13^th. Respectable, but he knows there is better results possible.

Goncalves has hardly been close to the top five in 2014, although last weekend at the Grand Prix of Finland the rider from Vidago, Portugal battled hard in the second moto with Kevin Strijbos, Shaun Simpson and Dean Ferris for a top three finish, just coming up short and finishing in sixth spot.

With the season nearly over Goncalves is just working hard on his results and hasn’t even thought about what his plans are for 2015. With no deal signed, and his results not where he would like them to be it’s been a tough time for the always friendly rider.

We caught up with him and asked him about his season and what he expects from the future.

Q: Rui, it hasn’t been an easy season for you has it?

Goncalves: After being second in the world in MX2 in 2009, and then the results I am getting at the moment, it isn’t even close to what I did back then. I moved up in class and the competition got bigger and sometimes I don’t know, I mean injuries didn’t help put things together for me, and to make a step higher.

Q: How tough is it to stay motivated when the results are not there?

Goncalves: My motivation and will to work to get the results is the same or more than when I was racing for a world title in 09. My motivation is always to do my best and bring home good results and that is still what I am looking for, and every day I work hard to try and achieve that. I still think I am one of the guys who has been the longest around, and with that I have a lot of experience, and I still have the motivation to make the better results happen.

Q: Last weekend you showed a little of your old self. Did you work on the bike, change some things?

Goncalves: Last weekend in Finland I was closer to my potential, although I was still a little sick from Sweden. We did some changes half way through the season and found some more stability in the bike, but changing things doesn’t happen overnight, it takes some time to get to a place where you can work from. It’s not like you change something on the bike and are two seconds faster straight away, it takes time.

Q: What else made Finland better for you?

Goncalves: Finland was a good experience. I had just done the championship in Portugal and won everything there. Then we went to Sweden and I got sick and had a fever and I was on medication all weekend and couldn’t get the results I wanted. I rested between Sweden and Finland and came into Finland much better. In Finland I still wasn’t 100%, but I gave it all I had. In the first moto we had problems with the bike, but the second moto we were close to third place at the end and I fought really hard to get in that position. Even though the season is nearly over I won’t give up and I will continue to try and get the best results.

Q: I can’t imagine what it is like for a sportsman. You have only a certain amount of time to perform and only a certain amount of years to be on top of your game. Do you think much about the future when the results are not going how you want?

Goncalves: It is tough, when you go the way I have gone. I worked for the factory KTM team and factory Honda team, and I am not in the same condition now as when I was in a factory team. It’s  a good team I am in now, but it isn’t a factory team. My motivation has never been for money, I don’t care if I get one euro or one million. My passion for the sport is so big I don’t even look at the money. Of course if you have both good money and good results that is perfect. It is frustrating, but I am so focused at the moment trying to do better, and get better results that I sometimes forget about what I have to do for next year.

Q: Would you consider making a move to something like Enduro world championship or some other form of motorcycle racing if you can’t get a ride in the MXGP series?

Goncalves: To be honest, I am open to anything, to any sport on a motorcycle. Being on a motorbike for me is a great feeling, but my passion is motocross and I believe in myself, and I think I can get some good results for myself and the people I work for.

Q: What about the next couple of months, do you like the circuits we will visit?

Goncalves: Loket is a good track, a special surface, one of the classic ones, and it’s slick, I have had good results in the past there. I am not really looking at the tracks coming up, I mean we have two new ones in Brazil and Mexico, and I just need to be ready for it, no matter what the track is like.

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 17 July 2014 – Youthstream and Milestone are proud to announce that MXGP - The Official Motocross Videogame’ will be available for PS4™, and for the first time it will be released worldwide.

Rising up from the dust comes the PS4™ version with a lot of news and exclusive contents:

• New Features: 18 tracks of which 4 are brand new, for a full MXGP experience: Italy – Arco di Trento; Bulgaria – Sevlievo ; Czech Republic – Loket; Europe – Lierop
• Red Plate: As in reality, the rider who is leading the championship points standings has his own number plate with a different background color (red).
• PS4 exclusive feature, the changing of light on the controller depends on the bike’s engine RPM

​Improvements

• Deformable terrain with real time graphics
• More detailed models of motorcycles. Size of the texture four times greater than PS3 version.
• 3D character models improved
• New Lighting environmental system (powered by Yebis 2.)
• Improved audio with wider 3d sound positioning
• More riders on the track at the same time

Based on one of the most adrenaline filled and challenging championships ever, dust, emotion, realism, authenticity, amazing jumps and the fight for first position are the key elements of the new videogame. A lot of new features have been included into the game that will inspire motocross lovers, but not only them. By playing, new generations of riders/players are brought to life, characterized by Milestones latest masterpiece. The aim?  Win the MXGP World Championship race by race.

MXGP – The Official Motocross Videogame features all the riders, teams, bikes and rules from the official MXGP 2013 calendar including a redesigned career mode for living the feelings of Motocross.

Developed by Milestone Studio, one of the most recognized racing videogame developers and publishers for consoles and Windows® PC, MXGP, The Official Motocross Videogame is now available on Xbox 360® (59.99€), PlayStation®3 (59.99€), PlayStation®Vita (39.99€) and Windows PC® (39.99€). PC players will also be able to download it from Steam by clicking here.

Follow us on Facebook, on the official Youtube Channel or check the  #mxgpvideogame hashtag.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

Milestone

The lads that brought you the movie ‘Living for the weekend’ have teamed up with one of the biggest and most legendary names in our sport Antonio Cairoli, to bring you a filmed documentary on the Italian sensation and his journey to the top, seven-times FIM Motocross World Champion and well on his way to world title number eight.

From the highest of highs, to the lowest of lows, everybody has a story. This is Tony’s…

To view the trailer ‘Tony Cairoli: The Movie’ click here.

The latest issue of Motocross Illustrated, our FREE Motocross e-magazine is online and this issue we have some cool stories on the FIM Motocross World Championship, the domination by the Red Bull KTM Factory team, and also stories with some leading GP riders.

Check it out right here

FUNCHAL (Portugal), 15 July 2014 – Last weekend at MXGP of Finland Youthstream was pleased to welcome special guest Mr. Alexander Dzheus, Deputy of the Legislative Assembly in the Krasnodar territory, Chairman of the Health Resort Institution and Tourism committee and General Director of all Orlyonok Children Centers along with a deputation of Russian delegates who assembled here in Hyvinkää to gather information in order to organize and host a round of the FIM Junior Motocross World Championship and even a round of MXGP in the very near future.

The representatives expressed their interest in expanding motocross in Orlyonok, a educational center in Russia recognized for its youth training facilities, and were also interested in the media coverage that surrounds the event agreeing that it would be very beneficial, not only for Orlyonok but also for the state of Krasnodar and all of Russia in general.

After their MXGP experience at round thirteen of the FIM Motocross World Championship, where they were able to witness some of Youthstream’s youth development programs such as the MXGP Academy and the European Championships, the Russians were very impressed with the quality of event organization and the speed of the young European Championship EMX65 and EMX85 riders which has left them feeling very enthusiastic and excited to eventually host a round of the FIM Junior Motocross World Championship in the near future.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

HYVINKÄÄ (Finland), 13 July 2014 – Round thirteen of the FIM Motocross World Championship in Hyvinkää was unforgiving to say the least with the track embodying a full variety of dirt compound and obstacles, putting not only the riders to the test, but the teams as well as they strived to find the perfect suspension set up and tire choice to suit the circuit which proved to be more or less indecipherable. At the end of the day, MXGP is a world championship and a world championship in any sport is not supposed to be easy, although Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s duo of Antonio Cairoli and Jeffrey Herlings could have fooled you, as they both dominated both races to extend their championship points lead even further.

MXGP

It’s a commonly known fact ‘the tougher the better’ for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Antonio Cairoli who is undoubtedly one of the most technically gifted riders in the world. The Italian pulled two Fox Holeshots and dominated both races for his seventh overall victory this year. “I think this track was one of the toughest we have had so far, it was very bumpy and difficult but it was nice for me to get the holeshot, it always makes everything easier and I have been working hard on my starts this year and it seems to be working well,” he said.

It has been a while since we have seen Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Steven Frossard on the box, but finally he made it after charging mega hard all day for two top three finishes. Despite crashing in race two, the Frenchman bounced back hungrier than ever to take second for second overall.

The third step of the podium was hard fought today for Rockstar Energy Suzuki World’s Kevin Strijbos who stood on that same step for the sixth time this year. Strijbos admitted the day was difficult and very physically demanding saying: “after the first race I was out of power, I felt like I had already raced three heats and then I had a really bad start in the second heat, so I was like dead last, I just thought to myself I need to save energy and then push at the end and that’s what I did so it worked out ok.”

Proving just how testing the circuit here in Hyvinkää is, Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jeremy Van Horebeek uncharacteristically crashed in race two and destroyed the front end of his bike. A pit stop with some quick repairs, the Belgian gritted his teeth and soldiered on despite his handlebars being insanely bent. Remarkably the twenty-four year old managed to salvage tenth place, which in combination with his second place in race one, rewarded him with fourth overall.

Out of the eight rounds Team HRC’s Max Nagl has contested, he has banked seven top five finishes with today’s fifth overall being the seventh.

Meanwhile performance of the day has to go to Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Dean Ferris who, after nine months off of racing motocross and only just recovering from injury, proved he is a real force in the MXGP class after mixing it with the top five in both motos to take home sixth and fifth for sixth overall.

MXGP Race 1 top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 35:02.155; 2. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:07.878; 3. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:11.988; 4. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), +0:19.692; 5. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:24.144; 6. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:38.039; 7. Dean Ferris (AUS, Husqvarna), +0:40.980; 8. Filip Bengtsson (SWE, KTM), +1:00.359; 9. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), +1:09.083; 10. Matiss Karro (LAT, KTM), +1:10.032.

MXGP Race 2 top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 35:36.408; 2. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:22.277; 3. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +0:28.140; 4. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:28.733; 5. Dean Ferris (AUS, Husqvarna), +0:31.066; 6. Rui Goncalves (POR, Yamaha), +0:31.718; 7. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), +0:34.772; 8. Ken de Dycker (BEL, KTM), +0:50.435; 9. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), +0:52.472; 10. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:54.411.

MXGP Overall top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 50 points; 2. Steven Frossard (FRA, KAW), 42 p.; 3. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, SUZ), 34 p.; 4. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 33 p.; 5. Maximilian Nagl (GER, HON), 32 p.; 6. Dean Ferris (AUS, HUS), 30 p.; 7. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 29 p.; 8. David Philippaerts (ITA, YAM), 24 p.; 9. Rui Goncalves (POR, YAM), 23 p.; 10. Matiss Karro (LAT, KTM), 21 p.

MXGP World Championship Classification Top Ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 577 points; 2. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 515 p.; 3. Clement Desalle (BEL, SUZ), 470 p.; 4. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, SUZ), 424 p.; 5. Steven Frossard (FRA, KAW), 307 p.; 6. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 296 p.; 7. Maximilian Nagl (GER, HON), 269 p.; 8. David Philippaerts (ITA, YAM), 234 p.; 9. Davide Guarneri (ITA, TM), 218 p.; 10. Gautier Paulin (FRA, KAW), 205 p.

MXGP Manufacturer: 1. KTM, 577 points; 2. Suzuki, 542 p.; 3. Yamaha, 519 p.; 4. Kawasaki, 479 p.; 5. Honda, 404 p.; 6. Husqvarna, 260 p.; 7. TM, 248 p.

MX2

What more can we say about Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings? The kid’s riding speaks for itself as he dominated both races by over a minute to take home his forty-third MX2 Grand Prix overall at the tender age of nineteen. With his double victory here today, it’s more than likely the Dutch sensation will claim FIM MX2 World Title number three at the next round of MXGP in Loket, Czech Republic.

Another solid result for Honda Gariboldi rider Tim Gajser who claimed his fourth podium finish of the year with second overall. Looking at the championship standings, the Slovenian is in fifth; only thirteen points shy of Dylan Ferrandis in fourth and a further three from Romain Febvre in third. The seventeen year old said, “I know I have closed the gap to third and fourth, so I will work hard to try and get there.”

Despite being a little black and blue with bruises from yesterday’s huge crash in qualifying, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jordi Tixier toughed it out today to take second and fourth for third overall.

Meanwhile it was a very frustrating day in the office for CLS Kawasaki Monster Energy’s Dylan Ferrandis, who charged hard in race one to cross the line in second only to be penalized for passing on a waving yellow flag which dropped him back to twelfth after a deduction of ten positions. In race two the Frenchman redeemed himself with a second place he could keep, landing him in fourth overall.

Yamaha Factory Racing’s Christophe Charlier battled the gnarly conditions all day long with a hard fought fourth in race one and a tenth in race two for fifth overall and his best result of the season.

MX2 Race 1 top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 34:23.599; 2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +1:03.805; 3. Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +1:07.586; 4. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +1:16.455; 5. Romain Febvre (FRA, Husqvarna), +1:23.575; 6. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, Husqvarna), +1:25.424; 7. Julien Lieber (BEL, Suzuki), +1:27.328; 8. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Suzuki), +1:28.451; 9. Valentin Guillod (SUI, KTM), +1:30.580; 10. Vsevolod Brylyakov (RUS, Honda), +1:35.460.

MX2 Race 2 top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 33:57.672; 2. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), +1:17.102; 3. Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +1:17.431; 4. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +1:28.590; 5. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), +1:34.931; 6. Petar Petrov (BUL, Yamaha), +1:41.869; 7. Valentin Guillod (SUI, KTM), +1:46.747; 8. Julien Lieber (BEL, Suzuki), -1 lap(s); 9. Romain Febvre (FRA, Husqvarna), -1 lap(s); 10. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), -1 lap(s).

MX2 Overall top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points; 2. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 40 p.; 3. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 40 p.; 4. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, KAW), 31 p.; 5. Christophe Charlier (FRA, YAM), 29 p.; 6. Romain Febvre (FRA, HUS), 28 p.; 7. Julien Lieber (BEL, SUZ), 27 p.; 8. Valentin Guillod (SUI, KTM), 26 p.; 9. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 24 p.; 10. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, HUS), 24 p.

MX2 World Championship Classification Top Ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 594 points; 2. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 449 p.; 3. Romain Febvre (FRA, HUS), 416 p.; 4. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, KAW), 403 p.; 5. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 390 p.; 6. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KAW), 389 p.; 7. Valentin Guillod (SUI, KTM), 314 p.; 8. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, HUS), 308 p.; 9. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 289 p.; 10. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, SUZ), 257 p.

MX2 Manufacturer: 1. KTM, 624 points; 2. Kawasaki, 508 p.; 3. Husqvarna, 432 p.; 4. Honda, 400 p.; 5. Suzuki, 381 p.; 6. Yamaha, 350 p.; 7. TM, 6 p.

Click here to obtain the complete results.

All the photos of the MXGP of Finland will be available here

MXGP was available across the board in high definition, and is also globally available to view live and in HD on www.MXGP-TV.com. Click here for the complete list of countries and cooperating MXGP broadcasting networks, viewing times can be viewed by clicking on the logo of your chosen broadcasting network.

MXGP FINLAND – QUICK FACTS

Circuit length: 1540

Type of ground: Sand

Temperature: 25°

Weather conditions: sunny

Crowd Attendance: 17.000

NEXT MXGP

The next round of the FIM Motocross World Championship will take place in two weeks time at the circuit of Loket, Czech Republic on the weekend of July 24.

LINKS

Youthstream

FIM

MXGP of Finland