Cycle News Staff | September 26, 2023
The 2023 FIM World Motocross Championship concluded with the British Grand Prix, September 23-24. The rolling hillsides of Matterley Basin served as host, which concluded the 19-round series. In the end, neither of the two newly crowned champions took the win. Instead, Tim Gajser and Jago Geerts grabbed their respective overall victories.
MXGP
Jorge Prado wrapped up his first MXGP world title at the previous race, but that didn’t stop him from running up front at the start of the first moto. He battled with Yamaha’s Glenn Coldenhoff early on but eventually fell. Prado managed to climb back up to fourth, but another crash in race two dropped him to 10th overall.
Meanwhile, Coldenhoff led the majority of the race, with Gajser on the move through the field. With only a few laps remaining, Gajser passed Seewer for second before taking the lead from Coldenhoff. Seewer then made the same move on his Yamaha teammate for second.
Prado and Romain Febvre charged their way to the back of the lead group for an exciting final few laps, but Gajser still held on for the win.
Race two looked like a carbon copy of the first, as Coldenhoff led through turn one with Prado going down in a pass attempt. Gajser again used a fast line to make his way into the lead, this time earlier in the race than before. Behind him, Seewer and Febvre pushed their way into podium territory. Seewer eventually slipped back to fourth late in the race, as Gajser’s Honda teammate, Ruben Fernandez, snuck by for the final spot on the box.
A perfect day for Gajser gave him the overall ahead of Seewer and Febvre.
“It’s great to finish this season with a victory,” said Gajser. “It is a massive confidence boost heading into the off-season and also for 2024, so I’m very happy to win and to go one-one and just have fun riding out there. The track was difficult in that second moto, but I enjoyed it once I got out front, got a good gap and could see where the riders were behind me.”
MX2
With the MX2 title already wrapped up, the battle for second and third in the championship waged on between Simon Laengfelder and Geerts. Laengfelder made it happen in race one with a big holeshot before leading the entire moto ahead of his competitors. Geerts and Yamaha teammate Thibault Benistant duked it out until the final turn of the final lap, with Benistant ultimately holding the advantage.
Race two saw Liam Everts and Kay De Wolf trade the lead spot in the opening laps, with De Wolf coming out ahead. He led nearly all of the race before finishing second. But Geerts was on a charge in what’s set to be his final MX2 race. The Belgian caught fire mid-moto and made his way into the lead with just two laps remaining. After overtaking the top spot, he claimed the win and the grand prix overall with 3-1 scores. He also secured second in the championship standings.
De Wolf and newly crowned MX2 World Champion Andrea Adamo rounded out the moto podium, with Laengfelder and Adamo taking second and third on the day behind Geerts.
“I’m proud of what I did today, and I am proud of my whole season,” said Geerts. “I came back from two injuries, and it was still a good season for me. This weekend was not easy, but in the end, especially in the second race, I felt good on the bike and on the track and won the second race. It’s nice to end my MX2 career with a win. Now, I’m looking forward to moving to the 450cc, which I will race at the Motocross of Nations.” CN
MXGP
- Tim Gajser (Hon) 1-1
- Jeremy Seewer (Yam) 2-4
- Romain Febvre (Kaw) 5-2
- Glenn Coldenhoff (Yam) 3-5
- Ruben Fernandez (Hon) 6-3
MX2
- Jago Geerts (Yam) 3-1
- Simon Laengenfelder (GG) 1-4
- Andrea Adamo (KTM) 4-3
- Kay de Wolf (Hus) 6-2
- Thibault Benistant (Yam) 2-6
VIDEO | 2023 MXGP of Great Britain Video Highlights
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