Maxime Renaux had a great day at the office, at round 13 of the FIM World Championship MX2 in Arroyomolinos, Spain. The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory rider grabbed his fourth GP win of 2021 and extended his championship lead to 108 points. Jago Geerts (6th) and Thibault Benistant (8th) finished inside the top 10.

Like last year, the Spanish Grand Prix was held at the Intu-Xanadu circuit in Arroyomolinos, on the outskirts of Madrid. One big difference with last season: public was allowed again. The Spanish fans came out in full force. The grandstands were absolutely packed and the spectators created a wall of noise.
Jago Geerts felt good on the Spanish hard pack track – with a lot of ruts, bumps and jumps – during time practice. The Belgian took the pole position, his third of the season. Renaux was third fastest, while Benistant – only 13th – struggled to set a fast lap.

Hay bale
Geerts (3rd) and Renaux (4th) got off to a good start in race one. The championship leader quickly moved up to second place, while the Belgian lost two positions in the opening lap. Renaux stayed close to leader Vialle at the beginning of the race, but how hard he tried, he couldn’t find a spot to make the pass. Maxime wisely decided to settle for second and grab 22 valuable points in his race for the world title.
Geerts started well, but threw away his podium chances after two mistakes. On lap 7 – while riding in fourth place – Jago caught a hay bale in a corner. Five laps later he tipped over in a deep rut. Geerts only finished 13th. Four positions behind teammate Thibault Benistant. A strong catch-up race from the Frenchman, who started around 18th place.

Three tenths of a second
Again, Geerts (2nd) and Renaux (4th) had a great start aboard their YZ250FM in race 2. The Belgian was eager to show his skills after his nightmare first race and quickly passed Vialle to take the lead. Meanwhile, Renaux moved up to third place. The Frenchman was looking for a place to pass his compatriot, without rushing things. Halfway the race, Maxime found that one great line – on the whoops – and passed Vialle for second place. Renaux immediately went after Geerts. Four laps later he passed his teammate, also on the whoops. But not without a fight, thought Geerts. The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory duo treated the fans to an epic battle. In the end, Renaux won. The difference on Geerts? Only three tenths of a second.
Beninstant was held up in the first turn and had to fight back again. The young Frenchman quickly found a good rhythm and managed to finish seventh.
Renaux was on the top step of the podium for the fourth time this year. And maybe even more important: he extended his championship lead to 108 points. Another nice bonus: Yamaha recaptured the lead in the manufacturers classification.

#93 Jago Geerts
6th overall – 2nd in championship
“I’m really disappointed about my first race. I was on pole position, had a good start, but made two silly mistakes. First, I hit a hay bale, a few laps later I tipped over in a rut. I was really angry with myself. I’m glad I could show my potential again in the second race. Good start, nice pass on Vialle and a good battle with Renaux. After he passed me on the whoops, I was trying everything to get the lead back. But I couldn’t pass him anymore. Anyway, that second race is the way I want to ride, the way I need to ride.”

#198 Thibault Benistant
8th overall – 7th in championship
“The previous races my starts were good, but my riding wasn’t. Today it was the other way around. Especially in the first race my start was really bad. I had a nice comeback race in both motos. Not easy, because it was pretty difficult to pass on this track. But I managed to make some nice passes in both races. Now I need to bring the whole package – the start and the riding – together, to be able to fight with the top guys. Let’s hope I can do it in Pietramurata next week, a track I really like.”

#959 Maxime Renaux
1st overall – 1st in championship
“My fourth win of the season. That’s a mental boost. Especially after that ‘fight race’ in France last week. My first race today was good, but nothing special. I tried to stick with Vialle, but couldn’t find a spot to pass him. Another good start in race 2, that helped a lot. This time I did find that crucial spot, on the whoops, to make the pass. Twice. First, I passed Vialle, a bit later Geerts. It was a nice and a close battle with Jago at the end. I’m now 108 ahead of him in the championship. A nice gap, but I need to stay focused.”

RESULTS

Race 1

  • 1. Tom Vialle (Fra/KTM)
  • 2. MAXIME RENAUX (Fra/Yam) +0:06.972
  • 3. Mattia Guadagnini (Ita/KTM) +0:13.906
  • 4. Jed Beaton (Aus/Hus) +0:17.505
  • 5. Rene Hofer (Aut/KTM) +0:17.753
  • 9. THIBAULT BENISTANT (Fra/Yam) +0:33.394
  • 13. JAGO GEERTS (Bel/Yam) +0:54.646

Race 2

  • 1. MAXIME RENAUX (Fra/Yam)
  • 2. JAGO GEERTS (Bel/Yam) +0:00.346
  • 3. Tom Vialle (Fra/KTM) +0:20.110
  • 4. Jed Beaton (Aus/Hus) +0:22.599
  • 5. Ruben Fernandez (Esp/Hon) +0:26.707
  • 7. THIBAULT BENISTANT (Fra/Yam) +0:48.185

Overall

  • 1. MAXIME RENAUX (Fra/Yam) 47
  • 2. Tom Vialle (Fra/KTM) 45
  • 3. Jed Beaton (Aus/Hus) 36
  • 4. Mattia Guadagnini (Ita/KTM) 33
  • 5. Rene Hofer (Aut/KTM) 31
  • 6. JAGO GEERTS (Bel/Yam) 30
  • 8. THIBAULT BENISTANT (Fra/Yam) 26

World championship classification (13/18)

  • 1. MAXIME RENAUX (Fra/Yam) 535
  • 2. JAGO GEERTS (Bel/Yam) 427
  • 3. Mattia Guadagnini (Ita/KTM) 426
  • 4. Tom Vialle (Fra/KTM) 417
  • 5. Jed Beaton (Aus/Hus) 395
  • 7. THIBAULT BENISTANT (Fra/Yam) 362

Next race: October 24, GP14 Pieteramurata (Ita)

Images by @shotbybavo – Yamaha Racing