450 Words Febvre, Herlings Split, Gajser Pushed Back

Now just one race remains in a heart stopping 2021 Monster Energy FIM Motocross World Championship, as the next-to-last round of the season took place on Sunday afternoon in Italy. True to the form of this season, there was more drama, as defending MXGP Champion Tim Gajser incurred a five-position penalty after going off the track in the first turn of the first moto. This is the same track that hosted the Motocross of Nations in September, and you might remember Team Italy's Alessandro Lupino making an off-track excursion in the final moto of that race. This was similar, but not quite as bad, so Gajser was pushed back five spots instead of the 10 positions Lupino received at MXoN. Still, five spots is huge in a close championship chase.

Stepping up are Monster Energy Kawasaki's Romain Febvre and Red Bull KTM's Jeffrey Herlings. Herlings crashed in moto one and Febvre won, then Herlings returned to win moto two. They split points on the day, with Herlings 2-1 beating Febvre's 1-2 for the overall. Febvre maintains a three-point lead heading into the final round this Wednesday. Gajser is now 15 points back.

Here's a recap via the series' post-race press release.

MANTOVA – The FIM Motocross World Championship continues to throw surprises after an exciting penultimate round of the series that saw Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jago Geerts on the top step of the podium, as the pair clawed back some vital championship points on their rivals.

In MXGP, it’s looking like the final round of the series will be a two-man race as Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Romain Febvre and Herlings are separated by just three points, while a penalty in race one has left Team HRC’s Tim Gajser third in standings, 12 points behind Herlings.

While in MX2, the battle for the silver medal is heating up between Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tom Vialle and Geerts, with seven points between them as we head into the races on Wednesday.

In MXGP race one, it was Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jeremy Seewer who grabbed the Fox Holeshot. Febvre got off to a good start too as he was ahead of Herlings, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Antonio Cairoli and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Glenn Coldenhoff. Meanwhile Gajser got pushed wide and off the track.

Febvre wasted no time as he took the lead from Seewer, with Herlings looking to make a pass on the Swiss too. Herlings was briefly into second before making a mistake and crashing, which also took down Seewer with him. With the two bikes tangled, Herlings took some time before he got going again.

Honda 114 Motorsports’ Ruben Fernandez was having a great start to his MXGP wildcard race, as he was running nicely in fourth.

Febvre then set the fastest lap of the race as he led Cairoli by 3.764 seconds, as Gajser got himself into third, while Herlings was all over Standing Construct GasGas Factory Racing’s Brian Bogers for ninth.

Herlings was on another level for the next few laps as he picked off riders before catching up to his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Jorge Prado. Prado didn’t make things easy for Herlings, as the young Spaniard shut down every attempt the Bullet was making.

Eventually Herlings was able to get past Prado and Coldenhoff soon after, as Gajser also got around Cairoli for second position.

Herlings was still down in sixth though, but Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Mathys Boisrame was the next rider to get passed by the Dutchman. He then went after Fernandez, who was not baking down.

The battle between Fernandez and Herlings was intense, as it took Herlings four laps to pass the Spanish rider.

With six minutes on the clock, Gajser started to have Febvre in his sights as Herlings set the fastest lap of the race while looking to get around Cairoli. Cairoli was not backing down to the title hopeful, who had to spend a few laps behind the Italian, but with two laps to go, Herlings was able to get by Cairoli and later Gajser.

Febvre went on to win the race with Herlings second and Gajser third. But Gajser received a 5-place penalty which dropped him down to eighth, so Cairoli moved up to third. Fernandez finished the race in fourth place.

In race two, we saw Prado take the Fox Holeshot from Febvre, Herlings and MRT Racing Team KTM’s Alessandro Lupino. Gajser was around 10^th, as Herlings wasted no time to get past Febvre and Prado for the lead.

Cairoli started the race in fifth just behind Lupino, with Gajser down in seventh.

Febvre then started to apply the pressure onto Prado for second, but it would take him a couple of laps to get around the Spaniard, as Gajser caught onto Cairoli and Lupino.

After getting good drive and passing Prado, Febvre was within 3.390 seconds of Herlings with plenty of time left on the clock. And while he kept things close for the first half of the race, as the heat went on, it seemed like Febvre was happy to settle for second and take those championship points without any risk.

Seewer then passed Bogers and Lupino for sixth, while Cairoli caught onto the rear wheel of Prado, as he set his sights on going after third position in the race. As the battle between Cairoli and Prado got tense, Gajser was able to make the most of this and close in on the KTM duo.

Prado was not making it easy for Cairoli who launched several attacks on the Spaniard. Eventually Cairoli made mistake which allowed Gajser through. But he was not backing down for the Slovenian.

Gajser had to work hard to get by Prado, but two laps later, the Honda rider found himself up in third. At that point Herlings was 6.728 seconds ahead of Febvre.

And as Cairoli searched for a way past Prado, Seewer joined the pair, as the battle for fourth raged on. Finally on lap 14, Cairoli was able to get by Prado and move up a spot. Seewer did the same four laps from the end as Prado dropped to sixth.

Herlings went on to win the race ahead of Febvre and Gajser. And with a 2-1 result, Herlings secured his eighth GP victory of the 2021 season, with Febvre finishing on the second step ahead of Cairoli who was third on the podium. Gajser was fourth overall.

With one round to go, Febvre leads the MXGP Championship standings by three points over Herlings, while Gajser is now 12 points behind.

Jeffrey Herlings: “What happened in the first race was so dumb. I put myself in a good position right from the start. I was behind Romain. I did exactly the same crash in the warmup. I just hit my left foot into the side and just got kicked off. I knew I had to work hard. I was almost dead last and worked my way to second. Second race, I had a decent start. I was straight into third and managed to pass Jorge and Romain. Then I was able to make a little gap. Then I was checking where Tony could be. I was actually not trying to run away too far. Then I saw that there was too big of a gap between Romain and Tony. Then I pulled away for the second half of the race. Every point counts right now, so it’s -3. It’s going to be an all-out war on Wednesday. There’s a lot on the line. Different riders, different countries and different manufacturers all going towards the same goal which is the world title. It doesn’t matter who wins it. I think we both deserve it anyway. Even Tim. So, it will be a good one on Wednesday”.

Romain Febvre: “The second race, I started second then Jeffrey passed me and Prado. I maybe didn’t take many risks to pass Prado to avoid falling. So, I lost some time to catch Jeffrey and it was too late at that point. I had some fast laps to close the gap a little bit, but he still had about 3-4 seconds. At one point I just settled for second and thought “I won’t risk everything”. I’m in a good position right now and there’s still one more round to go. Wednesday will be interesting”.

Antonio Cairoli: “For sure I am really happy about the result. I am really enjoying the track and it’s always nice to do it in front of this crowd. First race, I had a good start, then I was a little bit stiff on the first lap and I lost some positions. Then I was riding really fast in the second half of the race. I was really enjoying the track at that point. I finished the race third, ahead of Tim’s penalty. It was a good result for the overall. Second race, the start was not so good. Finally, I had a good rhythm and was able to push a little bit. Then I arrived behind Jorge for 6-7 laps and the guys in front were able to build a gap. Tim also passed me as I was struggling to find some lines to try to pass Jorge. Then I lost the rhythm a little bit. In the end I had some room in front of me which allowed me to have some good laps. I came closer to Tim, but it was too late. Overall, I am happy because of the podium of course, but I will try to do better on Wednesday and be on the podium again. It would be amazing for me and all the fans”.

MX2

In the MX2 race one, it was Vialle with the Fox Holeshot but his teammate Rene Hofer of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing was quick into the lead. Renaux started well as he passed Vialle for second and then quickly found his way around Hofer to lead the race by the end of the first lap.

Geerts then passed Vialle, as Vialle came under pressure from Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Kay De Wolf who passed him for fourth, he was however able to take back that position.

Hofer then set the fastest lap of the race as he was keen on staying close to Renaux, but then came under fire from Geerts. The Belgian made several attempts to pass the Austrian, but Hofer was quick to respond. Hofer then fell and eventually fought his way back to sixth.

Renaux then opened up the gap as he led by 5.480 seconds over Geerts, while Vialle was still trying to fend off de Wolf as well was his teammate Jed Beaton who was also on a charge. The Frenchman was urged on by the Husqvarna riders as he had Geerts in his sights in the later stages of the race.

Unfortunately, he could not get close enough, as Geerts also tried to go after Renaux in the final laps, but Renaux was able to maintain that position and win his first race since becoming MX2 World Champion last weekend.

In the second MX2 heat, it was Vialle once again with the Fox Holeshot as he led Hofer, Geerts, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Mattia Guadagnini and Beaton. Renaux started in around 10^th position.

Geerts then tried to get around Hofer for second, but the pair made contact in the wave section, which resulted in a big crash for Hofer.

Beaton then got onto the rear wheel of Guadagnini for third, as Renaux moved in on the pair after making some good passes on the opening laps. The Frenchman got around the Australian by the second lap and then set his sights on Guadagnini.

Further down the field, de Wolf was having an intense battle with Simon Längenfelder of Diga Procross GasGas Factory Racing. The Dutchman then took the outside line which gave him good drive to get past the German for sixth place.

Guadagnini then had Renaux all over his rear wheel, with the Frenchman going around the outside of the Italian to steal third. Renaux was on a charge as it did not take long for him to catch up with Geerts.

Meanwhile Hofer was trying to recover from his crash at the beginning of the race as he got going in 14^th place.

The gap between Vialle and Geerts started to come down as just 0.938 seconds separated them, with some excitement behind them as Renaux went off track and de Wolf crashed.

On lap seven we saw a change for the lead as Vialle and Geerts traded positions a few times, before the Belgian was able to make the pass stick. Renaux was keen on going with him as he dove down the inside of Vialle for second.

Renaux then pushed hard to try and get by Geerts, with the battle carrying on until the chequered flag fell for the end of the race. Despite his best efforts, Renaux was forced to settle for second as Geerts went on to win the race. Beaton was also able to get by Vialle in the final laps to get himself into third, while Vialle crossed the line fourth.

A 2-1 result gave Geerts the overall victory over Renaux who also finished on 47 points, with Vialle occupying the third step of the podium.

While the MX2 title was decided at the MXGP of Garda, the fight for second in the standings is still on between Vialle and Geerts, as there is just seven points between them as we head into the final round on Wednesday with the MXGP of ‎Città di Mantova.

Jago Geerts: “I am really happy to win a GP again. The last few races my speed was really good, but I just couldn’t make it happen to win a race. Today was a really good day for me, 2-1. So yeah, I am really happy, and I am looking forward to Wednesday. Hopefully I will be able to end the season on a high note. It will be quite exciting and we will battle until the last lap for sure. My goal is just to ride like today. I’ll try to win the GP and get the second place in the championship”.

Maxime Renaux: “It was a nice day. First race after my world title, so it’s really nice. I really enjoyed that. This morning, I was actually not so good in time practice. I was feeling a little bit stiff. But we made some changes on the bike and I felt really good during those two races. First race was perfect. I could take the lead on the first lap and win. Second race, I had a really bad start. I had to really push to come back to second. Then I felt I could have pushed a little bit more, but I was satisfied with second. I’d also like to have a blue bike on the second step of the podium for this championship. So, it was just nice and I am really happy with my riding today”.

Tom Vialle: “I struggled quite a lot today, especially in the second race. I had a great start but couldn’t find my flow on the track. I felt pretty good in the morning. First race wasn’t too bad. I was third behind Jago. I struggled a bit with the bike, so on Wednesday we’re going to make some changes on the bike. For sure it will be better. I am really looking forward to Wednesday. I am second in the championship now. It’s true I came back from pretty far. I think that I was 13th or 14th at some point in the championship. So, it’s pretty nice to be second. There’s still one race to go. It will be a good battle with Jago, that’s for sure”.