Perfect record for Valentin Guillod in practice and the races. Tom Koch and Jordi Tixier complete the podium. Max Nagl remains championship leader.
The second half of this season’s ADAC MX Masters kicked off in Gaildorf. Round five of the championship was watched by 17,000 enthusiastic fans, who witnessed thrilling racing on a difficult track. Valentin Guillod (CH/SHR Motorsports) dominated the event with three race wins, ahead of Tom Koch (D/Kosak Racing Team) and Jordi Tixier (F/KTM Sarholz Racing Team). Max Nagl (D/Krettek-Haas-Racing-Team) still tops the championship standings.
Saturday’s opening race saw the LS2 Best Qualifier, Guillod, pull clear of the rest of the field from the word go. The Swiss, who usually rides for the iXS hostettler Yamaha MXGP Team, was never really threatened and went on to take a comfortable lights-to-flag finish. Tom Koch passed Tixier to take second place on lap two, while championship leader Nagl found himself twelfth after the opening lap and had to work his way back through the field. Behind the leading trio, Kevin Brumann (CH/iXS hostettler Yamaha MXGP Team), Boris Maillard (F/stielergruppe.mx Johannes-Bikes Suzuki) and Adam Sterry (GB/KTM Sarholz Racing Team) were battling it out for places four to six. On lap seven, Koch was overtaken by reigning ADAC MX Masters champion Tixier. One lap later, Nagl hit the deck having climbed into fourth place. The Husqvarna rider rejoined the race in eighth, behind Stefan Ekerold (D/Team Bauerschmidt MB33) and Michael Sandner (A/Raths Motorsports). Around the midway point of the race, Maillard came out on top in an exciting battle for fourth place with Brumann. However, The Swiss hit back in the final third of the race to regain his position. Sterry crashed out of the race, leaving Guillod to take victory ahead of Tixier, Koch, Brumann and Maillard.
In race two on Sunday afternoon, the Red Bull Holeshot went to Nico Koch (D/Schmicker Racing). However, he was then overtaken by Guillod on lap one, and then Nagl and Tom Koch on the following lap. With a clear track ahead of him, Guillod immediately opened a lead over his rivals, which he had extended to over 16 seconds by the end of the race. Tom Koch attacked Nagl in the early stages, but was unable to find a way past the championship leader. On lap four, Tixier passed Sandner to move into fourth. From that point on, the top positions remained the same through to the finish. There was, however, an intensive battle for fifth place between Sandner, Brumann and Maillard, with the position changing hands regularly. In the end, Maillard came home ahead of the Austrian and Swiss riders to round out the top five behind Guillod, Nagl, Koch and Tixier.
Guillod took the Red Bull Holeshot in race three, ahead of Michael Sandner. In doing so, he laid the foundation for another lights-to-flag victory. The Yamaha rider again quickly pulled clear of the rest of the field. Sandner was passed by Tixier and Koch on lap four, before Nagl also overtook him one lap later. Koch put Tixier under pressure at the start, but the Frenchman was able to establish a small gap as the race progressed, while Nagl appeared happy to settle for fourth place. Ekerold passed Sandner to climb into fifth around the middle of the race. However, four laps before the end, Tixier made a careless mistake and briefly hit the deck. Koch and Nagl were the beneficiaries. As such, victory again went to Guillod, followed by Koch, Nagl, Tixier and Ekerold.
In the event standings, Guillod was triumphant with maximum points, ahead of Koch, Tixier, Nagl and Maillard. Nagl continues to top the championship table with a healthy 51-point lead, ahead of Tixier and Koch. Sterry was unable to start on Sunday following his crash the previous day. However, he remains fourth in the table, followed by Tim Koch (D/Team AB-Racing by Zweiradsport Schmitz).
“It was a very good weekend for me: LS2 Best Qualifier, two of three Red Bull Holeshots and three race wins. It was virtually perfect. I led all three races after the opening lap, which definitely made my life easier. I rode cautiously at the start of the races, as I found it hard to judge how much grip I had after the track had been watered. However, I found my confidence and rhythm after a few laps and was able to pull clear, although the standard of rider was extremely high. I plan to start in Holzgerlingen too,” said Guillod after his successful weekend.
“The pace at the front was extremely high all weekend. We each pushed each other to ride better. Valentin was simply too fast for the rest of us. However, the weekend was another step in the right direction for me,” said a satisfied Koch, summing up his weekend.
“Unfortunately, I injured my leg on Saturday. However, we all know that this sport can be tough. Max is very strong this year and already has a good lead in the championship. However, I will not give up and am taking it one race at a time,” said a determined Tixier.
“My weekend was difficult. Saturday was a nightmare, with a bad start and then a crash. My starts were good today, but I was unable to convert them into wins. I was fast, but not fast enough. However, I did not want to push myself to the limit, as that can soon lead to a crash in these conditions, which can mean dropping more points,” said Nagl after the weekend in Gaildorf.
Replays of all the races from both days of the event can be watched as a complete livestream or as individual races, free of charge, via the Playlist ADAC MX Masters Gaildorf.
