Set your mind back to April 15 and 16 2017. On a cool day in spring, around the beautiful Pietramurata circuit in Trentino, Italy, Antonio Cairoli put another notch on his already incredible career.
On a track that is probably one of the most difficult to ride, with its tiny layout, and pebble covered ground the Sicilian giant raced away to an opening moto win. It was typical Cairoli, a lightning start, and with the wind in his face he dominated his fellow MXGP competition.
In victory in that first race, and putting defending world MXGP champion Tim Gajser in his shadows, the Red Bull KTM factory rider gave notice that he wanted his championship back. But it wasn’t that first moto win that shows his real metal.
Cairoli is known for this type of performance, and on a track like Pietramurata, the start is everything. Just ask Jeffrey Herlings, who started around 20th in that first race and finished in 14th, or 2015 MXGP champion, Romain Febvre who started ninth and finished eight.
No, the legend of Antonio Cairoli wasn’t built on just winning from the front, and his second moto in Trentino proved that.
Down in the second corner the Sicilian was back in around 22nd place, and his legendary charge began. First some riders went down and he weaved his way through the mele. He struggled for some laps, trying to pass Damien Graulus, first past Graulus, then Butron, Strijbos, Van Horebeek, and Nagl.
With the GP overall still possible the Italian got another motivation as he then lached onto the back wheel of Arnaud Tonus, and this is when the fun began. A beautifully timed pass on the Yamaha rider saw him move into sixth place.
Still ahead were Gajser, Bobryshev, Herlings, Desalle and Paulin, the big bangers of the MXGP class. That just inspired Cairoli, and he set all but Gajser up in the very same corner he has passed Tonus. This wasn’t just any race, this was a race for the times, one for the record books. Cairoli also thought so.
“One of my best races,” Cairoli said. “Maybe the best GP ever, the most emotional. When I got to seventh or eighth place I saw the group in front and thought it was possible to catch Bobryshev for the overall win and kept pushing and pushing and making passes. I had some sketchy moments but that is part of racing, if you want to win you have to take risks. I gave everything in the last ten minutes.”
The GP overall came his away, he extended his championship points lead and moved onto Valkenswaard a week later.
This year it won't be Valkenswaard they head to, but Portugal, and you can be sure, Cairoli, in the toughest battle of his legendary career, his fight with super talented Jeffrey Herlings will give him that extra motivation that Trentino did in 2017. Victory at the end of the day and season is all he seeks.