Monster Energy Yamaha filled an MX2-GP podium berth for the fourth time in as many events as Gautier Paulin extended his run of trophies with third position overall at the Grand Prix of Spain and the seventh round of fifteen in the FIM Motocross World Championship.
16,000 spectators travelled to La Bañeza as the circuito de salgada filled the Spanish spot for on the FIM calendar after the cancellation of the Catalan round three months ago. The track a previous host of national and regional competitions was short, hard-pack and stony and the one-line layout did not assist the riders in their efforts for overtaking.
Paulin, a podiumee in Brazil, France, Portugal previously was not able to make the crucial starts in the top two/three positions that would have enabled him to fight for victory on the prototype YZ250FM but his solid speed and handling of the nimble motorcycle led to fourth and third positions in the races. The Frenchman ended the day with only seven points more than Bike it Cosworth Wild Wolf Yamahas Arnaud Tonus; the Swiss was fifth in the overall ranking. Tonus was again his stylish and efficient self although his speed was a little inconsistent on the way to sixth in the first moto. The newly-turned 20 year old (it was his birthday on Friday) started with the leaders at the second launch and had a race-long tussle with Jeffrey Herlings before taking fourth.
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Team-mate Zach Osborne had a day to forget. The American was chasing his third rostrum finish but two slips in the first race saw him pit with a motorcycle bent out of shape and complaining of a lack of top-end power. He rectified the DNF with sixth place in the second moto but left La Bañeza not entirely satisfied. Another frustrated rider was Harri Kullas who seized his sought-after excellent start in the first moto but was plagued with arm-pump and rolled to tenth position. A poor getaway and slightly easier outing in the second race led to the same ranking for ninth overall. Team-mate Christophe Charlier did not start the races after two broken metacarpals in his left hand (a result of his tangle with Jose Butron in Portugal) proved too painful to bear on Saturday. The Frenchman will now rest for almost two weeks and will hope to enter the Grand Prix of Sweden.
Paulin is now the principal YZ250F runner in the MX2-GP standings and is fourth, 34 points behind Tommy Searle and 21 in front of Osborne. Tonus is sixth, Kullas ninth and Charlier in eleventh.
The FIM Motocross World Championship will stop for breath now but after one week will again begin a period of three back-to-back races with trips across northern Europe and Sweden, Germany and Latvia through an intense period in July. |
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Gautier Paulin, 3rd:
I had a really bad start in the first moto and it was difficult to pass. I pushed hard to come back and was pretty happy with the race. I made some good lap-times and felt fast. My second moto start was better and made things much easier. Im really happy to have this team behind me and the support and equipment they give to me. I have so much fun on the YZ250FM and Im really motivated. I enjoyed the track a lot here and now just need to work on my starts for the Grands prix to come. We will do a little bit of engine and suspension testing next week.
Arnaud Tonus, 5th:
It was a good day and was good from the warm-up in the morning. I didnt have the best start in the first one but came back to sixth that was OK. I was a little bit up-and-down with my lap-times so the rhythm was not the best but the points were OK. In the second moto I had one of my best starts this season and was pushing hard to make the same speed as the leaders. It was good to be with then and fight with Herlings. I got close to him but it was difficult to pass here and even to make the difference on other riders. Anyway Im really happy with how the GP finished.
Harri Kullas, 9th:
On Saturday I had a good feeling and the speed was OK but today I struggled all day and I dont know why. I had a really good start in the first race and was second but made a mistake and lost four positions. I was around eighth but after ten minutes I had so much arm-pump that I could not do anything. I tried to finish and keep the position but two people passed me at the end. It was really bad; I could barely move my hands. In the second race by start wasnt so good and was only able to pass one guy all race. It was a really hard weekend for me but at least I didnt crash. The speed can be better but Im not such a fan of the hard-pack.
Zach Osborne, 13th:
The weekend was worse than mediocre. It was a big disappointment because this is the home race for our main sponsor Wild Wolf and I wanted to put on a good show and it just didnt happen. The bike wasnt right in the first race. I made two small crashes but if things had been going well then I wouldnt have been in those situations to crash. In the second race it was sort of the same; not really pulling. I did what I could to finish sixth. I think we have seen worse tracks although Bellpuig would have been better. |
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