Gates dropped for round seven of the MXGP World Championship this weekend at Maggiora Park for the MXGP of Italy. Overnight rains made the track extra tricky, and the tough conditions made it difficult for every rider on the grid. Tim Gajser and Jago Geerts again walked away with overall victories.
MXGP
Calvin Vlaanderen grabbed the holeshot and early lead in MXGP race one. The Yamaha rider jumped out to the early lead over Gajser and Maxime Renaux. Vlaanderen led for the first half of the race, before making a mistake and being passed by Renaux on lap seven. Gajser then pressured Renaux and finally made the pass stick in the later stages of the race. Jeremy Seewer came on strong with a late race charge that saw him catch and pass his Yamaha teammate Renaux. The two stayed close but Renaux fell on the final lap which allowed Seewer to maintain second position. Gajser easily took the victory with Seewer and Renaux second and third respectively.
Kawasaki’s Ben Watson got the start in race two and ran up front in the stages of the moto. He led over Seewer, Pauls Jonass and Gajser. Jonass made a decisive pass and took the lead from Watson, while Gajser and Seewer closely followed suit and dropped the Kawasaki man back a few positions. By lap six, Gajser passed Jonass for the lead and never looked back from there on out. Seewer made the same move one lap later and moved himself into another podium position. Renaux rode great again in race two and charged hard to pass Jonass and Watson late in the race. The top three riders maintained their same positions from race one, Gajser going 1-1, Seewer 2-2, and Renaux rounding off the podium with 3-3 finishes. Gajser continues to lead the overall points, 81 over Renaux and 105 clear of Seewer.
MX2
A hectic start for MX2 race one as Mattia Guadagnini got off to the holeshot and early lead. He fell over in turn two, taking Tom Vialle and a number of other riders down with him. This allowed Yamaha’s Jago Geerts to slip through with the lead and break away from the rest of the field. Behind him, the track plagued riders with mistakes and crashes. The wet soil created slick spots in some areas while other parts of the track were deep with sticky mud. Geerts held strong for the win with Stephen Rubini finishing second, and Isak Gifting third. A great ride for Liam Everts with a fourth in race one, while Vialle charged back to fifth after his early crash.
Vialle rebounded in race two, taking the lead almost right away. Geerts stayed close again and stalked Vialle for most of the race. Carnage took place again in race two as track conditions played a big role in the day’s racing. Rubini saw a podium in sight and put together a strong ride, battling with Mikkel Haarup to secure the final overall podium. At the line, Vialle took the race win over Geerts and Simon Längenfelder. Geerts’ 1-2 earned him the overall over Vialle’s 5-1. Rubini’s sixth place finish in race two solidified his third place in the overall classification, his first career podium. Geerts maintains the red plate, just six points ahead of Vialle in the championship points.
MXGP
1 Tim Gajser Hon 1-1
2 Jeremy Seewer Yam 2-2
3 Maxime Renaux Yam 3-3
4 Calvin Vlaanderen Yam 4-7
5 Ruben Fernandez Hon 6-5
MX2
1 Jago Geerts Yam 1-2
2 Tom Vialle KTM 5-1
3 Stephen Rubini Hon 2-6
4 Simon Laengenfelder GG 6-3
5 Kay de Wolf Hus 9-4
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