Team HRC’s Tim Gajser won the final round of the MX1 championship at the sandy track of Mantova, in cold conditions in northern Italy. Leading from the beginning, the #243 CRF450RW gradually pulled away from the field, to win by just under 10 seconds, securing third place in the championship in the process. In the superfinal afterwards, a combined 450 and 250 event, Gajser then posted the fastest lap of the race as he made his way back to fourth after an early crash left him almost dead last. With two second place finishes in the previous two superfinals, this result secured the Slovenian second place in this championship and a good boost of confidence for when the MXGP championship starts on the March 2/3 in Argentina.
For Calvin Vlaanderen, a second place finish at the second round in Ottobiano was his standout performance, along with a sixth place in the resulting superfinal against the 450s. While not completely satisfied with his results, the young rider from Cape Town is happy with the progress they have made over the winter and is glad to have done some races before the first round of the MX2 championship.
Brian Bogers is also happy to back in a race environment after missing so much of the 2018 season. The Dutch rider knows it might take a while to get back up to race pace in this highly competitive MXGP class, but believes that these Italian Championships events have given him a better idea of what needs to be done in order to get his #189 machine challenging at the sharp end of the field.
With just under three weeks until the first round of the 2019 MXGP Championships, Team HRC will continue to prepare and make sure all three riders are ready for the gate drop at the beautiful Villa La Angostura track in Patagonia-Argentina.
