At the center of the positive
vibe at Losail—that was windy
and chilly for a desert setting on
Friday but clearer and warmer
for the first motos of 18 rounds
and 36 gate drops Saturday
evening—was Villopoto. The
VOL. 52 ISSUE 9 MARCH 3, 2015 P87
Briefly...
Ryan Villopoto had the chance to
deal with many of the core European
press on Thursday night with a Mon-
ster Energy dinner and informal Q+A
session in the W Hotel in Doha. The
MotoGP-style briefing saw the AMA
Champion and teammate Tyla Rat-
tray riff on a number of subjects. The
function was just another of the small
ways in which RV experienced a
slightly different take on a race week-
end. There were others: "For me it
has been about learning the system
and how it all works," he would offer
after the race on Saturday. "I haven't
ridden on Saturday and raced on
Sunday or done two 20-minute prac-
tices and a 20-minute race followed
by a 15-minute practice and then into
the motos; that is more riding on the
weekend than we have ever had in
the States. I'm getting used to that."
Thomas Covington is the "other
American" in MXGP and looked
fast on Friday in Qatar, as he almost
seized MX2 Pole Position. The CLS
Kawasaki rider could not repeat his
decent starts on Saturday and fin-
ished 10th overall. The 18-year-old
claims he is benefiting from a new
training regime under the guidance
of Tyla Rattray.
The Losail track really polarized opin-
ion. Riders like Jeffrey Herlings and
Clement Desalle seemed to enjoy the
challenge of the dirt but others like Jer-
emy Van Horebeek and David Philip-
paerts abhorred the churned and
hard-edged terrain. "It was quite fun in
the Qualification heat but if something
could be done to give us some more
lines it would be good. They try to do
a good job, and of course in the day
it is very sunny and they need to do
something to take off the dust. It was
continued on next page
WERE THE HEADLINERS,
THE SHOW
Max Nagl flew under the radar
heading into the 2015 MXGP opener in
Qatar, but the German and Husqvarna
came away with the big win.
