Maxime Renaux about his first Latvian double
The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team had another fantastic weekend, this time in Kegums, Latvia, where round 7 of the FIM World Championship took place. Maxime Renaux captured his first ever double series victory and increased his World Cup lead to 34 points. Jago Geerts finished second, Thibault Benistant fifth.
The Zelta Zirgs circuit in Kegums is a permanent fixture in the FIM World Championship. Last year, the very first triple GP was organized on the technical sand course, after Covid-19 had paralyzed the whole world for a while. Jago Geerts then dominated the last two matches in Kegums. This year the Latvian GP concluded the first part of the World Championship. The riders will now have a four-week break before resuming the World Cup with a double GP in Turkey.
The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 riders headed to Latvia with great confidence after their brilliant first, third and fourth place finishes in Lommel last week. And they immediately continued that good line. Renaux set the second fastest time in timed training, just ahead of Benistant. Geerts qualified eighth. Renaux felt good about the treacherous Latvian sand track. The World Cup leader, who entered the field fifth, was clearly a man on a mission. In just four laps he was already in the lead after some clever passing maneuvers past Hofer, Geerts, Beaton and Guadagnini. The Italian tried to struggle, but in vain.
Renaux performed at a lonely level. At ten coins from the end, Geerts – who struggled with inflated arms at the beginning of the series – won the battle for third place from Beaton. Benistant had a lot of work to do after a mediocre start (10th). As if that difficult start wasn't enough, the rookie also had to take a big stone on his collarbone. Thibault showed a lot of perseverance to still finish fifth.
A copy
The second race was almost a copy of the first heat. Guadagnini again took the holeshot, but was followed by the Yamaha duo Renaux-Geerts. Renaux again only needed a few laps to take the lead. The Frenchman then immediately opened up another gap on the way to his very first double series victory. Fortunately, Geerts no longer had problems with his arms, but needed too much time to wrest second place from Guadaganini. Once past the Italian, the Balenian tried to close the gap on Renaux, but that was no longer possible. Benistant – only 12th in the first corner – fought back the pain and crossed the line in seventh. Just like last week in Lommel, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 riders all finished well in the top five of the GP. Renaux also increased its World Cup lead to 34 points, Yamaha – in the World Championship for Constructors – to 20 points.
After four GPs in a row, the FIM World Championship is now taking a short break of four weeks. The World Cup resumes on September 5 in Turkey. Although the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team will still participate in the Belgian championship in Balen next weekend.
Maxime Renaux, winner – leader in the MX2 World Championship: “The first double series victory in my career! A perfect day. It felt like I was flying today. A wonderful feeling. I have made a lot of progress, especially mentally. I can now perfectly judge when I can go for the win and when not. Today was the time to go for a win. I rode two similar series. I didn't have the best start, but I was able to take the lead quite quickly each time. Once in the lead, I was able to create a nice gap and control the race. Mentally it was quite tough on this treacherous track. We now have a short break. Ideal to first recharge the batteries and then build up to the second part of the World Cup.
Jago Geerts, second - third in the MX2 World Championship: “On stage again. So you can safely say that this was a good day for me. Although… In the first series I had to deal with pumped up arms again in the beginning. I got off to a good start, but because of those arms I needed some time to find the right rhythm and speed. Third place, not bad all in all. In the second series I again got out of the starting gate well. I also felt a lot better about myself, especially because my arms no longer bothered me. In the final phase I was able to steal second place from Guadagnini. I still hunted for Renaux, but ran out of time. Oh well, second place and another pack of World Cup points: I can live with that.”
Thibault Benistant, fifth – fifth in the MX2 World Championship: “My Grand Prix started well, with a solid performance in the time training. I missed pole position by a hair because I made a small mistake on my fastest lap. Still, I still took the third fastest time. Unfortunately I couldn't convert that good starting position into a good start. I had to fight back from tenth position. On my way to the front I got a big stone on my collarbone, which I had broken in the winter. It hurt a lot. Especially during the second series. I struggled with the pain and with a weak start, but still managed to gain important World Cup points. Now it's time to catch your breath during the short break.”
Photos: Yamaha Racing, CDS & shotbybavo
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