Tim Gajser Still Fighting
Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:28AM David Bulmer story Bavo Swijgers image
Team HRC’s Tim Gajser left Finland knowing that things can get better after a tough day of racing at the Vantaa circuit, near Helsinki. For Gajser, it was his highest points tally since returning from injury, but he is aiming for the level of performance which saw him dominate the 2022 MXGP World Championship and while this was a solid showing, he now has a couple of weeks to keep the upward trend and get even closer to that sort of level.
“Another week and improvements were definitely made,” Gajser said after Finland. “Of course, I’m not completely happy with the results but I can see progress and I can also see where things can be better, so that’s important. Now I have a weekend off so I can get some good practice in and just work on some things, so that hopefully I can be challenging further forward in Sweden, which is a track that I like.”
No support classes in Finland, meant the track had a little bit longer to recover and after the MX2 qualification race went ahead, it was time for the MXGP class to line up. With drizzle still falling, it meant that a good start was critical to avoiding as much roost as possible and also to avoid having to make passes on what is a very tight, narrow Vantaa circuit, which was a last-minute replacement for Hyvinkaa, that hosted the Finnish GP last year.
After the gate-drop, Gajser having moved forward into fifth as they crossed for the first lap. Unfortunately, midway through lap two, a rock got caught in the chain of Gajser’s bike and locked up his rear-wheel. Eventually he got it free, but he dropped 11 places in the process and had to then try and work his way through the field. Following through in 12th place Gajser had passed four riders after his misfortune.
“I was having a really good day,” Gajser said. “Even with all the rain. I was fourth in free practice and had put in a good lap before the rain came to get fourth in timed practice. I had a good start in the race and had worked my way into fifth and was just about to challenge for fourth when a stone got caught in my chain and my rear wheel locked up. It took a bit of time to get it loose and when it finally came out, I was down in 16th. It was annoying to have bad luck again, but I kept pushing until the end and finished 12th.”
The first moto on Sunday saw the #243 gradually move up from eighth to sixth over the course of the 19 laps, while race two was a battle as he tried to hold onto fifth place, against riders who have won races in 2023. Eventually, he came home sixth, which gave him sixth overall and meant he left Finland knowing there is still work to be done in the remaining five rounds of this campaign. While there isn’t any pressure on specific results, the goal for the Honda CRF450R rider is always to be near the podium, and with more time on the bike, as well as more favourable circuits, that is certainly a possibility as the championship enters its final quarter
Gajser will be using this break to recoup and assess his progress after three races in three weekends, on what has been a tough return to action after breaking his femur in February. The sand of Vantaa wasn’t as deep as Lommel last time out, but the tight layout, combined with the heavy rain that fell yesterday meant it was still a difficult track to negotiate, as he looks to climb back to the top of the MXGP podium.
So, now into Sweden in 10 days’ time and we all hope the current MXGP champion and five-time World champion can start to get closer to a podium, or a victory, as there is nothing better than seeing the best at the front and in his current form, it just doesn’t seem right seeing the Honda man finishing where he is finishing.
Image: Supplied.