Desalle first; Nagl second in MX1 GP at Loket

KTM Press Release

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Max Nagl was again on the podium at Loket on Sunday after stealing a decisive victory in the first moto and following it up with a fourth place in the second race on the twisting, undulating motocross track in the Czech Republic. Max garnered 43 additional championship points for his efforts and moved a little closer to standings leader and next year's teammate onboard KTM, the Italian Toni Cairoli.
 
Nagl qualified second and shot out of the starting gates in his gates in his customary lightning fashion take an early control of race one. He had amassed an 8-second lead by the eighth lap and had no trouble crossing the finish line a decisive 10 seconds in front of Clement Desalle and David Philippaerts. But things did not go quite so smoothly in the second race for the German rider who said that he had been troubled by stomach cramps between the two motos, a problem that may be a virus as other riders also complained of similar symptoms.

Max again won the start but some difficulties in the first corner saw him in sixth place for the first two laps. In the fourth lap he fought his way up two positions at the same time registering a 1:47.906 lap time, his fastest for the race. He then sat in fourth for the rest of the race, fending off a challenge by New Zealander Josh Coppins in the closing stages.

Max Nagl: "The first moto was very good because I took the holeshot then I managed to control the race and put in good lap times. Then I felt sick between the two motos and it was no fun to go out and race again. I did have a good start again but then I made a mistake at the first corner and I had to fight to get back into the race. Overall I am happy with the weekend because I managed to pick up some more points on Cairoli and put a bigger distance between me and David Philippaerts in third place. Looking forward to the next round in Lierop, I feel quite confident because I rode well there last year and I think I can get some more points so then I'll be ready for a big battle for the title in Brazil."
 
Nagl now trails Cairoli by 45 points in the chase for the 2009 MX1 title with 100 points still up for grabs in the final two rounds - on the sandy circuit of Lierop, in the Netherlands on August 30 and in the final round in Brazil in September. He is currently the only KTM factory rider contesting the championship after Jonathan Barragan of Team Silver Action has been out for the past six rounds recuperating from surgery. Despite having missed so much of the season, Barragan is still in ninth place with 215 points from the first seven rounds.
 
 
MX1 GP Results:
1. Clement Desalle, Belgium, Honda, 22-25—47
2. Max Nagl, Germany, KTM, 25-18—43
3. David Philippaerts, Italy, Yamaha, 20-20—40
4. Antonio Cairoli, Italy, Yamaha, 15-22—37
5. Josh Coppins, New Zealand, Yamaha, 18-16—34
 
MX1 championship standings after 13 of 15 rounds:
1. Antonio Cairoli, Italy, Yamaha, 503
2. Max Nagl, Germany, KTM 458
3. David Philippaerts, Italy, Yamaha, 428
4. Clement Desalle, Belgium, Honda, 426
5. Ken de Dyker, Belgium Suzuki