Cairoli and Herlings dominate MX GP Belgium

Red Bull KTM Factory riders were in a class of their own on Sunday at the MX Grand Prix of Benelux on the deep sand of Lierop and while Tony Cairoli was the undisputed leader in both of the MX1 motos, the main spotlight remained focused on the team’s Dutch teenager, MX2 rider Jeffrey Herlings.


Jeffrey Herlings delivered what can only be described as exhibition races on Sunday in front of his ecstatic home fans who turned out in numbers to see a display of riding that many will remember for years to come. The 17-year-old said before the race that he wanted to win by a minute, already a mind-boggling margin by any rider’s standards. But remarkably he not only did it, he did it twice and his ride in each moto was equally thrilling. In short, he was untouchable. 



Herlings made a stunning comeback from a crash in Saturday’s qualifying to secure an impressive win for pole position. He shot out of the gates on his KTM 250 SX-F and from that point on the numbers best tell the story in the opening moto. He was seven seconds ahead after the first lap, 13 after the second, then 25, 28, 33 and still he wasn’t satisfied as he continually lapped riders. When he finally shot over the finish he was 2:07 minutes ahead of second placed teammate Jeremy van Horebeek and sitting behind him after having lapped every other rider in the field!

Tony Cairoli wins MX1 GP of Britain

Tony Cairoli of the Red Bull Teka KTM Factory Racing team fully capitalized on a second chance in the second MX1 moto in the British GP and converted a holeshot to moto victory to add enough points to his third place from the first race to take the day’s honors at Matterley Basin. The Italian is now close to retaining his world championship title in his second season with the KTM factory team with a commanding 82-point lead and 100 only up for grabs.

All indications were that Matterley Basin was not going to be Cairoli’s day he got bumped at the start of the race then after several laps he made a mistake, went off the track and almost picked up some of the notorious green fencing that lines the course.

First moto incident stops Cairoli’s chances of a home win in Fermo

Already confirmed as the 2010 MX1 World Champion, Tony Cairoli would have enjoyed going out on a high note for his enthusiastic Italian fans in the season’s final race. It was however not to be for the man who has dominated the MX1 competition this season on the new KTM 350 SX-F bike.
Mid way through the first moto on Sunday on the hard, slippery and very technical Italian track at Fermo, Cairoli got the trajectory wrong coming down from a jump and sprained his ankle. Because he has had previous injuries to his left foot he decided it was wise to sit out the second moto. Tony was disappointed but philosophical about the outcome of the weekend.

KTM's Cairoli the king of MX1 in Loket

KTM's Cairoli the king of MX1 in Loket as he moves closer to the world title
Red Bull KTM's Tony Cairoli scored his 35th career GP victory powering his KTM 350 SX-F into at 2-1 result in the two motos on the hard pack circuit in Loket on Sunday. It was the first time that KTM had won a MX1 GP on the Czech circuit since it became part of the GP calendar in 2004.

Cairoli took a comfortable holeshot in the first moto and held onto the lead until lap 11 when Tanel Leok slipped by. In typical fashion, Cairoli played the waiting game until the last two laps then went on the attack but was unable to gain the advantage on the Estonian racer. His second place still extended his championship lead to 81 points

David Philippaerts and Tony Cairoli not at Motocross of Nations

Yamaha Motor Europe and KTM Sport Motorcycles were disappointed to learn of the press release on Saturday 7th August by the Italian Motorcycle Federation (FMI) revealing that Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross Team's David Philippaerts and Red Bull KTM's Tony Cairoli have been unable to be considered for the final selection for the team due to certain conditions to represent their country in the 2010 Motocross of Nations at Thunder Valley in Colorado on September 26th.

After discussions with the Italian Federation, in which Yamaha Motor Europe and KTM Sport Motorcycles were willing and fully open for negotiation regarding representation on the official Italian team jersey, we were disappointed to learn that 2008 MX1-GP World Champion Philippaerts and reigning MX1-GP World Champion Cairoli (presently 3rd and 1st in the 2010 standings respectively) were eliminated from the final short-list.

Another GP triumph for Tony Cairoli and the KTM 350 SX-F

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tony Cairoli had a magnificent day in the soft sands of Lommel, Belgium on Sunday to seal his 34th career GP victory with a very impressive two moto clean sweep in the MX1 GP.
Also back on top of his game was factory teammate Max Nagl of Germany, who put in some of his characteristic blitz starts out of the gate and finished with a second and third for overall second place on the podium.

Cairoli puts the KTM 350 SX-F through its paces in style
Cairoli of Italy, the reigning MX1 world champion has now well and truly put the new KTM 350 SX-F through its paces winning no less that 12 races so far this season on the superbly agile racing machine. The two race wins this weekend in Lommel were his fourth and fifth moto victories in succession. Tony is now leading with 79 points clear of Belgian Clement Desalle in the season’s standings. While many competitors struggled with the deep and much pitted sand on the Lommel track, Cairoli flew over it with impressive ease and never looked threatened in either of the two motos. Obviously delighted with his victory after two difficult races, he leapt onto the podium enthusiastically waving an Italian flag.

Tony Cairoli: “It was a nice race. I like to ride in the sand and this is my favorite track. It’s hard and rough and you have to be really technical. You also have to be very fit to win here. It proves my training is