2023 MXGP of Switzerland | Kate Kowalchuk Checks in from Frauenfeld

Photos and story by Kate Kowalchuk

Jago Geerts MXGP
#93 Jago Geerts.

This early in the season there is always something changing and something happening in both
classes. Going into the year everyone thought Factory Yamaha’s #93 Jago Geerts was going to
run away with the MX2 title this season as he and previous MX2 Champion Factory KTM’s Tom
Vialle (who is now racing in the US) dominated the races last year. However, the new wave of
MX2 guys beg to differ and came out of this off season ready to give Geerts a run for his money.

Thibault Benistant MXGP
#198 Thibault Benistant.

Geerts was leading the championship by 30 points going into Switzerland this weekend but with
a crash in every moto he ended up 7-3 losing 10 points in his championship lead over his
teammate #198 Thibault Benistant who went 3-1 for 1 st overall in Switzerland.

Andrea Adamo MXGP
#80 Andrea Adamo.

Following him going 3-2 and getting his first holeshot of the season was Factory KTM rider #80 Andrea Adamo. Under the leadership and training of Joel Smets, Adamo had an incredible off season and has come flying out of the gate with quite the start to the MX2 season.

#74 Kay De Wolf.

Rounding out the podium was Factory Husqvarna Nestaan’s #74 Kay De Wolf who went 2-3 for 3rd overall this weekend.

#39 Roan Van De Moosdijk.

De Wolf’s teammate #39 Roan Van De Moosdijk had an impressive first moto getting 1st for only
the second time of his career but his first time with this team. Unfortunately, after a rough start
in the second moto and a small crash he finished just shy of the podium this weekend.

There were a lot of people assuming Geerts would run away with the title this season, but you
have 4 or 5 riders behind him making sure that doesn’t happen. This class is definitely one to
watch this season to see if an underdog can come up and steal this championship from
Geerts – theres plenty of racing left.

MX2 – GP Classification
Pos Nr Rider Nat. Fed. Bike Race 1 Race 2 Total
1 198 Benistant, Thibault FRA FFM YAM 18 25 43
2 80 Adamo, Andrea ITA FMI KTM 20 22 42
3 74 de Wolf, Kay NED KNMV HUS 22 18 40
4 39 Van De Moosdijk, Roan NED KNMV HUS 25 13 38
5 93 Geerts, Jago BEL FMB YAM 14 20 34
6 516 Laengenfelder, Simon GER DMSB GAS 16 16 32
7 72 Everts, Liam BEL FMB KTM 13 15 28
8 24 Horgmo, Kevin NOR NMF KAW 12 14 26
9 253 Pancar, Jan SLO AMZS KTM 11 12 23
10 125 Weckman, Emil FIN SML HON 9 11 20
11 44 Elzinga, Rick NED KNMV YAM 10 10 20
12 96 Coenen, Lucas BEL FMB HUS 15 5 20
13 12 Chambers, Jack USA AMA KAW 7 9 16
14 22 Braceras, David ESP RFME KAW 6 8 14
15 51 Oliver, Oriol ESP RFME KTM 8 6 14
16 11 Haarup, Mikkel DEN DMU KTM 4 7 11
17 17 Toendel, Cornelius NOR NMF KTM 3 4 7
18 67 Martinez, Yago ESP RFME KTM 5 2 7
19 313 Polak, Petr CZE ACCR YAM 2 3 5
20 64 Ciabatti, Lorenzo ITA FMI KTM 0 1 1
MX2 – World Championship Classification
Pos Nr Rider Nat. Bike Total ARG SAR SUI TRE POR ESP FRA LAT GER INA INA CZE BEL FIN SWE NED TUR VIE GBR
1 93 Geerts, Jago BEL YAM 159 10
25-25		 10
22-25		 8
14-20		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
2 198 Benistant, T. FRA YAM 139 6
22-13		 7
18-20		 10
18-25		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
3 74 de Wolf, Kay NED HUS 136 5
15-11		 9
25-22		 9
22-18		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
4 80 Adamo, Andrea ITA KTM 131 9
20-20		 3
16-15		 6
20-22		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
5 39 Van De Moosdijk, R. NED HUS 112 4
18-14		 2
13-16		 7
25-13		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
6 516 Laengenfelder, S. GER GAS 111 8
13-16		 8
20-14		 0
16-16		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
7 24 Horgmo, Kevin NOR KAW 94 2
12-22		 6
14-12		 0
12-14		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
8 72 Everts, Liam BEL KTM 94 7
16-8		 5
12-13		 5
13-15		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
9 96 Coenen, Lucas BEL HUS 72 3
0-12		 4
15-18		 0
15-5		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
10 253 Pancar, Jan SLO KTM 66 0
11-9		 0
9-11		 3
11-12		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
11 125 Weckman, Emil FIN HON 56 0
7-10		 0
10-9		 0
9-11		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
12 44 Elzinga, Rick NED YAM 56 1
14-18		 1
0-0		 2
10-10		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
13 51 Oliver, Oriol ESP KTM 35 – – 0
11-10		 0
8-6		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
14 22 Braceras, D. ESP KAW 33 0
9-0		 0
4-5		 1
6-8		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
15 67 Martinez, Yago ESP KTM 32 0
10-6		 0
7-2		 0
5-2		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
16 11 Haarup, Mikkel DEN KTM 30 0
0-15		 – 4
4-7		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
17 17 Toendel, C. NOR KTM 24 0
0-5		 0
5-7		 0
3-4		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
18 12 Chambers, Jack USA KAW 16 – – – – 0
7-9		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
19 180 Ambjörnson, L. SWE HUS 14 0
8-0		 0
3-3		 0
0-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
20 27 Guyon, Tom FRA FAN 12 0
5-7		 – 0
0-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – 

On the topic of classes to watch this season, if you are a fan of Motocross and you aren’t
watching the MXGP, class what are you doing?! Any guy in the top 5 could win any given moto,
especially with the qualifying race now having points, every race is worth watching.

With Honda HRC Tim Gajser missing the first couple rounds due to a broken femur in pre-season there
were many looking forward to both Kawasaki’s #3 Romain Febvre and KTM’s #84 Jeffery Herlings
coming in healthy this year.

Jeffrey Herlings MXGP
#84 Jeffrey Herlings.

Most eyes were on Herlings this season as he missed last season due to multiple surgeries correcting a pre-season and past injuries. Many were not sure if it would take him a few races to get back into things, but he came out and had a very impressive first 2 rounds. With Switzerland being hard packed it was not Herlings’ best weekend but, with two good starts and smooth consistent riding he was able to walk away 6-4 moto scores and is still second in the championship hunt.

Leading the championship right now is Factory Gas Gas Rider #61 Jorge Prado who has had an impressive start to the season. He has won every qualifying race and 3 out of 6 of the motos this season so far. Many are curious to see if he can carry this riding all the way to the end of the season or is he going to take a turn like he has in previous seasons.

This weekend was much of the same, winning the qualifying race, getting 2 out of 3 holeshots and going 1-3 for 2nd overall.

Maxime Rernaux MXGP
#959 Maxime Renaux.

Swapping moto scores with Prado going 3-1 for 1st overall this weekend was Factory Yamaha’s #959 Maxime Renaux who is a strong title contender for this season. He struggled the first couple rounds with a crash every moto but this weekend he definitely redeemed himself getting his first GP win of the season. Despite having a crash every moto he showed impressive speed getting back up into the top 5, so we knew his time to shine was around the corner and it showed. Switzerland was THE weekend for him. Can he continue it into Arco this weekend?

Romain Febvre MXGP
#3 Romain Febvre.

Rounding out the podium was Factory Kawasaki’s #3 Romain Febvre who went 3-2 on the
weekend and seems to have made some big improvements on the bike.

Jeremy Seewer MXGP
#91 Jeremy Seewer.

A lot of people are probably wondering where hometown hero Factory Yamaha #91 Jeremy Seewer was this weekend and, unfortunately, he was cross-jumped in the first moto and had a small crash in the
second moto. It just was not his weekend but we look forward to seeing him bounce back this
weekend.

Jorge Prado leads the championship by 21 points going into Arco this weekend, but there are only
5 points separating the 3 riders that follow behind him. This MXGP class is the one to watch this
season. It is anybody’s race ,any given day, and the way these top guys are sending it, you just
can’t miss it! See you in Arco Trentino this weekend for Round 4!

MXGP – GP Classification
Pos Nr Rider Nat. Fed. Bike Race 1 Race 2 Total
1 959 Renaux, Maxime FRA FFM YAM 22 25 47
2 61 Prado, Jorge ESP RFME GAS 25 20 45
3 3 Febvre, Romain FRA FFM KAW 20 22 42
4 84 Herlings, Jeffrey NED KNMV KTM 15 18 33
5 10 Vlaanderen, Calvin NED KNMV YAM 18 14 32
6 70 Fernandez, Ruben ESP RFME HON 16 13 29
7 92 Guillod, Valentin SUI FFM HON 14 12 26
8 303 Forato, Alberto ITA FMI KTM 9 15 24
9 919 Watson, Ben GBR ACU BET 10 11 21
10 101 Guadagnini, Mattia ITA FMI GAS 12 9 21
11 91 Seewer, Jeremy SUI FMS YAM 1 16 17
12 6 Paturel, Benoit FRA FFM YAM 11 6 17
13 77 Lupino, Alessandro ITA FMI BET 6 10 16
14 38 Rubini, Stephen FRA FFM HON 7 8 15
15 259 Coldenhoff, Glenn NED KNMV YAM 13 1 14
16 4 Tonus, Arnaud SUI FMS YAM 8 0 8
17 87 Brumann, Kevin SUI FMS YAM 0 7 7
18 71 Spies, Maximilian GER DMSB KTM 3 3 6
19 161 Östlund, Alvin SWE SVEMO HON 4 2 6
20 189 Bogers, Brian NED KNMV HON 0 5 5
MXGP – World Championship Classification
Pos Nr Rider Nat. Bike Total ARG SAR SUI TRE POR ESP FRA LAT GER INA INA CZE BEL FIN SWE NED TUR VIE GBR
1 61 Prado, Jorge ESP GAS 155 10
25-15		 10
25-15		 10
25-20		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
2 84 Herlings, J. NED KTM 134 1
18-22		 8
22-22		 8
15-18		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
3 959 Renaux, Maxime FRA YAM 131 8
20-12		 0
18-20		 6
22-25		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
4 3 Febvre, Romain FRA KAW 129 6
22-16		 6
10-18		 9
20-22		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
5 10 Vlaanderen, C. NED YAM 101 5
10-11		 3
20-16		 4
18-14		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
6 70 Fernandez, R. ESP HON 94 7
16-25		 5
0-10		 2
16-13		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
7 259 Coldenhoff, G. NED YAM 90 4
14-7		 9
16-25		 1
13-1		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
8 91 Seewer, Jeremy SUI YAM 79 0
4-20		 4
15-14		 5
1-16		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
9 303 Forato, A. ITA KTM 76 0
12-8		 0
13-12		 7
9-15		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
10 101 Guadagnini, M. ITA GAS 76 9
11-13		 2
11-9		 0
12-9		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
11 41 Jonass, Pauls LAT HON 56 3
15-18		 0
9-11		 0
0-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
12 92 Guillod, V. SUI HON 54 2
7-9		 0
4-3		 3
14-12		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
13 919 Watson, Ben GBR BET 51 0
9-6		 0
7-8		 0
10-11		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
14 6 Paturel, B. FRA YAM 51 0
8-10		 1
8-7		 0
11-6		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
15 32 Van doninck, B. BEL HON 50 0
13-0		 7
12-13		 0
5-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
16 189 Bogers, Brian NED HON 39 0
5-14		 0
14-1		 0
0-5		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
17 77 Lupino, A. ITA BET 28 0
0-4		 0
2-6		 0
6-10		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
18 161 Östlund, Alvin SWE HON 26 0
6-5		 0
5-4		 0
4-2		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
19 38 Rubini, S. FRA HON 15 – – – – 0
7-8		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
20 226 Koch, Tom GER KTM 11 – – 0
6-5		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
21 71 Spies, M. GER KTM 11 – – 0
3-2		 0
3-3		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
22 4 Tonus, Arnaud SUI YAM 8 – – – – 0
8-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
23 87 Brumann, Kevin SUI YAM 8 – – 0
1-0		 0
0-7		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
24 75 Roosiorg, H. EST HON 7 0
2-3		 0
0-0		 0
2-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
25 179 Poli, Joaquin ARG KAW 5 0
3-2		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
26 426 Mewse, Conrad GBR HON 4 – – – – 0
0-4		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
27 98 Poli, Agustin ARG KAW 1 0
0-1		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
28 107 van Berkel, L. NED HON 1 0
1-0		 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –