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MOTOCROSS MONDIAL 2024 MXGP/MX2/WMX/EMX250 GRAND PRIX D’ESPAGNE : JORGE PRADO ET KAY DE WOLF DEVANT – REPLAYS VIDÉOS ET RÉACTIONS
(Photo copyright : Gas Gas Racing)
JORGE PRADO DOMINATES MXGP OF SPAIN FROM START TO FINISH FOR RED BULL GASGAS
Jorge Prado nailed a perfect weekend at the 2024 MXGP of Spain taking a record breaking 1-1-1-1 in practice, qualifying and both motos on the technical hard pack of intu Xanadú-Arroyomolinos.
While it’s one thing turning up at your home Grand Prix as the defending champion, it is something entirely different dominating the entire weekend from start to finish. RedBull GASGAS MXGP rider Jorge Prado did both!
Jorge Prado dominates his home race in Spain; finishing top in every outing on track
Simon Längenfelder grabs second overall with two podiums across two motos
Marc-Antoine Rossi continues to build speed with a top-eight overall result
Jumping off his bike the end of a 30 minute moto against the world’s elite, Jorge Prado had barely broken a sweat while putting in a true champions performance to record his 40th career win, and 81st podium. The Spanish rider led every session of the weekend, from gate to flag, continuing his brilliant masterclass of MXGP, following his win in Patagonia-Argentina two weeks ago. From timed practice, through qualifying, holeshots, and both motos; Prado kept the home crowds on their feet all weekend, showing that he was perfection personified at the Spanish weekender.
What’s more Simon Längenfelder continued his charge on the MX2 championship standings, scoring second place overall at the MXGP of Spain. Längenfelder finished second in qualifying on the Saturday, and then grabbed the Fox holeshot as well as podium placing second and third slots in motos one and two respectively on Sunday. In the first moto Längenfelder really showed his raw speed – leading for the first nine laps before slipping back into second just after the halfway marker behind eventual winner Kay de Wolf. Team mate Marc-Antoine Rossi also continues to impress by finishing inside the top ten in both motos, and securing the Best Rookie of the weekend award. In the second moto in particular, Rossi charged up the field from a lowly 21st in the second moto, to finish 10th.
Following MXGP’s 2024 flag drop on European soil, the championship now rolls out of Spain to the sands of the MXGP of Sardinia at Riola Sardo, on the 7th of April.
MXGP – #1 – Jorge Prado: “It was an amazing weekend. Winning an MXGP at any race is hard and special, but doing it at home is even more amazing. It’s not an easy weekend because you have so many commitments besides riding motocross. When I got back to the hotel each evening I think I was more tired from that than the time on the bike! I felt my riding was perfect this weekend – good speed, good starts, and perfect finishes. 1-1-1-1. Practice, qualifying, races – finishing first every time I was on track is amazing, and I’m super happy with everything I did! Bringing points home for the championship is very important, so this is a great result for the team as a whole also. I just found my flow every time I was on the bike, and I’m feeling really fit – hopefully we can just keep this momentum up for the next race. I also want to say a huge thankyou to all the fans for their support this weekend, it really has been incredible! I love this sport!”
MX2 – #516 – Simon Längenfelder:“I was feeling pretty good all weekend. For sure this is a track I like, but it is also a difficult track – it’s very easy to make mistakes and push too hard. Second in the qualifying race, and then second and third in the Sunday races, is great. The speed was definitely there for me all weekend. I was feeling strong with my riding, which is a boost to my confidence. There are so many fast riders, so if you make one small mistake you can easily slip down five or six places. Hopefully I’m showing the team what I can do – so I’m focused ahead on the next race to keep this momentum up.”
MX2 – #28 – Marc-Antoine Rossi: “I had a fantastic weekend with yet another experience under my belt! I’m really happy with how things turned out, especially finishing the qualifying race in 7th place. In both races, my starts weren’t great; in the first race, I found myself around 15th place initially but managed to climb up to 9th, showing some good lap times and sectors along the way. In the second race, I started around 20th place but, just like before, I worked my way up and finished in 19th place. Overall, I ended up in 8th place. Once again, I was the best rookie, which is really satisfying. I’m learning a lot and I can’t thank my team enough for their support and for helping me grow. Now, I’m gearing up and getting ready for round 3 in the sand!”
MXGP of Spain Results:
MXGP – Overall
1. Jorge Prado (GASGAS) 50pts
2. Tim Gasjer (Honda) 44pts 3. Romain Febvre (Kawasaki) 38pts
4. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 75pts 7. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 59pts
8. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 53pts
12. Liam Everts (KTM) 41pts
NESTAAN HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING AND KAY DE WOLF WIN IN SPAIN
Kay de Wolf continues his blistering form in MX2 2024 by taking two podiums and the overall win at the MXGP of Spain.
The Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing Team rider proved just why he is sitting at the top of the championship table on 113 points, after taking a dominant set of results at the 2024 MXGP of Spain.
Not only did de Wolf cruise to an emphatic win on Saturday during qualifying, but he then laid on a textbook performance to take victory Sunday’s opening moto at the intu Xanadú-Arroyomolinos.
In the second moto, de Wolf leapfrogged through the top positions from fourth on the opening lap, into the lead on lap four with a series of incredible overtakes. It was only at the mid point of the race that, while briefly tagging wheels with Andrea Adamo, that #74 slipped back to second.
Fellow Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing rider Lucas Coenen locked in solid third and fourth place finishes across both motos, placing him fourth overall at the end of the weekend. By his own admission Coenen had struggled to get his machine working in his favour on the deep rutted Spanish soil, nonetheless Coenen showed impressive pace while battling with rival Simon Längenfelder throughout the second moto. At the final flag Coenen concluded the weekend in fourth overall – bumping himself up into fourth in the championship also.
The FIM World Motocross Championship now looks ahead to a challenging sand round, at MXGP of Sardinia at Riola Sardo, on the 7th of April.
#74 – Kay de Wolf:“I worked really hard for the result this weekend – especially in the second moto. Qualifying went really great on Saturday with a dominant win, but the pace has been really fast on Sunday. I got shuffled back to around sixth I think at the start of the first moto, but just tried to stay calm and work my way back to the front. It felt amazing to get back to back wins after Argentina! Then at the start of the second moto I had to let Andrea by; he was on really good form. In the last few laps I wanted to push and catch him – but I was making way too many mistakes. The track was not allowing me to be as fast as I wanted! It was tough but we made it happen anyway! I can’t thank the team enough – I worked really hard for these results, so it’s a pleasure to be able to secure the championship points in return. I’m looking forward to Sardina now for sure!”
#96 – Lucas Coenen:« The weekend was not quite as planned – but not bad either. Saturday warm up was good, but I struggled with the bike set-up a little. Then in the qualifying race I came from the back and finished P4. On Sunday, the warm up went great, but at the first moto I struggled with the start. I tried my best, and finished third in the end. I was trying to battle Simon (Längenfelder) – but it was difficult to pass. In the second moto, I messed up my start, so then again I tried to come back as fast as possible. I made some good laps, but I only finished fourth. I missed out on the podium – which I’m mad about! Now we have some work to do ahead of Sardinia – and then we will fight again! »
About Maxime Renaux :
“Maxime Renaux showed true grit, powering through pain to secure a commendable fifth-place finish in Race One. However, faced with severe discomfort in his right foot, the talented Yamaha star made the tough call to sit out Race Two.
The 23-year-old Frenchman, who started the Spanish Grand Prix fifth in the MXGP World Championship Standings, will return to France, where he will consult with a specialist to determine the best course of action for his recovery.
Maxime Renaux
11th MXGP of Spain, 16-points
7th MXGP Championship Standings, 63-points
“I gave everything I had to ride through the pain barrier and take my chances this season, but after Race One today, it was too much. I have a lot of pain in my foot, and I can’t continue to ride like this, so we had to make the difficult decision to sit out Race Two. We put everything into this game, so to pull out because of this, it’s a tough pill to swallow.” (Source : Yamaha Racing Europe)
Another podium for Romain Febvre in Spain
Romain Febvre and Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP made it back-to-back podiums in the second round of the FIM World MXGP Motocross Championship atintu Xanadú in the Arroyomolinos suburb of Madrid.
The Frenchman made rapid moves from his initial tenth to move into sixth at the completion of the opening lap in the first moto and he quickly tagged onto two of his title rivals as the trio advanced up the leaderboard. Four laps caught behind an awkward rival who made life difficult to pass saw him lose the train to the front three and he faced a lonely race to fourth after that. The best start of the weekend came in race two in third but the pattern of the race soon settled with slight but significant gaps between each of the leading quartet. The Kawasaki rider made a decisive attempt to close down the rider ahead of him mid-moto but the ever-slicker racing surface rendered it more and more difficult to force the pace and he eventually had to settle for third. The 4-3 moto finishes secured his second consecutive podium and he heads to rounds three after Easter third in the world championship points-standings, just twelve points shy of the series pace-setter.
Romain Febvre: « Consistency throughout the series will be the key so I’m happy to finish on the podium again. The starts were always going to be really important here this weekend and we made some changes to the settings today and I almost made the holeshot. My pace was good but Jorge was very solid and I was happy to manage my weekend. For sure there will be better weekends to come and the next round is in sand which I like. »
KRT teammate Jeremy Seewer found himself tenth at the end of the first lap in moto one, with work to do after a difficult run through the hectic first few turns. The artisan Swiss displayed perseverance to eventually make passes on successive laps mid-moto but had to be content with seventh at the finish. The second moto was another tough challenge from tenth leaving turn one but he grittily pressured the rivals ahead of him on the leaderboard to advance to sixth at the chequered flag, thus securing fifth overall on the day and sixth in the series standings.
Jeremy Seewer: « It was not an easy one. On paper I was fifth so that’s one better than Argentina, but I am not here to finish fifth; I want to be racing top three. We still have plenty to do but we will keep working and I look at the positives. GPs are a tough business and it’s only my second race on a new bike so perhaps it takes time; I’ll put my head back to work and we’ll see each other again at Riola. » (Source & photos : Kawasaki Racing)
ADAMO BRINGS HOME FIRST 2024 PODIUM PRIZES IN SPANISH MXGP
A busy Grand Prix of Spain on the outskirts of Madrid was the scene for round two of twenty in 2024 MXGP and for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing to chase their first podium silverware of the season. World Champion Andrea Adamo won the second MX2 moto with his KTM 250 SX-F and finished 3rd while Jeffrey Herlings classified 4th in the MXGP class with the KTM 450 SX-F; tying on points for 3rd place.
Intu Xanadu – Arroyomolinos, the staple home of MXGP in Spain, stages round two and the first of two Spanish Grand Prix events in 2024. Sunshine coats the rough and rutted hard-pack
Jeffrey Herlings goes 3-4 in the two MXGP motos to gather 38 points and equal the 3rd place finisher, filling 4th in the final Grand Prix table
MX2 #1 Andrea Adamo rides superbly in the second moto to grasp his first checkered flag of the campaign and secure 3rd in the Grand Prix
Liam Everts makes his first Grand Prix appearance of the season and adds an overall result of 5th to a pleasing Qualification Heat run to 3rd
Sacha Coenen again shows fast speed and bags of potential. The Belgian is 9th in MX2 with the second moto holeshot
MXGP landed into European soil for the second Grand Prix of the season and into the compact confines of the Spanish circuit constructed specifically for the MXGP fixture and on the southern outskirts of Madrid. Decent weather coated the weekend as Red Bull KTM Factory Racing were back to full strength with a four-rider roster in both MXGP and MX2 classes and with the KTM 450 SX-F and KTM 250 SX-F in play.
On Saturday Jeffrey Herlings recovered from two big ‘moments’ from the start and during the formative phases of the RAM Qualification Heat to work his way to 4th position by the checkered flag and therefore earn the same choice in the gate for Sunday’s motos. In the MX2 affair Liam Everts completed a solid return from injury to confirm 3rd. Andrea Adamo was 6th with Sacha Coenen taking 8th place.
Herlings started brightly in the first MXGP moto on Sunday. He fought in the beginning and towards the end with Tim Gajser and captured 3rd for his first top three result of 2024. In the second race he made it to 4th on the first lap but a static affair saw little passing opportunities and he crossed the line in the same berth.
Liam Everts was the best starting and highest finisher from MX2 Moto1. The Belgian’s dependable level of consistency ensured 4th while Adamo was 6th and Coenen weathered some mistakes to take 12th. Coenen grabbed the holeshot in the second moto but it was Adamo who resiliently bossed the race for his first P1. His 6-1 scorecard was good enough for the final step of the rostrum. Everts was 6th in the race (5th for the GP) and Coenen took 8th (for 9th overall).
From Spanish earth to deep Italian sand: the Riola Sardo circuit on the island of Sardinia will entertain the third Grand Prix of 2024 during the first weekend of April.
Jeffrey Herlings, 3rd and 4th for 4th overall in MXGP: “Pretty OK. I was 5th in the first moto and worked my way to 3rd and pretty much stayed there the whole time. I put a challenge on the 2nd placed guy but couldn’t make the pass. An ‘OK’ start in the second moto and stayed in 4th. No excuses. Things went better than Argentina but still not a great weekend. We made a step in the right direction because we were closer to the leaders than round one. We’ll put our heads down and look to Sardinia where we can hopefully get on the podium and where a win would be absolutely great.”
Andrea Adamo, 6th and 1st for 3rd overall in MX2: “I knew I was not ready in Argentina, and I was even surprised about my Quali race there, but today in the second race we saw the results of the winter. It was still a tough weekend here but the feeling arrived and I had a better start. I am getting better and better and I cannot wait for the next Grand Prix. I am not at my best level yet.”
Liam Everts, 4th and 6th for 5th overall in MX2: “Everything very positive and I felt good all weekend long. I didn’t know how my hand would feel but things went well. Good flow and good mojo on Sunday. P4 in the first moto and in the second I got stuck behind another rider and had a little tip-over. I got back to P6 for P5 overall and I’m happy to return to action like this.”
Sacha Coenen, 12th and 8th for 9th overall in MX2: “Not a good start in the first moto and it was very difficult to come back. I made some passes and found myself in P8 but went down in the corner by the pitlane. I did the best I could after that but I wasn’t feeling great. It was cool to get the holeshot in the second moto but for some reason I lost the front after two laps and lost ten places in one turn! Really frustrating. We should have done way-better today but we will keep on trying to improve.”
Race 1
1. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), 35:35.021; 2. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:03.331; 3. Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:04.857; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:05.657; 5. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Triumph), +0:15.807; 6. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:33.992; 7. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Yamaha), +0:41.988; 8. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:42.910; 9. Marc-Antoine Rossi (FRA, GASGAS), +0:48.366; 10. Rick Elzinga (NED, Yamaha), +0:50.788; … 18. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), -1 lap(s);
Race 2
1. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 35:28.621; 2. Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:01.744; 3. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:02.759; 4. Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:03.492; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Yamaha), +0:23.631; 6. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:30.532; 7. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:36.472; 8. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:40.345; 9. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, Yamaha), +0:54.167; 10. Marc-Antoine Rossi (FRA, GASGAS), +0:58.999; … 12. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), +1:19.771;
Overall
1. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 47 points; 2. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GAS), 42 p.; 3. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 40 p.; 4. Lucas Coenen (BEL, HUS), 38 p.; 5. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 33 p.; 6. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 30 p.; 7. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, TRI), 27 p.; 8. Marc-Antoine Rossi (FRA, GAS), 23 p.; 9. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, YAM), 22 p.; … 14. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, HON), 12 p.;
Results MXGP Spain 2024
1. Jorge Prado (ESP), GASGAS, 1-1
2. Tim Gajser (SLO), Honda, 2-2
3. Romain Febvre (FRA), Kawasaki, 4-3
4. Jeffrey Herlings (NED), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 3-4
5. Jeremy Seewer (SUI), Kawasaki, 7-6
Standings MXGP 2024 after 2 of 20 rounds
1. Jorge Prado (ESP), GASGAS, 114 points
2. Tim Gajser (SLO), Honda, 104
3. Romain Febvre (FRA), Kawasaki, 92
4. Jeffrey Herlings (NED), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 77
5. Pauls Jonass (LAT), Honda, 46
Results MX2 Spain 2024
1. Kay de Wolf (NED), Husqvarna 1-2
2. Simon Laegenfelder (GER), GASGAS 2-3
3. Andrea Adamo (ITA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 6-1
4. Lucas Coenen (BEL), Husqvarna 3-4
5. Liam Everts (BEL), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 4-6
9. Sacha Coenen (BEL) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 12-8
Standings MX2 2024 after 2 of 20 rounds
1. Kay de Wolf (NED), Husqvarna, 113 points
2. Simon Laegenfelder (GER), GASGAS, 101
3. Andrea Adamo (ITA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 82
4. Lucas Coenen (BEL) Husqvarna, 75
5. Thibault Benistant (FRA), Yamaha, 72
8. Sacha Coenen (BEL) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 53
12. Liam Everts (BEL), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 41
Podium and moto win for Mathis Valin on EMX250 debut
Bud Racing Kawasaki’s Mathis Valin sensationally raced to a moto victory and second overall on his debut in the FIM European EMX250 Championship at the intu Xanadú facility in the Arroyomolinos suburb of Madrid.
The French teenager had already shown his potential in the first moto on Saturday afternoon as he charged from sixth on the opening lap to finish third, less than four seconds behind the winner and he was truly in his element in race two on Sunday morning. Gating second he moved confidently into the lead already on the opening lap and controlled the race to the finish in heavy track conditions with deep sticky ruts after extensive overnight track-watering. Quickly breaking away from the chasing pack he showed great maturity to extend his lead to seven seconds by half-distance, coolly maintaining his advantage to the chequered flag. The moto win appeared to the key to overall victory too as he entered the final lap but there was heartbreak as his rival for the top step of the weekend podium was gifted a position three corners from the finish to reverse the overall standings. But, with second overall and a moto win Kawasaki’s class newcomer can look forward with confidence to the next round of the series in Italy on April 13/14.
Mathis Valin: “Incredible! Already yesterday I had a good feeling; the track changed a lot throughout the day but that was not a problem as I feel very comfortable on the bike. Then today I had another good start; I took the lead when van Erp crashed and I could made a gap to control the race. I have always enjoyed racing in muddy conditions but to win a moto in my second race on the 250 is incredible! I stayed calm until the chequered flag; I just lost the red plate as Lata gained one position on the last lap but anyway it’s great to be on the podium. We had a good winter with the team and the hard work is paying off, it’s great to offer them this podium and I’m proud of this first moto win. »
Benjamin Garib on the second Bud Racing Kawasaki had to dig deep from midfield starts in both motos from the middle of the gate after a disappointing Timed Practice had left him with sixteenth pick. The Chilean’s frustration was intensified in the first moto as he was dragged down in a multiple-rider pile-up on the opening lap and narrowly missed the points in twenty-second after a tough recovery from the back of the forty-rider pack. Sixteenth in the early stages of race two he advanced to fourteenth by mid-moto and, maintaining his lap times to the finish, grabbed two places on the final lap to finish twelfth.
Benjamin Garib: « I didn’t get the results I wanted this weekend but I will learn from my mistakes; I don’t feel so comfortable in muddy conditions but at least I stayed on two wheels today. My thanks to the team and my mechanics; we will keep pushing and training and look for a return to best form in the French championship race next weekend. »
Bike It Kawasaki MX2 Racing Team teenage rookie Billy Askew pushed his way forward from outside the top-twenty to finish nineteenth in moto one but truly made his presence felt on Sunday morning as he held third place for three laps and was still a secure fourth for three further laps before losing drive coming out of a turn in one of the ever-deepening sticky ruts. The incident cost the youngster four positions but he was still looking at a top-ten finish. Having never previously raced a moto at this level in such energy-sapping conditions a single error cost him five positions on the penultimate lap but he brought it home fifteenth and the experience of racing at the sharp end of the pack for the first time in fierce international competition will stand him in good stead for the remainder of the series.
Billy Askew: « Yesterday was my first experience racing outside the UK but I got that ticked off the list and had a much better feeling today. The track was rutty and wet today – much more like conditions back home – and I could run with the top boys for ten minutes. The clutch lever must have taken a knock when I crashed but I managed the best I could and am looking forward to the rest of the series. »
It was a tough day at the office in the FIM World MX2 Motocross Championship races for Bike It Kawasaki MX2 Racing Team’s Jack Chambers as he had to push hard after early incidents left him buried in the pack. The American, who proved his fitness by maintaining his lap times for the entire distance in both motos, showed his resilience to make the final two moves of his first race charge from twenty-fifth to thirteenth on the very last lap, and followed up with two more passes in the final laps of race two to finish eleventh for thirteenth overall. He is now fourteenth in the world championship standings. Teammate Bobby Bruce had to withdraw from both motos.
Jack Chambers: « We made some changes in set-up since last week and are getting where we need to be, but I had to come through the pack both times. The first moto was tough to come back to thirteenth after two falls but the second moto I was battling the entire moto to just miss the top ten. I just need a few more races like today, but with better starts, then we can be up there in the mix. »
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