Photo by: Chase Yocom
We are not sure if Team HRC’s Tim Gasjer‘s crash at the 2017 Monster Energy Cup—his first attempt at a US-style SX track—did anything to deter the #243 from joining former World Champs like Ken Roczen and Marvin Musquin in the US, but it probably did not do much to encourage the move. Tim is definitely talented enough to battle near the front in the US and he showed that at the Monster Energy Cup, but he also saw that Supercross can have a painful learning curve.
Ever since Tim won the MX2 World Championship back in 2015, rumors about the Slovenian wanting to jump the pond to the USA to contest AMA Supercross and Motocross have been repeated regularly. Tim validated those rumors after he won the MXGP World Championship in 2016 and said he would most likely head to the US in 2018, but it now appears those plans have been put on hold for at least two more years.
Today, a press release from HRC dropped and confirmed that the former two-time World Champion would be staying in Europe to contest the MXGP world Championship for at least two more seasons. “I’m really happy to be in MXGP for another two years. We have unfinished business from this year and I want to be World Champion again,” said Tim in a press release from HRC.
Check out the full press release below.
Gajser reaffirms commitment to MXGP with Team HRC
Tim Gajser, the 2016 MXGP World Champion, will remain with Team HRC in the FIM Motocross World Championship, MXGP, for another two years following the signing of an agreement with Honda Racing Corporation.
Whilst it has been no secret that GT243 has a desire to race in the United States, for the short term at least, he, alongside HRC and the Gariboldi team, has decided to remain in MXGP where he will mount a new challenge to bring the World Championship back to Honda aboard the much-revered #243 CRF450RW.
Gajser’s current deal with Honda, which was signed in 2015, runs until at least 2020. The Slovenian joined the Japanese marque for the 2014 season and since then his ascent has been remarkable – six GP podiums followed in that first year, then 2015 brought his first race win en route to his MX2 World Championship title. The next year, he became one of just four Honda riders to take back-to-back crowns in different classes with his rookie MXGP World Championship title.
For the 2018 season, GT243 lines up on a further-improved Honda CRF450RW alongside Brian Bogers on the #5 machine, and with teammate Calvin Vlaanderen on the #10 CRF250RW, all running from beneath the Gariboldi-run Team HRC awning.
Gajser has recently attended the Honda Racing Thanks Day in Motegi, Japan – the traditional season-ending fan event which brings together Honda Racing’s stars and world champions and a packed grandstand of fans. Alongside the likes of Marc Marquez, Dani Pedrosa, Jenson Button, Stoffel Vandoorne, Akira Narita and Takuma Sato, Gajser took part in a range of track activities which included racing karts, Super Cubs, and Honda Sport & Eco Fit cars.
Tim Gajser 243
“I’m really happy to be in MXGP for another two years. We have unfinished business from this year and I want to be World Champion again, so we will continue to fight with that as the priority. HRC have been working hard on the bike and there are quite a few changes they’ve made which are very good, so I’m really looking forward to the challenge of next year and I think we have a very strong package to fight for the title. The whole team are hungrier than ever for next year, and I’ve said it before but we just get on really like a family where everything works so really I have everything I need there and feel very happy.”Tetsuhiro Kuwata
HRC Director – General Manager Race Operations Management Division
“We are very pleased to decide with Tim that he will stay in MXGP for another two seasons. Of course, he still has a desire to race in America, but for the short term our focus together is to bring the World Championship back to Honda, and we believe that the combination of Tim and the CRF450RW is a very strong partnership to enable us to repeat 2016 and fight for the title again next year. Tim has been working hard and we have been working hard, and we are all confident of another level of performance next season in MXGP.”
