Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP completed the Latvian triple header just hours ago, as the fifth round of the 2020 FIM Motocross World Championship took place at the same Kegums circuit. The Grand Prix of Kegums, as it was officially dubbed, featured multiple layout changes, which was an exciting challenge for the Yamaha trio of Gautier Paulin, Arnaud Tonus and Jeremy Seewer. The team was riding a great wave of momentum after a podium finish from the latter on Wednesday.
There was more reason to celebrate after qualifying this morning, as Seewer logged the fourth-fastest time and once again showed that he is on the cusp of a maiden Grand Prix victory. That goal was scuppered just moments into the opening premier-class race, as Seewer crashed hard and, despite his best efforts, retired early with points too far out of reach. A mediocre start in race two did not help his cause, but he was not to be deterred and charged all of the way up to seventh at the chequered flag for fourteen valuable points. Seewer now sits sixth in the standings and is the best-placed Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP rider.
After being plagued by bad luck at the last two Latvian races, Gautier Paulin escaped lap one unscathed in both motos on Sunday and recorded a good amount of points. A strong sixth in moto one was followed up by an eighth in moto two, after starting in eleventh. Those moto scores put him seventh overall on the day and helped him maintain eighth in the premier-class points. Arnaud Tonus was not quite as fortunate, as a first turn crash in moto one meant that he could only manage to get to seventeenth at the chequered flag. A twelfth in moto two left him in fourteenth overall. Thirteenth is the position that he occupies in the series standings.
All three Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP riders are hoping to bounce back when the series is tipped to return on the first weekend in September. The Grand Prix of Turkey is down to host the sixth round of the 2020 FIM Motocross World Championship.
Gautier Paulin: “It was a hard day today. I did some work with the team to make the bike start better and I had a good start in the first moto and finished with solid sixth, but still didn’t hit my marks on the track and didn’t ride with the top three. No excuses, but my finger did not help me at all. I didn’t talk about it for the last two races, but with the big bumps I couldn’t brake properly. I missed my lines, because I could not release the brake, which was a bit scary. Obviously, I am not happy with the result. We will recover from these three GPs and try to find a way to make it work.”
Jeremy Seewer: “I am not happy with today of course. I had a good feeling in time practice and a decent start in the first race, but if you are not heaps in front there is always a lot of action and bar-banging. I crashed into the third turn, because I hit the rear wheel of another rider and I got hit by somebody coming from behind. I laid there for a while with no breath – the track marshals even removed my bike and everything. After a while I decided to do some laps to try to ride it out, but then I had a massive crash again. I hit a wall that was built. I suppose it was to stop cutting the track, but it’s ridiculous. I went over the ‘bars. In the second race, I was in a bit of pain. I could feel every single bump, but I was happy to even ride and considering the circumstances I am okay with seventh in that race.”
Arnaud Tonus: “I don’t feel great. It was a hard day. I crashed at turn one and couldn’t find my rhythm and finished seventeenth. In the second race, I just did not feel good on the track at all. I was low on energy and overall, not good. I just need to get back, regroup and come back strong in the next one.”
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