WWhat should we remember from the MXoN 2025? From our vantage point in a small studio, we saw a well-organized event on a great track, with perfect weather and certainly with many motivated spectators. The prologue was typically American, featuring numerous performances and an equally classic Star Spangled Banner, with a somewhat off-key ending. Purely musical...
Once again, technology, bits and bytes, let us down. A black screen, not the first time this year, is of no use to anyone. The cause? Doesn't matter, the signal was out of place, period.
Every race of this caliber has its highs and lows. Glenn Coldenhoff's injury ruled the Netherlands out of contention even before Sunday's start. The Dutch team was already subject to criticism. That's the case with every team, and in hindsight, everyone can easily explain it. Did we miss Herlings? Absolutely, if only for the stunt he pulled off a few years ago on this same circuit. A good race for Kay de Wolf, unfortunately, Calvin Vlaanderen retired. He rode a great first race and retired in his second.
Drama number two unfolded on the first start. We saw Ken Roczen crash, and we didn't see that world champion Simon Längenfelder had fallen. And was out for the rest of the day. Two guys who normally easily run in the top five. And then there's Max Spies's result, which could have ensured that Germany, the one-time winner in Lommel, was in the spotlight.
If and when: two words you always encounter in a post-race speech. What if Romain Febvre doesn't fall? How many places will he move up? A fourth place would have been enough to take silver. An eighth place for Maxime Renaux could just as easily have secured that. Mathis Valin did his job with a ninth place. In his case, an eighth would also have secured second place. Well, if and when... And none of that would have been good enough if RJ Hamsphire hadn't had such a bad day.
The Belgians! Boss Joël was honest. "We can win, but we definitely need to get in the top five." And that's what it ended up being: fourth overall. Good? Absolutely! Could it have been better? Absolutely! Could we have won? Absolutely! Let me explain: if I look at the best positions (snapshots) of Lucas, Sacha, and Liam in the rankings, we would have won, even with a two-point lead over Australia. Because our net result would have been 17 points. So what's my point, because I'm actually talking nonsense here: Joël was right and got it right. We could have won and we made it into the top five. Mission completed.
The Americans then. They finished second. Ungrateful, especially considering the undeniable home advantage. Which, incidentally, was also the case for two-thirds of Australia and one-third of Japan. Only: the Americans never shone, never. Eli Tomac showed he wasn't written off, but riding to win wasn't in the cards. Justin Cooper was – perhaps – partly responsible for Sacha Coenen's loss. He didn't shine. His attack on Coenen saw him gain a position and thus give the Americans silver. RJ Hampshire had done his job in his first race. He fell off the bike so often... Anyway, his retirement in the final moto didn't make a difference. He was the one who took the scrap result anyway.
Australia... We already told you before the start that Kyle Webster wouldn't be a fifth wheel. His 15th-place finish in the first race is the best scratch result of all. Period. And the two brothers simply took it from the very first lap. First Jett, and then even twice, the eldest, Hunter Lawrence. Jett flew in the first race. Zero mistakes. Hunter did make some, but when you win two races, you quickly forget about that. Their second MXoN? Well deserved, and the third is already beckoning.
At least, if they don't get outpaced by Belgium, a potential winner. Oh well, we're a bit chauvinistic. Isn't that okay?
Do I have a monopoly on the truth? Not by a long shot. I'm just writing what struck me. Food for discussion? That's possible, allowed, and necessary. Just let yourself go.
But hey…..be polite.
Text: Léon Van Gestel.
