KTM Versus The World: opening round of the Motocross Championship

The opening round of the FIM World Motocross Championship might just turn into a Red Bull KTM Factory Team versus the World, as has so often been the case in recent years.

With a line-up of Antonio Cairoli, Jeffrey Herlings, Ken De Dycker and Jordi Tixier there is every possibility that the orange army can finish one and two in both the MX1 and MX2 classes in Qatar. No other team inside the paddock can boast that type of firepower.

Of the 60 or so riders heading to Qatar for the opening round a third are KTM riders. A huge statistic when you consider the days of Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha and Kawasaki dominating the classes at one time or another.

Of the 25 riders on the start list for MX1 there are 8 KTM, 6 Honda, 4 Yamaha, 3 Suzuki, 3 Kawasaki, and 1 TM riders. In the MX2 class there are 12 KTM, 6 Honda, 6 Kawasaki, 5 Yamaha, 3 Suzuki and 1 TM on the start line.

Of course other teams will also be looking for a major step in their challenge to the KTM ownership of the FIM World Motocross Championships. The Red Bull KTM Factory team have won eight of the last nine MX1 and MX2 Championships with Tyla Rattray winning in 2008, Marvin Musquin winning the 2009 and 2010 MX2 Championships, followed by Ken Roczen and Jeffrey Herlings.

In the MX1 Championship Antonio Cairoli has won in 2010, 2011 and 2012 on KTM. Amazingly the last guy to not win the KTM in both MX1 and MX2 was current KTM number one Antonio Cairoli. The Italian legend won the MX2 title on Yamaha in 2007 and the MX1 title on Yamaha in 2009.

No team in the history of the sport have held this type of domination and while Suzuki did win 10 MX2/125cc Championships from 1975 until 1984 they did not dominate both classes. Honda also dominated the 500cc/MX1 class from 1984 until 1992, in what many see as the golden era of the 500cc class as riders like Andre Malherbe, Dave Thorpe, Eric Geboers and Georges Jobe held up the Honda flag.

Stefan Everts and Antonio Cairoli helped Yamaha to a handful of FIM World Motocross Championships in the early to mid 2000s; however both now work together in the Red Bull KTM Factory team.

Adding to the domination of KTM in 2012 they won the MX1, MX2 and MX3 World Championships. The first time in the history of the sport that one manufacture won all three titles in the same year.

Since 2000 KTM have won nine MX2 Championships with riders like Grant Langston, James Dobb, Steve Ramon, Ben Townley, Tyla Rattray, Marvin Musquin, Ken Roczen and Jeffrey Herlings. Only losing title in that class in 2003 with Mickael Maschio, 2005 with Antonio Cairoli, 2006 with Christophe Pourcel and in 2007 again with Cairoli.

Going into the Grand Prix of Qatar both Cairoli and Herlings are the favourites to win in both MX1 and MX2.

- Motocrossmx1 Press Release