The Grand Prix of Bulgaria at Sevlievo - Dirt Rider Magazine

Clement Desalle in MX1 class and Ken Roczen in MX2 class became the first red plate holders of the 2011 season this weekend in Sevlievo, Bulgaria. It was not a good weekend for 2010 MX1 World Champion Antonio Cairoli, on Saturday he could not find his rhythm and today he unfortunately twisted his left new on the first heat.Clement Desalle got a really tight overall victory, after finishing first with the same points as second classified Steven Frossard. Third was Jonathan Barragan thanks to his superb performance on the second race.In the MX2 Class Ken Roczen dominated the whole weekend and obtained his second red plate of his career. Second was a consistent Tommy Searle and third was Jeffrey Herlings.This morning took place the second race of the UEM EMX 125 and Italian Simone Zecchina got the first round victory of the season. Second was his compatriot Samuele Bernardini and third Swiss rider Jeremy Seewer.

Rockstar Energy Suzuki World MX1's Clement Desalle got the first Grand Prix victory of the season, the sixth in his career. The Belgian was second in the first heat, even having an unfortunate crash during the last lap when he was trying to find some new lines. On the second race, Desalle took the holeshot and led the race until Steve Frossard and later on Jonathan Barragan overtook him. However, the Belgian rider managed to place himself at the front of the pack and kept such position until the chequered flag.Motocross Energy Yamaha rider Steven Frossard had an excellent weekend in Sevlievo, which was his first Grand Prix in the MX1 class. After winning yesterday's Qualifying race, Frossard did an excellent start in the first race and dominated it from beginning to end. The second start was not that good, but Frossard's managed to be second right after the opening lap. By the end of the heat, the French rider made some mistakes and he had to settle down with a second overall position being tight in points with Desalle.Third was Kawasaki Racing Team's Jonathan Barragan, who was back on the podium after a long absence due to the several injuries he suffered last year. The Spanish rider could only finish sixth in the first race, but in the second one he got quite a good start and his solid riding took him into the lead. However, Desalle and Frossard came back really fast from behind and Barragan decided to ride safe in order not to risk the third overall position.The fourth position was for Red Bull Teka KTM Factory Racing MX1's Max Nagl, who got a consistent third place in the first heat, but he could only finish sixth in the second one. The German rider expressed his satisfaction for this fourth overall position, but he also admitted that he needs some more time to get used to his new 350cc and improve also his fitness.Completing the top five was Honda World Motocross' Rui Goncalves, who could only be eighth in the first race, as he was involved in a tangle when he was catching Cairoli's wheel. In the second race, he was second in the opening lap, but he could not keep the rhythm of his pursuers and finished fifth.Other Honda World Motocross rider, Evgeny Bobryshev finished sixth, ahead of Kevin Strijbos, who received the Lovemytime holeshot award, as he took the holeshot in the first MX1 heat.Davide Guarneri finished eighth overall in a Grand Prix where the Italian could prove his speed achieving a well deserved fifth position. For the second race, the Italian had lost too much energies and he could just finish eleventh.2010 MX1 World Champion Antonio Cairoli could just finish ninth overall. The Italian had already admitted on Saturday that he was not fully fit yet, but on top of that, Cairoli made a mistake in the first heat when landing from a jump and he twisted his left knee. In the end, the Italian ended seventh, but in the second heat he could just be tenth.David Philippaerts did a very good first race going from eleventh to a final fourth position. However, the Italian was involved in a tangle at the first corner of the second race and he could only finish 14th.Ken De Dycker crashed in both heats and was just 19th overall.Clement Desalle: "I am very happy and it is very cool to win, but this is the first grand prix and the season is very long. I made a mistake at the end of the first race because I changed my line, thinking towards the second moto. The take-off was different and I landed completely off the track. I don't think I could have done another lap because the back brake was already gone. Steven ( Frossard) rode very well and very fast all day and it was good to take the win."Steven Frossard: "I feel really good on the bike and the 450 suits me better. In the first moto I made a really good start and it was easy for me to take a lead of a few seconds. In the second it was completely different because the start was not great. I passed Clement and was ahead by four seconds but made a mistake. My physical condition was really good and that helped me to come back to second and look for the win. I was pushing really hard because I wanted to win the GP and then made another error that cost me half a second. In my head I knew I was capable of this speed because we worked really hard over the winter with Yamaha.

The first moto was good but I crashed at the start of the second and made a mistake when the rear stepped out. I restarted last and pushed as hard as I could but my times were not as good as the first moto. Overall I think I was good enough for a top four finish today, which would have been OK because the track was very hard. I like this place but there were other riders who were quicker today. I'm looking forward to Valkenswaard now and we must improve the starts."Jonathan Barragan: "I did not feel comfortable yesterday; the track was dusty and too fast. During the night I spent time thinking a lot about the lines, and today I felt much better; the track was well prepared, I found good lines and enjoyed both races. I didn't have a good choice of gate as I only finished fourteenth in the qualifying race, but I still managed to get in the top ten at the first corner of each race. I was already satisfied to have finished sixth in the first moto, but I even managed to take the lead for one lap in race two. I am still rebuilding from missing most of the 2010 season so I settled for third place as I knew it would be good enough to put me on the GP podium for the first time in nearly two years. I must thank the team, my sponsors, my family and my mechanic for the support they have given me during this difficult time and I feel confident we will enjoy many more podiums this year."Tony Cairoli: "The start is very important here in Bulgaria because it is difficult to pass on this track. It was not so bad for me yesterday but today I had a very bad start in the first moto. I tried to pass as many as possible and I was up to about fifth then I hit my knee trying to pass Goncalves. It's the same knee that I broke so I was quite worried. It was hurting a lot and I gave up a bit and finished seventh. Then I made an appointment to see the doctor and it started to feel better so I was able to race again in the second moto. My start was better and I almost got the holeshot, I think I was third in the first corner. Then Philippaerts crashed in front of me and I couldn't avoid him and found I was back at 20 or 21 in the field. I scrambled back to tenth and tried to move up to ninth in the last lap. But I didn't manage it."MX1 Race 1 top ten: 1. Steven Frossard (FRA, Yamaha), 38:47.398; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), +0:08.044; 3. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), +0:19.535; 4. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), +0:23.876; 5. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Kawasaki), +0:42.423; 6. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, Kawasaki), +0:44.452; 7. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:48.293; 8. Rui Goncalves (POR, Honda), +0:49.798; 9. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:55.906; 10. Steve Ramon (BEL, Suzuki), +1:04.730;MX1 Race 2 top ten: 1. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 39:21.139; 2. Steven Frossard (FRA, Yamaha), +0:01.222; 3. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, Kawasaki), +0:13.352; 4. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), +0:19.955; 5. Rui Goncalves (POR, Honda), +0:22.354; 6. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), +0:23.603; 7. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:26.653; 8. Xavier Boog (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:30.906; 9. Tanel Leok (EST, TM), +0:33.340; 10. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:33.861;MX1 Championship top ten: 1. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), 47 points; 2. Steven Frossard (FRA, Yamaha), 47 p.; 3. Jonathan Barragan (ESP, Kawasaki), 35 p.; 4. Maximilian Nagl (GER, KTM), 35 p.; 5. Rui Goncalves (POR, Honda), 29 p.; 6. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), 27 p.; 7. Davide Guarneri (ITA, Kawasaki), 26 p.; 8. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), 26 p.; 9. David Philippaerts (ITA, Yamaha), 25 p.; 10. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 25 p.;

Runner-up of the 2010 MX2 World Championship, Ken Roczen, had a perfect weekend in Sevlievo. The German young talent took easily both holeshots and ruled the heats from beginning to end. Roczen showed a great superiority this weekend, but he will have to prove it as well next Grand Prix in the deep roots of Valkenswaard.Second overall was Tommy Searle from CLS Monster Energy Kawasaki Pro Circuit, who was very satisfied with his performance in his comeback to the FIM Motocross World Championship. The Brit felt really comfortable on his Kawasaki machine and he expects to close the gap with Roczen in the upcoming GP's.Red Bull Teka KTM Factory Racing MX2's Jeffrey Herlings had very good starts in both motos but he could not keep the second position and had to settle down with a third place. The next Grand Prix is in his home track of Valkenswaard, where the Dutch young rider obtained his maiden Grand Prix victory.Monster Energy Yamaha's Gautier Paulin was third in the first heat, but he did not have a good start in the second one and he could only finish seventh. The French missed the podium for two points over third classified, Jeffrey Herlings.In fifth position in the final ranking was Yamahas Zach Osborne. The American suffered a little with nerves in the first race and finished seventh but was more comfortable on his YZ250F later in the day and circulated on the fringes of the leading trio, capturing fourth by the flag.Jeremy Van Horebeek and Arnaud Tonus finished sixth and seventh respectively, both tied in 31 points, and Max Anstie ended in a solid eight position in his debut in the FIM Motocross World Championship.Ken Roczen: "just wanted to go out in front and do my thing, I had an awesome race. I'm very happy and everyone is doing a great job. I hope I can continue like this for the next races".Tommy Searle: "I expected Roczen to be fast, but I'm not concerned about him; he took the holeshots and controlled both races from the front. Ideally I should have got to second earlier, so I could have seen his lines but I wheelied out of the gate both motos and by the time I got past Herlings for second, Roczen was gone. I came here to get a solid start to the championship, and I did just that; we have got the bike working well and I believe I can go that fast too; it's early days yet and my day will come !"Zach Osborne, Bike: "It was a pretty decent start to the season, a productive weekend and I am quite close to where I need to be. I was a bit nervous and tightened up in the first race and had to ride through it but in the second race I could show a bit more of my speed and got a fourth place. I was a bit bummed out with the result because I felt like I should have been on the podium today. This was the best finish I've had here in three years and I've made improvements. I need to work on my first laps but I have something to build on from here ".MX2 Race 1 top ten: 1. Ken Roczen (GER, KTM), 39:24.881; ; 2. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:14.667; 3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:19.972; 4. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), +0:21.255; 5. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:25.587; 6. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), +0:39.301; 7. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), +1:01.188; 8. Max Anstie (GBR, Kawasaki), +1:07.192; 9. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, KTM), +1:12.012; 10. Harri Kullas (FIN, Yamaha), +1:13.374;MX2 Race 2 top ten: 1. Ken Roczen (GER, KTM), 39:35.555; ; 2. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:21.468; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:30.621; 4. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), +0:35.375; 5. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), +0:38.982; 6. Max Anstie (GBR, Kawasaki), +0:43.344; 7. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:55.018; 8. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), +0:58.330; 9. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, KTM), +0:59.768; 10. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +1:41.625;MX2 Overall top ten: 1. Ken Roczen (GER, KTM), 50 points; 2. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 44 p.; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 36 p.; 4. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), 34 p.; 5. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 32 p.; 6. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), 31 p.; 7. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), 31 p.; 8. Max Anstie (GBR, Kawasaki), 28 p.; 9. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, KTM), 24 p.; 10. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), 19 p.;MX2 Championship top ten: 1. Ken Roczen (GER, KTM), 50 points; 2. Tommy Searle (GBR, Kawasaki), 44 p.; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 36 p.; 4. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), 34 p.; 5. Zachary Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 32 p.; 6. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), 31 p.; 7. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, KTM), 31 p.; 8. Max Anstie (GBR, Kawasaki), 28 p.; 9. Nicolas Aubin (FRA, KTM), 24 p.; 10. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), 19 p.;