MX1 : Victory 90 for Everts after Portuguese thriller

Yamaha Intur Sports Motocross Team rider Stefan Everts steered his YZ450FM to a sixth consecutive victory and the third this season today at a warm Grand Prix of Portugal and the Agueda circulated populated by 15,500 spectators. It was the 90th career success for the reigning number one and came after a gripping first moto tussle with Sebastien Tortelli (KTM).  The third round of fifteen in the 2006 FIM MX1 World Championship took place in good weather conditions with sunshine and decent temperatures bathing the fifth and sixth motos of the season. Only 24 hours early the climate had been quite different. Hard rain throughout Friday night and some more showers Saturday forced the FIM to shrink the Saturday practice timetable to conserve the sodden track. With only one free practice before the 30 minute qualification 33-year-old Everts sealed the third fastest lap time. The track was dry and rough for the opening moto and the various ruts provided a nice technical contrast to the faster sections of the course. The first outing of the day was a classic and one of the best performances by Everts in several years. The Belgian fought all race long with Sebastien Tortelli and produced what has to be considered as a contender for the 'over-taking move of the season' by leaping past the Frenchman cresting a jump-on-the-turn to regain the lead early in lap ten. Tortelli kept applying pressure but Everts was faultless and needed to be. Eventually the Frenchman made a mistake on the final circulation and crashed giving the reigning number one an easy passage to the chequered flag. In the second race Everts was fourth going around the second corner but attacked aggressively and passed leader Tortelli in the same bend as earlier in the day. The Frenchman crashed shortly afterwards and dislocated his hip. The severity of the injury is unknown but if he is forced to miss the next Grand Prix then it will leave Everts in a strong position in terms of the Championship. Alone at the front he controlled the moto by a relatively comfortable margin over Jonathan Barragan (KTM). Cedric Melotte continues to find his speed after a pre-season wrist injury but the friendly Belgian suffered with two bad starts and a second moto crash today. The 27-year-old had to dispel a lot of energy to come back from a lowly position in the first moto to ninth and then fell on the tight second corner of the second race and was far behind the field before deciding to retire after another spill. Stefan now heads Tanel Leok (Kawasaki) by 27 points in the world championship standings. After two consecutive rounds within the Iberian Peninsula the fourth test of the series will take place in a fortnight at the Teutschenthal circuit for the Karcher Grand Prix of Germany. Stefan Everts: "It has been a hard day for me, especially with that first moto. I was in the lead but Sebastien was there the whole race and pushing me. I had to ride defensively because I know he is very aggressive and could try anything. The moment he passed me I got him back going up the hill and I think that was an important move that decided the rest of the race. In the second moto I was very aggressive on the first lap and could pass Sebastien in the same place. I tried to pull away but the moment I saw him on the ground I lost my concentration and couldn't really find my rhythm or pace. Jonathan followed me hard and I know he is very fit. It was another tough race but I am happy with this double victory." Cedric Melotte: "I don't know what happened today but it was not a good weekend for me. My jumps were not bad out of the gate but everybody closed me off on the first turn and that happened twice. I had two bad starts and the track was not good for passing. I tried to come back in the first race and ended up ninth; I know I can do better than that but I was feeling a bit lost out there. In the second heat I crashed on the second corner with Brian and took a long time to get going again. I tried hard to come back but lost the front wheel. It was hard to restart again and finally I decided to stop. It was a weekend without any luck and I just want to focus on the next GP now." Carlo Rinaldi: "It was a very good day on Stefan's side as once again he proved that he wants to beat everybody, even if it means riding defensively like he did in the first moto. It looked like Tortelli had a bit more than him but he rode with a good strategy and in a smart way. In the second moto he was quickly in the lead and tried to manage the gap with Barragan but was not riding so well or as smooth as he usually is. It was a bad day for Cedric and I feel very sorry for him because he needs some good results. It was very difficult to come back on this track." NB: In the last few years the manufacturer standings were calculated by FIM based upon the total GP result (combined overall standings after two motos), with 25 points for the manufacturer winning the overall GP. This was remarkable as riders can win 25 points per heat, and therefore a maximum of 50 points per GP. As per 2006 the manufacturer standings of FIM are based upon the same calculations as for the riders championship: for each heat manufacturer points are to be gained, regardless of the overall GP position.   Race classification MX1 Round: 3 - 2006 GP of Agueda, Portugal Circuit: Agueda Race: 21 Laps  Pos.  Rider Manufacturer  Nat. Total Time  1   S. Everts Yamaha  BEL  40' 11.933  2   S. Tortelli KTM  FRA  +20.727  3   K. De Dycker Honda  BEL  +33.544  4   K. Strijbos Suzuki  BEL  +40.260  5   J. Barragan KTM  ESP  +44.074  6   T. Leok Kawasaki  EST  +49.921  7   S. Ramon Suzuki  BEL  +54.458  8   J. Noble Honda  GBR  +1' 19.327  9   C. Melotte Yamaha  BEL  +1' 25.116  10   S. Sword Kawasaki  GBR  +1' 28.637  11   J. Garcia Vico Honda  ESP  +1' 30.252  12   G. Crockard Honda  GBR  +1' 30.862  13   M. Priem Yamaha  BEL  +1' 33.701  14   B. Jorgensen Honda  DNK  +1' 36.929  15   P. Leuret  Honda  FRA  +1' 42.669  16   M. Van Daele Honda  BEL  +1' 50.107  17   J. Bill Yamaha  GBR  +1' 52.142  18   A. Pyrhonen TM  FIN  +2' 5.337  19   C. Federici Kawasaki  ITA  +1 lap(s)  20   L. Freibergs Suzuki  LVA  +1 lap(s)  Race 2: 21 Laps  Pos.  Rider Manufacturer  Nat. Total Time  1   S. Everts Yamaha  BEL  39' 23.754  2   J. Barragan KTM  ESP  +5.746  3   K. Strijbos Suzuki  BEL  +11.695  4   T. Leok Kawasaki  EST  +18.728  5   K. De Dycker Honda  BEL  +22.443  6   M. Priem Yamaha  BEL  +29.741  7   J. Bill Yamaha  GBR  +50.317  8   P. Leuret  Honda  FRA  +1' 1.967  9   W. Avis KTM  RSA  +1' 9.310  10   A. Pyrhonen TM  FIN  +1' 15.542  11   J. Garcia Vico Honda  ESP  +1' 18.807  12   L. Freibergs Suzuki  LVA  +1' 21.424  13   G. Crockard Honda  GBR  +1' 30.916  14   D. Theybers Suzuki  BEL  +1' 34.707  15   A. Salvini Suzuki  ITA  +1' 37.602  16   J. Lindhe KTM  SWE  +1' 38.460  17   M. Van Daele Honda  BEL  +1' 39.379  18   S. Sword Kawasaki  GBR  +1' 40.329  19   K. Salaets Yamaha  BEL  +1' 40.598  20   B. Jorgensen Honda  DNK  +1' 48.115  Championship standings MX1 Pos.  Rider  Manufacturer  Nat. Points  1   Stefan Everts Yamaha  BEL 142  2   Tanel Leok Kawasaki  EST 115  3   Sebastien Tortelli KTM  FRA 99  4   Kevin Strijbos Suzuki  BEL 98  5   Ken De Dycker Honda  BEL 97  6   Jonathan Barragan KTM  ESP 97  7   Steve Ramon Suzuki  BEL 83  8   Cedric Melotte Yamaha  BEL 66  9   Pascal Leuret  Honda  FRA 65  10   Manuel Priem Yamaha  BEL 53  11   Stephen Sword Kawasaki  GBR 51  12   Javier Garcia Vico Honda  ESP 44  13   James Noble Honda  GBR 42  14   Antti Pyrhonen TM  FIN 41  15   Julien Bill Yamaha  GBR 39  16   Marvin Van Daele Honda  BEL 30  17   Brian Jorgensen Honda  DNK 27  18   Danny Theybers Suzuki  BEL 25  19   Wyatt Avis KTM  RSA 18  20   Gordon Crockard Honda  GBR 16  Manufacturers standings MX1 Pos. Manufacturer Points  1  Yamaha 142  2  KTM 125  3  Suzuki 121  4  Kawasaki 115  5  Honda 97  6  TM 41    MX2 : Cairoli takes first podium of the season Round: 3 - 2006 GP of Agueda, Portugal Circuit: Agueda Date: 23 April 2006 Crowd: 15500 Temp: 20ºC Weather: Changeable MX2 World Champion Antonio Cairoli was third overall today at Agueda for the Portuguese Grand Prix. The De Carli Yamaha representative made the perfect start in the first moto and defended a slender margin ahead of Kawasaki's Christophe Pourcel for the entire race distance. It was his second consecutive moto win after success in Spain last week, but, like the meeting at Bellpuig, the Italian was luckless in the other half of the Grand Prix and was the victim of a collision entering the first turn that caused him to crash and restart last. The world champion showed considerable skill on a layout that was difficult to pass on, rising to 10th - good enough to take his first top three result of the year. The track was very rough and dry after sunny spells on Saturday and clear blue skies throughout race day. The Grand Prix had begun under a dark cloud - literally - as heavy rain battered the circuit through Friday night and forced the MX2 qualification heats to be scrapped in favour of a 30 minute timed practice period. Thankfully the weather did not play further havoc and 15,500 spectators attended encouraged by a decent forecast. Kenneth Gunderson had taken his first podium since 2002 at Zolder and proceeded to notch a moto victory at Bellpuig last week for the first time in three years. The Norwegian was in no condition to play the role of protagonist on this occasion however after feeling sick all weekend. He started well in moto1 and was briefly as high as third but faded back to 12th and had to be assisted into the medical centre for a saline drip. In moto two he tried to gather some points but had to pull out after eight laps. Bike it Dixon Yamaha's Billy Mackenzie was sixth overall. The 22-year-old Scot had marked his first career Grand Prix podium at the same venue for the 2005 Grand Prix of Portugal and was the second Yamaha home in moto one after just being beaten to a possible fifth position by the KTMs of Carl Nunn and David Philippaerts; the trio crossed the line only three seconds apart. In the second moto he was slightly off the pace and had to fend off British championship rival Tommy Searle for sixth. Former three times world champion Alessio Chiodi was the second best Yamaha rider with fifth overall. The veteran was pass the chequered flag in eighth after finally managing to get the better of Rui Goncalves and Searle. The Italian was not assisted by a poor jump from the gate that placed him mid-pack on the opening lap. Later in the day he made a better launch from the line and rode safely to third. Davide Guarneri was again unfortunate after a crash caused him to retire in moto one. He was 15th in moto two. Cairoli is now fourth in the series standings and 39 points behind Tyla Rattray who won for the third consecutive GP. Chiodi is fifth and Mackenzie is tied in seventh. The world championship will reconvene after a one week break at Teutschenthal for the Karcher Grand Prix of Germany on May 7th. Antonio Cairoli, De Carli Yamaha: "The first race was good for me but I am not happy about the second because of the crash at the start. I pushed so hard to close the gap to the other riders and take positions but this track was not an easy one for overtaking. I finished tenth which was OK but it was not a good day for me. Race after race we are getting better and faster. I want to fight with Tyla and he is a very fast rider. We need to be stronger at the start because I showed that I have the speed." Kenneth Gunderson, Ricci Racing: "I don't know what the problem is now but I know I am sick. I need to see a doctor on Tuesday and find out what's wrong. I think it must be a virus or something because I could push for two laps and then after that I was completely finished. I tried in the first moto to get some points but in the second it was impossible." Alessio Chiodi, Ricci Racing: "The first moto was all about a bad start and the track made it difficult to pass. The other riders were fast and it was difficult to catch them. Finishing 8th was not so good and I understood where I needed to improve. In the second moto I was riding with more confidence. My rhythm was fast and I could take third. The track was difficult because in some places you had grip and in others not and it was very rough. I am about 80 per cent satisfied with the result today."     Race classification MX2 Round: 3 - 2006 GP of Agueda, Portugal Circuit: Agueda Race: 22 Laps  Pos.  Rider Manufacturer  Nat. Total Time  1   A. Cairoli Yamaha  ITA  40' 13.833  2   C. Pourcel Kawasaki  FRA  +0.890  3   T. Rattray KTM  RSA  +19.172  4   M. De Reuver KTM  NED  +33.150  5   C. Nunn KTM  GBR  +47.112  6   D. Philippaerts KTM  ITA  +48.536  7   B. MacKenzie Yamaha  GBR  +50.388  8   A. Chiodi Yamaha  ITA  +54.435  9   R. Goncalves KTM  POR  +1' 5.476  10   T. Searle Kawasaki  GBR  +1' 8.568  11   G. Swanepoel Kawasaki  RSA  +1' 12.363  12   K. Gundersen Yamaha  SWE  +1' 26.011  13   M. Seistola Honda  FIN  +1' 28.273  14   A. Boissière Yamaha  FRA  +1' 29.044  15   P A. Renet Honda  FRA  +1' 50.163  16   N. Aubin Kawasaki  FRA  +1' 31.498  17   M. Monni KTM  ITA  +1 lap(s)  18   M. Schiffer KTM  GER  +1 lap(s)  19   J. Wing KTM  SWE  +1 lap(s)  20   X. Hernandez Yamaha  ESP  +1 lap(s)  Race 2: 21 Laps  Pos.  Rider Manufacturer  Nat. Total Time  1   T. Rattray KTM  RSA  39' 11.834  2   C. Pourcel Kawasaki  FRA  +8.857  3   A. Chiodi Yamaha  ITA  +17.681  4   P. Caps Honda  BEL  +22.236  5   M. De Reuver KTM  NED  +25.641  6   B. MacKenzie Yamaha  GBR  +27.180  7   T. Searle Kawasaki  GBR  +30.227  8   C. Nunn KTM  GBR  +32.700  9   G. Swanepoel Kawasaki  RSA  +35.124  10   A. Cairoli Yamaha  ITA  +45.236  11   L. Seguy Yamaha  FRA  +50.739  12   A. Boissière Yamaha  FRA  +58.974  13   S. Pourcel Kawasaki  FRA  +1' 4.029  14   M. Nagl KTM  GER  +1' 5.196  15   D. Guarneri Yamaha  ITA  +1' 16.064  16   M. Seistola Honda  FIN  +1' 18.555  17   N. Aubin Kawasaki  FRA  +1' 19.248  18   M. Monni KTM  ITA  +1' 39.370  19   X. Hernandez Yamaha  ESP  +1' 45.106  20   P A. Renet Honda  FRA  +1' 59.068  Championship standings MX2 Pos.  Rider  Manufacturer  Nat. Points  1   Tyla Rattray KTM  RSA 128  2   Marc De Reuver KTM  NED 108  3   Christophe Pourcel Kawasaki  FRA 108  4   Antonio Cairoli Yamaha  ITA 89  5   Alessio Chiodi Yamaha  ITA 81  6   Carl Nunn KTM  GBR 76  7   David Philippaerts KTM  ITA 74  8   Billy MacKenzie Yamaha  GBR 74  9   Kenneth Gundersen Yamaha  SWE 73  10   Tommy Searle Kawasaki  GBR 57  11   Rui Goncalves KTM  POR 54  12   Sébastien Pourcel Kawasaki  FRA 52  13   Patrick Caps Honda  BEL 46  14   Luigi Seguy Yamaha  FRA 42  15   Davide Guarneri Yamaha  ITA 38  16   Gareth Swanepoel Kawasaki  RSA 37  17   Antoine Meo Honda  FRA 27  18   Matti Seistola Honda  FIN 26  19   Anthony Boissière Yamaha  FRA 24  20   Pierre-Alexandre Renet Honda  FRA 20  24   Aigar Leok Yamaha  EST 13  28   Xavier Hernandez Yamaha  ESP 5    Manufacturers standings MX2   Pos. Manufacturer Points  1  Yamaha 139  2  KTM 137  3  Kawasaki 110  4  Honda 68