Ryan Villopoto went 1-3 for the overall win in Thailand. Photography courtesy Youthstream.
After a somewhat disappointing start to his MXGP enterprise, where he finished an uncharacteristic seventh, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto roared back to form at the GP of Thailand where he went 1-3 for first overall this weekend. Villopoto was also awarded a single point for winning Saturday’s MXGP qualifying race, which allowed him to finish ahead of Rockstar Suzuki’s Clement Desalle, who went 2-2 for second overall. Meanwhile, defending MXGP World Champion Antonio Cairoli got untracked in moto two and came away with the win. The factory KTM rider’s 5-1 was good enough for third overall
In the MX2 class, Jeffrey Herlings his fourth moto win of the year. Having fainted after the first mtoto, the Red Bull KTM rode an incredible race in the second moto for the overall win.
Riders battled heat of 39 degrees Celsius and maximum humidity at the Thai circuit, which prompted FIM and race officials to drop the race time from 30 minutes to 25 for the second race. Dehydration, heat exhaustion and fatigue all played a role in the outcome of the races on Sunday.
MXGP of Thailand at Nakhonchaisri – Round 2
MXGP Results
1, Ryan Villopoto, USA, Kawasaki, (1 – 3)
2, Clement Desalle, BEL, Suzuki, (2 – 2)
3, Tony Cairoli, ITA, KTM, (5 – 1) 4, Roman Febvre, FRA, Yamaha, (3 – 4)
5, Kevin Strijbos, BEL, Suzuki, (6 – 5)
