The Grand Prix of Brazil was once again a great success. With excellent facilities and an enthusiastic 45,000 fans watching some great racing in both MX1 and MX2 classes at Beto Carrero.
A lot of the pre-race talk was about the weather and if Brazil would turn out to be a mudder. There was some heavy rain overnight but nothing to be concerned about and in the end there was just a little bit of drizzle at the start of the first race of MX1 – so the track conditions were perfect to host all the motos of the 2013 Grand Prix of Brazil.
Tony Cairoli won the Super Final, as well as the MX1 Grand Prix and he dedicated his 58th GP victory to his friend Marco Simoncelli who passed away in 2011.
Clement Desalle celebrated his birthday with third in the Super Final and second overall, whereas his teammate Kevin Strijbos obtained the third overall position thanks to his second place in the Super Final.
Jeffrey Herlings won the first race but he was the second best MX2 rider in the Super Final behind Jose Butron. Herlings won the Grand Prix, Butron was second and Jordi Tixier completed the MX2 top three.
MX1 Race 1
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tony Cairoli obtained the GET Athena holey and the Italian succeeded in pulling away in the early laps – dominating the moto until the chequered flag. At the end of the race Cairoli admitted that he had enjoyed racing on the Beto Carrero track, commenting that it was very technical and suited his riding style.
Honda World Motocross’ Max Nagl won Saturday’s qualifying race and he was very satisfied with his day’s work – finishing in a well deserved second place in the first moto and getting fourth overall. In fact Nagl just missed out on a podium after finishing level on points with Strijbos.
Rockstar Energy Suzuki World’s Clement Desalle did not have such a good start in the first race and when he was overtaken by Nagl in the first laps of the moto the Belgian could not pass him back. Desalle admitted that by the end of the race he tried to attack the German but he struggled to find the good lines and he had to settle for third place.
Kawasaki Racing Team’s Gautier Paulin was another rider unhappy with his start in the first race and he was down in the 11th position in the first corners of the moto. However, the French rider gave it his all and he crossed the finish line with a hard-fought fourth place.
His teammate Jeremy Van Horebeek also had a solid first race – the Belgian rider was eighth at the start, but he managed to overtake Kevin Strijbos, Ken De Dycker and David Philippaerts and he bagged fifth.
Kevin Strijbos did not have the best of starts at the gate drop – unable to find his rhythm, so in the end he ended the race in sixth.
The Italian rider, David Philippaerts had an excellent start and rode second during the first four laps of the race. He lost a couple of positions with Nagl and then Desalle but while riding a very consistent race in the fourth position, he had a problem with the tear off and he was only able to finish seventh.
Tommy Searle has been improving with each race in his first MX1 season and qualifying well in fifth. Searle continued to impress with a really good start in third but a mistake in the opening minutes dropped him down to ninth place. In the end the British rider finished eighth and Ken De Dycker and Joel Roelants completed the top ten.
MX2 Race 1
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings struggled once again with his start in the first race, but once again an incredible recovery was on the cards and he did not disappoint the locals, who went crazy as he moved up lap after lap. The Dutch pilot was 12th at the start and even though most of the riders said that it was very difficult to pass, Herlings managed to win the first race with almost 12 seconds to spare.
Standing Construct KTM’s Glenn Coldenhoff started second behind Alexander Tonkov, who had taken the Get Athena holey, but the Dutch rider overtook the Russian after the first three laps and Coldenhoff took the lead of the race. Coldenhoff was feeling really good, but he could not keep his compatriot Herlings from passing – Coldenhoff had to settle for second.
Wilvo Nestaan JM Racing KTM’s Jake Nicholls had a very consistent first race and he managed to finish third. The British rider started third and in lap four he overtook Tonkov and moved up to second. However, Herlings was on a charge and Nicholls dropped one position.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jordi Tixier was sixth in the first lap but he struggled to find a good rhythm and by the middle of the race Tixier was overtaken by Dylan Ferrandis, Alexander Tonkov and Monster Energy Yamaha’s, Mel Pocock – putting the French pilot in fourth.
Mel Pocock bagged his best result of the season by finishing fifth in the first race. The British rider had a really good start and he looked comfortable in fourth in the early laps but like many of the riders in the first moto he had Herlings on his back wheel and Pocock dropped a place to fifth.
The British pilot managed to pass Tonkov by the middle of the moto but Pocock was overtaken by Tixier in the last few minutes and he had to settle with fifth.
Jose Butron failed to get a good start in the first race and he too struggled to find a good rhythm. After racing eighth most of the moto, the Spanish rider started feeling better and he overtook a couple of riders and he crossed the checkers sixth.
Dean Ferris finished seventh, Dylan Ferrandis was eighth and Alexander Tonkov and Alessandro Lupino completed the top ten.
Super Final
The Grand Prix of Brazil hosted the last Super Final of 2013 and it was slightly different from the ones in Qatar and Thailand. The MX1 and MX2 riders lined up for the Super Final in their respective Championship standings up to the 10th gate pick, i.e. Cairoli, Herlings, Paulin, Tixier and so on. However, Herlings decided not to be next to Cairoli, choosing the first gate from the inside.
ICE1Racing’s Rui Goncalves took the Super Final holey, but after the first few corners Rockstar Energy Suzuki’s Kevin Strijbos overtook Goncalves and the Belgian led the race until three laps from the checkers.
Cairoli had a good start but he almost crashed in the opening lap – dropping down to fourth – the Italian tried to overtake the front riders as soon as possible but by the time he was second, Strijbos had already opened a big gap.
The Italian started getting some arm pump and Strijbos also tired, Cairoli pushed on and the gap continued to close – with three laps to go the defending MX1 World Champion took the lead.
Desalle admitted that he did not feel really comfortable today, but he managed to ride a consistent moto in third.
Paulin was fifth in the first lap of the Super Final, but after four laps he managed to overtake Ken De Dycker and he held fourth until the chequered flag – position that gave him the overall fourth.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Ken De Dycker struggled in the first race but he managed to have a good start in the Super Final and he rode a consistent race in fifth. However, the Belgian rider was only seventh overall in the Grand Prix.
Max Nagl was sixth in the Super Final, which gave him fourth overall – his best result so far this season.
Rui Goncalves could not keep his initial second position and crossed the finish line seventh, followed by Jeremy Van Horebeek and Tommy Searle. Jose Butron was 10th and he was the best MX2 rider in the Super Final. Jeffrey Herlings finished 13th and Jordi Tixier 15th.
