Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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IN THE WIND P22 FEBVRE! F actory Yamaha Racing Yamalube's Romain Febvre clinched the 2015 MXGP-class Championship at the MXGP of The Netherlands in Assen, August 30. Febvre didn't get the overall win on the day, but the Frenchman's 5-1 was good enough to sew up his first World Championship title and the first for Yamaha since 2009 with Antonio Cairoli. After a bad start in the first moto, Febvre turned everything around in the second moto to nab the win. The only rider who could stop Febvre was Honda's Gautier Paulin but when he took the checkered flag in fourth in the second moto, that was just enough for Febvre to clinch the title with two rounds still to go. "I started slowly on Satur- day and showed good speed in qualifying already," Febvre said. "I knew with some good starts I could be on the podium again and that was the goal. I knew also if I finished in front of [Gautier] Paulin then the cham- pionship would be done. It didn't happen in the first moto but my start was a lot better in the sec- ond and I could pass everybody to win… and the 2015 World Championship! I cannot thank everybody enough. The team did such a good job and gave me a chance last winter. I'm so happy." The overall victory on the day went to KTM's Shaun Simpson who won the first moto and fin- ished third in the second moto. "This morning I had a good lap time and a good feeling, and in the first race I was able to come back from a bad start and a small crash to win," Simpson said. "The bike was working re- ally well and the suspension was very good. We made a few small changes for the second race and the track was a lot different, smoother and easier. I used a lot of energy in the first race, but overall it was nice to win the GP. I showed that I can win at a sand race on the 2015 bike and now I have the factory support on the 2016 bike." Febvre was second overall, while The Netherlands' own Glenn Coldenhoff was third overall with a 4-2. "An amazing feeling, espe- cially here with the crowd," the Rockstar Energy Suzuki's Coldenhoff said. "Yesterday went well and having pole made things quite a bit easier. I didn't manage the same starts and when the guys are pulling away at the start of the moto it is hard to come back again. I had a re- ally tough first moto and Romain was pushing me hard all the time and I was happy I could keep him behind me. The second moto was great—the track suited me better—and I felt like I could go on and on until the last lap. It was so special to feel the crowd behind me and I've actually not seen something like this in Hol- land before. I had goose bumps some laps!" Romain Febvre and the Yamaha crew celebrated the 2015 MXGP World Championship at Assen. PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY YAMAHA RACING