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of the second moto. It was the same story in England two weeks early and many in attendance felt Ramon let Everts pass him. Still second overall was a good result for the Suzuki factory rider. "I was so tired at the end of the second moto," Ramon said. "At the beginning I pushed really hard and my speed was good. I could keep it high, but near the end, I was getting tired and making mistakes and Stefan closed the gap and passed me." The opening MX2 race was, without question, one of the best GP races in the last decade. It was the two Italian riders Antonio Cairoli and Philippaerts that gave the crowd a sensational race, although there were more riders who deserve recognition for being part of this race. Christophe Pourcel led the moto in the opening laps, although on lap eight, Philippaerts moved past, only to lose the lead to Pourcel a lap later. Philippaerts came back to repass Pourcel on lap 10 and, while he held the lead until the last lap of the race, he didn't have it his own way. Biting at his heels was Cairoli and Pourcel, and at one stage, Tyla Rattray also joined in on the fight. As the race came to a close, Pourcel stalled his bike and lost con- tact with the two lead riders, Philipparets and Cairoli. On the last corner, the two leaders were just inches apart and Philippaerts held on for the win. Second went to Cairoli followed by Pourcel. The second MX2 race was not as spec- tacular as the first; however, it was Pourcel and Philippaerts who made the race inter- esting. Pourcel took the lead early and never lost control of the top spot. Philippaerts, who held fourth position on lap one, made his way past Kenneth Gundersen and Billy Mackenzie to finish in second place. The interesting mover in the second moto was British youngster Tommy Searle. The Molson Kawasaki rider showed great speed to come from outside the top 10 on the first lap to third at the end of the moto, passing such riders as Rattray, Marc de Reuver and Alessio Chiodi. Philippaerts was more than happy with his victory. Working with five-time World Motocross Champion Georges Jobe has seen the Italian go from middle-order play- er to the most dominant rider in the series at this moment. All he needs now is to make up for his slow start to the season. "In the first moto, I had trouble at the start, but at the end, I passed Cairoli like two friends should race," Philippaerts said. "In the second moto, I could see Pourcel was too fast for me, and I could- n't keep with him. I knew Cairoli was behind me and I knew I had the overall, and that was all that counted." Retaining his series lead, Pourcel was happy to play a background roll in Sweden and knows that his large champi- onship lead is still very safe. He looked strong in the second-moto win, although didn't have a chance against the two Italian riders, Cairoli and Philippaerts, in the opening moto. "In the first moto I started in second, but I had bad lines and I couldn't keep with them," Pourcel said. "In the second moto, I found some good lines. The key to my second-moto win was finding the good lines between the two motos." CN GRAND PRIX OF SWEDEN UDDEVALLA, SWEDEN RESULTS: JULY 2, 2006 (ROUND NINE OF 15) MX1 MOTO 1: 1. Stefan Everts (Yam); 2. Jonathan Barragan (KTM); 3. Joshua Coppins (Hon); 4. Steve Ramon (Suz); 5. Tanel Leok (Kaw); 6. Kevin Strijbos (Suz); 7. Gordon Crockard (Hon); 8. Ken de Dijcker (Hon); 9. Vico Garcia (Hon); 10. James Noble (Hon); 11. Cedric Melotte (Yam); 12. Brian Jorgensen (Hon); 13. Julien Bill (Yam); 14. Marvin Van Daele (Hon); 15. Danny Theybers (Suz). MX1 MOTO 2: 1. Stefan Everts (Yam); 2. Steve Ramon (Suz); 3. Kevin Strijbos (Suz); 4. Gordon Crockard (Hon); 5. Joshua Coppins (Hon); 6. Kornel Nemeth (Suz); 7. Vico Garcia (Hon); 8. James Noble (Hon); 9. Ken de Dijcker (Hon); 10. Julien Bill (Yam); 11. Manuel Priem (Yam); 12. Lauris Freiberghs (Suz); 13. Marko Kovalainen (Hon); 14. Antti Pyrhonen (TM); 15. Neville Bradshaw (Suz). MX1 OVERALL: 1. Stefan Everts (50); 2. Steve Ramon (40); 3. Joshua Coppins (36); 4. Kevin Strijbos (35); 5. Gordon Crockard (32); 6. Vico Garcia (26); 7. Ken de Dijcker (25); 8. James Noble (24); 9. Jonathan Barragan (22); 10. Kornel Nemeth (19). FIM WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MX1 SERIES POINTS STANDINGS (After 9 of 15 rounds): 1. Stefan Everts (442/9 wins); 2. Kevin Strijbos (328); 3. Tanel Leok (294); 4. Steve Ramon (294); 5. Ken de Dijcker (292); 6. Jonathan Barragan (212); 7. Vico Garcia (165); 8. Pascal Leuret (159); 9. Cedric Melotte (157); 10. Manuel Priem (146). MX2 MOTO 1: 1. David Philippaerts (KTM); 2. Antonio Cairoli (Yam); 3. Christophe Pourcel (Kaw); 4. Marc de Reuver (KTM); 5. Tyla Rattray (KTM); 6. Gareth Swaenepoel (Kaw); 7. Tommy Searle (Kaw); 8. Alessio Chiodi (Yam); 9. Rui Goncalves (KTM); 10. Kenneth Gundersen (Yam); 11. Carl Nunn (KTM); 12. Aigar Leok (Yam); 13. Nicolas Aubin (KTM); 14. Eero Remes (Hon); 15. Jonas Wing (Suz). MX2 MOTO 2: 1. Christophe Pourcel (Kaw); 2. David Philippaerts (KTM); 3. Tommy Searle (Kaw); 4. Gareth Swaenepoel (Kaw); 5. Marc de Reuver (KTM); 6. Davide Guarneri (Yam); 7. Carl Nunn (KTM); 8. Kenneth Gundersen (Yam); 9. Billy MacKenzie (Yam); 10. Sebastien Pourcel (Kaw); 11. Manuel Monni (Hon); 12. Antonio Cairoli (Yam); 13. Alessio Chiodi (Yam); 14. Carlos Campano (Hon); 15. Nicolas Aubin (KTM). MX2 OVERALL: 1. David Philippaerts (47); 2. Christophe Pourcel (45); 3. Tommy Searle (34); 4. Marc de Reuver (34); 5. Gareth Swaenepoel (33); 6. Antonio Cairoli (31); 7. Carl Nunn (24); 8. Kenneth Gundersen (24); 9. Alessio Chiodi (21); 10. Tyla Rattray (16). FIM WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MX2 SERIES POINTS STANDINGS (After 9 of 15 rounds): 1. Christophe Pourcel (350/1 win); 2. David Philippaerts (304/3 wins); 3. Antonio Cairoli (302); 4. Marc de Reuver (284/1 win); 5. Tyla Rattray (261/3 wins); 6. Billy MacKenzie (213/1 win); 7. Carl Nunn (205); 8. Tommy Seare (196); 9. Kenneth Gundersen (194); 10. Gareth Swaenepoel (181). C Y C L E N E W S • JULY 12, 2006 37 David Philippaerts (19) and current MX2 points leader Christophe Pourcel (377) put on a show for Swedish fans. Antonio Cairoli (1) and Pourcel (377) chase down Philippaerts (19) in a spectacular three-way battle for the MX2 moto win. Kevin Strijbos (24) and Joshua Coppins (2) battle for the final podium position, which ultimately went to Coppins.