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Valin wins MX2 as KRT put France on pole
Kawasaki Racing Team's Mathis Valin and Romain Febvre assured France of first-gate picks in each of the races in tomorrow's main program of the 79th FIM Motocross of Nations on home soil at Ernée, France, with stunning rides in qualifying. Febvre laid the base with a no-risk second in MXGP before Valin, racing for the first time in three months, swept to victory in MX2 to seal pole for La Grande Nation.
To the delight of the massive French crowd, Febvre gave the host nation a superb start to qualifying with a clear holeshot from gate 22 in the opening MXGP moto and was soon racing clear of the pack. With two scores from three to count for team gate-pick during the main program on Sunday, the onus is high on the MXGP rider to avoid risks and give his teammates a solid base, so Febvre was not concerned as a sole rival could stay his pace with third almost 20 seconds back after 15 minutes. He took the opportunity to check out his rival's lines before closing back onto the rear wheel at will with four laps remaining. He even drew alongside, but a pass was hindered by a backmarker and the Frenchman was then content to finish a safe second.
Valin, making his second appearance in national colors, was immaculate in his first race back from an enforced three-month injury break. Second, though, the first turn of the MX2 Qualifier, he was content to shadow the leader before moving to the front on Lap 5 and surged clear to the delight of the massive crowd for a secure six-second victory which ensured France of first gate-pick on Sunday even before the final MX Open Qualifying race.
"It's such a crazy comeback after three months without a race. I took it easy through the first few laps after a good start; I knew I had the speed to come back to Sacha [Coenen], then I put the pressure on him, and he made a mistake. I had so much arm pump after such a long time out of racing, but the crowd helped me put it out of my mind; I couldn't even hear my own bike through the waves in front of the main gallery."
- Mathis Valin (France, MX2)
"It was a good day for the team. We got the job done and are now first to the gate tomorrow, but we must stay concentrated to finish the job. It was a little tricky through the first laps of my qualifying as the track was completely flat for our only practice in the morning, but the ruts had formed for our race, so I needed to learn the track again. After [Jorge] Prado passed me, I could check his lines; I came close to him again but couldn't quite make the pass."
- Romain Febvre (France, MXGP)
Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Levi Kitchen was quickly moving forward after a midfield start from gate 26 to move into fifth by the end of the first lap of the MX2 Qualifying race and continued to push to finish an impressive third, leading the USA to seventh in the team classification. KRT's Pauls Jonass led Latvia to fifth in the team standings with fifth in MX Open Qualifying, while Venum Bud Racing Kawasaki's European EMX250 champion Francisco Garcia proved his ability on a KX™450 by chasing Jonass home for sixth as Spain clinched second in the team classification. DRT Kawasaki's Taylor Hammal gave Great Britain a superb base with an impressive ride in MXGP Qualifying, racing through the pack from 23rd at the first timing split into the Top 10 by Lap 4 and, mixing it with GP regulars, finished ninth to secure his nation's qualification for the main program with a 10th gate-pick. Guilherme Bresolin raced to 18th in MX1 Qualifying to assist Brazil into tomorrow's main program as 18th in the team classification, but Haruki Yokoyama's 20th-placed MX2 finish from a Top 5 start was not quite enough to take Japan directly into the main event.
"It was a good day for Latvia, and also for me, with P5. We set up the bike for the soft dirt this morning, but it was too much for qualifying as the track got hardpack and I was riding a little too aggressively at times. I should have a better feeling for the track after we make the bike lighter again."
- Pauls Jonass (Latvia, MX Open)
"The track changed completely during the day; I had a better feeling in the afternoon, but I got a lot of arm pump. I finished sixth, but I prefer to win; we have P2 as a team today, but we will fight for the win tomorrow."
- Francisco Garcia (Spain, MX Open)