Red Bull KTM Factory rider Ken Roczen opened his bid for the 2013 title in the opening round of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Series in the 250MX class taking double moto victories at the Hangtown Motocross Classic race.
Teammate Ryan Dungey was second in the 450MX and Marvin Musquin was fourth in the 250s for a great start to the season for the factory team.
Fresh from his success in the 250SX Supercross Championship, Roczen was bristling with confidence going into the opening moto. Seventh out of the gates, he worked his way into potential podium position in the opening laps and continued to knock off laps at speed to take the first race by four seconds.
Roczen went one better in the second moto and was second to Blake Baggett going into the first corner. He was already in the lead before the lap was over and never looked threatened. He went on to win second the race by an impressive 12 seconds to secure his first career overall 250 motocross class win.
“It feels great to get a win here,” remarked Roczen. “I felt confident coming into this race and just knew I needed to get a good start to make it happen. I was able to improve my start in the second moto and hopped into the lead early on. Baggett challenged me for a while but I am glad my conditioning paid off and I was able to get my first overall. I am so thankful to the entire Red Bull KTM team for building me a great bike.”
Roczen’s teammate, Marvin Musquin, also put together a solid ride at the Hangtown event. Musquin led in the opening stages of the first moto but relinquished it to his teammate and two other riders in lap three. He held that position right to the flag. Musquin was in fifth in the second moto when he crashed and dropped to ninth. The French rider then turned up the gas and charged back to fourth place for an overall fourth.
Dungey grabs second in 450s
Dungey, the reigning champion was also in good form at Hangtown. He rounded the first corner in fourth place in his opening motos and quickly moved into second place, where he hung on right to the flag. He got away even better in his second moto and rounded the first corner in second behind James Stewart. Dungey and Stewart traded the lead for the first half of the race but then he ran off the track while trying to make the pass, losing a position to Ryan Villopoto.
Dungey quickly recovered and found himself behind Stewart’s rear wheel of Stewart and one lap later moved back into second place, which he carried through to the finish line. His 2-2 results earned him second overall for the day.
KTM also congratulates KTM rider Joey Savatgy who finished ninth in the 250MX in his first professional race.
Next Race: Lakewood, CO – May 25, 2013
Overall Results 250MX–
1. Ken Roczen – 1-1 (KTM)
2. Blake Baggett – 3-2
3. Eli Tomac – 2-3
4. Marvin Musquin – 4-4 (KTM)
5. Zach Osborne – 9-5
6. Kyle Cunningham – 8-7
7. Jason Anderson – 12-6
8. Jeremy Martin – 7-13
9. Joey Savatgy – 10-11 (KTM)
10. Justin Hill – 13-9
Overall Results 450MX
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Ryan Dungey, KTM
3. James Stewart
4. Trey Canard
5. Justin Barcia
6. Ryan Sipes
7. Andrew Short, KTM
8. Mike Alessi
9. Tyla Rattray
10. Weston Peick
19/05 2013
Cairoli celebrates 58th career GP in MX1 GP of Brazil
Red Bull KTM Factory racing rider Antonio Cairoli on Sunday claimed his 58th career GP victory in the GP of Brazil winning both the individual MX1 race and the Super Final after successfully hunting down Kevin Strijbos just as the two-lap board went out.
The races were held at the Beto Carrera theme Park in Brazil, the biggest in Latin America, which is also to host the 2017 edition of the MotoCross of Nations.
Jeffrey Herlings won the MX2 GP with a win in the MX2 race but the Dutch teenager came off the bike in the start melee of the 40-rider Super Final and had to fight his way back from the back of the field. He was unable to catch lead KTM rider Jose Butron who was the fastest MX2 rider in the Super Final but still came away with 47 points and the MX2 victory. Herlings up until now has won every individual moto this season. He was joined on the MX2 podium by Butron in second place and factory teammate Jordi Tixier in third.
Some 25,000 spectators were treated to a top weekend of racing where Herlings started the action with a great fight back to the front of the pack in the individual MX2 race, the first on the program. He missed the start and saw Dutch rider Glen Coldenhoff take the lead followed by UK rider Jake Nichols, both on KTMs. Herlings was on Coldenthoff’s rear wheel with six minutes and two laps to go and went on to take an impressive and crowd-pleasing win.
When the MX1 riders took to the track for their individual race it was clear that Cairoli was on a mission. Decked out in his special yellow helmet and boots, he shot out of the start gate, seized the holeshot and had distanced himself from the other riders by eight seconds just eight minutes into the race. He controlled the moto and never looked threatened, saying after that he liked the track, which was very technical. Cairoli’s factory teammate Ken de Dycker, who finished ninth in the MX1 race bounced back to take fifth in the Super Final. He finished seventh overall in the MX1 GP.
Cairoli, who won the world title here two seasons ago, said he was happy to ride in front of such an enthusiastic crowd. “I was looking forward to racing this GP. I like the track and the people really cheer for you. Its very special to win here and to put on a show for these people.” He dedicated his 58th career win to the memory of Marco Simoncelli, the Italian road racer who lost his life in a racing accident in 2011. “I am going to give this trophy to his father” Cairoli said. Simoncelli raced with the #58.
De Dycker said he was missing some condition this weekend because he has had problems with his back and has not been able to train enough on the bike. “I was struggling with myself this weekend and I didn’t feel like I had any power. Now I will concentrate on training in Belgium and Italy to get ready for the next GP.”
Herlings, a huge crown favorite in Brazil because of his exciting style of riding was clearly disappointed to lose his first race of the season even though he won the GP. “Now I will make it my goal to win every GP. It’s very tough to race the Super final. With 40 riders on the track from both MX1 and MX2 anything can happen, especially at the start,” he said. Tixier was also pleased to be back on the podium and to pick up good points for the championship, even though he said he was not satisfied with his riding this weekend. Both will now return home and concentrate on training in preparation for the next GP in France in two week’s time.
The top 20 riders from both MX2 and MX1 contested the Super Final, a race format that has been adopted this year for the ‘fly away’ races in Qatar, Thailand and Brazil. A fourth race planned for Mexico was cancelled. Races in Europe are presently still run on the 2 x moto format for each class.
MX1 Race 1 Results
1, Tony Cairoli, Italy, KTM, 39:15.493
2, Max Nagl, Germany, Honda, 39:18.510
3, Clement Desalle, Belgium, Suzuki, 39:20.241
4, Gautier Paulin, France, Kawasaki, 39:39.935
5, Jeremy van Horebeek, Belgium, Kawasaki, 39:45.826
Other KTM
9, Ken de Dycker, Belgium, KTM, 40:06.391
14, Jonathan Barragan Spain, KTM, 41:13.676
MX2 Race 1 Results
1, Jeffrey Herlings, Netherlands, KTM, 40:08.386
2, Glenn Coldenhoff, Netherlands, KTM, 40:20.066
3, Jake Nicholls, Great Britain, KTM, 40:24.937
4, Jordi Tixier, France, KTM, 40:32.097
5, Mel Pocock, Great Britain, Yamaha, 40:38.801
Other KTM
6, Jose Butron, Spain, KTM, 40:40.723
MX1/MX2 Super Final Results
1. Tony Cairoli, Italy, KTM, 40:49.230
2. Kevin Strijbos, Belgium, Suzuki, 40:52.060
3. Clement Desalle, Belgium, Suzuki, 41:14.836
4. Gautier Paulin, France Kawasaki, 41:20.308
5. Ken De Dycker, Belgium, KTM, 41:30.351
6, Max Nagl, Germany, Honda, 41:33.996
7, Rui Goncalves, Portugal, KTM, 41:35.091
8, Jeremy van Horebeek, Belgium, Kawasaki, 41.39.849
9, Tommy Searle, GBR, Kawasaki, 41:53.115
10, Jose Butron, Spain, KTM, 41:58.485 (fastest MX2 rider)
Other KTM
13. Jeffrey Herlings, Netherlands, KTM, 42:12.491 (second fastest MX2 rider)
15, Jordi Tixier, France, KTM, 42:18.203 (third fastest MX2 rider)
MX1 GP Classification
1, Cairoli
2. Desalle
3. Strijbos
4, Nagl
5, Gautier
7, De Dycker
MX2 GP Classification
1, Herlings
2, Butron
3, Tixier
4, Coldenhoff
5, Ferris
MX1 Standings (Top 10)
1, Cairoli, 305
2, Paulin, 260
3, Desalle, 247
4, de Dycker, 229
5, Strijbos, 198
6, Searle, 193
7, Nagl, 154
8. Goncalves, 134
9, Philippaerts, 126
10, van Horebeek, 125
MX2 Standings (Top 10)
1, Herlings, 325
2, Tixier, 237
3, Coldenhoff, 205
4, Butron, 193
5, Charlier, 180
6, Ferris, 166
7, Anstie, 157
8, Nicholls, 149
9, Lupino, 134
10, Pocock, 128
19/05 2013
Vinales wins Moto3 at Le Mans to move ahead in championship
KTM riders again made it an all-Spanish affair in Sunday’s Moto3 GP on the Le Mans racing circuit in France with Maverick Vinales winning in front of Alex Rins and Red Bull KTM Ajo factory rider Luis Salom taking the minor podium place.
Vinales becomes the first rider of the season to take two victories and he now moves ahead in the championship standings. The Spanish teenager now leads Salom by 13 points with Rins in third place.
Vinales looked impressive throughout the race and really turned up the heat in the final laps. He was justifiably pleased with his ride: “This was an incredible win. I went very fast considering the condition of the track,” he said. “We improved some things on the bike in tests two weeks ago and this was good for us.”
The three front riders continually jockeyed for positions in the first half of the race together with Germany’s Jonas Folger (Kalex-KTM). Folger led for much of the time and was in line for a podium finish but he lost touch with the leading three when he rode off the track, seeming to swerve to dodge crash debris. He eventually coasted home in a comfortable fourth place.
The race was declared as dry however parts of the track were still wet when it started, which presented the teams with some setup problems.
It was also a tough weekend for Salom, who crashed heavily on Saturday and rode with a lot of pain in his hand. “It has been a difficult weekend for me. We had some setup problems on the grid but it was still a good race and good to be on the podium.” Salom, well known for his last lap attacks started putting in very fast lap times at the close of the race but said this time he didn’t want to risk anything during the final lap.
Also unlucky were Salom’s factory teammate Zulfahmi Khairuddin and KTM rider Niklas Ajo. They had successfully broken away from the following group and were engaged in a battle for places seven and eight when with just five laps to go Fahmi had a huge highside. His airborne bike came down catching Ajo on the foot and both riders slid off into the gravel. Both walked away from the crash.
Australian Arthur Sissis, the third Red Bull KTM Ajo factory rider finished in the points at thirteenth place.
The French GP was another race that underlined the success of the KTM Moto3 bike with the top six riders all on KTM-driven machines.
Moto3 Results
1, Maverick Viñales, Spain, KTM, 42:05.448
2, Alex Rins, Spain, KTM, +1.264
3, Luis Salom, Spain, KTM, +1.387
4, Jonas Folger, Germany, Kalex KTM, +14.593
5, Alex Marquez, Spain, KTM, +37.949
6, Jakub Kornfeil, Czech Republic, Kalex KTM, +40.295
7, Romano Fenati, Italy, FTR Honda, +43.325
8, Brad Binder, Republic of South Africa, Suter Honda, +43.537
9, Alexis Masbou, France, FTR Honda, +45.511
10, Isaac Viñales, Spain, FTR Honda, +45.674
Other KTM
13, Arthur Sissis, Australia, KTM, +58.713
15, Philipp Oettl, Germany, Kalex KTM, +1:18.027
16, Livio Loi, Belgium, Kalex KTM, +1:18.384
18, Toni Finsterbusch, Germany, Kalex KTM, +1:27.726
19, Ana Carrasco, Spain, KTM, +1:27.754
21, Jasper Iwema, Netherlands, Kalex KTM, +1:28.165
24, Eric Granado, Brazil, Kalex KTM, 1 Lap
DNF, Zulfahmi Khairuddin, Malaysia, KTM, 5 Laps
DNF, Niklas Ajo, Finland, KTM, 5 Laps
DNF, Jules Danilo, France, Kalex KTM, 11 Laps
DNF, Florian Alt, Germany, Kalex KTM, 18 Laps
Moto3 Standings after Round 4
1, M. Viñales, 90
2, Salom, 77
3, Rins, 61
4, Folger, 53
5, Binder, 32
6, Khairuddin, 28
7, Kornfeil, 27
8, Marquez, 24
9, Masbou, 23
10, Oliveira, 20
Other KTM
11, Sissis, 19
12, Ajo, 18
19, Iwema, 5
21, Oettl, 1
22, Loi, 1
Moto3 Manufacturers Standings after Round 4
1, KTM, 100
2, Kalex KTM, 53
3, Suter Honda, 33
19/05 2013
Enduro GP of Portugal yields rich points for KTM factory Team
The KTM Enduro Factory Team had a good weekend out at the GP of Portugal in Rounds 7&8 of the competition with both French riders Christophe Nambotin and Antoine Meo picking up double wins in E3 and E1.
Ivan Cervantes of Spain was also in good form scoring two x second place podiums in E2 and his teammate Johnny Aubert came away with a 3-4 result for the weekend. It was a super human effort by Aubert who took a very hard fall on Saturday, badly bruising his ribs and he rode in considerable pain the whole weekend.
Cristobal Guerrero, Meo’s teammate in E1 was also unlucky. He crashed on Saturday, bumping his old shoulder injury. This hampered him but Guerrero still managed to salvage a ninth on Saturday and improved by three places to sixth on Sunday. Aubert too, had a very strong finish on Sunday and team boss Fabio Farioli said his fourth place result did not reflect how well he had ridden over the weekend.
Riders had uncharacteristically colder weather in Portugal and on Saturday and took time to get into the rhythm of the 70 km loops that keep then on their bikes for up to seven hours. Even the normally dominant Meo and Nambotin, while up with the leaders in Round 7, needed the first tests under their wheels before starting to dominate. Nambotin won five of the 12 tests including the final four but on Sunday he needed no time to get into the swing. The French rider was on the case from the very first test and was number one in all 12 of Sunday’s Round 8. Meo won seven tests in E1 on Saturday and six on Sunday, where his worst finish was a third place in the second cross test of the day.
With the exception of a crash in the final cross test on Sunday, Cervantes had a good weekend in the competitive E2 class, even if he had a little more speed on Saturday than the second day. Aubert overcame his discomfort with his bruised ribs on Sunday and finished the day very strongly in the final three tests on Sunday, winning the final Enduro and Cross tests and finishing second in the Extreme.
Laia Sanz of Spain, who recently switched to KTM, picked up the win in Sunday’s round of the women’s competition, a remarkable performance after she competed in and won the Women’s EnduroCrosss gold Medal at the X-Games in Barcelona on Saturday evening. She then immediately flew to Portugal to join the competition on Sunday.
The KTM factory riders will now compete in national competitions until the championship resumes in Greece for the next two rounds on June 15-16. Cervantes however will contest the notorious and very extreme Erzberg Rodeo in Austria on the last weekend in May.
The Portugal rounds conclude the four rounds in the Iberian Peninsular, the competition’s first events back in Europe after four opening rounds in South America that launched the 2013 season.
Enduro World Championship, Round 8 at Torres Vedras, Portugal
E1 Results (indicates results for both days)
1, Antoine Meo, France, KTM (1 – 1)
2, Anthony Boissiere, France, Sherco (6 – 2)
3, Matti Seistola, Finland, Husqvarna (4 – 3)
4, Thomas Oldrati, Italy, Husaberg (8 – 4)
5, Eero Remes, Finland, TM (3 – 5)
Other KTM
6, Cristobal Guerrero, Spain, KTM (9 – 6)
E1 Standings after Round 8
1, Antoine Meo, 151
2, Matti Seistola, 117
3, Juha Salminen, 116
4, Eero Remes, 105
5, Thomas Oldrati, 85
Other KTM
10, Guerrero, 60
E2 Results (indicates results for both days)
1, Alex Salvini, Italy, HM-Honda (1 – 1)
2, Ivan Cervantes, Spain, KTM (2 – 2)
3, Pierre-Alexandre Renet, France, Husaberg (4 – 3)
4, Johnny Aubert, France, KTM (3 – 4)
5, Victor Guerrero, Spain, KTM (5 – 5)
E2 Standings after Round 8
1, Alex Salvini, 149
2, Ivan Cervantes, 134
3, Pierre-Alexandre Renet, 121
4, Johnny Aubert, 116
5, Victor Guerrero, 80
Other KTM
10, Balletti, 42
E3 Results (indicates results for both days)
1, Christophe Nambotin, France, KTM (1 – 1)
2, Mathias Bellino, France, Husaberg (5 – 2)
3, Luis Correia, Portugal, Beta (3 – 3)
4, Manuel Monni, Italy, KTM (4 – 4)
5, Aigar Leok, Estonia, TM (2 – 5)
E3 Standings after Round 8
1, Christophe Nambotin, 150
2, Joakim Ljunggren, 116
3, Aigar Leok, 115
4, Luis Correia, 102
5, Manuel Monni, 97
Other KTM
7, Marcus Kehr, 65
EJ Results (indicates results for both days)
1, Matthew Philips, Australia, Husqvarna (1 – 1)
2, Giacomo Redondi, Italy, KTM (5 – 2)
3, Loic Larrier, France, Husaberg (4 – 3)
4, Luis Oliveira, Yamaha, Portugal (2 – 4)
5, Mario Roman, Spain, Husaberg (3 – 5)
Other KTM
7, Rudi Moroni, Italy, KTM (7 – 7)
EJ Standings after Round 8
1, Matthew Philips, 143
2, Giacomo Redondi, 126
3, Daniel McCanney, 102
4, Mario Roman, 91
5, Luis Oliveira, 89
Other KTM
7, Rudi Moroni, 72
Youth Cup (indicates results for both days)
1, Jamie McCanney, Great Britain, Husaberg (1 – 1)
2, Albin Elowson, Sweden, Husaberg (2 -2)
3, Dawid Ciucci, Italy, KTM (5 – 3)
Other KTM
5, Kirian Mirabet, Spain, KTM (19 – 5)
6, Matteo Bresolin, Italy, KTM (9 – 6)
8, Mika Barnes, France, KTM (6 – 8)
Youth Cup Standings after Round 8
1, Jamie McCanney, 154
2, Albin Elowson, 110
3, Benjamin Herrera, 102
4, Dawid Ciucci, 84
5, Matteo Bresolin, 82
EW Results of Round 4 (indicates results for both days)
1, Laia Sanz, Spain, KTM, (0 – 1) – competed and won gold at the X=Games EnduroCross in Barcelona on Saturday, rejoined the women’s competition on Sunday in Portugal)
2, Jessica Gardiner, Australia, Sherco (1 – 2)
3, Geraldine Fournel, France, Husaberg (2 – 3)
4, Jane Daniels, Great Britain, Husaberg (3 – 4)
5, Audrey Rossat, France, KTM (6 – 5)
EW Standings after Round 4
1, Jessica Gardiner, 67
2, Jane Daniels, 60
3, Laia Sanz, 60
4, Juliette Berrez, 48
5, Jemma Wilson, 43
Other KTM
6, Audrey Rossat, 42
18/05 2013
Gold, gold and silver at X-Games EnduroCross in Barcelona
American Mike Brown and Spanish rider Laia Sanz both struck EnduroCross gold at the Barcelona X-Games on Saturday night while American Maria Forsberg finished second in the women’s event to give KTM a good haul in this event in the city’s Olympic Stadium.
Brown fought a wheel on wheel battle with KTM factory rider Taddy Blazusiak but in the final lap, Taddy hit a gnarly spot going over the logs and crashed over the handlebars leaving his 41-year old veteran teammate to take the prize.
Brown grabbed the holeshot and immediately began the tussle with his fellow KTM factory rider that reached its peak in the final lap and only end with Taddy’s crash. But even then it was still a tight finish for Brown who stumbled in the rocks. Momentarily stranded with his back wheel spinning, Brown almost saw Colton Haaker snatch the gold but was able to fend him off in a tight finish at the flag. American Cody Webb took the bronze medal and Blazusiak, always up with the leaders, came away fourth
“That’s what you call a good race,” Brown said. “It’s hard to get a start like that and beat Taddy and lead in front of him. I had arm problems from probably lap 5 on but was just like, I can do it, I can do it, one more lap and then another lap and another lap. I just kept my head cool and then my last lap I relaxed too much and got stuck in the rocks. I’m just glad to be here and have a gold medal again.”
While leaving without a medal Taddy said he still had good speed. “I was happy with my speed and I was having a great battle with Browny but I hit a gnarly patch over the logs and had to jump off the bike,” Taddy said after the event. He had some pain in his wrist from the crash and said he would have it checked by his doctors on Sunday.
KTM factory rider Jonny Walker was also on the track after a longer break recovering from glandular fever. He qualified for the final in a heat that saw him get tangled at the start and fight his way back from dead last to fifth. He didn’t get away well in the final and also crashed, finally finishing in eleventh place.
Walker said it had been a tough race: “A bad start didn’t help on a track that was mega fast and very one lined. I fought as hard as I could but a couple of mistakes put me back to 11th overall. It was a big experience to race EnduroCross outdoors but I know what I needed to work on now. I can only get better!!”
Sanz unbeatable in the Women’s final
Spanish rider Laia Sanz, who recently switched to a KTM was in a class of her won in the women’s final. The Enduro and Dakar Rally rider looked nothing but confident as she charged the obstacles to the thrill of the Spanish crowd. Even a pileup in the first corner that saw her trailing at the back of the field failed to deter her spirit as she went on to comfortably defend the gold medal she won at the Brazil X-Games in April.
Sanz won by a stunning 12 seconds over KTM factory rider and double X-Games gold medalist American Maria Forsberg.
“For my people, my friends and family, I want to say thank you for coming. It’s really special to have you here,” said Sanz.
She now flies to Barcelona to compete in the Women’s FIM Enduro World Championships in Torres Vedras, Portugal. Sanz leads the points in this competition and sacrificed racing in Saturday’s round three of the women’s championship to appear in Barcelona.
Sandra Gómez Cantero of Spain took the bronze medal.
Elite EnduroCross riders will have their next chance to go for gold at the X-Games Summer Games in Munich Germany June 27-30, 2013.
Men’s Enduro X-Final Round 4 in Barcelona, Spain
1, Mike Brown, United States of America, 10:59.579
2, Colton Haaker, United States of America, 11:01.417
3, Cody Webb, United States of America, 11:14.456
4, Taddy Blazusiak, Poland, KTM, 11:22.695
5, Cory Graffunder, Canada, 11:24.988
Other KTM
11, Jonny Walker, Great Britain, KTM, 11:59.656
Women’s Enduro X-Final Round 4 in Barcelona, Spain
1, Laia Sanz, Spain, KTM, 8:32.687
2, Maria Forsberg, United States of America, KTM, 8:44.218
3, Sandra Gómez Cantero, Spain, 8:56.472
4, Tarah Gieger, Puerto Rico, KTM, 9:18.566
5, Kacy Martinez, United States of America, KTM, 9:18.678
