Pichon wins Czech MXGP

Mickael Pichon has closed the gap on championship leader Stefan Everts with an overall victory at the Czech Republic GP at Loket.

In the first race, both Pichon and Everts were low down the order at the end of the opening lap, but the two world title holders soon paid off, with Pichon moving past team-mate Brian Jorgenson to take the lead by the halfway stage. Everts eventually made his way up to second, with Josh Coppins third and Jorgenson fourth.

In the second race it was Josh Coppins who took the hole shot, only to be passed by first Pichon and then Everts. Kevin Strijbos was fourth on the all-new factory Suzuki.

” Mickael was riding very well this weekend and it just wasn’t possible to catch him,” said Everts. “Although my girlfriend Kelly will have our first child any day now, I was very focused on my racing today. I’m hoping Kelly will have the baby before the next GP in Namur next weekend.”

MX1 Race one: 1) Pichon. 2) Everts. 3) Coppins. 4) Jorgenson. 5) Leok. 6) Strijbos. 8) Seguy. 9) Breugelmans. 10) Burnham. 11) Bill. 12) Bervoets. 13) De Dijcker. 14) Zerava. 15) Theybers. 16) Pyrhonen. 17) Kovalainen. 18) Freibergs. 19) Kucirek. 20) Beggi.

MX1 Race two: 1) Pichon. 2) Everts. 3) Coppins. 4) Strijbos. 5) Seguy. 6) Leok. 7) Jorgenson. 8) De Dijcker. 9) Atsuta. 10) Burnham. 11) Jones. 12) Ramon. 13) Noble. 14) Freibergs. 15) Bill. 16) Meo. 17) Kovalainen. 18) Dobes. 19) Oddenino. 20) Kucirek.

Everts retains the lead in the championship with 527 points, from Pichon on 436. There are just four GPs left in the season, which could see the Belgian Yamaha rider become an eight-time world champion.

In the MX2 races it was Yamaha rider Antonio Cairoli who took the win from the KTMs of Marc De Reuver and Ben Townley. The 18-year-old Italian was placed to take the overall victory, running third in race two, when a crash demoted him to tenth place. The second race was won by Ben Townley, followed by Alessio Chiodi and Sebastien Pourcel.

MX2 Race one: 1) Cairoli. 2) De Reuver 3) Townley. 4) Chiodi. 5) Caps. 6) Bartolini. 7) Federici. 8) Sword. 9) Boissiere. 10) Vehvilainen. 11) Rattray. 12) Pourcel. 13) Maschio. 14) Barragan. 15) Swanepoel. 16) Leok. 17) Nunn. 18) Goncalves. 19) Nagi. 20) Aubin.

MX2 Race two: 1) Townlet. 2) Chiodi. 3) Pourcel. 4) Rattray. 5) Nunn. 6) Cairoli. 7) Maschio. 8) Bartolini. 9) De Reuver. 10) Goncalves. 11) Boissiere. 12) Federici. 13) Barragan. 14) Swanepoel. 15) Sword. 16) Leuret. 17) Vehvilainen. 18) Monni. 19) Seistola. 20) Nagi.

Ben Townley leads the MX2 championship on 472 points, followed by Rattray on 378, and British rider Stephen Sword on 361 points.

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