Motocross of Nations 2015 Results

The main battle at the 69th Monster Energy Motocross of Nations 2015 in Ernee, France, came down to a duel between the reigning MXoN champions, Team France, and Team USA.

Before a crowd of around 80,000, Team France was able to make it two-straight MX of Nations in a row. Team France riders Romain Febvre (Open), Musquin Marvin (MX2) and Gautier Paulin were able to hold off Team USA by a mere two points.

Team USA’s Justin Barcia (JGR Yamaha) was dominate rider in the first moto, winning ahead of Russia’s Evgeny Bobyrshev and Germany’s Max Nagl. Barcia battled with KTM’s Marvin Musquin, but was able to take the checkered flag after the Frenchman made a mistake.

But it was Yamaha Factory Racing Yamalube’s Febvre who came out on top in the second and third motos.

Team USA’s Cooper Webb, riding a Yamalube Star Racing YZ450F for the second time in a week (and after his impressive debut at Glen Helen for the final Grand Prix of the year) was first around the opening turn in the second moto. Webb battled with Febvre until the end, but had to settle for second.

During the third moto, it was once again Febvre, though this time the Frenchman beat New Zealand’s Ben Townley to the line, with Barcia taking third.

Following Motocross of Nations 2015, Romain Febvre says “It has been an amazing year for me and I cannot expect anything more than this. Firstly to win some GPs, then to get the title with two rounds to go was unbelievable. To come here with a lot of pressure from the crowd was something special and I have never had it before.

“I’m really pumped that we won again. In the second moto Cooper and I were just a bit faster than everyone else and had a nice battle. For me the third race was a little more difficult with Ben Townley because he was riding really good. I tried to get away but he was sticking to my rear wheel. I’m really happy that we won.”

The Americans – all on Yamaha machinery – also commented:

Justin Barcia says: “Today was my favorite type of racing. It was aggressive and clean and I like Marvin as a person and it was great racing today and it as a challenging weekend. I always come to this race to give 100% heart and to never give up. We came up a little short and France didn’t let up. I had a bad jump [out of the gate] in the last moto and maybe things would have been a little different with a better start. I would have loved to have raced with Romain and everyone up front. I caught them towards the end but ran out of time. The track was a lot of fun although it took me some time to get warmed up through the weekend and the traction was challenging. All in all I’m really proud of the whole team. I wish we could have won but we did our best.”

Jeremy Martin says: “Today was a good day and I’m proud of how Cooper and Justin rode. The team gave their all. France were really fast this year. When I got behind Marvin after he fell in the first moto it reminded me of when we were racing in the U.S. but he was on another level this weekend. The Motocross of Nations is a one of a kind. It is something you want to be a part of as a racer. I have never heard fans so crazy. When you were on a French rider then you knew it! I’ve never heard so many chainsaws in my life.”

Cooper Webb says: “It seemed like Romain and I just kept going from Glen Helen. I would get a better start…but I knew he would be coming! It was fun to be able to race with these guys and it was a whole new experience, having not really ridden the 450 that much and coming to the Nations for the first time. It was a huge honor and nerves were high. It was good though.

“We did the best we could and we were fighting. I feel like I learned quite a bit. We don’t have anything like that [crowd and atmosphere]. I thought in Glen Helen [last week’s Monster Energy U.S.GP] the fans were good there but this was a whole new level. I knew when Romain was on me, for sure! It was extreme and you had to stay calm and push it aside but it was hard when everybody was so loud and behind their team. I knew we had to make moves in that last moto and pass a lot of the front guys. Unfortunately I stalled it, which put me back a little bit. We made it hard for ourselves but that’s why we race: for the challenge.”

Motocross of Nations 2015 Results:

Race 1 – MXGP / MX2
1. Justin Barcia – USA
2. Evgeny Bobryshev – Russia
3. Max Nagl – Germany
4. Marvin Musquin – France
5. Jeremy Martin – USA
6. Ben Townley – New Zealand
7. Gautier Paulin – France

Race 2 – MX2 / Open
1. Romain Febvre – France
2. Cooper Webb – USA
3. Marvin Musquin – France
4. Jeremy van Horebeek – Belgium
5. Jeremy Martin – USA

Race 3 – MXGP / Open
1. Romain Febvre – France
2. Ben Townley – New Zealand
3. Justin Barcia – USA
4. Evgeny Bobryshev – Russia
5. Gautier Paulin – France
6. Cooper Webb – USA

Motocross of Nations 2015 Overall Results
1. France – 14pts – 1,1,3,4,5
2. USA – 16pts – 1,2,3,5,5
3. Belgium – 56pts – 4,7,9,12,24
4. Estonia – 66pts – 8,12,15,15,16
5. Switzerland – 67pts – 9,10,10,14,24