Molson Kawasaki celebrate in Spain as Stephen Sword takes third overall in MX2 while Gautier Paulin takes his maiden moto podium finish and Tom Church scores a scorching seventh in MX1.
Round two of the FIM Motocross World Championship held at Bellpuig in Spain turned into a real battle of attrition as persistent rain dampened the Catalunyan circuit into a muddy mess littered with impassable ruts, hills and puddles.
Starting in prime condition for Saturday’s qualifying sessions the circuit deteriorated so badly that the second MX1 moto was cancelled just moments prior to its start after the riders’ and organisers mutually decided that it would be just too dangerous to race.
Standing water on the start straight was a problem as early as MX2 moto one as both Stephen Sword and Gautier Paulin found out on their factory KX250F-SRs. “I got a good jump off the line in moto one but coming into turn one I got hit by the big tidal wave and I couldn’t see anything – just black,” explained Stephen. “I ran out wide and ended up out in the slop and I was somewhere in the top 15. I just chipped away all race long and made sure I didn’t crash, I made a couple of small mistakes but nothing like some people were making. I got myself up to fourth at the finish and I was happy with that.”
Paulin wouldn’t make it to the finish after tangling at the start with another rider and crashing in a deep puddle. “I crashed at the start of the first race and my bike took in some water because I went down in a deep puddle and I had to stop,” said Gautier. Luckily things would get better for the Frenchman in moto two.
“In the second race I started quite well and I was riding well also,” claimed Gautier. “When the rain stopped the track became stickier and it made riding it very difficult – especially on the uphill steps where a lot of riders were getting stuck and blocking the track.
“I knew that if I could finish this race I would do well and my mechanic was letting me know my position was improving all the time – I was fifth, then fourth and then when the red flag came out I was leading but they took the result from one lap before when I was third. I’m happy for sure but I’m also happy for my mechanic, the team and all of my sponsors.”
Sword meanwhile started well but found the going a little bit tougher. “In the second race I got a mega start and took the holeshot – well actually I think Tommy Searle took the holeshot but he crashed. Guarneri came past but I passed him back and took the lead but I made a mistake on the hill with the step-up on it and Guarneri, Rattray and Aubin all came past so I was back to fourth.
“I took the lead back again at the three uphill steps but went down straight away because I lost some momentum. I spent ages restarting the bike because the kickstart was all slippery and I think I lost a lap there. I got going again and un-lapped myself and just kept at it. I saw P10 on my pitboard, then P8 and I was thinking ‘this is going good’ and then I got stuck in the green netting.
“Everything was all covered in mud and I ended up taking my gloves off and my hands were rolling around on the grips as I rode. I got stuck again right at the end but nobody came by because I think they were all stuck on that hill.
“When I look back at the race I think if I hadn’t made all the mistakes I could have won the moto and then I’d have won the GP too but I’m definitely happy with third overall – it’s great to be on a Grand Prix podium again.”
Molson Kawasaki’s satellite MX1 rider Tom Church also did the team proud by riding a strong consistent moto on his KX450F to finish seventh up amongst the full factory riders. “I made a decision before the race to hold back at the start because there was no way I was going to get the holeshot from where I was near the outside of the gate and I knew there’d be some crashes in the first corner. My plan worked and I was as high as 10th on the first lap.
“From there I just plugged away. A few guys pulled in for fresh goggles, which I maybe should have done too as my eyes were hurting and my vision was getting blurry as they filled with mud but I just concentrated hard and stuck with it. I managed to keep it on two wheels and I think only Ramon and myself managed that.
“My bike ran great all race long, a lot of bikes broke down or sucked water and ran rough but mine was sweet, I rode smart and conserved my energy. Although I was up to fifth at one point I’m still pleased to finish seventh – it’s been a good day for me.”
The FIM Motocross World Championship continues next weekend – April 27 – with round three at Agueda in Portugal.
