This season promised to be a good one for Josh Gilbert after finally securing a full time ride in the MXGP World Championship paddock but injuries haven’t been kind to the Brit.
We caught up with him to discuss his season and much more…
GateDrop: Josh, before we touch on this season, obviously coming into this year you finally secured a full-time MXGP ride. I kind of feel like your career was leading to this point because before, since your EMX days, you’ve done a few GPs here and there, a few AMA here and there. First of all, how did it feel to finally get an opportunity to do the full MXGP World Championship?
Gilbert: Yeah, it was a great opportunity, and I was quite thankful to Shaun (Simpson) and Simon (Gabriel) and everyone that they could put this deal together and it was almost like too good to be true really. So yeah, I’ve dabbled in it like you said a little bit and to finally get the opportunity to have a good crack at it, it was sounding and shaping up to be a good year.
GateDrop: At the same time, you had such a good set-up in the UK with Dave Thorpe. Was that hard to leave because you were probably making good money in the British paddock but at the same time, to come and race here at the end of the day is probably what you dreamed of…
Gilbert: With Dave, I grew up riding for Dave so I know the whole team there so well and they have a good structure going and yeah, the bike and everything, it was good. But yeah, I just sort of wanted to give GP’s a good crack if I could and the opportunity came up so yeah, I grabbed it.
GateDrop: Just what was winter like? Obviously, it was a new team for you, getting used to the KTM again and did you do much riding with Cas Valk as well?
Gilbert: Yeah, the pre-season and winter training was really good with Cas as well as Joel (Smets) and Andrea Adamo. I spent quite a lot of time in Spain and Belgium with those guys. I did also do quite a lot of riding at home but we went I think it was two weeks before Christmas, down to Spain. Then we did two and a half weeks or three weeks in Spain after Christmas and then yeah, just a lot of grinding it out in the cold wet of Belgium. So yeah, that was so good and it was going amazing.
GateDrop: Then just to touch on this season, it’s been a bit of a roller coaster… I mean, anytime you look like getting going, something tends to happen. You were just getting going before Maggiora and then a shoulder injury there which set you back there. But just how would you analyse your first full MXGP World Championship season?
Gilbert: Yeah, exactly like what you said, a roller coaster really. The pre-season went so well and then I won at the first Spanish championship and just felt really, really good. Going to the practice track, my lap times and everything and I was on pace for like, well, we were sort of thinking around about the tenths or like at least the top fifteenth every race. I was quite excited to get going and then we went all the way to Argentina and it just, in the qualifying race, I’ve seen so many crashes on the first couple of laps. I thought I just want to get through today and then I ended up going down myself and originally, I just thought I’d hit my head a little bit and I’d be fine but I knew I had a little bit of pain in my elbow. So yeah, Sunday I was more concerned about my head than my arm and I didn’t end up going and getting it checked there just because we weren’t sure on the medical and everything, the equipment and stuff that they had there. So, I waited until I got home, and it sort of started to feel like it was freeing up and getting there. I went and seen loads of different people and they said, oh, it sounds like it’s just muscular with the amount of treatment that they can do to it and the pain that I can withstand.
It was, yeah, they said it was to be just muscles. But we lined up then Madrid two weeks later and yeah, I felt okay on Saturday but I only had a few laps in me and then my arm would just go so weak. So, we decided to get it checked out the Sunday morning before the races and it turned out to be broken. So, yeah, that was a bummer. It was like you do all winter and then you get to that point and then it was literally at the first round I end up crashing. So, I took another I think three or four weeks out for that.
So, in total I lost about six weeks I think on the bike which you lose a lot over that. So, once I comeback I was just trying to build it up slowly. Slowly it was getting better, better and better and then in Latvia I started to get the consistency there. Then Maggiora was a mudder but I actually felt really good on the bike and the track. I enjoyed it and then in timed practice I ended up ninth so that was like a big step in the right direction for us.
I just felt comfortable again and then unfortunately well I thought I’ve gotten a decent gate pick I can go around the inside, stay with the quick boys and hopefully come out and have a good qualifying race to set me up for another good day on a Sunday. But just literally went into the first turn and it was so muddy I couldn’t really see very well because I was struggling to go for a tear off because it was just so wet and someone else sort of slid out and come across. I just ended up putting my arm out and that was that dislocated shoulder so we were back to recovery again.
I’ve probably lost around 11 or 12 weeks this this year with the injuries so when you think about clocking up the bike hours and what I’ve lost, it’s been a bit of a struggle. It’s not actually until sort of last weekend in Sweden I felt like my shoulder was back to nearly 100 percent, I’ve been struggling with the strength and just feeling confident with it. I was hoping for a better result in Sweden but my starts were, well they were good but I kept getting pushed wide and then I was coming from the back. I had a crash in the first race but coming back to your question it’s definitely been a roller coaster of a year. I’ve enjoyed it though and I would like to have another crack at it next year.
GateDrop: Just what was it like going to Argentina the anticipation because it was probably the first time you’ve been part of the setup and MXGP from round one, just how did it feel being at a fly away as well. How was it all before you went out on track?
Gilbert: It’s a long journey… It’s lovely when you get there but yeah man it’s a long way to go but actually I quite enjoyed it. It’s quite relaxed, there’s not so much going on through the day so the days are almost a little bit shorter because you’re trying to go to the track, you do your ride and then you go home rather than having lots going on. I don’t know, when you’re in Europe there just seems to be a lot of things going on during the weekends whereas over there it’s just nice and chilled out. I was enjoying it until it all went south.
GateDrop: Obviously like you said, it’s been a bit of a roller coaster and it’s a pity because this is your first year racing the full MXGP series, just how frustrating is that when these things keep happening… you know, it’s obviously the sport that we all love but at the same time it has its bad days but are you able to put that behind you and just try and focus on getting back?
Gilbert: Yeah, you do try to. I mean I’ve got to be honest when I dislocated my shoulder that following week it knocked all the motivation, I just hit a low point because, okay I’ve done my ACL before and I’ve had time out for that but sort of other than then I haven’t really ever had an injury where I’ve actually sat out for the season for too long. But this year, I’ve had two that hit me at once but you have your low and you soon get over it. I know where I want to be and I know where I can be so you just have to keep thinking about that and keep working back towards where I want to be.
GateDrop: Just to touch on when you raced AMA, you did three or four rounds over there and you were knocking on the door for top 12’s and top 10’s, you got a lot of hype and rightfully so but how hard is it racing MXGP because when you finish 12 to 20 in MXGP, it’s not exactly easy and you don’t seem to quite get as much hype and it almost goes under the radar… do you feel like that or maybe not?
Gilbert: I definitely agree. I think in America they quite like someone different coming in and I think that’s where the hype comes a little bit. In MXGP, I would say the top 20 to even 25 at the moment is far stronger, there’s more of a depth than what it is in AMA so I could be 25th here in one race but I could still have pace to run top 12 in AMA, I would say… I don’t know but I do think that the depth is stronger in the top 20 to 25 in MXGP than in AMA.
GateDrop: Obviously the team GB Motocross des Nations team is probably going to be picked this month, I think it has to be picked this month and I feel like, well it might depend on if Max can come or not but I feel like if you can get a good few rounds under you should definitely be in the running and I’m sure it’s a race you want to do it with being your home Nations…
Gilbert: Yeah, I’d love to do it. I mean last year I done Ernee and that was incredible, the only one to top that is the home nation so yeah if I could get chosen then obviously I’ll give it 100% like I did last year. I enjoyed every single minute of it last year, I feel like no matter where I go, I ride the same so I don’t feel like I get sort of overwhelmed and sort of start thinking about things like that. I just kind of get there and do my own thing and crack on really.
GateDrop: Last question, just on next year I’m not sure what you can or can’t say but it does sound like this team will probably be EMX250 only, have you got any plans in the works and I’m sure you want to be racing in this paddock again…
Gilbert: I would like to stay here in the MXGP paddock because I feel like this year hasn’t gone nowhere near to plan and I don’t feel like I’ve shown anything of what I can really do this year. So, it’s been a bit of a tough pill to swallow but I’m hoping to be back for next year. I’m really not sure on what I’m going to be doing at the moment.
