The soaring temperatures had nothing on how hot the battle for junior motocross supremacy was.
Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux and HSF Logistics Motorsport Team’s Raivo Dankers overcame the heat and the chewed up hard pack track of El Molar to be crowned the respective 2015 FIM Junior 125cc and 85cc Motocross World Champions, while young Dutch sensation Kay Karrsemakers was crowned European Open 65cc winner.
Junior 125cc Race One
The depth of talent in the premier junior class is absolutely mind blowing and this weekend was a good example of how exciting the future of motocross is. When the gates fell it was the youngest rider in the class, KTM Factory Juniors Jorge Prado who got off to a killer start and claimed the first Fox Holeshot but was pushed wide and instantly dropped outside of the top five.
At the end of lap one it was Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux who emerged in the lead with Spain’s heavy hitter Ruben Fernandez hot on his heels. Fernandez showed a wheel to Renaux on a number of occasions and was flying the flag high for his home nation but couldn’t make a pass stick.
KTM Factory Juniors Conrad Mewse didn’t get off to the best start but was absolutely hauling and soon found himself vying for the opening race win after passing Fernandez with a few laps to go. France’s Stephen Rubini and Australia’s Hunter Lawrence also put in strong performances to finish within striking distance of the winner Renaux and round out the top five.
Junior 125cc Race Two
As an epic end to what was an amazing 2015 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship, both of the race one front runners Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux and KTM Factory Juniors Conrad Mewse fought tooth and nail for the final race win and championship overall.
When the gate dropped Conrad Mewse was right where he wanted to be, up front and ruling the roost. That turned out to be briefer than he expected as surprise contender Richard Sikyna from Slovakia blitzed past him for the early lead. Mewse responded almost immediately but didn’t get a chance to enjoy the lead as the race one winner Maxime Renaux was already on him.
Without wasting anytime Renaux put the pass on Mewse, but it was clear Mewse wasn’t going to go down without a fight and responded immediately. In a demonstration of motocross at it’s finest, Renaux and Mewse went bar-to-bar, not only for the race win, but the 2015 FIM Junior 125cc motocross world title.
The race went down to the wire, and was hands down one of the best races the FIM Junior 125cc World Championship has ever witnessed, but it was Maxime Renaux who held on ever so tightly for the race win and the gold plate.
Meanwhile in the shadow of that awesome battle, Sikyna rode home in a lonely third while Australian Hunter Lawrence crossed the line in an unchallenged fourth. Yesterday’s Group B top qualifier Mathys Boisrame rounded out the top five.
Junior 125cc Overall
Taking home the most prestigious youth title of the year was Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux who did so with a hard fought double race victory. KTM Factory Junior’s Conrad Mewse came so close but had to settle for second while Australia’s Hunter Lawrence rounded off the podium.
Junior 125cc Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), 29:27.127; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), +0:00.395; 3. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:04.278; 4. Stephen Rubini (FRA, KTM), +0:04.933; 5. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, YAM), +0:05.421; 6. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), +0:07.225; 7. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Yamaha), +0:19.499; 8. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:24.600; 9. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), +0:30.694; 10. Glen Meier (DEN, KTM), +0:33.504.
Junior 125cc Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), 29:11.140; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), +0:01.014; 3. Richard Sikyna (SVK, KTM), +0:06.012; 4. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, YAM), +0:07.064; 5. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Yamaha), +0:36.138; 6. Davide Cislaghi (ITA, TM), +0:38.293; 7. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), +0:41.315; 8. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:45.199; 9. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:48.987; 10. Nathan Renkens (BEL, KTM), +0:49.737.
Junior 125cc Overall Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 50 points; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), 44 p.; 3. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, YAM), 34 p.; 4. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), 33 p.; 5. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, YAM), 30 p.; 6. Richard Sikyna (SVK, KTM), 26 p.; 7. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Davide Cislaghi (ITA, TM), 24 p.; 10. Nathan Renkens (BEL, KTM), 21 p.
Junior 85cc Race One
It was a dramatic start to the day for the Junior 85’s. Right from the first gate drop it was evident these boys were going to lay it all on the line.
Italy’s Mattia Capuzzo took the early advantage with his claim of the Fox Holeshot ahead of France’s Thibault Benistan who wasted no time in taking the lead. On the opening lap, yesterday’s top qualifier Bud Racing Kawasaki Monster Energy’s Brian Moreau was all over Benistan but a slip up on lap two saw him drop back to third.
The decision to attack or defend was a hard one to make for the top three, Benistan, HSF Logistic Motorsports Raivo Dankers and Moreau as they all took turns leading the race. Eventually, Moreau got his lines sorted and in one fell swoop went from third to first.
Initially Moreau dropped the hammer and checked out, but ended up throwing away his hard earned advantage with a late race high side. Dankers then inherited the lead and gapped everyone for the first race win.
Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Basitan Boegh Damm put in an impressive charge for second ahead of Austria’s Rene Hoffer. Moreau salvaged fourth despite snapping his rear fender when he crashed out of the lead while Benistan rounded out the top five.
Junior 85cc Race Two
The heat and humidity didn’t seem to phase the super talented youngsters competing for the Junior 85cc crown as they fought all the way to the finish for world championship glory. Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Brian Van Der Klij took the final Fox Holeshot and led the opening lap before being dropped back by Czech Republic’s Petr Polak who was riding at a blindingly quick pace.
Polak layed in an early charge while race one winner Raivo Dankers closed the gap on his fellow countryman Van Der Klij. In a battle for second and for the pride of The Netherlands, Dankers and Van Der Klij went head to head for a lap before Dankers made the pass stick in an outright uphill drag.
A few laps later, both Netherlanders were dropped back as the top qualifier Brian Moreau clocked a bunch of fast laps and blitzed pass them with ease. With four minutes plus two laps to go, Moreau opened fire on the race leader Polak and ran away for what turned out to be an easy race win. Polak, who was only tenth in race one, rode impressive for second ahead of Dankers and Boegh Damm while Holland’s Rick Elzinger was gifted fifth after the holes hotter, Van der Klij, stacked it with two laps to go.
Junior 85cc Overall
After a scorching hot day in the office HSF Logistics Motorsport Team’s Raivo Dankers added the 2015 FIM Junior 85cc World Championship gold plate to his dazzling resume, which already consists of two European Championship titles. The top qualifier Bud Racing Kawasaki Monster Energy’s Brian Moreau stood on the second step of the podium while Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Bastian Boegh Damm rounded out the top three.
85cc Junior Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 25:26.208; 2. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:09.628; 3. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), +0:10.838; 4. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:13.168; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:25.737; 6. Raf Meuwissen (NED, Honda), +0:27.345; 7. John Bova (AUS, KTM), +0:29.814; 8. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), +0:34.935; 9. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), +0:38.184; 10. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), +0:43.744.
85cc Junior Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, Kawasaki), 24:55.758; 2. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), +0:06.113; 3. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), +0:09.265; 4. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:21.731; 5. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), +0:25.675; 6. Marcel Stauffer (AUT, KTM), +0:36.847; 7. Rhys Budd (AUS, KTM), +0:41.111; 8. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), +0:42.633; 9. Raffaele Giuzio (ITA, Honda), +0:43.177; 10. Pierre Cantournet (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:43.929.
85cc Junior Overall Top Ten: 1. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 45 points; 2. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, KAW), 43 p.; 3. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, KAW), 40 p.; 4. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), 32 p.; 5. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), 29 p.; 6. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 28 p.; 7. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), 24 p.; 8. Rhys Budd (AUS, KTM), 23 p.; 9. Marcel Stauffer (AUT, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), 21 p.
European Open 65cc Race One
It may have seemed like the longest start straight in the world for most of the 65’s but it was the perfect distance for Spain’s own Raul Sanchez who was oozing adrenaline at the start of race one and took the holeshot and early race lead. Unfortunately, the freshly watered track caught the little Spaniard out which saw him drop back to sixteenth when he crashed on an uphill.
Holland’s little ripper Kay Karssemakers took full advantage of the gifted lead and knuckled down right away while France’s Florian Miot tried to keep up. Although he put in a good effort, Miot couldn’t quite match the pace of Karssemakers and ended up exerting too much energy, which allowed the top qualifier, Hungary’s Adam Kovacs to close in. At the half way mark Kovacs dropped the hammer on Miot and took over second, where he remained for the rest of the race.
Meanwhile, it wasn’t over for Miot who soon had company in the form of Czech Republic’s Radek Vertovsky and Russia’s Matvey Vopilov. A missed line late in the race saw Miot drop back to fourth as Vetrovsky capitalized on the error.
Karssemakers took a convincing victory ahead of Kovacs, Vetrovsky, Miot and Vopilov.
European Open 65cc Race Two
Speedy little Dutchman Kay Karssemakers sealed the deal on his European Open 65cc title mission by claiming the Fox Holeshot and controlling the final race from start to finish.
While that sounds smooth sailing for the youngster who also won race one, it was not that easy as the poleman Adam Kovacs was on him from gate drop. Kovacs put in a good effort but as the wind picked up he fell off balance and looped out into the infield. The small Hungarian managed to re-enter the track instantly, but lost second position to Radek Vetrovsky.
Although he was handed second, take nothing away from Vetrovsky, he was ripping in race two and pushed Karssemakers all the way to the finish. Kovacs managed to regroup and rode smart for third while Spain’s Adria Monne and Florian Miot rounded out the top five.
European Open 65cc Overall
A double victory for Holland’s Kay Karssemakers crowned him the European Open 65cc winner ahead of yesterday’s top qualifier, Hungarian Adam Kovacs and Czech Republic’s Petr Vetrovsky.
European Open 65cc Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 19:22.427; 2. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), +0:16.394; 3. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), +0:28.672; 4. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), +0:34.701; 5. Pablo Gutierrez Solis (ESP, KTM), +0:35.525; 6. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), +0:43.010; 7. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), +0:49.215; 8. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), +1:13.324; 9. Raul Sanchez (ESP, KTM), +1:23.224; 10. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), +1:36.107
European Open 65cc Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 17:59.258; 2. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), +0:01.357; 3. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), +0:04.277; 4. Adria Monne Viles (ESP, KTM), +0:26.250; 5. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), +0:29.440; 6. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), +0:37.182; 7. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), +0:42.036; 8. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), +0:53.545; 9. Xavier Cazal (FRA, KTM), +0:56.639; 10. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), +1:01.342
European Open 65cc Overall Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 50 points; 2. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), 42 p.; 3. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), 37 p.; 4. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), 34 p.; 5. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), 34 p.; 6. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Pablo Gutierrez Solis (ESP, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Adria Monne Viles (ESP, KTM), 18 p.
Junior Nations
Team France proved to have the fastest pro riders in the world when they won the 2014 Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations and now they have proven to have the fastest juniors with their team of young talents winning the title junior nations title ahead of Team Great Britain and Team Australia.
Team Spain also came away as champions with their team winning the FIM Ride Green Cup.
