Gautier Paulin interview

Gautier Paulin - Ray Archer image His victory in last weekend's Grand Prix of Italy was special for many reasons. Beating Italian legend Antonio Cairoli on his home turf and showing great respect to Cairoli and the huge crowd in attendance.

You just have to love this young Frenchman for his passion for the sport and the respect he shows everyone around him.

It was a very emotional Paulin who stood on the podium and celebrated with his rival (Cairoli), and it will be a tough second part of the season as Paulin does his best to pull back the series points lead by Cairoli.

"Just to race with Antonio," Paulin said. "It is so nice, but to do Motocross with the public like it was in Maggiora, I am so happy to do Motocross when the public is like this. When the public is like this is makes racing so much fun and so enjoyable. The crowd supported me in France and in Italy they supported Antonio. If you look at the crowd there was no space between the people, it was just packed, really a lot of people for this race. We gave some really good emotion to everyone."

The second moto at the Italian Grand Prix was special for many reasons, but it was the end of race battle between both Paulin and Cairoli that gave the 38,000 spectators the chance to let their voices be heard and that is just what they did. For Paulin it was about staying concentrated and enjoying the moment.

"When I started at the front of the field and Antonio was also there I knew I had to push. I knew Antonio was catching me and I know how hard he pushes and I knew I had to keep my lines and give my best and not make any mistakes. It paid off in the end; I knew Tony was coming, I knew from the noise, and this is what I love about racing Motocross."

And what about the beautifully prepared Maggiora circuit? Any Motocross racer will tell you the steep up and down hill sections and the amazing jumps make for fun racing and Paulin felt comfortable with the circuit from the first moment he rode it.

"I enjoyed the track, really tricky with big ruts and a good first corner. I really enjoyed riding at Maggiora and this track has a big history and I am proud to be part of that history. The track was really nice, just maybe a little too much water on the track early, but the second moto the track was much better and to win the Grand Prix, what could I want more from this event?"

Now onto Sweden for the Uddevalla circuit, another change of surface as the sandy track in the forest brings the FIM World Motocross Championship riders a new challenge and a new country.