The FIM MXGP World Championship returned to Finland for round 16 of the series. Rough and sandy conditions made things difficult for every rider on the gate, with Glenn Coldenhoff and Tom Vialle ultimately coming away with overall victories. Tim Gajser, however, was the big winner as he clinched his fifth MXGP title two rounds early.
MXGP
After winning the qualifying race, Romain Febvre got off to an early holeshot in race one. He led early on, but a big mistake let Brian Bogers through with the lead. Febvre later crashed and finished fifth. Bogers continued up front and went untouched for his second-ever race win.
Gajser, chasing the leaders, was looking to clinch the world title. He ran second for a few laps but was playing it safe and allowed multiple riders to pass before finishing sixth.
The Yamaha trio of Glenn Coldenhoff, Maxime Renaux and Jeremy Seewer charged hard all race and crossed the line successively in second through fourth which set them up for strong overall positions.
Coldenhoff kicked off race two with a holeshot over Febvre. The two collided on the opening lap, putting Febvre on the ground while Coldenhoff marched on with the lead. Bogers, Seewer and Renaux all duked it out for the final podium spots with Bogers eventually hitting the deck with only a few laps remaining. This allowed the three Yamahas to sweep the podium as Coldenhoff took the win and the overall, Seewer second and Renaux third.
Gajser crossed the line in seventh for sixth overall, but it was enough to clinch his fifth world title.
MX2
It’s crunch time for the MX2 World Championship, as Jago Geerts leads the series into the final rounds. He and rival Tom Vialle started up front early in race one, with Vialle capitalizing on a mistake and moving to the lead momentarily. Geerts wasn’t done yet and responded back with a crucial pass that put him back in the top spot. He went on to lead the remainder of the race over Vialle and Kay De Wolf.
Geerts again holeshotted race two, while Vialle started back around fifth. Vialle sensed the urgency and quickly began making passes towards the front. A costly mistake by Geerts on lap two put him on the ground and stuck under his machine. This allowed Vialle and Liam Everts through with the lead positions. Then it was Vialle with a big off-track excursion that cost him the lead, handing it to Roan Van De Moosdijk.
Van De Moosdijk began gapping Vialle but threw it away with just two laps remaining. This put Vialle back in front and in contention for the overall. Vialle held off a charging De Wolf for the win, while Geerts crashed again before finishing seventh. The overall podium saw Vialle on top, De Wolf second and Geerts third. The points gap is now just 11 between Geerts and Vialle. CN
MXGP
- Glenn Coldenhoff (Yam) 2-1
- Jeremy Seewer Yam (4-2)
- Maxime Renaux (Yam) 3-3
- Brian Bogers (Hus) 1-6
- Brent Van Doninck (Yam) 7-4
MX2
- Tom Vialle (KTM) 2-1
- Kay De Wolf (Hus) 3-2
- Jago Geerts (GG) 1-7
- Roan Van De Moosdijk (Hus) 4-3
- Liam Everts (KTM) 7-4
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