An overcast and slushy Uddevalla circuit was the setting for the Grand Prix of Sweden and Honda World Motocross’ Rui Goncalves steered his factory CRF450R to thirteenth position overall at what was the ninth round of sixteen in the 2012 FIM Motocross World Championship.

Twenty-two thousand spectators flocked to one of the staple fixtures in the series - having hosted a Grand Prix every year this century – and saw Clement Desalle take victory in the premier MX1 class for the second time this season. Honda were best represented by Honda France HDI MX Team’s Cedric Soubeyras in eleventh place.

Uddevalla provided its usual test of fast and tight turns with a number of undulating jumps and sections. The shallow, loose top soil was slippery in places and rough and rutted in others. With the rain the dirt was watery and muddy in the first moto, but afternoon sunshine helped dry the course to an extent. The rocky hillside adjacent to the layout provided the majority of fans with a superb birds eye view of the action.

Honda World Motocross team were desperately unlucky at the event where Honda unveiled the brand new 2013 CRF450R to the press and European eyes for the first time and Evgeny Bobryshev signed a contract extension for a further two years to remain in red.

Goncalves was hampered with problems in Saturday’s qualification when he was hit by another rider and suffered machine damage. The Portuguese barely finished the qualifying heat with twenty-third position. Still nursing a painful rib, Rui started badly in the flooded first race on Sunday and plotted a course back to the fringes of the top ten until his bike stopped and hesitated to restart only corners from the flag. Goncalves did end the weekend on a positive note by battling his way to seventh in the second outing.

Bobryshev began the meeting in strong form with a confident run to second place in Saturday’s qualification heat. The Russian therefore earned second pick of slots in the gate for Sunday, but after three laps of the first race crashed on one of the steepest and fastest sections of the track and badly gashed his right elbow. ‘Bobby’ needed four stiches in a painful wound and elected against worsening the injury in the second sprint.

LS Honda’s Jonathan Barragan crashed in both motos, but recovered composure and ground to finish in twelfth and thirteenth positions for twelfth overall.

Honda’s leading trio inhabit positions in the top fourteen of the MX1 standings. Goncalves is tenth, Bobryshev thirteenth with Barragan just behind. In the MX2 class Max Anstie suffered two crashes with his CRF250R in the qualification outing on Saturday, but fared slightly better in Sunday’s races. The Briton picked up points for a thirteenth place finish in the second moto and now holds seventh in the points table.

Round ten of the FIM Motocross World Championship will take place at Kegums in two weeks for the Grand Prix of Latvia.

Rui Goncalves:
Race Result: DNF / 7th - Championship position: 10th

“The first moto was tough to take. I didn’t have such a great start, but I tried to make my way past some guys on the first lap and unfortunately I went down and lost all the ground I had won. I needed to work hard to catch back up to eleventh and just two corners before the flag the bike stopped so I could not finish. This is a mechanical sport and there is not much we can do in this case. For the second moto the team worked really hard to get the bike ready for the start. I didn’t get away so well again, but pushed to make some passes and it was a good race. The track was really slick so you needed to stay focussed all the way and that’s what I did. It has been a tough beginning to the season and things haven’t gone my way yet with all the injuries and bad luck, but I want to thank the team for all their work and support. I hope things will turn my way soon because this has been the toughest start to a racing year ever.”

Evgeny Bobryshev:
Race Result: DNF / DNS - Championship position: 13th

“What can I say? I feel pain in the arm, but also in the heart because I had a good race yesterday and was hoping for a good Grand Prix. The weather was crazy and turned the track into something pretty dangerous. Anyway I went out and made some passes in the first moto to reach fourth. I had a crash on the steep hill because the landing was so muddy the front wheel washed out. I landed on my right side and I think when I was sliding I went across some rocks. The cut was pretty bad and deep. The medical team cleaned it and gave me an injection and some stitches. They said I could ride, but I thought it was impossible because I had no strength in the arm; the area was swollen and didn’t want to risk another crash and opening the cut even more. My goal now is to use the time before Latvia and get healthy and hopefully ride and train next week before we go to Kegums.”

Jonathan Barragan:
Race Result: 12th / 13th - Championship position: 14th

“It wasn’t a good day. In the second race I crashed and in the first the opening few laps were terrible. I feel that it was a big shame to go down so early in the second moto because the result could have been better than thirteenth. My rhythm was consistent, but not enough. I couldn’t do more today. Both the team and I are working very hard and the results haven’t been what we hoped so far. It is taking a lot to find our way into that top eight but it is not through a lack of effort or desire.”

2012 FIM MX1 / MX2 World Motocross Championship
Round 09: Uddevalla – Sweden