The World Championship was back in Europe this weekend two weeks after the trip to Japan. On their home track of Saint Jean d’Angely the French riders left without celebrating any victory. Christophe Pourcel finished runner-up in the MX2 class, while Sébastien Pourcel took seventh place in MX1. Christophe owned a holeshot and won his qualifying race on Saturday and entered the starting grid first for the races. He chose a place in the middle of the gate for the opening moto but missed a decent start as he was around the tenth into the first corner. Sixth after the first lap, he needed seven circulations to come back to second behind Cairoli, who proved again to be a strong leader.
He had a better start in the following race as he arrived behind his main rival. For a few laps he put pressure on Cairoli, but couldn’t hold his rhythm and secured another runner-up spot behind the Italian. Gregory Aranda qualified in ninth position, crashed in the opening lap of the first heat and later scored two points.
Second fastest in the MX1 Timed Practice Sébastien Pourcel missed his first ever pole position by seven tenths of a second, as Tanel Leok made a faster lap with his last attempt. On Sunday after a bad start in the opening heat, Sébastien was tenth for a few laps and then produced an impressive effort to come back to fourth behind Coppins, Philippaerts and Ramon. His second start was much better as he arrived to second behind Mackenzie, with Coppins and Ramon chasing him. Both moved through on the fourth circulation and unfortunately Seb crashed while trying to retaliate against Ramon. Seventh after his accident, he finished ninth from the heat and seventh overall in the GP.
Christophe Pourcel:
‘On Saturday the track was not so interesting as it was flat, today was a little bit better but it was too fast and dangerous in some places. I missed a good start in the first race; I wheelied and lost time. Then I pushed to come back to second but Cairoli was far away and it was impossible to close the gap. I took a different place on the starting line for the next race, came second and followed Antonio for a few laps. Then I had trouble with blisters on my left hand, twice I lost the handle bar and Antonio secured his win.’
Sébastien Pourcel:‘I had a bad start in the opening heat and during the first part of the race I struggled to find the good lines and the good rhythm. At mid-race distance it was much better and I came back to fourth showing that my physical condition is good. I had a great start in the second heat but once more I didn’t get a good pace and made a stupid mistake when Ramon passed me. I felt tired and drained after that. I didn’t slept too much last night as there was a pop music concert in the camping site and I’m unhappy as I would have liked to have done two good races in a row.’
Patrick Geladé:‘Of course we’re a little bit disappointed because it’s so nice to win! Christophe had a bad start in the first race but came back strongly, and we were expecting maybe a win in the next one. He was strong but Antonio was faster and had better lines, it was his day. Chris was not far away though and we’ll continue to work hard. Seb had a great first race, then got a good start in the second and I was scared in the first laps as he wanted to stay with Coppins and Ramon. Maybe it would have been better to keep some energy for the rest of the race. After his crash he was inconsistent with two fast laps and then two slow laps. It’s not a bad GP; he is seventh overall and fifth in the standings, which is our goal in this class. Greg was not competitive enough. He scored two points in the last race but we expect more from him as his place is in the top fifteen.’
Roger Pourcel:‘We had many visitors this weekend, numerous fans came to ask for posters and cheer the riders. Christophe had a bad start in the opening race and as he and Antonio have a similar speed it’s impossible to come back if Antonio gets away in front, especially on a fast and short track. In the second race he had damp gloves and lost some skin, it was difficult for him but even if everything was OK it was not sure that he could beat Antonio. Seb had a great first moto and he pushed in the second part of the race to collect the fourth place. He had a good start in the next heat but pushed too hard in the first laps and felt tired. He’s not physically prepared at the moment to give his best in the opening laps.’
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