A packed Semigorje circuit was the scene of the Grand Prix of Russia and the eleventh round of sixteen in the 2012 FIM Motocross World Championship.

Antonio Cairoli won the premier MX1 class, but Honda World Motocross team’s Evgeny Bobryshev animated the noisy 45,000 attendance (weekend figure) under blue skies and hot sunshine by taking his factory CRF450R to fifth overall.

Semigorje endured contrasting weather conditions for what was the flat, fast, compact and jumpy course’s inauguration on the international scene. Russia entertained the FIM series for the first time since 2002 and heavy rain showers turned the track into slippery mud on Saturday while sunshine then dried and transformed the terrain for some dusty motos on Sunday.

As the darling of the crowd and focal point for the Investradebank sponsor who not only back the works team, but also bankrolled the event, the pressure was on Bobryshev; the sole Grand Prix winner from the country in the last three decades. ‘777’ made a bad start when he collided with team-mate Rui Goncalves coming out of the gate for the first race, but gained some positions in the early stages and barrelled through to obtain sixth place. In the second moto a slightly better launch nudged the 24 year old into the top five. He pushed to close down Christophe Pourcel, but ran out of laps across the technical and difficult surface.

Goncalves was content with eighth and sixth positions for sixth overall and to sit behind ‘Bobby’ in the final MX1 classification. The precise Portuguese was nursing a painful right bicep after a training incident with another rider during the week required laser treatment on the muscle. The former MX2 vice-champion put aside his latest slice of bad luck to embark on a determined performance on what was a significant event for his team. A bad start after being hit by Christophe Pourcel in the first moto led to a resolute charge, while an improved getaway in the second sprint saw the experienced campaigner nestling in the mid top ten.

LS Honda racing’s Jonathan Barragan will leave Semigorje with pleasant memories of a strong outing in the second moto in which he picked up eighth place by the finish. The first race delivered tenth spot, but the Spaniard’s speed and rhythm was more effective in the warmer afternoon sun for race two. Barragan was ninth overall and the third CRF450R rider in the top ten.

Although Bobryshev occupied a lot of the limelight countryman Alexandr Tonkov was also the key rider for fans in the MX2 class. The Russian is still on his way back to full speed and fitness after suffering a hand injury earlier in the season. A back problem sadly pushed ‘66’ to the sidelines in the first moto, but he bore the pain to record a fifteenth in the second. Team-mate Max Anstie had a technical problem and this meant he had to use his second race bike for the two motos. The Brit DNF-ed the first race and rode to seventh slot in the next sprint.

The FIM MX1 World Championship standings show that Goncalves is ninth with Bobryshev in twelfth and Barragan lingering in thirteenth. After back-to-back events round twelve of the FIM Motocross World Championship will take place in two weeks time at the Loket circuit for the Grand Prix of Czech Republic.

Evgeny Bobryshev:
Race Result: 6th / 5th - Championship position: 12th

“I’m happy. I had my mind on the podium today, but fifth overall is good. We struggled a bit yesterday in the bad conditions. The track was so rough and it was difficult to find the best set-up. In the first race I found it a lot harder than the second one, I’m not sure why, but by the end I was really tired. I managed to keep sixth place, so I had to be happy with that. The second moto felt easier; after recovering from a bad start I tried to ride my own race to go faster with no mistakes.

It was cool and amazing being here. The people were treating me like I was the leader of the championship! I didn’t have pressure and the weekend felt fun. It was tiring being pulled in many different directions, but it was great. I have to thank the public for all the support and the cheering and of course my team, family, Moscow Region and Investradebank for making this happen. I hope next year I can come here fitter and maybe with the red plate!”

Rui Goncalves:
Race Result: 8th / 6th - Championship position: 9th

“I had a crash during the week with a slow guy and damaged my bicep on my right arm. It could have been worse, but I went to the doctor and had laser treatment and did what I could to be ready for this GP. It was sometimes pretty hard to hold on today for the pain, but I’m not the kind of guy to go about finding excuses and complain, so I did my best. In the first moto I had a pretty good start, but in the second turn I became stuck between Christophe [Pourcel] and Shaun [Simpson] and went off the track. I came back from last into the top ten quite quickly and finished eighth; I was pretty happy with that considering. In the second moto my start was better and in the beginning I made some mistakes and it took me some time to get the rhythm back. I was quite solid from the middle of the race until the end. Overall I’m pleased with the weekend. Since Latvia things have been going in the right direction and I want to thank the team for always being behind me.”

Jonathan Barragan:
Race Result: 10th / 8th - Championship position: 13th

“Honestly, to have a tenth and eighth after the last few results I’ve been getting is not so bad and I’m happy. I was just off the leading group and running in places where I should be every week. We’ll see if we can continue to improve in training and take some more confidence into the last part of the season. The track was tough and complicated but pretty good for racing.”

2012 FIM MX1 / MX2 World Motocross Championship
Round 11: Semigorje – Russia