World Champion Antonio Cairoli became the rider with the most moto victories this season after taking his fourth success at Sevlievo for the Grand Prix of Bulgaria and the sixth round of the MX2 World Championship. The Italian would limp away from the impressive venue however after two crashes in a very wet and slippery second moto forced a second DNF from the twelve heats in total held so far.
The track was fast, dry and bumpy in the first sprint but showers during the lunch break meant a far muddier and more slippery prospect for the MX2 riders later in the afternoon.
Cairoli weathered a late first race attack from Championship leader Christophe Pourcel for a very convincing win in a moto he had pretty much set the pace from the start. In contrast he crashed on the first corner of the second heat and was on the fringes of the top ten in very tricky conditions when he crashed on the rhythm section and went down heavily. The Sicilian hurt his knee in a spill that snapped his brace and damaged his Yamaha too much to continue.
Kenneth Gundersen shared a similar fate in race1 when he fell on the first lap and collected fellow Yamaha compatriot Billy Mackenzie. The Norwegian pulled into the pits. He was however able to obtain 11 points for tenth later on.
Winner of the Japanese Grand Prix two weeks ago Bike it Yamaha UK Dixon Racing's Mackenzie was also to leave Bulgaria disappointed. The 22 year old was last after falling when Gundersen hit the deck right in front of him and slipped off again before retiring far behind any possible points. The Scot had broken his left hand a week prior at the fourth round of the British Championship and despite using painkillers could only trail Gundersen in the second moto for a lowly ten point haul from the whole meeting.
Gundersen's team-mate Davide Guarneri was eigth in the first moto but was given a one minute penalty in the second race due to a damaged exhaust exceeding the permitted noise limit. JK Racing's Luigi Seguy was ninth overall although he did suffer a spill in the opening forray.
Yamaha Team Ricci's Alessio Chiodi had to miss the meeting after his injured knee, sustained as a result of his Japanese practice accident, was diagnosed as a torn muscle. The Italian should be back for his home Grand Prix and round seven next week at Montevarchi.
The standings reveal four Yamaha riders in the top ten. Cairoli is fourth 32 points behind Tyla Rattray and just 27 points in front of Billy Mackenzie who has dropped one position to sixth.
The Grand Prix was won by KTM's Marc de Reuver with David Philippaerts second and Christophe Pourcel third.
The World Championship continues at pace now with two more Grand Prix - in Italy and Great Britain - taking place in the next two weeks.
Antonio Cairoli:"This year is not going so well at the moment. When I finish the first lap in the top three I can win but when I don't start OK or go down early on then my result is not great. I felt fast here and even though I was at the back in the second moto by the fifth lap I was near the top ten. The track was very slippery and I made a small mistake and it was a big punishment. I lost a lot of points and I don't feel very lucky so far this season. Physically I am OK but I feel bad inside for the loss today."
Kenneth Gundersen:"In the first race I had a crash with Mackenzie when I was running fifth on the first lap. My bike was destroyed so I could not finish. In the second heat I was right near the front but on the first corner I almost crashed so I went from virtually first to last. I came back to ninth and could not do any better than that. In terms of riding I am happy with the last race. I am not having much luck at the moment. During practice yesterday there was a haybale on the track and I landed on it and hurt my wrist. I got some points today though and for that I am happy."
Billy Mackenzie:"I was really looking forward to this GP but as the weekend it went on the track became more hard-pack and faster and I felt like I was losing speed and holding people up on the uphill sections purely because of my weight. It became a horsepower race rather than any technical ability and my hand was bothering me a little bit because I could not grip the bike like I wanted. Anyway, I could not avoid Gundersen in the first race and it went from bad to worse at the back of the pack. In the second moto I lost my goggles early on but I was still able to pass a few people. It was disappointing to lose so many points. I was on a real downer after the first race and with Philippaerts making the podium it has been a poor weekend in terms of the Championship
Race classification MX2:Round: 6 - 2006 GP of Sevlievo, Bulgaria
Circuit: Sevlievo
Circuit Length: 1695
Crowd: 25000
Temp: 18ºC
Weather: Rain
Race 1: 21 Laps 1 A. Cairoli Yamaha ITA 40' 35.110
2 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +1.274
3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +11.806
4 S. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +23.350
5 T. Rattray KTM RSA +26.069
6 M. De Reuver KTM NED +36.806
7 N. Aubin Kawasaki FRA +41.223
8 D. Guarneri Yamaha ITA +49.615
9 G. Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA +52.725
10 A. Boissière Yamaha FRA +58.522
11 C. Nunn KTM GBR +1' 2.918
12 M. Monni KTM ITA +1' 5.056
13 L. Seguy Yamaha FRA +1' 8.415
14 A. Leok Yamaha EST +1' 9.178
15 C. Campano KTM ESP +1' 19.566
16 M. Seistola Honda FIN +1' 25.012
17 M. Schiffer KTM GER +1' 30.278
18 T. Searle Kawasaki GBR +1' 35.721
19 R. Goncalves KTM POR +1' 37.503
20 X. Boog Yamaha FRA +1' 53.541
Race 2: 19 Laps1 M. De Reuver KTM NED 41' 34.286
2 T. Rattray KTM RSA +2.234
3 D. Philippaerts KTM ITA +19.618
4 C. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +45.692
5 S. Pourcel Kawasaki FRA +55.654
6 R. Goncalves KTM POR +56.996
7 C. Nunn KTM GBR +1' 0.230
8 M. Monni KTM ITA +1' 2.588
9 L. Seguy Yamaha FRA +1' 36.083
10 K. Gundersen Yamaha NOR +1' 42.325
11 B. MacKenzie Yamaha GBR +1' 44.308
12 M. Schiffer KTM GER +1 lap(s)
13 M. Kohut Honda SVK +1 lap(s)
14 S. Simpson Honda GBR +1 lap(s)
15 T. Church Kawasaki GBR +1 lap(s)
16 A. Boissière Yamaha FRA +1 lap(s)
17 P A. Renet Honda FRA +1 lap(s)
18 D. Guarneri Yamaha ITA +1 lap(s)
19 G. Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA +1 lap(s)
20 T. Searle Kawasaki GBR +1 lap(s)
Championship standings MX2:1 Christophe Pourcel Kawasaki FRA 236
2 Marc De Reuver KTM NED 234
3 Tyla Rattray KTM RSA 219
4 Antonio Cairoli Yamaha ITA 187
5 Billy MacKenzie Yamaha GBR 160
6 David Philippaerts KTM ITA 160
7 Carl Nunn KTM GBR 143
8 Kenneth Gundersen Yamaha NOR 122
9 Alessio Chiodi Yamaha ITA 111
10 Tommy Searle Kawasaki GBR 109
11 Rui Goncalves KTM POR 107
12 Sébastien Pourcel Kawasaki FRA 104
13 Gareth Swanepoel Kawasaki RSA 101
14 Luigi Seguy Yamaha FRA 83
15 Davide Guarneri Yamaha ITA 80
16 Anthony Boissière Yamaha FRA 66
17 Manuel Monni KTM ITA 64
18 Aigar Leok Yamaha EST 53
19 Patrick Caps Honda BEL 46
20 Maximilian Nagl KTM GER 45
Manufacturers standings MX2:1 KTM 268
2 Yamaha 262
3 Kawasaki 240
4 Honda 94
5 Suzuki 6
Related Linkswww.yamaha-racing.com
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