The 2024 FIM Motocross World Motocross Championships started its 20th and final round today in glorious sunshine at the Cozar Motor Ranch in southern Spain, as a technical racetrack with a drying red clay surface presented a tough challenge for the riders in the Qualifying Races at the MXGP of Castilla La Mancha.
Looking to tie up his second straight MXGP world title this weekend, his first to be decided at the final round and in his home country, Jorge Prado kept all of his fans happy with a trademark holeshot to chequered flag win, giving him just a tiny bit more breathing room for tomorrow’s races over his Championship challenger Tim Gajser, who was third.
The MX2 race started with a multi-rider crash in turn one, but in-form Lucas Coenen was already in the lead and looking uncatchable. However, his teammate and series leader Kay de Wolf kept calm and delivered a fine third-place finish to maintain a healthy advantage in the points table.
MXGP
Although his chances of a world title are virtually zero coming into Cozar, Jeffrey Herlings set the fastest lap time in both Free Practice and Time Practice, ahead of Gajser and Prado, with Jan Pancar showing impressive speed again with the fourth-best time.
On the freshly groomed downhill start straight into a sharp left-handed corner, Prado made no mistakes and took his customary holeshot as Maxime Renaux ran wide. Jeremy Seewer was initially second, ahead of Alberto Forato. The Italian flinched slightly on the line, causing Romain Febvre and Alessandro Lupino to hit the gate and start from the back!
Herlings looked on a mission, however, and after a lunge up the inside of turn three to pass Ruben Fernandez for fourth, tore around the outside of both Forato and Seewer to claim second halfway through the opening lap! Gajser, meanwhile, had not started well and pushed hard to get past Forato at the end of the first full circuit. It took the Slovenian until the halfway point of the race to force past Seewer for third, but he could not get near the leading pair.
Seewer and Forato kept fourth and fifth to the flag ahead of Renaux, Fernandez and Glenn Coldenhoff. Andrea Bonacorsi made a nice switchback move to take ninth place, passing Valentin Guillod, who took the final point in tenth ahead of the recovering Febvre.
At the front of the pack, Herlings looked to be reeling in Gajser before a massive moment on lap nine nearly saw the Dutchman crash off the track, but he saved it and closed in again on the Spaniard, to within a second and a half on the final lap!
“The Bullet” could not find his way through, and Prado took his sixth Qualifying Race win of the season. Gajser, having already won the RAM Driving Experience with the most Saturday wins for the year, finished in third and saw the gap to the reigning Champ rise to nine points.
This means that if Gajser wins both races tomorrow, then Prado will need to take a second and a third place to retain his crown! The Spaniard’s form looks ominous for his competition, but the 2024 MXGP Motocross World Championship has shown that anything can happen in this sport, and usually does!
”It was a very good day,” Prado said. “Actually, these conditions are not my favourite track. It’s unbelievably hard but yeah, we got the job done. It was the main thing, so I had to go, you know, I had to push for it not in my favourite conditions, but we are still making it happen. P1 today, let’s go for two P1s tomorrow!”
MX2
Lucas Coenen declared his intent with the fastest laps in both the Free and Time Practice sessions earlier in the day, with Mikkel Haarup again showing good pace with second fastest, as Simon Laengenfelder took third.
Coenen got his exit to the first corner perfect to jump into the lead ahead of Laengenfelder before Quentin Prugnieres also edged ahead of the German to hold second place. Meanwhile, Thibault Benistant collided with David Braceras and the pair hit the floor, giving David’s teammate Kay Karssemakers nowhere to go but to add to the pile-up. Jens Walvoort was also involved, while Max Palsson fell in a separate crash! Benistant would recover the best to finish 11th.
Coenen marched away, but his teammate De Wolf was marching forward, passing local boy Oriol Oliver, Laengenfelder, and on lap three completed a stunning move on Prugnieres to take second!
After his initial struggles, Laengenfelder, who is already confirmed as the bronze medallist for the year, rose back to prominence by also passing Prugnieres, then tucking to the inside of De Wolf for second on lap five. The top three would stay in that order as the Dutchman accepted a humble two-point loss to Coenen in the race.
Prugnieres held on for an MX2 career-best fourth-place finish, ahead of the Triumph riders, as Camden McLellan took fifth ahead of Haarup after the Dane fell with three laps to go, but picked it back up in time to hold sixth ahead of Karlis Reisulis.
Eighth position went to Ferruccio Zanchi after a late move on Oliver. The Spaniard slipped to tenth as outgoing World Champion Andrea Adamo recovered from a poor start to claim ninth on the last lap!
Coenen’s win drops the gap to De Wolf down to 34 points, so the Dutchman can take the Championship in race one tomorrow if he finishes fourth or better, even if the Belgian takes another race win! On this treacherous track, however, things might not ever be that simple!
“I need to do everything possible to get at least a chance at the title,” Coenen said. “Like now, I just rode my own race, I was smooth and didn’t push. So, yeah, I mean, it was a good race. Tomorrow we try to do the same, get a good start and just do our own laps. And that’s how it’s done and maybe we get a chance for the title but at least I want to ride well.”
Don’t miss the final day of the series tomorrow, with the chance to see the World Champion of each class clinch their titles in tomorrow’s MXGP of Castilla La Mancha!
MXGP – RAM Qualifying Race – Classification:
1 Jorge Prado (ESP, GASGAS), 25:21.529
2 Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:01.069
3 Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:06.981
4 Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Kawasaki), +0:12.881
5 Alberto Forato (ITA, Honda), +0:15.165
6 Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +0:20.152
7 Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Honda), +0:23.797
8 Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Fantic), +0:45.490
9 Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, Yamaha), +0:47.179
10 Valentin Guillod (SUI, Honda), +0:49.050
MXGP – World Championship Classification:
1 Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 953 Points
2 Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 944 Points
3 Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 904 Points
4 Jeremy Seewer (SUI, KAW), 650 Points
5 Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 611 Points
6 Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, FAN), 577 Points
7 Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 550 Points
8 Kevin Horgmo (NOR, HON), 428 Points
9 Valentin Guillod (SUI, HON), 360 Points
10 Brian Bogers (NED, FAN), 319 Points
MX2 – RAM Qualifying Race – Classification:
1 Lucas Coenen (BEL, Husqvarna), 25:27.674
2 Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GASGAS), +0:16.605
3 Kay de Wolf (NED, Husqvarna), +0:23.090
4 Quentin Marc Prugnieres (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:23.739
5 Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:24.370
6 Mikkel Haarup (DEN, Triumph), +0:32.221
7 Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:38.457
8 Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), +0:41.007
9 Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:44.228
10 Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +0:45.860
MX2 – World Championship Classification:
1 Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 923 Points
2 Lucas Coenen (BEL, HUS), 889 Points
3 Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GAS), 820 Points
4 Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 749 Points
5 Mikkel Haarup (DEN, TRI), 663 Points
6 Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 634 Points
7 Rick Elzinga (NED, YAM), 555 Points
8 Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 456 Points
9 Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, TRI), 401 Points
10 Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, HON), 362 Points
