Defending MXGP champion Tim Gasjer might not be fully fit. Due to a virus, he will go into this weekend opening GP of the season with a lot of motivation and determination. We chatted with the HRC factory rider about his preseason.
Tim, I heard you got sick. Whats up?
I am sick a little bit, but anyway, it’s not so bad. I have a bit of fever and that is it. Tomorrow I have to be ready. It’s going to be cool.
How was your offseason? You didn’t seem to be pushing too hard in Italy, watching the videos?
I had a good off season, we tested a lot, we have a completely new bike for this season, so we put a lot of work in. I worked also hard with my dad with preparation. The first three races in Italy, its just the first races, so you don’t push too hard. [Antonio Cairoli] was really quick, and so was Jeremy [vanHorebeek]. A lot of good riders there, so it was good. But tomorrow everything started, what counts. I didn’t want to come to Qatar and be sick, but I will give my best every race this year and at the end of 19 races we will see where we are.
I read somewhere that you worked a lot on your strength and endurance and less on speed. Can you explain that for me?
I think every rider, every year, pushes with improving and preparation. We have the same off-season as last year, but like you mentioned we pushed in the physical side and also the cardio side. Maybe less on the bike, so to be hungry when I sit on the bike. That is the difference, all the other things are the same.
Last year you had moment of lost concentration. Did you work on that in the winter at all?
I think that is normal for a rookie, but like I mentioned many times last year, when you make mistakes you try and learn from them. I made many stupid mistakes last year, when leading by 10 seconds and then crash and lose the first place. That is how it was, but we are hear, and we will see.
Just two more questions. Being sick, even if you weren’t sick, is top five, top six good enough to start the season.
You know you take whatever you can. It’s the first race of the season, so everybody that came here is injury and we haven’t ridden for a couple of months. I am the same, I am hungry, but for sure, if you are fourth or fifth, I think that is ok, you just have to be consistent. 19 races, we never had so many races in the season. I think the key is staying healthy and being consistent. Sometimes I need to take fifth, or fourth, or whatever, its all good.
Looking at Antonio, he looks like he is back to his best speed. Does that motivate you more?
For sure, I think he had a good off-season without small injuries like the past two years. He is really fast, and that isn’t a surprise. He is an 8 time world champion and a legend. He will be fighting again for the title, like he is every year. But like I mentioned, we will see everything tomorrow and Saturday.
