Gajser was able to maintain his championship lead in MXGP, while Geerts’ perfect scorecard helped him on his way to securing the red plate for the first time since 2020.
In the opening race of the MXGP class we saw Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado grab the Fox Holeshot ahead of Team HRC’s Tim Gajser and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing trio of Jeremy Seewer, Glenn Coldenhoff and Maxime Renaux. Standing Construct Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Brian Bogers was also right there in the mix and sitting in sixth position. Seewer then dropped it and fell from third to eighth, as Prado set the fastest lap of the race and was 1.411 seconds ahead of Gajser who just could not find an opportunity for a pass. The gap then came down ever so slightly, but a new threat was emerging as Renaux started to edge closer to the leaders.
Further down the order, Honda 114 Motorsports’ Ruben Fernandez got by Coldenhoff for fifth, as Coldenhoff began to fade. Seewer was next to get by the Dutchman as he continued his recovery after a crash early on in the heat. Coldenhoff eventually brought it home in 17th. Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing’s Arminas Jasikonis saw his day turn for the worse as he came into pitlane to DNF the race, following a crash earlier on, while his teammate Calvin Vlaanderen was fighting for spot inside the top 10. But back with the leaders, Renaux was looking faster than both Prado and Gajser, as Gajser continued his struggle behind the young Spaniard. Seewer then got by Fernandez and caught onto the back of Bogers but it took him until the end of the race to make a pass stick, as Bogers was quick to defend his position.
In terms of the leaders, there was no change until the chequered flag fell, with Gajser getting close to Prado on several occasions, but just not able to get it done. Prado took the win. Renaux kept with the leaders in third, as Seewer made some nice passes in the final stages of the race to finish fourth. We also saw a nice battle for sixth between Bogers and DIGA PROCROSS KTM Racing’s Thomas Kjer Olsen who made a swift move on Bogers with two laps to go. In race two it was Henry Jacobi of JM Honda Racing who secured the second Fox Holeshot of the day ahead of Seewer and Gajser. Though Gajser was not taking any chances as he swiftly moved past Jacobi, who was already passed by Seewer. Gajser then tried to make a move on the inside of Seewer, who was quick to respond, with the Swiss maintaining control of the lead. This only last a few moments as he later crashed, gifting Gajser first place. At that point Bogers was second with Jacobi fading to third. Seewer picked himself up just ahead of Prado who got squeezed in the first corner. But back at the top end of the field, Renaux was looking to leave his mark, as he took second from Bogers.
Gajser then led Renaux, Bogers and Olsen who was right there in fourth, while Seewer and Prado continued to battle for seventh. Just ahead of them was Fernandez who got around Jacobi, as the German came under more fire from Seewer, who crashed in the same spot as he lost the lead. The Honda riders looked fast, as Team HRC’s Gajser set the fastest lap of the race, while Fernandez from Honda 114 Motorsports set his personal best and was looking strong inside the top five. Gajser then made a mistake and fell which saw him lose around three seconds in sector one, which was a gift to Renaux who was back on his heels. The Slovenian was able to respond quickly and before the end of the lap was 1.578 up on the Frenchman.
Further down the order Seewer was looking to re-group as he battled with Beta SDM Corse rider Jeremy Van Horebeek, while Prado started to close in on Olsen for fourth. In the final lap of the race it looked like Prado could get it done, but made a mistake and crashed. Gajser went on to win the race with a 7.015 advantage over Renaux, as Bogers maintained third. Olsen also held on to fourth as Seewer was able to recover and come back to fifth. A 2-1 result gave Gajser his second Grand Prix win of 2022, as Renaux celebrated his maiden podium in MXGP on the second spot, with Prado forced to settle for third as he came back to seventh in the second race. Gajser continues to lead the championship with 94 points over Prado who has 82, with Renaux moving up to third in the standings.
Tim Gajser: “In the first race I had a nice battle with Jorge. I was behind him the whole race, I couldn’t make a pass because he had a good rhythm and good pace as well, so I finished second. Second race I took a better start, I think I was third, then I made a quick pass and I was behind Jeremy. Then he made a mistake and I was in the lead, so I tried to make a gap and then I made my own mistake and fell. I managed to pick up the bike in front of Maxime and then I started to pick up the pace again, make a comfortable lead and control the race. In the end I’m super happy and really looking forward to going to Argentina again”.
Maxime Renaux: “I’m feeling good. First podium for me at my second GP. Second overall is really good and I am happy with it. Two solid races, third and second, so I am really happy with how it went. It’s a little bit sketchy coming on the track with the 450 for my first year and it’s not an easy task sometimes, but I am happy that I didn’t make any mistakes in both races, no crashes, which was really important and I’m happy with my first podium”.
Jorge Prado: “First race was really good. Got the holeshot and won the race. Then second race, the jump out of the gate wasn’t perfect and then coming into the first corner I thought I kind of had it but then some came from the outside to the inside. The start wasn’t great but I knew I had the pace to come to the front, I was more stressed about that and I tried to make some passes but I got roosted a couple of times and I couldn’t see anything. But still I was pushing quite a lot and then three laps to go I made a mistake, hit one bump and went over the bars, nice face plant there, and I lost a couple of positions. Not really happy about the second race but it is what it is, the championship is still very long”.
