What an amazing weekend in Ernee. You had to be there to really understand just how how perfect the weekend was. 30 degree weather, and amazing amphitheatre with a cacophony of noise from 100,000 rapid fans on the most memorable weekend of the year and one of the deepest MXoN talent pools in recent years. The field was stacked!
The fans were the most impressive thing about this race. The French fans were unbelievable any time they got a sighting of a French rider in practice or a parade lap, never mind if they made a pass or where leading! They even burst into the national anthem ahead of the third moto such was their confidence of winning the event!
The French team did their bit too. Tom Vialle went back to his GP form and showed America his true level – and maybe what they can expect next year outdoors! But the two time world champ told us he had to learn to ride like a GP rider again – smoother because you can’t ride with the same intensity at Ernee that you can on a a loamy, grippy AMA National track.
Romain Febvre won the best race of the day in a one on one duel with Jorge Prado, the crowd were going nuts as the two GP boys set the pace for the rest of the world and Febvre set the tone for the French, that win gave France the momentum and they never looked back.
Race two was just perfection for France with Renaux controlling the race from a speedy Vialle who looked superb and even wanted the moto win! Renaux was that sore he thought he couldn’t race the MXoN in the days after his crash at the British GP, then comes out and goes 1-3 for the Open Class win! He’s one of the strongest riders mentally and under pressure you will see.
It shouldn’t be overlooked that Jorge Prado was the first guy to beat Jett Lawrence outdoors on a 450 in 2023 and it was fitting that the world champ won the first moto of the weekend with the AMA champ in second. The two most technical riders in the world gave everyone a riding lesson. It was a joy to watch both in their prime. That’s how to ride a bike.
Prado didn’t get the holeshot in the final moto he wanted and couldn’t get by Renaux as Roczen and Lawrence showed their speed and cleared off but it would have been interesting if he had the holeshot and gone with them.
Roczen, unbelievably, had a holeshot on the Suzuki, he couldn’t hold Lawrence off but he did win the MXGP class on a tie-break with Prado and it was only Roczen’s second motocross race of the year! The German is an exceptional talent, who can ride a dirt bike on seemingly any format and be elite with very little prep. WSX, AMA SX, SMX , AMA MX, MXoN, Roczen can win anywhere, anytime, the guy is a genius on a motorcycle.
Talking of genius, Jett Lawrence is smooth as silk, floating across the track and carrying incredible momentum, he checked out in the final moto but even in the two he didn’t win, his in race intelligence shone through. His ability to make decisive passes, when even riders like Tiim Gajser didn’t seem to expect it, was jaw dropping and, like Prado, his precise control of the motorcycle at speed is breath taking. No-one who was there at Ernee will forget how awesome Lawrence was to watch, whatever his situation on the track, he was floating around making it look easy, seemingly two steps ahead of the rest in his mind.
The guy is super special and mature beyond his years on the track while still being a big kid off it! But when it’s time to race, he is serious, confident and ruthless in his ambition to win. His celebration after that final moto showed the frustration of not winning the first two motos of the weekend! The kid isn’t used to losing!
Prado and Lawrence are the Everts and Bayle of the modern era, they are the new generation of smooth and to witness both in the same race and both winning a moto of the weekend, was pretty special. In 20 years time these two might go down as two of the best ever and to have the all-time talent of Roczen also in the mix as the previous generation talent still capable of running with the new kids, what a special time to be watching motocross.
Other notable mentions need to go to Liam Everts who was brilliant on the 350 going 3-3-10 in his moto’s and leading Belgium to fifth overall, showing that the 350 is not dead at the elite level and has a place. Andrea Adamo fought through the pack all weekend it felt like until that final moto when he took fourth in the Open/MX2 class and second overall on the 250 after a cracking battle with Everts, the pace was high and even Hunter Lawrence couldn’t get back on his pace after a small tip over. Adamo showed why he was a world champ.
But the big unexpected star for Italy was Andrea Bonacorsi, he only had a few days to get ready on a 450 after Mattia Guadagnini had to pull out with injury and the new EMX250 champ rode the wheels off the bike to, along with Alberto Forato, and the aforementioned Adamo, get the results to put Italy on the podium! Three young riders with huge talent at the apex of their career- there is a lot more to come from this trio – and they have Guadagnini as well! Bonacorsi will be full on confidence now for MX2 in 2024 – what a ride!
Lucas Coenen didn’t get the results to show his speed but he was one of the the fastest in the practice sessions on Saturday and warm-up on Sunday, showing the potential to be the best in the world. He had the out side gate twice on Sunday, and had a first turn crash, so had to come from the back in every moto. The fans didn’t get to see the best of him, but if he had the starts he would have been up there challenging, just like the impressive Kay de Wolf. The Dutch kid slammed RJ Hampshire on the last lap of the qualifying race to pass him and then seemed to be around Hunter Lawrence a lot in both motos matching his speed. The teenagers in MX2 are legit and they proved it again at the MXoN on the biggest stage and against the AMA boys.
Team Switzerland also deserve a mention, Jeremy Seewer, Valentin Guillod and Arnaud Tonus who was riding superb in MX2 all rode brilliantly to finish sixth overall, a fantastic achievement for a small country who, with their three world class rider (even if Tonus doesn’t race GPs) produced a cracking result to do themselves and their country proud. Awesome from the Swiss, and Slovenia were ninth in another great results for small country in a deep talent pool of nations even if Tim Gajser probably didn’t have his best day, he did enough to lead his country with good back-up from Jan Pancar to a top ten, that’s a huge achievement.
What an event, it couldn’t have went better on or off the track with the racing, the big stars shining, the atmosphere and the weather, Ernee MXoN had it all.
Roll on Matterley Basin – can we have good weather there too?!
Article: Jonathan McCready
Images: InFront Moto Racing