Remaining fast and consistent at a rutted and treacherous Teutschenthal track, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Gautier Paulin earned two third place moto finishes and is now only one point behind the runner-up spot in the MXGP championship standings. Winning the final MX2 moto in Germany, Thomas Covington claimed fourth overall in the 250cc category. 

Showing more of his impressive speed aboard the FC 450, Gautier Paulin put in two strong moto performances in Germany. Not getting the best of starts in moto one, the Frenchman pushed hard and made a few passes for third at the chequered flag. Putting himself in second right after the start of moto two, Gautier fought hard for the runner-up spot with Jeffrey Herlings to eventually cross the line a close third behind the Dutchman. 

Coming close to matching his season best sixth overall from the previous GP in Latvia, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Anstie earned seventh overall in Germany. Involved in some great battles for the top five, the MXGP class rookie collected 8-6 results in the two final motos. Gaining one spot Anstie is now 13th in the MXGP championship standings. 

Racing in front of his home crowd, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Nagl battled through the demanding track conditions to earn eighth overall in the MXGP class. Not getting the best of starts in moto one the German had to settle for 10th at the chequered flag. Finding himself in second after the start of moto two, Nagl suffered a few mistakes that dropped the German to eighth. 

In the MX2 class, Thomas Covington secured his second race victory for the season crossing the line first in the second moto of the German GP. Suffering a crash a few turns after the start of the opening moto, the American battled his way from the back of the pack to 14th in moto one. Claiming an impressive victory in moto two, Covington secured fourth overall at the GP of Germany. 

For Covington’s Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing teammate Thomas Kjer-Olsen it was a GP of mixed fortunes. Earning third in moto one, the young Dane was off to a strong start at the GP. Suffering a crash while racing in fourth in moto two and then a second fall a few turns later, Kjer-Olsen had to settle for 12th. Claiming fifth overall he remains third in the MX2 championship standings. 

Suffering a training injury the week leading to the GP of Germany, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Conrad Mewse did not compete at this round. The young Brit is expected to make his return during the following round in France.

The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team will return to action at round nine of the 2017 FIM Motocross World Championship in France on May 27/28. 

Gautier Paulin“Earning one more podium result is a good reward for the hard work all Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team members are putting in. Not getting a good start in moto one I had to push really hard taking some risks in the first few laps. Making some good passes I quickly found myself in third but Cairoli and Herlings had already created a small gap in the lead and it was impossible to battle with them. Then in moto two my start was a lot better. Getting a really good pace after the second half of the race I managed to get close to Herlings and we had a good battle for second. Losing a bit of time passing some lappers I ended up getting third again in moto two. I’m really happy with my speed and can’t thank all our team enough for their hard work and dedication.” 

Max Anstie“It was a good GP for us. We worked hard to find a good setup during qualifying and my bike was running great during the final motos. In moto one I put myself in a good position right off the start. I quickly got a good race pace despite tough track conditions and managed to bring it home in eighth place. My start was good in moto two as well and I found myself racing in fifth place. I had a good battle with Romain Febvre and he got the best of me so I finished sixth. We’re in a good place right now. With this being my first season in the 450cc class I feel that I’m learning a lot and improving my performance in every GP.” 

Max Nagl“It was good to be racing in front of my home fans. With rain falling heavily before the GP, the track was very muddy during Saturday’s qualifying races. The weather was better on Sunday but the track was full of deep ruts and big bumps. In the opening moto I didn’t get a good start so I had to battle my way to 10th at the finish. Then in moto two I got a much better start and was racing in second behind Cairoli. I really wanted to get a good result I pushed too hard making one too many mistakes in the opening laps. Earning eighth for eighth overall at the GP is not a bad result but it’s not where I would want to be. My goal now is to work more with myself and manage to handle pressure more productively. The championship still has a long way to go and we’ll do our best to go even higher in the series’ standings.” 

Thomas Covington“I’m really happy with the victory in moto two. We showed the speed was there this weekend and if we had a better result in moto one, we could have done even better in the overall. The GP started well for us. I got off to a good start in the qualifying moto and was leading it before a small crash dropped me to fifth. Taking advantage of my good gate pick I had a good start in moto one but soon after we got together in a corner with some other riders and I ended up on the ground. Quickly resuming the race I made many passes to cross the line in 14th. Things were a lot better in moto two. I got a good start and after spending some time behind Jonass I managed to find some good lines and pass him for the lead. The track was tough and it was really easy to make mistakes. Fortunately I kept it on two wheels and managed to get the win. We’re sixth now in the championship and our goal is to continue battling for race victories in every moto.” 

Thomas Kjer-Olsen“Once again we showed the speed is there and I’m really happy with where we’re at right now. If I manage to remain more consistent and avoid mistakes, I know everything is possible in the remainder of the championship. I had a good start in the opening moto and my speed was quite good. Right before the halfway mark I made some passes for third and then retained third until the end of the moto. My start was good in the second moto too. I was riding well in fourth place but lost the front in a deep rut and ended up crashing. Quickly re-entering the race I soon had a second fall that dropped me to 12th at the chequered flag. Overall, I’m happy with our race pace. The goal now is to keep working hard to eliminate mistakes. I’m already looking forward to the following round in France.” 

Results – FIM Motocross World Championship, Round 8 

MXGP - Overall 
1. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 47pts; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 47; 3. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 40… 7. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 28; 8. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 24… 12. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 18… 20. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 3 

MXGP - Race 1 
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 19 laps, 35:19.364; 2. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 35:21.236; 3. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 35:42.998… 8. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 36:06.118… 10. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 36:16.867… 13. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 36:44.203… 21. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 35:26.617 

MXGP - Race 2 
1. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 19 laps, 35:28.768; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 35:34.746; 3. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 35:38.118… 6. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 35:54.872… 8. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 36:11.758… 11. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 36:47.999… 18. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 37:10.581… 30. Nicolas Bender (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 37:28.773 

MX2 - Overall 
1. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 43pts; 2. Hunter Lawrence (Suzuki) 38; 3. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 38; 4. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 32; 5. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 29… 13. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 16; 14. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 13 

MX2 - Race 1 
1. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 18 laps, 33:54.226; 2. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 33:56.563; 3. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 33:57.822… 5. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 34:17.091… 8. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 34:22.252… 14. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 34:44.720… 31. Anton Gole (Husqvarna) 12 laps, 23:59.405 

MX2 - Race 2 
1. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 18 laps, 34:26.321; 2. Benoit Paturel (Yamaha) 34:28.445; 3. Hunter Lawrence (Suzuki) 34:30.155… 12. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 35:31.609… 25. Enzo Toriani (Husqvarna) 17 laps, 35:50.183… 26. Anton Gole (Husqvarna) 12 laps, 24:58.358 

Championship Standings (After Round 8) 

MXGP 
1. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 305pts; 2. Tim Gajser (Honda) 261; 3. Gautier Paulin (Husqvarna) 260… 9. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 163… 13. Max Anstie (Husqvarna) 124… 15. Tanel Leok (Husqvarna) 91… 18. Rui Goncalves (Husqvarna) 52… 23. Harri Kullas (Husqvarna) 21… 29. Yentel Martens (Husqvarna) 6 

MX2 
1. Pauls Jonass (KTM) 2325pts; 2. Jeremy Seewer (Suzuki) 288; 3. Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Husqvarna) 264… 6. Thomas Covington (Husqvarna) 184… 19. Conrad Mewse (Husqvarna) 55; 21. Anton Gole (Husqvarna) 49; 22. Brian Hsu (Husqvarna) 47… 24. Iker Larranaga (Husqvarna) 43… 26. Henry Jacobi (Husqvarna) 33… 30. Caleb Ward (Husqvarna) 14; 31. Karel Kutsar (Husqvarna) 14… 38. Ivan Petrov (Husqvarna) 1… 41. Aaron Tanti (Husqvarna) 1