Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2’s Jago Geerts claimed solid points at the opening round of the FIM Motocross World Championship at Matterley Basin in Winchester, England. After two hard-fought races, in which he finished fourth and second, the 21-year-old Belgian has started his MX2 title charge on the third step of the podium.
Weeks of stormy weather leading into the British Grand Prix worked in favour of the fast and flowing Matterley Basin circuit. The rain made for a softer, ruttier, more technical track surface, which provided plenty of opportunities for the riders to make passes.
After a big crash in the first practice session, Geerts bounced back in Timed Practice as the pacesetter, followed by a solid third place finish in the first Qualifying Race of the new season.
The ‘93’ got off to a decent start in the first race and made a few strong passes to complete the opening lap in fifth position. On lap 3, he stormed down the inside of Kay de Wolf but fell soon after, dropping back to ninth.
Geerts regrouped and charged hard through the pack, showing great speed and determination while picking off some of his closest rivals to finish fourth after a stunning last-lap pass on Stephen Rubini.
The second moto was much better and even though the temperature had dropped significantly, and the sun was low, he rode superbly on his YZ250FM, starting outside of the top-five but quickly moving up into third. Experience has taught him the championship is long and taking good points at round one is essential. The ‘93’ managed his race well, taking his time to find the fastest lines before mounting an attack on the race leaders.
Tom Vialle fell from the three-way battle with two-laps to go, leaving Geerts to challenge Simon Laengenfelder for the final race victory. Despite an incredible last-lap charge, Laengenfelder refused to yield, forcing the Yamaha star to settle for second.
From Matterley Basin, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team will travel to Mantova, Italy, for the second round of the FIM Motocross World Championship, which will take place on March 5th and 6th.
Jago Geerts
3rd MX2 Grand Prix of Great Britain, 40-points
3rd MX2 World Championship Standings, 40-points
“I’m really happy with the day. In the first heat I was riding pretty well the first few laps but had a small crash and fell back to ninth. After that I needed some time to recover and find my rhythm again but in the end I felt really good on the track and made some passes to finish fourth. I was happy with that and feeling confident for the second heat. In the second race, my start wasn’t too good, but I was pretty quick into fourth and then into third. So, then it was a three-man battle for the lead with Tom (Vialle) and Simon (Laengenfelder). I really pushed hard to get the win but we were all quite similar in speed and it was hard to make the difference, so I had to settle for second, which is still pretty good, especially after two weeks off the bike with an arm problem.”
