VICTORY FOR NAGL AT INTERNAZIONALI D’ITALIA MX

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VICTORY FOR NAGL AT #INTERNAZIONALI #D’ITALIA MX


MAX NAGL PUTS #HUSQVARNA MOTORCYCLES ON THE TOP STEP OF THE PODIUM AT INTERNAZIONALI D’ITALIA MX SIDI SERIES

After a successful outing at the opening round of the Internazionali d’Italia MX Sidi Series in Riola last weekend, Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing moved on to Castiglione del Lago for round two of the Italian motocross championship where Max Nagl secured victory in the Elite class.

Pushing hard in the opening MX1 race, the German battled with eventual race winner David Philippaerts to place a close second. More importantly Max took control of the championship points lead with one round remaining. Taking to the start line of the combined MX1 and MX2 Elite race, Nagl was in confident spirits. Grabbing the holeshot, the Husqvarna rider put in a flawless ride to secure a much-deserved victory.

For teammate Todd Waters, the second round of the Italian series delivered another pair of strong results. Fairing well on the technically demanding track, the Australian battled his way from a mid pack start to end the MX1 race in ninth. With the pace to improve on that result, Waters jumped up three places to end the Elite race in sixth.

Round two of the series proved to be one of mixed fortunes for the team’s youngest rider Nathan Watson. Impressing greatly with the seventh fastest time in MX1 qualification, Watson went on to finish a brilliant 10th. Hoping to repeat that form in the Elite class his day took a turn for the worst. Running as high as 11th with just two laps to go, a crash saw the British rider unfortunately drop back 21st.

Opting to contest the prestigious Hawkstone Park International Motocross in Great Britain, Wilvo Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing took a trip to the historic sandy Shropshire circuit.

Favouring the deep rough sandy track, Aleksandr Tonkov enjoyed a competitive outing in the MX2 category. Second in both races, the Husqvarna rider ended his day as a close runner-up to MX2 world champion Jordi Tixier.

Mixing things up in the highly stacked MX1 class, Dean Ferris positioned himself towards the sharp end of the field. Sixth in race one, the Australian claimed a top five result with fifth in race two to sign off on his day with a successful fifth overall.

Max Nagl – Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing: “What can I say, it’s been a really, really good day. I’m more than pleased with how it’s all gone. Taking the point’s lead in MX1 and then winning the Elite class is fantastic in what’s been difficult riding conditions. During warm-up the track was very muddy and honestly I struggled – only managing to qualify 12th. I knew the start was going to be critical so I focused all my energy on that. I gated second in the MX1 race and was then able to finish second. I got a perfect holeshot in the Elite class and led the entire race to win. Overall it’s been a brilliant effort from everyone involved in the team to get this result.”

Todd Waters – Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing: “We made a lot of progress with both the bike and myself this weekend and I think it showed. On a track that was super difficult to pass on – it became very one lined due to the mud – I managed to fight my way from 13th to ninth in the MX1 race. The Elite race was another step forward and a better start resulted in a sixth place finish.”

Nathan Watson – Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing: “I’m pleased with my pace this weekend. I’d never ridden this track before and had to learn fast in such tricky conditions. Seventh in qualification was great and it gave me confidence for the races. Pushing through from a mid pack start I worked my way up to finish 10th in the MX1 race. Fighting for another top ten result in the Elite race I made a slight mistake when trying to pass a rider and paid greatly for it. I got badly stuck in the mud off the racing lines and lost a bunch of places. On the whole I’m happy with my pace and I’m looking forward to the final round of the series next weekend.”

Dean Ferris – Wilvo Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing: “Today was quite OK I’d say. I qualified seventh but during the races I was a bit off the pace and I wasn’t feeling comfortable overall. The season has only just started so there is a long way to go. I still haven’t got that click that I had last year. It’s not that I’m scared but more that I’ve been only riding my new bike for a month now. I am still finding my feet. I believe there is a lot more from me and still I haven’t reached that level I want to be at.”

Aleksandar Tonkov – Wilvo Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing: “I had two good starts today and two holeshots, which is pretty cool, especially for the beginning of the season. But in the first moto I got arm pump and really struggled to ride – I’ve only been riding for a couple of weeks due to my end of season hand injury. It’s my first time here and I really loved the layout and the terrain. But this kind of sandy terrain is really tough and things get worse when you are not fully prepared. My riding improved as the day went on and in the final moto I believe I had the speed to pass Jordi if not for a small problem when I bent the shift lever.”


Results

Internazionali d’Italia MX Sidi Series, Rnd2

MX1
1. David Philippaerts (Yamaha) 15 laps, 30:16.243; 2. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 30:20.661; 3. Jeremy Van Horebeek (Yamaha) 30:38.907; 4. Romain Febvre (Yamaha) 30:49.374; 5. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 31:07.865… 9. Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 31:20.179; 10. Nathan Watson (Husqvarna) 31:24.684…

Elite
1. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 15 laps, 29:34.553; 2. Tommy Searle (KTM) 29:38.611; 3. David Philippaerts (Yamaha) 29:39.966; 4. Romain Febvre (Yamaha) 29:41.733; 5. Antonio Cairoli (KTM) 29:51.049; 6. Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 30:00.004… 21. Nathan Watson (Husqvarna) 14 laps, 29:37.198…

Championship Standings (after Rnd2)

MX 1
1. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 165pts; 2. Cairoli 160; 3. Van Horebeek 160… 12. Nathan Watson (Husqvarna) 72; 13. Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 66…

Elite
1. Cairoli 180pts; 2. Searle 180; 3. Max Nagl (Husqvarna) 175… 8. Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 80… 13. Nathan Watson (Husqvarna) 54…


Hawkstone International Motocross 2015

MX1
1. Kevin Strijbos (Suzuki) [1-1] 50pts; 2. Clement Desalle (Suzuki) [2-2] 44; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (Suzuki) [4-3] 38; 4. Shaun Simpson (KTM) [3-4] 38; 5. Dean Ferris (Husqvarna) [6-5] 31…

MX2
1. Jordi Tixier (Kawasaki) [1-1] 50pts; 2. Aleksandr Tonkov (Husqvarna) [2-2] 44; 3. Ben Watson (KTM) [3-3] 40; 4. Steven Lenoir (KTM) [4-5] 34; 5. Petar Petrov (KTM) [10-4] 29…