Report Cards of the FIM MX Racers - Dirt Rider Magazine

Report Cards of the FIM MX World Championship.MX11 Stefan Everts 739 points
2 Kevin Strijbos 529 points
3 Steve Ramon 483 points
4 Ken de Dycker 463 points
5 Tanel Leok 443 points
6 Jonathan Barragan 376 points
7 Joshua Coppins 330 points
STEFAN EVERTS:
10 out of 10.
Stefan gets a 10 out 0f 10 like the 10 world titles won by this fantastic rider; this was his last season and he trained really hard to win it. He was very determined, fast, smooth and had a racing strategy that has been the envy of all who have witnessed it. What more can be said about this man always thirsty of victory, so much so to have reached 101 GP wins over his long career. Throughout this year's season he led 503 laps, won 27 motos and overalled 14 out of 15 GPs: only Joshua Coppins managed to win another GP The GP of Ireland) to prevent Stefan from having a " perfect season."Stefan also had his Yamaha that always functioned like a clock and that was looked after in an almost maniacal way by the Rinaldi Team.With Pichon and Coppins out of the championship from the start, the only rider who could bother Stefan's run to the title was Tortelli, but during the GP of Portugal, Everts pulled off a masterpiece, putting a lot of pressure on the French KTM rider, causing him to make mistakes, and one of them ended in an injury. With Tortelli out of the championship, after the Portuguese GP it was almost as easy as walking for Stefan to win. Every time any rider tried to get close to his rear fender, Stefan would always pull a gap between him and his pursuer and his succession of victories got him the championship.Everts, at 33 year of age, has decided to retire as a rider to become the KTM team manager next year; something that left many people astonished because it was thought that the pair Everts-Yamaha was inseparable, but unfortunately it wasn't so.KEVIN STRIJBOS:
8.5 out of 10.
With Everts in a class of his own, Kevin was at the head of the class of the rest, and came away with a well deserved second place. In fact after the victory obtained in the first moto in the GP of Spain, this young pilot from Geel (Belgium) tried to limit Everts' championship runaway. His tactic was consistency, gaining a lot of runner up positions. At the end of the championship he protected what he had achieved up to that point. He has a lot of time to mature. In fact he's only 21. He will have the number 2 on his Suzuki works next year and with the right training and efforts it could well become a number 1.

STEVE RAMON
6.5 out of 10
The new team and the new Suzuki works bikes were both interesting stimulus for the ex MX2 world champion. It should have been a big year for Steve, but instead he's collected various mistakes and he's seemed more docile than ever. Take for example the second moto in the GP of England when he was in the lead, but when in the last lap he saw Everts' blue shadow getting near, he let "the king" pass him with extreme ease. Steve needs more personality. In spite of all this, the shy and quiet Belgian finished the season in third, which gave his Team Manager Geboers and Team Suzuki the honor of the 2nd and the 3rd place overall in the world championship. As opposed to his team mate Strijbos, Steve has a nice and clean style of riding.The only doubt that comes to mind is he might have not ended his season so well if Coppins, Tortelli and Pichon had not been out with injuries.KEN DE DIJCKER:
7.5 out of 10
The fourth place rider is also Belgian like the three riders already mentioned. This says a lot on how highly this sport is considered in this Nation. Keeno (his nick name), a big pilot with a big heart, at the height of his 189 cm, looks as though he's on a Pit Bike when he's on his Honda CRF450R.His style is a little retro and sometimes dirty but definitely effective. With Coppins out with injury Ken had the role of leader within the CAS team and with excellent results. So much so that if he keeps growing (in competitiveness and not in height) we will find him amongst the circle of the possible contenders for the title.TANEL LEOK:
6 out of 10
This season should have been the good one to pick up some decent results for the spectacular Estonian rider on his Suzuki. An excellent beginning of the season, so much that he was even battling with Everts and Tortelli during the Flanders GP and the Spanish GP, but the Portugal GP left him with an injury to his shoulder from the practice on Saturday.This injury troubled him throughout the whole season; despite the pain Tanel didn't give up but his performance level decreased also due to bad starts which always forced him into tiring recoveries.Tanel reacted in the last GP of the season and he was second after Everts, but it was too late and he was relegated to 5th place. Maybe from a tough guy like him we can expect a little more: he'll have the whole winter to heal his shoulder and bring himself into next season in excellent shape.

JONATHAN BARRAGAN:
7 out of 10
This was the first year as a works pilot for the 21 year old Spaniard who grew up in the motocross school managed by "daddy" Harry Everts. He started with the aim of race testing the new KTM 450 SX-F, but due to the various problems of teammates Tortelli and Pichon, Jonathan found himself alone to carry the KTM flag.He's undoubtedly a rider who well deserves to be amidst the high ranks of the chart: it's proven by the fact that he often engaged duels with the leading riders like in the GP of Portugal where he got an overall 2nd place. Unfortunately he's still inconsistent in his performances, so much so that sometimes his chances of excellent results were thwarted by his eagerness; a sign of his Latin blood. Despite this he managed to step onto the podium and give KTM some good results.JOSHUA COPPINS:
8 out of 10
The season started uphill for the New Zealand rider of the Honda CAS Team, who even before the gate dropped for the first GP was already out because of an injury during training. Exactly like his nickname "Lizard" once he was back in the game after the injury he started over very well. He even managed to win an epic duel engaged with his "majesty" Everts in the Irish GP. For next season he'll be riding the Team Rinaldi Yamaha and he's undoubtedly a favorite to win the title.SEBASTIEN TORTELLI:
6 out of 10
He was the only one who beat Everts in the past, inducing Everts to make mistakes during the last GP of that now distant 1998 season. He signed with KTM to beat Everts again.During the first 2 GPs he showed that his speed and determination were still intact, so much so that he seemed to get into Everts' head. During the GP of Portugal he fell for the trap laid by Everts. Stefan overtook him in both motos on the same spot, Sebastien reacted with pride trying to get back by Everts, but sometimes pride doesn't pay off and Sebastien fell hard and nearly broke his hip. It makes us all wonder if it was really worth it to put so much at stake when they were only up to the 3rd GP, and still with 12 left. Sebastien wants to go back to the U.S. in 2007, which is a shame for the world championship that once again loses one of its most beloved riders.MICKAEL PICHON
DISMISSED
Together with his countryman Tortelli, Mickael was supposed to be the anti-Everts, but instead he only competed in the first moto of the first GP and after rumors he wants to retire from competition.. yes, no, but, maybe... We heard plenty of stories, up to the announcement that Mickael got infected with a mysterious illness. He participated in some races but he was not contesting for in the world championship. At last GP held in Erne (France) he earned a pole position, proving he's still in the game, but straight after the start he fell badly which got him a broken nose, head trauma and various bruises.Is this the end of a big champion?

MX21 Cristophe Pourcel 581 points
2 Antonio Cairoli 563 points
3 David Philippaerts 480 points
4 Marc de Reuver 408 points
5 Car Nunn 377 points
7 Rui Goncalves 325 points
8 Tommy Searle 315 points
CRISTOPHE POURCEL
10 out of 10
At the beginning of the season, many thought of him as a rider who could easily make the top five, but few considered him to be a contender for the title. This was probably because of the young age of this French rider (born on the 16/08/1988) or possibly because he hadn't won a single GP yet.Cristophe has everything clear in his head and from the GP of Germany when he put his hands on the pink plaque (the one that's given to the series leader) he did not let go until the end of the championship.Despite his young age, he competed with the extreme intelligence of an experienced champion.He attacked when necessary, and handled the various hard situations he encountered GP after GP very well. If we could summarise his way of thinking it would be to get the highest number of points while trying to take the minimum risk. Only during the last GP of the season in Erne did Cristophe lose control over the situation while battling against Cairoli to conquer the title: an innocent slip which certainly doesn't spoil his fabulous season.Cristophe has surelly been supported by an excellent Kawasaki which has never given him any trouble throughout the whole season. Next year he'll be participating in the MX2 world championship, then will move to the U.S. in 2008.ANTONIO CAIROLI
8.5 out of 10
With Cristophe Pourcel always scoring important points in all the motos, the 2 zeros obtained by Anotnio in the GP of Spain and Bulgaria weighed heavily on his score and forced him to chase his opponents throughout the season. To add to this, during the first part of the championship, Antonio kind of lost his ability to perform great starts and with mediocre starts he was always deciding to either follow or take risks passing his way to the front. Despite all this, Antonio raced with his heart and with his spectacular style and was always appreciated by the European fans. He won 12 motos and to keep the duel for the title alive right up to the last GP. Once again in spite of his overall 2nd place he's definitely been the great challenger of this season.

DAVID PHILIPPAERTS:
7 out of 10
He won the first moto of the first GP showing straight away he'd be one of the contenders for the title. Soon after, there were problems within the KTM MX2 team and David's performances started to vacillate. Gorge Job was the one to mend the situation providing new motivation and stability for David. From the Belgian GP onwards David started making mistakes both due to his rush and his inexperience; for example during the GP of Holland where he was in the lead when he saw the yellow flag and because he put on the brakes to harshly he fell badly.Anyway David gained a well deserved third place and he's the first KTM rider and next year he'll move on to MX1.TYLA RATTRAY:
6 out of 10
The South African started the season with the odds in his favor and he had a great beginning of season by winning the first three GPs.During the GP of Japan, he fell and badly hurt his right shoulder. This problem hampered the whole season for the KTM rider; from that point on Tyla alternated fantastic performances, like the double victory he pulled off in Ireland, with mediocre performances. Even though he managed to win 4 GPs, Tyla took 4th place overall, which is disappointing for somebody who was predicted to be one of the favorites.MARC dE REUVER
5 out of 10
De Reuver had a season similar to his teammate's ( Rattray ); for the first couple of GPs, Marc was doing very well, always scoring points and staying consistent. He won the GP of Bulgaria and then he fell into oblivion, with a series of performances that featured many mistakes, possibly because of inadequate training, which always made him look as though he didn't have any stamina. The announcement of his transfer to the MX1 class with the Rinaldi Team for the 2007 season has taken the motivation from the Dutchman instead of giving him new inspiration. It has to be said that finally after many injuries this has been the first whole season that he's raced.CARL NUNN:
5.5 out of 10
The English rider is the last of the KTM factory riders, he's been on the podium only once this year despite the good starts he's shown he's capable of. Unfortunately for him, he was always reeled in by the rest of the riders. If we were to analyze his whole performance, this year's final 6th place is an improvement compared to his overall 8th position in 2005.Anyhow it hasn't been an encouraging season.TOMMY SEARLE:
7 out of 10
He's without a shadow of a doubt the surprise of this season and he well deserves the title "Rookie of the year," thanks to 2 placements on the podium and in fact the KTM team has re-signed him for the 2007 season.RUI GONCALVES:
7 out of 10
There's been a big improvement in this young Portuguese's performances. Fantastic starts are now his strong point. He's always ready to battle and does not give anything away to anyone. We can in fact say that he's one of the toughest in this class. Good training this winter might turn him into one of the main contenders of next season.