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MXGP, MXGP OF SWEDEN - Uddevalla, SWEDEN, 13 Augusti 2023

Romain Febvre second in Sweden

Romain Febvre finished second overall for Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP in a rain-affected Swedish round of the FIM World MXGP Motocross Championship at Uddevalla.

A good start was always going to be even more vital than usual after overnight rain and the Frenchman got it perfect in the first moto to take the holeshot. Setting the fastest laps of the race he secured his position at the head of the field until he slithered to the ground in a slippery corner on lap seven and had to settle for second. Third across the holeshot line at the start of race two the Kawasaki leader made a superb quick pass for second through the valley into turn three as rain returned. Once more setting the fastest laps of the race he closed down the leader time-and-again for a potential pass which would have secured a sixth consecutive GP victory but overtaking was almost impossible with a single groove around the entire track and, after a scary moment trying to find alternative lines, he eventually accepted second in moto and overall to remain a secure second in the series standings headed to the final four rounds of the series.
 
Romain Febvre: « Today I got two good starts ... and a holeshot in the first race. I knew the starts were vital today in these muddy conditions and everything was going well in the first moto until I made a mistake and crashed in a corner. It only cost me a few seconds but Prado was able to go past me and I had to settle for second. In the second race I was second again after a couple of corners; in the first few laps I was behind Seewer and tried to find a spot to pass him but there was no possibilities! I was faster and I tried to open up some lines to pass him but in the end I nearly crashed. Today it was easy to make mistakes and the starting line was really muddy. I’m satisfied with my races; I finished twice second and I was consistent once again."
 
Mitch Evans launched his KX450-SR out of his outside gate in the first moto to hold down sixth place for half the race; small errors started to creep into his riding as the race continued and he eventually slipped back to ninth. The Australian was forced to make two early pit-stops for fresh goggles in the rain-affected second moto but bounced back to finish seventeenth. He has now moved forward to twelfth in the series standings.
 
Mitch Evans: "The bike is strong off the line so I knew I could still get a start from the outside and redeem myself for yesterday. I felt really good in the first moto in sixth but then mid-race I got really bad arm-pump. I don't know why - I haven't had that for a long time - but the bike was riding me. The second moto was just unfortunate because I was feeling good despite the weather but I had to stop for fresh googles twice in the conditions."