Renaux increases his lead to 49 points
Another series victory. Another GP podium, his seventh in 2021. And most importantly: Maxime Renaux increased his World Cup lead to 49 points in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey. Teammate Thibault Benistant just missed the podium, Jago Geerts only finished 8th.
Just three days after the first race at the Afyon Motor Sports Center, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 riders were again presented with the hard Turkish track, with little grip and only one good line. Renaux – second last Sunday – quickly felt like a fish in water and took pole position. Benistant (13th) and Geerts (14th), on the other hand, performed well in the time training.
One man show
Renaux got off to a great start in the first heat, diving just behind Vialle – who took the holeshot – in the first corner. Geerts shot well out of the starting gate from a bad starting position (8th), while Benistant was buried in the middle of the peloton (16th). Renaux was clearly hungry for success and immediately put Vialle under immense pressure. On the third lap, the spearhead of the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team dived inside his compatriot – what a clever passing maneuver! – to take over. After that maneuver, Maxime never looked back and served the audience a true one-man show. In the meantime, Geerts had moved up to fifth place. And that became a fourth place after Boisramé made a mistake in the final phase. Benistant crossed the line in sixth place after a strong catch-up race.
With 3 in the top 5
The start of the second series was a copy of the opening series: Vialle's holeshot, with Renaux immediately on his wheel. Maxime again followed the world champion like a shadow and had the same tactics in mind as in the first series. Until he was hit by a thick stone, which damaged his glasses. Renaux had lost the momentum and wisely decided not to take any risks and secured second place in the series and in the Grand Prix (with the same number of points as winner Vialle). And perhaps even more importantly: in the World Cup standings he increased his lead over first pursuer Guadagnini from 37 to just 49 points.
Benistant had a much better start in the second series (3rd). The reigning European champion EMX250 cleverly repelled Hofer's attacks, but had to bow to Beaton at the end of the series. Thibault finished fourth in the series and just missed the final podium. Finally, Geerts rode a disappointing second series. The Kempen native could not get into his normal rhythm, crashed briefly at the end and only crossed the line in eleventh place.
All three Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 riders are back in the top five of the World Championship: Renaux leads, Geerts remains third and Benistant regains fifth place. Yamaha is also still in the lead in the World Championship for Constructors.
#93 Jago Geerts
“I am extremely disappointed with this Grand Prix. My first series was quite good though. I started in the top ten and rode a strong first lap. I quickly moved up to sixth place and felt great. Thanks to two mistakes by other riders I was even able to finish fourth. Not bad at all. But my second series ruined my whole day. I got off to a bad start and just couldn't find my way. At the end I also fell for a moment. Eleventh, a big disappointment. I will now train hard for a week and a half, because I want to compete for the podium again in Riola Sardo.”
#198 Thibault Benistant
“I felt better than last weekend, on the same track. I had some difficulty in the morning to set a good time, but in the heats it went a lot better. Due to my poor time training I had a bad starting position, far on the outside. Still, I got away well in the second heat, but after that I didn't reach my normal level and I lost another place to Beaton. Sometimes you have those days. Oh well, fourth isn't that bad.”
#959 Maxime Renaux
“The first series was strange. After passing Vialle, I rode a very lonely race at the front. It looked like a training ride. The hardest part was to stay focused, to concentrate on the right lines. However, in the second series I was immediately back in race mode. I hung on Vialle's wheel again and tried to put pressure on him again. That worked, until I got a big stone on my glasses and the visor broke. That made it a lot more difficult. I wanted to win, but I can't complain. My lead in the World Cup is now 49 points. Nice."
Posted: Steven van Kempen/KEMCO
Photos: @ShotbyBavo
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