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IN THE WIND P44 Herlings, Geerts Top MXGP Season Opener T he 2020 FIM Moto- cross World Cham- pionship got underway beneath sunny skies at the Matterley Basin Circuit in Great Britain, March 1, and while familiar faces made it to the top step of the podiums, new ones also made their showing in the season opener. In the MXGP class, vet- erans Tim Gajser (Honda HRC) and Jeffrey Herlings (Red Bull KTM) showed championship-winning speed, with former champ Herlings beating out the defending champ, Gajser, for the overall win. Unfortunately for Gajser, a couple of falls in the first moto ruined his bid to start the season with the overall win. However, Gajser looked strong while battling near the front of the pack before falling on the last lap and dropping to eighth, while Herlings took the win 11 seconds clear of runner-up Jeremy See- wer (Yamaha) of Sweden. Gajser, however, bounced back in the second moto, jump- ing into the early lead and running off with the win, while Herlings spent much of the race making up for a bad start. Herlings managed to get around his teammate, Antonio Cairoli, for second, which was more than enough to claim the day's overall victory ahead of Gajser. "Definitely there is no better way to start the season than to start with a win," Herlings said. "I said I did not need to win every GP this year, but it was a good day. I made a 1-2, we have im- proved a lot also as a team as my bike is getting better and better." "Overall I'm super happy to finish on the podium," Gajser said. "I'm just disappointed for my first race as I crashed twice, but at the second race I had a good start from the beginning; I made a quite comfortable win." Gajser will have his hands full at the next GP, which will be held at Valkenswaard, Herlings' home track. Third overall went to veteran racer Cairoli who suffered a shoulder injury last year and was slowed by a knee injury during the off season. The Italian went 4-3 on the day for third overall. "I'm very satisfied," Cairoli said. "My shoulder is getting better, but unfortunately, I twisted my knee in training, but I'm thankful I did not come out with a lot of pain today. The track was very challenging, especially during the second Jeffrey Herlings won the opening MXGP round at Matterley Basin in Great Britain. PHOTO: RAY ARCHER