KTM factory riders were on form at the 2016 Motocross of Nations in Maggiora, Italy this weekend with Tony Cairoli winning the MXGP class and Jeffrey Herlings winning Open Class.
KTM factory riders were on form at the 2016 Motocross of Nations in Maggiora, Italy this weekend with Tony Cairoli winning the MXGP class and Jeffrey Herlings making an impressive debut ride on the KTM 450 SX-F to win the Open Class.
Race 1 (MXGP & MX2)
The first race saw a win by France with Roman Febvre, with Cairoli settling for second after leading the race for the first half.
Race 2 (Open & MX2)
Race 2 was a chance for Herlings show what he could do on his debut ride on the KTM 450 SX-F and he fought the good fight with US rider and race winner Jason Anderson. Herlings was second after a small crash, but despite a solid sixth in race one by teammate Coldenhoff, Team Netherlands was still only in fourth place after the second moto.
Race 3 (Open & MXGP)
The last went to Herlings by an impressive 7.6 seconds, with Cairoli placing second. But there were two more incidents in the final stages that proved to be decisive. Team France’s Roman Febvre made a decisive charge forward to finish fourth, and while Team USA’s Cooper Webb put in a courageous last race in Andersen’s absence, he tipped over in the latter stages and went on to finish tenth. Coldenhoff’s seventh place in the final race also helped to push Team Netherlands up to second and to trail France by a single point.
Herlings: “To go 1-2-1 in the qualifying and the two races is very good and I think I showed here I was one of the fastest all weekend. I showed a lot of speed so I’m very pleased about that, and it’s good feedback for next season. We need that because it will be our rookie season. We only spent four days on the bike so far, so to go 1-2-1 here I think is already pretty amazing. I’m looking forward to next season, to testing in the winter and developing the bike to suit me. KTM has a great 450 bike and I think we’re looking very good.”
Cairoli, who was partnered with two Italian riders who were not so experienced as the eight-time world champion said it was tough to start the Nations in Italy knowing the team would not win and probably not make the podium. “It’s hard to find the motivation, but I did that to try to win my class. I wasn’t feeling that great after my crash yesterday and I was a bit sore when I woke up this morning, although luckily there were no injuries. But my riding was perfect even though I am still not 100 percent fit and lack some confidence. We know what to work on for next season.”