MXGP is back! Following a five month break due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the FIM Motocross World Championship is making its much-awaited return with a triple header in Latvia, with the MXGP of Latvia, MXGP of Riga and MXGP of Kegums.
The Motocenter hard sand circuit “Zelta Zirgs”, less than 50 km from the capital Riga, hosted the motocross world championship race for the first time with the MX3 and 125cc championships in 2005. Since then, Kegums has created some of MXGP’s most productive Career, adding the epic Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in 2014, which saw Gautier Paulin, Dylan Ferrandis and Steven Frossard get another victory for the French team.
With its very good track design and very good facilities on site, as well as Latvian fans, Kegums has become a favorite among the groups and runners, who look towards the occasion every season.
Although the return of the MXGP series will see several changes, adding a new logo calendar, with European track categories for their two races on Saturday, MXGP and MX2 drivers will head to the track on Sunday for their Free/Time Trials and one and two races.
This year, the Latvian triple header will see the second, third and fourth rounds of the EMX250 championship recently led by Bastian Boegh Damm of WZ Racing KTM, followed by Isak Gifting and Andrea Adamo of SM Action MX Migliori J1 Racing 3rd.
With his double race win in Valkenswaard, Boegh Damm was looking strong and will no doubt aim to carry this momentum in Latvia. Meanwhile both Adamo and Gifting will be right there alongside, to challenge for the win.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory rider Kay de Wolf is also in with the chance of challenging in the top end of the field, following an impressive ride at his home GP.
Maddii Racing Husqvarna’s Mattia Guadagnini is also among the riders that will be looking for top results in Kegums, along with Thomas Sileika who will enter his home rounds with the support of his local fans.
The EMX Open class is a brand-new European Championship for 2020. With the first three rounds taking place in Latvia, the championship is very much open and ready for the taking.
The EMX Open class will see the likes of Miro Sihvonen, who has previously contested in the popular EMX250 class where he won the MXGP of Europe round back in 2017, along with the former 85cc Junior World Champion, Kim Savaste of 137 KTM Motorsport who will also line up in Kegums.
Also making the trip to Latvia is PAR Homes RFX Husqvarna rider Nathan Dixon, along with Federico Tuaniof Husqvarna Junior Racing Maddii and Greg Smets just to name a few.
More local faces include Arnolds Snikers, as the only Latvian rider to take part, while Domantas Jazdauskaswill make the trip from neighbouring Lithuania for the occasion also.
With many new faces in the EMX250 and EMX Open classes, as well as MX2 and MXGP riders, the tripled head in Latvia will be an exciting event, you will no doubt see many intense festivals and battles in all 3 events.
MXGP
In 2019, Tim Gajser of the HRC team won the MXGP category, although he tied for the moment and third with Romain Febvre and Arnaud Tonus. With the 3 drivers with exactly 40 problems each, it was Gajser’s victory in the race at the moment that earned him the overall victory.
Last year, Gajser took great strides as he walked in the arena and may have a chance to repeat last year’s victory and get some other victory in Latvia; His race victories against Matterley Basin and Valkenswaard resulted in the Slovenian being perfectly cool for leading the peloton, even when pursued by Jeffrey Herlings and Antonio Cairoli.
Teammate Mitch Evans will also compete again at Kegums after months of rehab for his injury, which he recovered in Valkenswaard. Before the Australian was injured, he gave us an idea of what he is capable of doing in Britain, with a third position in the first race, so it would not be a huge wonder to see him fight once in the most sensible five. Still.
Looking at the Red Bull KTM Factory team, the Latvian GP was a small occasion for the team. Jeffrey Herlings and Antonio Cairoli were forced to abandon the race time due to injury and had to stay out for the rest of the season, while the MX2 driving force (at the time) Jorge Prado ran two forged races and won overall. Although with those two injuries and Prado’s recent rehabilitation in his own leg injury, the team will become more powerful than ever.
The 3 drivers have a smart record at Kegums, with Prado winning last season, then Cairoli with 4 wins in his credits (2009, 2011, 2012, 2013) and the current leader of the MXGP championship, Herlings, with five (2010, 2013 , 2016, 2017, 2018), 3 of the victories of his days in MX2, there is a clever possibility that we can see at least one of those 3 on the podium of the occasion in Latvia.
But that doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed, as there will be plenty of drivers for the challenge, 3 of whom are Jeremy Seewer, Arnaud Tonus and Gautier Paulin from Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing.
Tonus made a fantastic lap at Kegums last year, as already mentioned, completing challenged draws for the first position, his fourth position at the time when the race was decisive, meaning he had not only missed the highest step, but also had to settle for the 3rd place. Although a podium remains a podium, one that places Tonus among the organization of strong contenders to win a trophy at home this year. Meanwhile, teammate Jeremy Seewer also put up a forged functionality with a fourth overall position, as did Gautier Paulin, completing the five most sensible in the open in seventh position.
Of course, they are not the only ones aiming high as we return to racing in a matter of days. Romain Febvre and Clement Desalle of Monster Energy Kawasaki Team both have won in Latvia in previous years, with Febvre winning races in 2015 and 2016, with Desalle also wining in 2009 and finishing second on the podium behind Cairoli. For Febvre the Latvia GP will be the first time that we see the Frenchman line-up on an MXGP start-gird, as the Kawasaki rider was forced to miss the races in Great Britain and the Netherlands due to a leg injury sustained in practice leading up to the first round of the championship. Now with months of preparation under his belt, this could be the weekend we could see Febvre challenge for top positions.
Then there’s Arminas Jasikonis of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing who will represent the team in Kegums alone, as Pauls Jonass will not be lining up at his home GP’s due to a practice crash in which the Latvian sustained three broken ribs and five spinous processes. With doctors’ recommendations of an extended period of rehabilitation, it is unclear when we will see Jonass back.
Last year Jasikonis went DNF-7 at the Latvian Grand Prix, though his third place finish in Valkenswaard earlier in year, and his ability to ride in the sand, plus with the added bonus of Lithuanian fans, will sure give him a boost and it could be that we see the Lithuanian stand tall on the podium for a second time in 2020.
GasGas Factory permanent drivers Glenn Coldenhoff and Ivo Monticelli finished 8th and 9th respectively last season and will be there to do the same this time. Monticelli had a consistent career to finish 10th in any of the races, while Coldenhoff had a result of P12 and P8.
Another notable driver from last year Jeremy Van Horebeek of Team Honda SR Motoblouz who had a 5. more sensible. After a smart lap at the last Dutch GP last March and plenty of time to prepare for Kegums, we can see Van Horebeek coming out. Rolling.
Top 10 MXGP Championship: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), points; 2. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 85 pp.; 3. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 68 pp .; 4. Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 60 pp. 5. Gautier Paulin (FRA, YAM), 58 pp. 6. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, GAS), 56 pp. 7. Jasikonis Armines (LTU, HUS), 53 pp. 8. Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 47 pp .; 9. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 42 pp. 10. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, HON), 39 pp.
Red Bull KTM Factory’s driving force, Tom Vialle, is the current championship leader with the possibility of taking the podium in Latvia. This season so far, he finished on the podium in Britain and the Netherlands, winning his first GP win at Valkenswaard before this year. With a seventh overall position in Kegums last time, it’s more than fighting for the podium and race wins.
Meanwhile, his teammate and MX2 rookie René Hofer also had a positive start in the campaign. While he has not yet finished on the podium, he finished the races in the 5 most sensible, with his most productive result in the race at Matterley Basin, where he crossed the finish line in P2. Last season, Hofer played in the EMX250 championship, and in Latvian circular he finished racing in eighth and sixth, and this may be an even greater effect than the Austrian we can expect this weekend.
A driver we will definitely see at the front of the peloton, at some point in the race, is none other than the Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 monster, Jago Geerts. Geerts has shown his determination this season with fantastic results, he has been discovered in trouble several times. He also won the first GP of the season in Britain, with a 4-1 result that saw the Yamaha driver take the red plate and become the first leader of the series at the time.
Last year, the Belgian finished any of the races of MX2 world champion Jorge Prado, but the Prado is no longer a threat, leaving the Yamaha driver a chance to raise some other GP victory to his 2020 stats.
Yamaha factory driver Ben Watson will also travel to Latvia with the opportunity to reach the podium. Having finished fourth overall last season, four numbers the third, this will be another opportunity for Brit to prove it’s a real risk to the name this season.
We cannot forget the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory MX2 squad, who have spent the lockdown period much like any other team, working on their weaknesses and making sure they are ready to go when the championship returns.
At the beginning of the season, Thomas Kjer Olsen was one of the favorites to fight by the name MX2 and, although his injury was hampered in rounds one and two, with a long time to regain the blocking period, there is no explanation why we can simply not ” Wait for TKO to return to the most sensible of the field. The Dane has a strong record in Latvia, finished third last season and was the overall winner in 2018 and 2017, so there may be a victory in 2020 for the Husqvarna driver.
Then there’s time for Husqvarna factory pilot Jed Beaton, who has so far been consistent this season. In the first two GPs, the Australian finished fourth twice, a few podium problems. If you continue with this consistent form, we can see Beaton on the podium sometimes on 3 occasions at Kegums.
Mikkel Haarup, Roan Van de Moosdijk and Mathys Boisrame of Kawasaki Racing Team have shown a forged form this year and have not had the GPG of the luckiest house in Valkenswaard, the rest of the season is long, and you can expect more than the three. Riders Roan Van of Moosdijk was the overall winner in Latvia in 2019 for the EMX250 event, which shows that it is obviously strong in hard sand and can be a risk this year in MX2.
He is not the only MX2 rider who did well in the EMX250 round in Kegums last season, with Alberto Forato of Team Maddii Racing Husqvarna finishing second overall, just ahead of Jeremy Sydow of Diga Procross GasGas Factory Juniors who occupied the third step of the podium.
Other riders who can impress in Latvia include Bas Vaessen of Hitachi KTM fuelled by Milwaukee who finished 5th overall last year, along with Alvin Ostlund from Team Honda Assomotor and SM Action MX Migliori J1 Racing’s Maxime Renaux who has already one podium to his name in 2020, and could be a real threat in Latvia.
MX2 Championship Top 10: 1. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 87 points; 2. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 82 p.; 3. Jed Beaton (AUS, HUS), 74 p.; 4. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 61 p.; 5. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 53 p.; 6. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, KAW), 52 p.; 7. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 51 p.; 8. Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 48 p.; 9. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), 48 p.; 10. Jeremy Sydow (GER, GAS), 35 p.
2020 MXGP Calendar Update: MXGP of China Cancelled