Livia Lancelot regained the red plate in the Women’s World Championship finishing second overall in Teutschental while Sébastien Pourcel took fifth place in the MX1 class and is fifth in the standings Round eight of 15 in the MX1 series the German Grand Prix has been one of the hottest so far and most of the riders struggled with the hardpack layout. Second in the qualifying session on Saturday Sébastien didn’t really take advantage of his good position and was fifth after one lap in race one.
Running third behind Mackenzie and Coppins, Sébastien hit neutral during the sixth lap and was hit by another rider. Remounting 12th he needed six laps to come back to seventh too far behind the other riders to improve his result.
His second start was better as Seb was second behind Mackenzie during the opening lap but two laps later he crashed when Mackenzie made a strange and very aggressive move on him. Starting again in 17th he then rode a strong and consistent race to capture fifth place in the race and in the Grand Prix.
Alexandre Rouis didn’t enter the qualifying period as he injured his foot during the second free practice session.
Fastest girl in qualification Livia Lancelot didn’t take either holeshot but in both races she did move to the front quickly. Kawasaki German rider Maria Franke put some pressure on her during the first heat but Livia kept the race under control to collect her second success of the series so far.
The second race was more difficult for Livia who only kept the lead for two laps. She lost the lead on the third lap and later the second place as Franke passed her at mid-race. But Livy scored the same points as Laier and finished the GP in second position to get back the red plate before the final round in the Netherlands.
Sébastien Pourcel:
“My result here is not what I was expecting - seventh and fifth is not really a great performance. I was fast but I made some mistakes like in the first race when I hit neutral. The marshal didn’t put the flag out and Boniface who was right behind hit me so I lost more time.
“I was second behind Mackenzie in the second race but when I passed him he made a stupid move on me and I crashed. Then I had to come back from 17th place with a damaged clutch lever. I finished fifth with the fastest lap of the race.
“I’m upset because in France I didn’t make any mistakes during the entire weekend and here I made several. For sure we have to work on the suspension because on this kind of track I have to work hard to control the bike. There have been seven different winners since the beginning of the season and I’m the only guy who has won two GPs but that’s not enough for me. I must be more consistent and that will be my goal for Sweden and South Africa.”
Livia Lancelot:
“I didn’t beat Laier who won her third GP in a row here but it was a good event for me as we scored equal points. We came here after two weeks of intensive training with Luc my mechanic and Roger. We worked on my concentration and here I didn’t make any mistakes. I was faster during the qualifying practice and the warm-up, I got the pole but missed my first start. I took the lead and then managed the gap with Maria Franke to win my second heat of the season.
“I was leading the second race when I felt tired and decided to secure a good result rather than take risks. It’s the first time this year that we have had such high temperatures so maybe that’s why. I’m leading the championship now by 20 points and I know that the next and last round in Lierop will be tough but I’ll work hard to prepare for it.”
Roger Pourcel:
“First of all I’m very happy with the performance of Livia this weekend. She didn’t lose any points over her rivals and took back the red plate and leads the series by 20 points before the final round in the Netherlands. We have two months to prepare for this race and we will work hard with her as we did between France and Germany. She never lost her concentration during the weekend, didn’t make any mistakes and during the second race she didn’t take any risks when she felt tired.
“Sébastien made several mistakes, he was fast but didn’t take enough time to pass early in the races. He could have finished second in the opening moto but crashed and later made another mistake when he tried to pass Mackenzie during the second heat. He came back from 17th to fifth place with the fastest lap of the race too. “For sure he’s the fastest rider at the moment but he needs to be more patient. We lost five points to Philippaerts today but that’s not too much, the goal is to win every GP.”
