You gotta love MX2. For the second year in a row the class just kept on hitting extremes of predictability and then high drama. Red Bull KTM’s Jeffrey Herlings should have swept up. In both 2014 and 2015 the Dutchman saw a hefty mid-season injury erode vast leads in the championship standings (145 points in ’14 and 139 until his first prang this year) and then it was ‘open season’ on who would eventually triumph. As with our verdict on the MXGP class a few issues ago we’ve decided to assess the 2015 roll call due to impact and circumstances rather than all-out numbers and this meant a tricky judgement on the top spot…

1. Pauls Jonass, second in MX2, one moto victory, six podiums

Like almost every rider on the 250s the Red Bull KTM factory rookie was prone to mistakes. His massive get-offs in both Sweden and Mexico means that Jonass is one of the luckiest riders in the class as well as being one of the most impressive. The eighteen year old walked around the pit facility at Qatar for the opening round barely able to supress a child-like grin; this was a former European champion – cool, easy and accessible – chomping at the bit and barely succeeding in hiding the nerves. Jonass began life as a works rider with two second positions in the first three Grands Prix and led the field both at Losail and in Argentina and established a rate of speed and a hefty benchmark of performance from the off. The steadying influence of Stefan Everts in his corner as mentor and coach was evident as Jonass was not flashy or boisterous and absorbed moments like his ‘take-out’ by Alex Tonkov in Maggiora with maturity and kept learning about the pacing, fitness and strategy needed for Grand Prix throughout the season. With four podiums in a row starting from his home fixture at Kegums for round twelve of eighteen the Latvian formed part of the group that were suddenly disputing the world championship after his teammate’s departure from the scene. The campaign ‘without expectation’ and with designs on a top ten finish were transformed as Jonass became KTM’s only hope of a title with the manufacturer dominating both classes of MXGP since 2010 but now suffering their own misfortune with injury. Circumstances were perhaps unfair on the teenager but it was one of the possible scenarios that can arrive in representing arguably the best team in the paddock. The pressure ramped up and the stage narrowed into a duel with Tim Gajser. It looked to be a dispute that Jonass could manage (taking the red plate in Belgium and Italy) even though he gave the Slovenian a helping hand with his second moto first lap crash at Assen. He earned his first moto chequered flag after a maiden Pole Position in Mexico laden with intent and MX2 became even more mouth-watering. Then came the spectacular dismount (one of the most watched on Youtube with 152,000+ views) in that same meeting at Leon. Jonass still had a shot at the title arriving to Glen Helen and the season-closer a week later but he was understandably reeling – physically and mentally – from the mistake in Mexico that earned the ‘41’ a rebuke from Everts for the foolhardy nature of his rapid chase through the pack. In 2015 and in just eight months Pauls soaked up the kind of experience that other riders spend the better part of a career wading through and it means that KTM will have a formidable athlete on their hands next year. Jonass tops this list for starting so positively and then rarely dropping his standards to become an authentic title challenger. The evolution was admirable and he came close to what would have been a shock golden number plate…

2. Tim Gajser, MX2 World Champion, five wins, four moto victories, eight podiums

Tim Gajser is a deserved world champion and raised his level from potential winner to viable Grand Prix threat in 2015. The Slovenian heads the charts in terms of Grand Prix wins and most podiums (tied with Herlings) and it is easy to forget that he only scored his first GP success at Arco di Trento for round four. It was the second year for ‘243’ on the HRC CRF250RW and Honda Gariboldi managed to build a bulletproof motorcycle for the tall, rev-happy and 450-loving youngster. Gajser hammered the CRF throughout the season and asked every ounce of power from a bike that had barely won a race in the class (Marvin Musquin in 2009) and had not been talked about in terms of the MX2 title. Tim mixed moments of vulnerability with utter fearlessness. He was counted out of the Thai GP second moto after needing treatment for heat exhaustion, in the wake of his debut GP win in Italy he crashed repeatedly, was out of action for the British Grand Prix after suffering a concussion in morning warm-up and crashed at the start of the Latvian round with an injured ankle. It was a rough ride at times but the manner of his win against all odds in the sand of Assen for round sixteen of eighteen and the way he dealt with crushing pressure at Glen Helen to confirm the championship (even having to overtake Pauls Jonass in the motos) was masterful. As anybody who has watched Tim carefully or read any interviews with the nineteen year old can testify then the heavy presence of his family and especially his father will know how the presence and role of his loved ones around him contributes to his racing. We are talking about a tight and functional family unit unlike perhaps any other seen at this level of the sport. It is a lot of baggage for any team to deal with and Honda and Giacomo Gariboldi have found the right chemistry to get the best from this exceptional talent. It doesn’t always go well though. “I think I put too much pressure on myself because the bad weekends came up again at Valkenswaard and the first moto in Spain was so-so,” Gajser said when trying to explain his early season dip. “The two ‘zeros’ at Matterley Basin was another low point of this season. After that I changed again, this time in my relationship with my Dad and it worked out well and we are going in the right direction.” The significance of the ‘243’ (given to him by co-incidence but matching the birth date of a brother that died before Tim was born) means that Gajser would not have run the ‘1’ plate in MX2 in 2016 even before his late and surprise decision to jump into MXGP. Like Jonass Gajser made vast strides as a Pro racer in 2015 and it will be a shame not to see him hone that powerful attacking style of his further in MX2 and give Herlings a run for his money in 2016.

3. To read the rest of the story in the latest issue of OTOR click HERE