MXGP Insight: HRC Maestro Marcus Pereira De Freitas

After a couple of very stressful seasons, involving last race championship battles, one-day formats, title-wins and COVID-19 affected travelling, the 2023 MXGP championship has the possibility of getting things back to some sort of normality. And if that ‘new normal’ means that reigning champion Tim Gajser is able to win his sixth title in nine years, HRC General Manager Marcus Pereira de Freitas would be very pleased indeed. Here is an interview with the likeable Brazilian, giving an update on what’s been happening with Team HRC these last few months.

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How has the off-season been for the team so far?

Even though we haven’t had any races, there is still a lot of working going on, making sure we are in the best position possible for the 2023 campaign. There are always things to improve, to organise and things we learnt from last year that can be implemented this coming season. Right now, there is a bit of a hold up, as we don’t have a finalised calendar, so we can’t fully nail down how we will approach the first few rounds, but once that comes out, it will be all systems go.

And how are things looking for 2023?

It’s all very positive! We have a great group of sponsors who are a pleasure to work with, and we had good productive meetings for this year, which is always an important part of the process of running a successful team. And then on-track, both Tim (Gajser) and Ruben (Fernandez) have both been doing their training over the winter, on and off the bike. They are very impressed with the improvements we’ve made with the CRF450R and are excited for the season to begin. Obviously, they are still working their way into race-shape, having had a bit of a break but, overall, they are doing exactly what they need to be doing to come into the season at the highest possible level.

Ruben is new to the team, so how has he been adapting to the new environment?

So far it has been very easy for him, and for us! He rode for Team Honda 114 Motorsports last year, so he already had a good relationship with some of our team and that made the transition to Team HRC easier. Things run a little bit differently, and he has some extra things that he didn’t have to do before, but overall, it’s been smooth and he has adapted and learnt very quickly. He is very happy with the bike and we can’t wait for him to show everyone what he’s capable of. Last year was a bit of a learning experience for him, he had some ups and some downs but it was good for those to happen and I believe he will come into this year a lot stronger.

And what about Tim’s preparations?

For Tim, he is so focused and prepared that we don’t have to worry that he is doing what he needs to do. We keep an eye on everything, of course, but he is a model professional and we know to trust him and let him do figure out what works and what doesn’t work. Having Tiga243land was such a big step for him, because he is fully in control of when and when he rides. He doesn’t have to worry about any other riders, or if tracks will be open or not. He is able to do exactly what he needs to do, and is completely focused on making it happen. He has had a busy off-season with the trip to Japan and various awards that come with being a five-time world champion, but we are proud of how he has handled it, and know that when the first gate drops, he will be in exactly the right position.

Last weekend was the first Supercross, is this something you pay attention to?

Of course, I think everyone in the team watches as much as they can, certainly the first few rounds. We like to support our fellow Team HRC guys, and see how they are doing and how the bike is performing and also because we are fans of the sport. It was great to see Jett winning, and Chase leading for a little while, and also new rider Colt Nichols doing well on his Honda debut. While Supercross is a different discipline from motocross, it is still important for Honda and we always want to support their efforts.

KTM Takes Lead At Dakar

Posted on January 11, 2023

 

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Kevin Benavides has placed fourth on today’s stage 10 of the 2023 Dakar Rally and moves into the provisional lead of the overall standings. Toby Price completed the day in 19th but still lies third overall, just two minutes back, while Matthias Walkner enjoyed a solid day on his KTM 450 RALLY, placing fifth.

Ross Branch started the special in 28th place and quietly posted the fastest time at each checkpoint. In the end, he won the stage by 21 seconds over Van Beveren, adding a second victory to his tally in this Dakar and landing Hero MotoSports its third stage win ever. It will have little impact on the standings, as a slew of mechanicals in the early part of the race knocked the Botswanan out of contention for the title. Docherty came in third, 30" back, with Kevin Benavides at 1 minute.

Riders left the bivouac at 3:30am this morning to cover the 467-kilometer liaison that led them to the start of today’s timed special. Although short at 114 kilometers, the route raced against the clock was predominantly made up of rolling dunes, making navigation difficult and proving a real test of endurance for all competitors.

As the seventh rider into the special following his strong performance on stage nine, Benavides was in contention for the stage win right away. Carrying good speed over the sandy terrain, the 2021 Dakar winner was just 10 seconds down on the leader by kilometer 84. Losing a little time in the closing stages, Benavides dropped to fourth place as he crossed the line, one minute from the win. However, with times tight across the top 10, Kevin’s solid ride moved him into the lead of the rally, where he enjoys a one-and-a-half-minute advantage.

After losing time in the desert yesterday following a navigational error, Matthias Walkner bounced back in style on stage 10. Posting the fifth fastest time on the demanding special, Walkner moves back inside the top 10 overall and will be aiming to elevate himself even higher over the remaining four days of racing.

Toby Price was the second rider to enter today’s special, and again, using his skill and experience to good effect, chose to navigate carefully through the dunes to minimize any costly errors. With the leaders’ times extremely close over the short special, Toby ultimately completed the day in 19th, but only eight minutes down on the leader. As such, the Aussie remains very much in contention near the top of the overall standings where he now lies third.

Winner on day nine, Luciano Benavides had the unenviable task of leading out into today’s 10th stage of the 2023 Dakar Rally. The Argentine racer did an impeccable job however, opening the stage from start to finish to ultimately post the 13th quickest time. Teammate Skyler Howes took a conservative approach to today’s special, minimising the chance of any navigational mistakes and ensuring an advantageous start position for Thursday’s first half of the marathon stage.

Continuing to deliver solid and calculated rides at this year’s Dakar, Luciano Benavides confidently took on the challenge of opening the first stage that entered the dunes of the Empty Quarter and excelled. Riding alone up front for the entire 114 kilometres, Benavides lost the minimum time to his rivals while also ensuring a strong start position for tomorrow. Completing the day in 13th, six minutes down on the eventual winner, Luciano retains his top-10 placing in the overall standings and is in the perfect position to attack tomorrow’s first leg of the marathon stage.

Also putting in a considered ride through the dunes today, Skyler Howes took some time to reacquaint himself with the Empty Quarter terrain and to ensure he made very little in the way of navigational errors. With Thursday’s stage 11 coming in at around twice the distance of today’s special, Skyler is fully aware of the importance of delivering a solid, mistake-free result on the way to the temporary bivouac of the marathon stage. Although Howes dropped down to second in the overall standings, he lies just one and a half minutes from the lead – time he hopes to make up tomorrow.

That’s stage 10 at the Dakar done and dusted for Daniel Sanders. With times at the top incredibly close due to today’s special being the shortest of the entire event, Sanders posted the 12th fastest time, finishing just over six minutes down on the stage winner. Perhaps not a great result on paper, it’s the overall time that matters most, and today Daniel clawed back vital seconds from the provisional leader while securing a perfect starting position for tomorrow’s first leg of the marathon stage. The race to the finish is just getting started.

Anaheim Aftermath

Debrief: 2023 Supercross Rd1 Anaheim

 Post: Dylan Wills

Main event winners Tomac and Lawrence recall first round.

It was career win number 45 in the 450SX class for Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) to start his 2023 Monster Energy Supercross campaign, as Jett Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) dominated in the first 250SX West race of the season. Both riders were available to the media following the race for this Debrief feature.

450SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Eli, if we look in history you’ve been very successful in Supercross, but Anaheim 1 has not been your friend. Today from qualifying, to the heat, to the main event you were extremely impressive, why?

I guess just experience, this is my 10th Anaheim 1 in the 450 class, so apparently it took me 10 times to figure out how to get everything to go the right way for round one, from pre-season to the race itself. But overall, that was just a wild race, early battling with Justin [Barcia], then crashing up the tunnel jump, I just got a little bit in the backseat of my bike and washed the front end, thankfully everything stayed straight, my bars and clutch were good and I was able to stay in touch with the front. The track was probably top three in pure gnarliness, the way the transitions were, you had to time the jumps literally perfect, or else you were launching off the track and making mistakes. But yeah, overall, such a good start for us on this new platform.

After the crash, were you thinking ‘lets  just get some points’ or did you look up and see the leader and think ‘I’m going to go for it’?

My thought at first was that I’d thrown it away, and that I would be lucky to get on the podium. But the way the track was, it was so gnarly, I guess there was time to be lost and time to be made, so maybe that was a little bit in my favour.

The first five minutes was great racing from first to seventh, the crowd was going crazy! Does that affect you at all? Do you hear that going on?

[Laughs] yeah you hear it, but there’s nothing you can do about it, so it’s just like, ‘can you focus?’. But, that’s just part of Supercross though and that’s what makes it so cool. You hear the action, whether it’s yourself in a battle or you hear something else going on, it’s just something you’ve got to deal with.

Now that you have experienced the new Yamaha in a race setting, can you explain how confident and comfortable you feel with this new bike?

I honestly was surprised how good we were for round one and it being a new bike, its not easy setting up a new motorcycle, no matter what anyone says, because a lot of times it just takes race experience, period, and being in the moment and learning things. But somehow, we did start off in the right spot, and the platform totally performed well. I’ve said this a bunch lately, but the big thing about this bike, it lost a lot of weight and I can totally feel it, for Supercross its amazing for change of direction.

We keep speaking about how gnarly the track was, what stood out to you most each lap?

Well, there was that rhythm lane, the triple-triple-triple-triple, there was a massive pot hole leading up to the up ramp, it was unbelievable. We started way inside, then that got super steep with a kicker and then after that, you just had to go down the middle and deal with it. Then you try to land and pick a rut on the next one, but when the dirt is like that, its really easy to either come up short, or go long on those jumps, so that’s another thing that’s tough to deal with. Then, after the start straight, that last double into the turn had a nasty curb in it, so you had to be careful with your line selection there.

Finally, with so many people asking you yesterday about getting your first Anaheim 1 win, how much does this really mean to you? Or are you truly as stoic as you seem to be, where you really just care about winning the championship?

It’s nice to have the win here, absolutely. But, I’m always big picture, in my head, which is racing for the championship.

250SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Jett, you were really happy across the finish line jump. Take me through the day and being able to get the job done when it really mattered.

Yeah, you’re always nervous coming to the first round… I’ve said it before, you never know where everyone’s at and that stuff. The big thing with today was always kind of, like, ‘how is the track going to form up for the main?’. After practice it was just about trying to survive and not die. It kind of changed, it was like ‘okay, we’re going to come in and hopefully do good’, but then when practice went out, after the first few laps it was like, ‘okay, let’s try and keep it on two wheels and try and survive today’. The joke all day was ‘I just wanna see Sunday’, there’s always a lot of hype around Anaheim 1, it’s the first round so it’s just built up so big, so obviously I had quite a bit of nerves. I had a bit of rough one in the heat race, the start was quite slippery, but I just made sure I focused on the main and did what I needed to do, I made it the safest way possible for me to, kind of, just go out there and do my laps.

In qualifying you had a couple of falls, did you feel discouraged at any point leading into the night show?

No, those crashes never really wreck my confidence, you know sometimes I make a small mistake and most of the time I know what I did wrong there so its like ‘just don’t do that again’. Today I was almost expecting a few crashes with how the track was, it just bit you so fast without even realising, so I was expecting a couple [of crashes], but I’m just thankful I was able to walk out of here in one piece.

When you come in with so many eyes on you and so many expectations as the title favourite, when you manage a day like today, is it a sense of relief?

I definitely feel like I felt the pressure a lot, but I think the biggest mistake would’ve been to try and go and show [speed] the whole day, I think that’s where I was pretty smart, I just took it how it was and, to be honest, I would’ve been happy with a second or a third – I was just mainly going for a podium today. I just wanted to make it out safe because the track was so sketchy, but, yes and no, the pressure was there a bit. I kind of just focused on what I was doing, I just knew tonight in the main event, with how the track was forming, that whoever was going to make the least amount of mistakes was going to either, bit by bit, get a gap, or close the gap where you’re at.

Your bike looked awesome. It sounds a little different from last year, is it any different or any faster? What changes did you and the team make from 2022 to 2023?

Yeah, I think one of the major [changes], is that we switched from Vortex ECUs to Get, it was kind of late in December that we changed and decided to go with them. They’ve been awesome, this is the first time with start mapping, so far it’s been really good with them, so hopefully we can keep it going with the good starts. That’s probably the main thing, we might’ve put a little extra go-go juice in it. Besides that, the bike’s fairly similar, even with suspension testing we’ve kind of looped all the way back around to the same setting. The bike’s handling great, the motor feels awesome, I’m feeling right at home on the Honda this year.

Finally, Feld have done something really cool this year, they have included some 250 guys in opening ceremonies, which I think you guys deserve, what did you think?

Yeah, that was a really cool opportunity that I think Lucas [Mirtl] helped a lot on. We always thought it was a little weird that the 450 guys would do it, but then you have some of the best 250 riders in Supercross, that don’t do anything. So, I think it’s a good opportunity for 250 guys to get more known and kind of make it similar. Yeah, we might not be on as big of a bike as the 450, but we’re still doing the same stuff out there, and a lot of the same rhythms. I think it helps our sport grow a little more for t

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Forkner Tough But Unlucky

Right knee injury forces Forkner out of Supercross remainder

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Section: Competition Post: Troy Guenther

Heartbreaking outcome for Monster Energy Kawasaki talent.

Image: Octopi Media.

Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Austin Forkner has been forced out of the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship remainder after sustaining a right knee injury during the start of Anaheim’s 250SX West main event.

Forkner fell heavily in the run to turn one after connecting handlebars with RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) and teammate Cameron McAdoo.

The pain and heartbreak were immediately evident for the number 55, prematurely sidelined on multiple occasions throughout recent years. Prior to the incident, Forkner qualified fastest at Angel Stadium and notched a podium in his heat race.

“I felt great going into this year and was ready to challenge for the championship,” said Forkner. “I think my qualifying and heat race speed proved that the preparation from the whole team was on par to win races.

“Unfortunately, I was involved in a racing incident during the start of the main event and injured my knee. This is definitely a frustrating situation, but I’m extremely motivated to focus on my recovery and I will get back to work with the team.”

The decision was made for Forkner to make an early exit from the 2023 250SX West Championship after consultation with medical professionals. Further updates on Forkner’s return to racing will be announced when available.

Dakar Stage 10 Highlights

Dakar Stage 8

Eli Again!

Tomac SX Only?

Team Alcavi Ready For Anaheim 1

Husky Flys At Dakar

On an extremely successful day in the Saudi desert for Husqvarna Factory Racing, Luciano Benavides posted the fastest time on Friday’s 358-kilometre timed special to earn his first ever Dakar Rally stage win. Finishing as runner-up to his teammate, Skyler Howes increased his lead in the provisional overall standings to three and a half minutes after his strong ride through today’s dunes.

After showing great pace so far at this year’s event, Luciano Benavides’ determination has paid off with a stage win at the Dakar. Setting off as the 12th rider into the special gave the Argentinian the perfect opportunity to make up time on his rivals ahead, and that’s exactly what he did.

Fourth-quickest to kilometre 31, Benavides continued to pick off the riders ahead of him on time, steadily moving up the rankings to finally overhaul teammate Howes by the finish line. The result moves Luciano one place higher in the overall standings to ninth and closes the gap to his rivals ahead.

Enjoying the stage and putting in another strong performance, Skyler Howes demonstrated why he currently sits top of the general rankings. The American skilfully navigated his way through the tracks and dunes of the stage to finish just under one minute short of the hard-charging Benavides. Increasing his lead at the top of the standings, Howes knows he can’t rest on his advantage and is ready to push once again tomorrow on the 713-kilometre first half of the event’s marathon stage.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Toby Price has posted the third-fastest time on a shortened stage six of the 2023 Dakar Rally. Teammate Kevin Benavides was hot on Price’s heels, finishing fifth, just 21 seconds behind. Matthias Walkner secured another top-10 stage result as he continues to adjust to riding with an injured wrist, sustained on stage two.

With the proposed bivouac at Al Duwadimi still under water due to the heavy rains affecting the region, organizers rerouted the Dakar caravan to Riyadh. As such, although the timed special was shortened to 358 kilometers, riders still faced an exhausting total distance of 768 kilometers today, due to the long liaisons. Today’s special comprised another day of dunes and sandy tracks, made all the more unpredictable due to the overnight rain.

Following his third-place finish on stage five, Toby Price set about chasing down the two riders ahead of him right from the start of today’s special. With the times among the front runners proving to be especially close this morning as they navigated their way through the damp dunes of the stage, Price found himself losing a few positions as he focused on his navigation near the front. After the refueling however, the Australian pushed on and moved back up the leaderboard to ultimately complete the stage in third place.

The day started differently for Kevin Benavides. Third-quickest through the first 100 kilometers, the 2021 Dakar champion dropped a little time following a small mistake midway through the special. Regrouping, Kevin clawed some of that time back to complete the demanding special in fifth place. Benavides’ consistency is paying off. Finishing no lower than eighth so far at the 2023 event has resulted in the Argentine lying in a solid third overall in the provisional standings.

Thankfully regaining his strength each day following the crash that injured his wrist on stage two, Matthias Walkner continues to put in solid rides to stay in contention. Delivering another top-10 result on today's special, the Austrian star minimized the time lost to the leaders and currently lies just outside the top 10 overall in 11th.

Tomorrow’s stage seven marks the first half of the event’s marathon stage. Following a short two-hour window where the service teams can work on their riders’ machines, the competitors then head to the bivouac at Al Duwadimi while the teams return to Riyadh. Of the total distance covered of 713 kilometers, 398 will be raced against the clock.

With his energy levels slowly restoring following a sickness bug that zapped all of his power ahead of yesterday’s stage five, Daniel Sanders made it known today that he’s not out of the running in the race for victory at the 2023 Dakar Rally. Clocking in as the seventh-fastest rider on today’s stage six, just three minutes behind the stage winner, it was a perfect execution of damage limitation by the Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing star who remains eighth in the provisional standings.