Geerts & Yamaha Ready to Go for Gold at MXGP Season Finale
The 18th and final round of the FIM Motocross World Championship is set to go down to the wire with only 2-points separating Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2’s Jago Geerts and the only remaining challenger, Tom Vialle, in the fight for the 2022 MX2 crown. The event will take place in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey, this weekend, where Yamaha will arrive with a full line-up of MX2 round challengers alongside Geerts, including Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2’s Thibault Benistant and Hutten Metaal Yamaha Official EMX250’s duo of Rick Elzinga and Andrea Bonacorsi.
In MXGP, the top two positions have been secured with Jeremy Seewer pocketing his fifth FIM Motocross World Championship silver medal at the MXGP of Charente Maritime in Saint Jean d’Angely, France, less than two-weeks ago. With no championship pressure, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP star aims to enjoy the final round of the series while challenging the top step of the podium.
At the same time, the battle for third in the series promises to be a thriller. Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP’s Glenn Coldenhoff arrives fourth in the standings, 4-points shy of Jorge Prado in third, and only 13 clear of his teammate Maxime Renaux in fifth. Both riders are fit, fast and determined to fight for the final place inside the top-three.
With full Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP line up inside the top five in the championship after a hugely successful year that has seen the team celebrate 13 race wins and 21 podium finishes between its three riders, Yamaha hopes to clinch the MXGP Manufacturer’s World Championship this weekend for the first time since 2015.
In MX2, the battle for the title between Geerts and Vialle has been one for the ages. Never, in the ‘MX2-era’ has the championship been so close going into the final round. Geerts arrives in Turkey having celebrated 15 podiums from 17 rounds and with a 2-point advantage over the former World Champion, Vialle. Should all go to plan, the 22-year-old Belgian will celebrate his first-ever MX2 world title on Sunday night, guaranteeing Yamaha its third consecutive MX2 Manufacturer’s World Championship.
Yamaha will have added presence in Turkey and even more to celebrate with the Turkish Grand Prix also staging the fifth and final round of the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship. Ceres 71 Yamaha’s Nancy van de Ven has her sights set on a maiden world title as she arrives in ‘Afyon’ with a 25-point lead over JK Yamaha’s Lynn Valk. Valk is currently second in the standings and has a 13-point buffer over Shana van der Vlist, who is only 3-points clear of Yamaha Germany’s Larissa Papenmeier.
Built within the confines of the Afyon Motor Sports Center in Afyonkarahisar, the ‘Afyon Motocross Track’ was built in 2016 and first raced in 2018. It is 1750m long and very wide and flowing. The riders say that it is fun to ride because there are a lot of jumps, although it is often described as ‘too easy’. Yamaha is yet to celebrate victory in any of the three classes on Turkish soil but is optimistic that that statistic will change this weekend.
Jeremy Seewer
2nd MXGP Championship Standings, 615-points
“I’m looking forward to wrapping up the season in a positive way. There is no pressure for me because my place in the championship is secure. I will go there looking to have some fun and just enjoy the last round of the season, although I really want to go out there and win, especially after losing the GP in France on the last lap, now I need to go out there and win to get one back.”
Glenn Coldenhoff
4th MXGP Championship Standings, 553-points
“I’m feeling good. I’ve been doing all that I can to be as well prepared as possible. I want to go out and win both races, and that would get me third position in the championship too. Turkey is a special track with special dirt, but it’s an easy track and really high speed.”
Maxime Renaux
5th MXGP Championship Standings, 540-points
“I’m excited to go to Turkey, I love the track, so I am really looking forward to it. The plan of attack is just to put everything out on the table and do all that I can to fight for a medal in the championship. I’m going to focus on getting good starts and to do a perfect race, like I did in Spain earlier this year.”
Jago Geerts
MX2 Championship Leader, 710-points
“I’m feeling motivated and ready to give it all at the last round this weekend. I will go there with the same goal as always and that’s to try and win. It’s close in the championship so the best option is to give it everything and try to win the race.”
Thibault Benistant
5th MX2 Championship Standings, 481-points
“Turkey should be good. My shoulder is not 100% but I am trying as hard as I can to make it as strong as possible. I quite like Turkey, it’s just a fun track with a lot of jumps and I like that. I don’t have any big goals this weekend, will just do my best and then the result should be okay.”
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