Sevlievo, Bulgaria – 29th March 2009 – World Championship

Tough day for Red Bull KTM UK in Bulgaria

The Grand Prix of Bulgaria provided the Red Bull KTM UK team with an overdue compliment of sunshine as the second round of the FIM MX2 Motocross World Championship occurred under blue skies and in ideal racing conditions. Unfortunately the pleasant weather was the only positive element at the fast and hard-pack course at Sevlievo for the squad. Stephen Sword failed to finish each race and Jake Nicholls was not able to score any points.

The modern and striking facilities just a few kilometres outside of Sevlievo in central Bulgaria set a high standard for Grand Prix motocross. The track itself is a quick and wide test of uphill and downhill stretches with vital importance placed on the start, simply because of the rapid pace in which the motos are run and the unease of overtaking.

Sword had a hard qualification heat and with 21st position was lowly in the gate for Sunday. He had a heavy spill on the fast downhill section towards the finish line for Moto1 which not only left him with a wrecked front end but also far behind the disappearing pack, he tried to regain ground but his efforts were fruitless after some laps. In the second moto he gated poorly and after searching for – and ultimately missing – an effective rhythm he retired.

“It was a nightmare weekend and I don’t really want to think about it all” the multi British Champion said. “My head wasn’t right and I didn’t feel good on the bike. I ripped the front mudguard off and bent the bars after the crash in the first moto. I tried to go for a few laps but I wasn’t getting anywhere. I was in 34th and wasn’t even moving. In the second one I couldn’t get off the gate and on the inside and then really struggled. I’d like to put this behind me and get ready for Turkey.”

Jake Nicholls, who was 19 on Saturday, finished outside of the points in both motos after costly crashes in the two races set him far adrift from the points. “I had a great start in the first race and was third or fourth coming down the big hill when I lost the front in a wet patch and went down,” he commented. “It took me some time to get going again and I fought back from dead-last to 24th. In the second race my start wasn’t as good but I was passing a few riders. On the second lap I came up to a tight corner and slipped off again. I made silly mistakes today and definitely learned from that.”

The World Championship standings now show that Nicholls is just inside the top twenty with 11 points and 19th spot, while Sword is 28th.

Round three will take place next weekend – for the first time –in Istanbul for the Grand Prix of Turkey.

Results

MX2 Race 1 top ten: 1. Marvin Musquin (FRA, Honda), 40:17.207; ; 2. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:05.163; 3. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:17.238; 4. Xavier Boog (FRA, Suzuki), +0:22.518; 5. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Yamaha), +0:27.039; 6. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), +0:29.354; 7. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KTM), +0:29.441; 8. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +0:33.471; 9. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), +0:52.877; 10. Khounsith Vongsana (FRA, Honda), +0:56.991; 24. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM); DNF. Stephen Sword (GBR, KTM)

MX2 Race 2 top ten: 1. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), 40:29.542; ; 2. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:04.365; 3. Marvin Musquin (FRA, Honda), +0:18.956; 4. Xavier Boog (FRA, Suzuki), +0:20.430; 5. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Yamaha), +0:27.027; 6. Rui Goncalves (POR, KTM), +0:29.204; 7. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +0:32.492; 8. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:32.882; 9. Marcus Schiffer (GER, KTM), +0:43.521; 10. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KTM), +0:43.898; 26. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM); DNF. Stephen Sword (GBR, KTM)

MX2 Overall top ten: 1. Marvin Musquin (FRA, Honda), 45 points; 2. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), 44 p.; 3. Xavier Boog (FRA, Suzuki), 36 p.; 4. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, Yamaha), 33 p.; 5. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Yamaha), 32 p.; 6. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 27 p.; 7. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), 25 p.; 8. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Rui Goncalves (POR, KTM), 24 p.; 10. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 23 p.;

MX2 Championship top ten: 1. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), 69 points; 2. Marvin Musquin (FRA, Honda), 65 p.; 3. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Yamaha), 50 p.; 4. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, Yamaha), 47 p.; 5. Xavier Boog (FRA, Suzuki), 45 p.; 6. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 37 p.; 7. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), 33 p.; 8. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), 30 p.; 9. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Yamaha), 28 p.; 10. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KTM), 25 p.; 19. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM) 11 p; 28. Stephen Sword (GBR, KTM) 4 p

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