Max Nagl continued his winning streak in the ADAC MX Masters at the opening round at Vellahn. Maxime Grau won his first race in the ADAC MX Youngster Cup. Maximilian Ernecker dominated again in the ADAC MX Junior Cup 125.
The MC Vellahn passed its ADAC MX Masters debut with flying colours on Saturday: a good and demanding race track provided great racing conditions for the riders and spectators.
Championship leader Max Nagl (D/KMP-Honda-Racing powered by Krettek) won the first race in the ADAC MX Masters class ahead of Cornelius Töndel (NOR/Schmicker Racing) and Jordi Tixier (F/KMP-Honda-Racing powered by Krettek). Maxime Grau (F/WZ-Racing KTM) came out on top in the ADAC MX Youngster Cup against Nico Greutmann (CH/Cat Moto Bauerschmidt Husqvarna) and Dave Kooiker (NL/Schmicker Racing). Maximilian Ernecker (A/F4E Gasgas Junior Racing) remains unbeaten this season in the ADAC MX Junior Cup 125 after his race win, with Mick Kennedy (NL/Grip Messer Racing Team) and Dex Kooiker (NL/De Baets Yamaha) coming home second and third respectively.
ADAC MX Masters: Max Nagl takes lights-to-flag victory
Anyone who thought that the addition of a new track to the ADAC MX Masters calendar would reshuffle the pack was mistaken. Max Nagl set the pace in practice as the LS2 Best Qualifier and then pulled away from the rest of the field after the Red Bull holeshot. Behind him, there was a little more movement, with Tixier initially falling back from second place behind Henry Jacobi (D/KTM Sarholz Racing Team) and Töndel to fourth position ahead of Maximilian Spies (D/Kosak Racing Team). Töndel passed Jacobi for second place on the sixth lap, and one lap later, Tixier and Spies also passed the Sarholz rider. The order remained unchanged through to the finish, with Nagl taking the win ahead of Töndel, Tixier, Spies and Jacobi.
‘The race was difficult, because the track was very demanding and the lines from the practice sessions no longer worked in the afternoon. It took me the first ten minutes to find new lines that worked well. I'm satisfied, it was a good race,’ said Nagl in the winner's interview.
ADAC MX Youngster Cup: Maxime Grau takes first victory
Maxime Grau took the lead from Red Bull Holeshot winner Kooiker on the second lap of the first ADAC MX Youngster Cup race after Kooiker stalled his engine briefly. Grau controlled his lead for the rest of the race and secured his first victory of the season comfortably. On the third lap, Greutmann pushed past Valentin Kees (D/Kosak Racing Team), who crashed one lap later, into third position and closed the gap on Kooiker. On crossing the finish line, Greutmann took second place from Kooiker and started chasing Grau, whom he was unable to catch by the finish. Jaroslav Katrinak (SK/MRA Racing Team) and Constantin Piller (D/Yamaha Meyer Racing) pushed the championship leader Bradley Mesters (NL/Kosak Racing Team), who was riding cautiously due to an injury, out of the top five on the sixth lap. Piller crashed with three laps remaining, allowing Linus Persson (S/Bloody Harry Energy/RGS MX Team) to move up into fifth place. Grau took the victory in front of Greutmann, Kooiker, Katrinak and Persson.
‘I took my good form from last weekend's success with me to Vellahn and had a lot of fun on the track. I was able to play well with the many bumps and felt very comfortable,’ said Grau happily at the finish.
ADAC MX Junior Cup 125: Can Maximilian Ernecker be beaten?
Only Maximilian Ernecker's current string of successes looks better than Max Nagl's record. The Austrian won the Red Bull Holeshot and pulled away from the rest of the field on the first lap. He quickly extended his lead and controlled it with ease until the finish. Kennedy and Kooiker were already in the top chasing positions after the start and remained close to each other without changing positions as the race progressed. Finn Lange (D/KTM GST Berlin Racing/ADAC Hansa MX Junior Team) and Mario Adomaitis (LT/KMP-Honda-Racing powered by Krettek) were in the top five during the first half of the race before Aron Katona (HU/HTS KTM) and Freddie Bartlett (S/Motovation Motorsport) took over their positions. Katona crashed on the last lap, allowing Jonathan Frank (D/Becker Racing) to move up into fifth place behind Ernecker, Kennedy, Kooiker and Bartlett.
‘I managed to pull out a lead after the holeshot and then drive at my own pace. I really like the track and am looking forward to tomorrow,’ said Ernecker, beaming with delight at his continued winning streak.
The re-live of the first day of racing can be found on the ADAC Motorsport YouTube channel. The live stream of all Sunday's races starts at 10:30 am. The digital programme booklet, as well as timetables and starting lists, are available for download at adac.de/mx-masters.
