Home/News/2008 FIM World Motocross – Round 2 – Spain

2008 FIM World Motocross – Round 2 – Spain

Published April 20th, 2008

Circuit de Motocros de Catalunya – Bellpuig, Spain

The Spanish Grand Prix can be summed up in one word – rain. It rained all day.

The track itself is a bit reminiscent of the legendary Carlsbad Raceway: it’s clay-based, and when it’s dry, it can be rock-hard and like riding on cement. When it’s wet – the clay is very slick and treacherous. With the amount of rain coming down all day, the final moto of the afternoon (the second moto of MX1) was cancelled because the track had become too dangerous, and sections of the track (like some steep uphills) were impossible to climb.

In the first MX2 moto, it was KTM’s #4 Tyla Rattray running away with the win. After a few corners, riders were unrecognizable – they all looked the same – completely covered in brown mud.

In the first (and only) MX1 moto, the winner was World Champion Steve Ramon. Again, after the first few corners, all the riders were unrecognizable.

One thing very noticeable in the first motos of each class – even with the rain and the mud, the top riders were still going about the same speed (fast) and doing all the big jumps and doubles. The second moto, with the rain still coming down hard, the track really started to deteriorate, and, as mentioned before, the final MX1 race was cancelled because conditions were so dangerous.

The Spanish fans clapped, whistled, and cheered for each and every rider – even those way back in the pack, appreciative of each giving 100%, and especially in the very trying conditions.

In the second MX2 moto, it was Davide Guarneri winning, and, capturing the overall as well. Davide was riding with an injured shoulder, and took two pain injections (one Saturday, one on Sunday) to race.

MX1 Results
1.	Steve Ramon	SUZ
2.	D. Philippaerts	YAM
3.	Ken de Dycker	SUZ
4.	Josh Coppins	YAM
5.	Tanel Leok	KAW
6.	Kevin Strijbos	KAW
7.	Tom Church	KAW
8.	Billy Mackenzie	HON
9.	C. Desalle	SUZ
10.	L. Freibergs	YAM
11.	Alex Salvini	SUZ
12.	K Nemeth	KTM
13.	Alessio Chiodi	TM
14.	James Noble	KTM
15.	Manuel Priem	KAW

MX1 Point Standings
Ken de Dycker	70
Steve Ramon	63
David Philippaerts	55
Josh Coppins	47
Billy Mackenzie	46
Max Nagl	40
Kevin Strijbos	36
Manuel Priem	35
K Nemeth	33
Tanel Leok	26
Clement Desalle	22
Jon Barragan	20
Tom Church	20
Aigar Leok	20
Lauris Freibergs	16

MX2 Results
1.	Davide Guarneri	YAM
2.	Manuel Monni	YAM
3.	Stephen Sword	KAW
4.	Tony Cairoli	YAM
5.	T. Rattray	KTM
6.	Tommy Searle	KTM
7.	Joel Roelants	KTM
8.	Gautier Paulin	KAW
9.	Nicolas Aubin	YAM
10.	E. Bobryshev	YAM
11.	Xavier Boog	SUZ
12.	Shaun Simpson	KTM
13.	Rui Goncalves	KTM
14.	Marvin Musquin	HON
15.	Jeremy Tarroux	KTM

MX2 Point Standings
Tyla Rattray	79
Tony Cairoli	76
Davide Guarneri	61
Tommy Searle	60
Rui Goncalves	51
Manuel Monni	48
Shaun Simpson	47
Nicolas Aubin	47
Stephen Sword	46
Xavier Boog	45
Joel Roelants	43
Erik Eggens	38
J Van Horebeek	35
Gautier Paulin	26
Jeremy Tarroux	26

It rained in Spain

Most of the photos you see are from Saturday’s practice sessions, when the track was dry. Notice the two photos, and the two videos from Sunday that demonstrate how wet the track was.