After two monumental battles, the Slovenian rider held his nerve and his speed on this tricky Orlyonok track to secure maximum points in both races, giving him a 13 point gap at the top of the MXGP championship.

Stephen Rubini also leaves Russia with a red plate as the Team Assomotor rider went three-one in the EMX250 class, taking over leadership of the series by two points at the halfway point in the championship. In the MX2 class, Team Honda 114 Motorsports’ Mitchell Evans placed sixth overall after a hard-fought fifth in race one but he couldn’t quite match that in race two and had to settle for 10th.

Unfortunately Team HRC rider Brian Bogers wasn’t able to get the results he wanted as he struggled to make an impact on this hard-pack terrain. However next week the track at Kegums, Latvia is much sandier which should give the Honda CRF450RW rider a chance to rebound strongly.

Unbeaten in his last two GPs, Gajser came into Russia full of confidence and that showed every time he hit the track. In each session he was in the top two quickest on the track and when it mattered most, he was number one, extending his winning streak to six motos and making it now eight wins in the last 10 races.

In the first moto, he was denied the holeshot by inches but quickly swept into the lead which he held, despite pressure, for the remainder of the race. In race two, he was again close to the holeshot but this time it took the CRF450RW rider eight laps before he could see clear track. Just like in the first moto, he still had to hold off a charging Arnaud Tonus before he could secure victory but as the Swiss rider was close behind, he crashed, which gave Gajser the breathing space he needed to win his fourth overall of the season and give him the championship red plate, much to the delight of everyone at Team HRC.

It wasn’t quite such an easy weekend for Bogers who wasn’t able to achieve his aim of top 10 finishes in both motos. Instead the Dutch rider was left with a pair of 17th place finishes with the hard-pack track and hot temperatures hindering his chances of good results.

He now has a couple of days of training to prepare for the ninth round of the MXGP series, which takes place in Latvia next weekend. Unlike the last three rounds which have been pretty hard-pack, Kegums is sandy track on relatively flat terrain, but it should still provide Gajser with another good opportunity for an overall and a chance to extend his championship lead.

“I’m feeling really good about this weekend. It wasn’t easy out there, as both motos were tough because Arnaud (Tonus) was really fast and he was always behind me pushing hard,” said Gajser.

“The first race I held him off all race, and then in the second race it was the same again but with 10 minutes to go he made a mistake and that gave me the gap I needed to control the race and take the victory. The track wasn’t so bumpy but it was still tough because it was so hard and it was easy to make a mistake. Overall I’m happy, and a huge thanks to everyone at Honda, as the CRF450RW is amazing and let’s hope we can continue this run of form.

“Three races ago I was 40 points behind in the championship and now I have the red plate so I’m really happy about these past few weeks have gone and although it’s still early in the season and there is plenty of races ahead of us, it’s still a great feeling and I can’t wait to see the red plate on my bike in Latvia.”

Results MXGP Russia 2019

1. Tim Gajser (SLO), Honda (1-1)
2. Arnaud Tonus (SUI), Yamaha (2-2)
3. Jeremy Seewer (SUI), Yamaha (5-3)
4. Jeffrey Herlings (NED), Red Bull KTM (4-7)
5. Romain Febvre (FRA), Yamaha (4-9)

Standings MXGP 2019 after 08 of 18 rounds

1. Tim Gajser 351 points
2. Tony Cairoli 338
3. Gautier Paulin 231
4. Jeremy Seewer 220
5. Arminas Jasikonis 212

Results MX2 Russia 2019

1. Jorge Prado (ESP), Red Bull KTM (1-1)
2. Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN), Husqvarna (2-2)
3. Jago Geerts (BEL), Yamaha (3-3)
4. Tom Vialle (FRA), Red Bull KTM (4-5)
5. Michele Cervellin (ITA), Yamaha (9-4)

Standings MX2 2019 after 08 of 18 rounds

1. Jorge Prado 347
2. Thomas Kjer Olsen 327
3. Jago Geerts 257
4. Henry Jacobi 236
5. Tom Vialle 216