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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1134532
IN THE WIND P48 Gajser, Prado Top Teutschenthal O nce again, it was Tim Gajser and Jorge Prado taking the overall wins in the 2019 FIM Moto- cross World Championship. This time, their victories came at the MXGP of Germany in Teutschenthal, June 23. In MXGP, Gajser (Honda HRC) captured his fifth overall victory in a row after topping both motos and pulling well clear of Antonio Cairoli (Red Bull KTM) in the race for the 2019 MXGP title. Cairoli did not suit up for the race, as he is still recuper- ating from a dislocated shoulder that he suffered the previous weekend. Gajser now leads the Italian by 83 points in the MXGP Championship. The Slovenian, Gajser, won both MXGP motos with room to spare, topping runner-ups Arnaud Tonus (Yam) by nearly six seconds in the first moto and Pauls Jonass (Husqvarna) by seven seconds in the second moto. Tonus ended up taking second overall on the day with 2-3 motos, while Gautier Paulin (Yam) captured third overall via 5-4 motos. Jonass (10-2) and Yamaha's Jeremy Seewer (3-8) rounded out the top five overall. "I was enjoying riding on the track this weekend," said Gajser who topped Saturday's qualifying and took the holeshot in both GP motos. "It was a really technical circuit with deep ruts which made line selection really important. I'm also really happy to take the holeshot in both races, as well as the qualifier yesterday because we weren't able to do that in the early part of the season, but now we are getting the perfect jump out of the gate. "In the first moto I did make a little mistake, but I was still able to pick up the bike and remount as the leader, so that went okay," added Gajser. "Then, in the second race, I didn't want to push too hard. I pulled out a lead of about five seconds and then kept it smooth because the track was a little sketchy in that second moto. The shadows and the sun were quite low, which caused problems on certain parts of the track." Red Bull KTM's Jeffrey Herlings joined his teammate Cairoli on the sidelines, as well. Herlings suffered a broken leg last week, which required minor surgery. The 2018 MXGP Champion will be out of action again for a few more weeks. Prado (Red Bull KTM) won both MX2 motos. The Spaniard took the holeshot in motos one and two and was unstoppable from then on out. It was his ninth grand prix victory of the year. Prado had plenty of room to spare at the end of both motos. He took the checkered flag nearly 12 sec- onds ahead of teammate Tom Vialle in the first moto and 14 seconds ahead of French rider Mathys Bois- rame (Honda) in the second moto. Thomas Kjer Olsen (Husqvarna), the closest rider to Prado in the championship, went 4-4 on the day for fourth overall. Olsen now trails Prado by 44 points in the class championship. Vialle ended up second overall on the day with a 2-3 for his third trip to the podium in what is his rookie year, and Boisrame took third overall with a 7-2. "I started the weekend a bit weak and didn't have a good feeling, but today I turned it around, and I felt bet- ter in the second race," said Prado. "It was a tough track, but it was cool to race here. The second race was another great one for me. I felt very good compared to the first race, and I am very happy about it." CN MXGP 1. Tim Gajser (Hon) 1-1 2. Arnaud Tonus (Yam) 2-3 3. Gautier Paulin (Yam) 5-4 4. Pauls Jonass (Hus) 10-2 5. Jeremy Seewer (Yam) 3-8 MX2 1. Jorge Prado (KTM) 1-1 2. Tom Vialle (KTM) 2-3 3. Mathys Boisrame (Hon) 7-2 4. Thomas Kjer Olsen (Hus) 4-4 5. Henry Jacobi (Kaw) 3-9 Tim Gajser captured his fifth MXGP overall win in a row. PHOTO: HONDA RACING