The FIM Motocross World Championship comes back for the twelfth round of the 2023 series for the MXGP of Czech Republic. The famous circuit of Loket will host a MXGP Grand Prix for the 26th time and will mark the return of the MXGP Paddock in Europe after the doubleheader in Indonesia.
Loket has been present in the MXGP Calendar since 1995 when Joel Smets won the first edition. Since then, many legendary riders raced on the circuit such as Stefan Everts who won 3 times, Mickael Pichon, also 3-times winner in the early 2000s and of course the one who won the most with 4 GP wins, Antonio Cairoli. Several riders still in activity have also been victorious such as Red Plate Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado who won twice in MX2 (2018,2019) and once in MXGP in 2021. Kawasaki Racing Team’s Romain Febvre also won here in 2015 and 2019 in MXGP as well as Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team’s Jeremy Seewer who won last year’s Grand Prix.
The MXGP of Czech Republic will also host the finals of the EMX65 and EMX85, the unique round of the EMX2T and two rounds of the Junior e-Motocross Series, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.
The MXGP of Czech Republic marked the 13th stop of the 2022 season and saw Jeremy Seewer getting the best out of Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team’s Maxime Renaux second and Team HRC’s Tim Gajser third last year.
This year Grand Prix will be special as it is marking the long-awaited return of 2022 Motocross World Champion Tim Gajser to the competition after getting injured in pre-season. The comeback of the defending Champion will be a huge excitement of his own for every motocross fans. All eyes will be turn on him to see how he feels on the bike and if he can deliver something special during the weekend.
Leader in the Championship by more than 100 points, Jorge Prado continues his impressive campaign with another podium in Lombok-Indonesia as he also extended his lead in the Championship thanks to his win in the RAM Qualifying Race. Prado has led laps in all but the MXGP of Spain this season and is a model of consistency which will make it even harder for his rivals to catch him up. Prado has won three times in Loket, which will definitely be an added advantage for the Red Plate.
Romain Febvre, 2nd in the Championship is unstoppable at the moment with a back-to-back win in Sumbawa and Lombok and has the momentum with him as he managed to get on top and coming out victorious of the great battles with Prado, Seewer and Coldennhoff over the last couple of Grand Prix. The Frenchman made it known that he was here to win and there is no doubt that he is a big threat every time the starting gates drop. This weekend will be another good chance to win on a circuit where he already won twice.
Gaining a place in the Championship with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings not taking part in Indonesia, Team HRC’s Rubén Fernández has not been in the best form in Indonesia compared to his usual results as he finished 5th and 6th overall. These results are good but riders behind him such as Seewer and Coldenhoff picked up important points in the meantime to close the gap with the Spanish rider. There is no doubt that now back in Europe with his teammate Tim Gajser also returning to the competition, Fernandez will give all he has to maintain this 3rd position in the Championship.
4th in the Championship, we find Jeremy Seewer who comes back in Europe with a podium in Sumbawa-Indonesia and a 4th place in Lombok-Indonesia which places him in the best position to attack the rest of the season from an advantageous position. The Swiss has now found the formula to be consistently riding at the front with a GP win and good results over the last 5 Grand Prix. One thing is sure is that the winner of the 2022 MXGP of Czech Republic will come back to Loket to win again.
His Teammate Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team’s Glenn Coldenhoff is another one with a newly-found confidence that saw him getting 2 podiums over the last 4 GPs and showed incredible speed. His starts are on point too, which mean that he is able to fight for the win more often than not. Coldenhoff is 5th in the Championship only 25 and 24 points adrift from Fernandez and Seewer respectively which is a good indicator of where he could be in a few GPs if he keeps that consistency.
Jeffrey Herlings is 6th in the Championship which makes sense given that he has been out now for virtually 3 GPs counting Germany where he got injured. He will not be back in Loket as he is still in recovery.
Team Gebben Van Venroy Yamaha Racing’s Calvin Vlaanderen is still 7th with a good margin. Vlaanderen comes to Loket on the back of a 7th place overall in Lombok-Indonesia. He struggled with sickness during his time in Indonesia and will have used this time off to regroup for Czech Republic. However his consistency this season speaks for itself with 100% of top 10 which shows how prepared he is for all type of tracks and conditions.
In 8th place is the Italian SM Action Racing Team Yuasa Battery MXGP’s Alberto Forato who finished 8th in Lombok-Indonesia despite feeling unwell over the weekend, demonstrating his aptitudes to perform no matter what conditions. Forato is a rider that is on the rise as he showed dazzling flashes over the last GPs. We can only anticipate that he will get closer and closer to podium finishes when the young rider will get everything aligned.
Ship to Cycle Honda SR Motoblouz’s Valentin Guillod keeps showing his talent as the season goes. Freshly French Motocross Champion, the Swiss has never been that confident and it shows in his performances. He equalled his season-best finish in Lombok-Indonesia with a 6th overall and rode consistently well into the top 10. Guillod seemed to get faster as we now see him riding more often at the front of the pack.
Championship Standings
1. Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 562 points;
2. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 459 p.;
3. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 415 p.;
4. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 414 p.;
5. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, YAM), 390 p.;
6. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 386 p.;
7. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 357 p.;
8. Alberto Forato (ITA, KTM), 285 p.;
9. Valentin Guillod (SUI, HON), 265 p.;
10. Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, GAS), 203 p.;
2022 MXGP of Czech Republic – MXGP Top 3:
- Jeremy Seewer
- Maxime Renaux
- Tim Gajser
Last year, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team’s Jago Geerts came out victorious in Loket for the first time of his career in front of teammate Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team’s Thibault Benistant and Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Simon Laengenfelder.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Andrea Adamo is the MX2 Red Plate and has increased his lead over his closest rivals after the MNC MXGP of Lombok-Indonesia. He managed to get the 2nd place overall and despite some falls he fought back to deliver a leader-type performance. Adamo is a model of consistency with a GP win and 7 podiums even though he is still chasing after that race win that escaped him so far. Adamo has all the attributes to win races and GPs which is also what KTM Factory Racing thinks as he recently extended his contract with the factory team. Adamo will be eager to show them that he is the man who can win the MX2 Championship, and this will start with Loket.
Thibault Benistant who is 2nd in the Championship did not get the results expected at the last GP with a 9thoverall. Fighting the weather and sickness the French rider had to do damage control and get as much points as he could possibly get in these conditions. He has lost some ground in the Championship as riders behind him are also performing very well. However Benistant demonstrated few time this season that he can switch everything on and deliver winning-worthy performances which could be the case in Loket.
Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Kay de Wolf is still 3rd and is getting back his rhythm and feelings as he got the 6th overall. After not being 100% for the 3 GPs, de Wolf will have done everything to get fitter since Indonesia and give himself the best chances to win races and GPs to get back up in the Championship standings.
Dominant winner in Lombok-Indonesia with a hat-trick, Jago Geerts is back on top after his wrist injury in France. He got a podium and a win during the Indonesian rounds which sent a threatening message to the other competitors. The Belgian is determined to win his first MX2 World Championship after getting so close on numerous occasions. Geerts got momentum and with his flow and speed back on track, and it is a track that he likes as he won in Loket last year which does make him one of the favourites this weekend.
5th in the Championship, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Liam Everts seemed to have unlocked his potential and serenity since his GP win in Germany. The young Belgian looks comfortable on the bike and very fast. His 5th place in Lombok showed that he was able to keep getting good points when not everything went his way which indicates a good maturity.
Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Roan Van de Moosdijk is still 6th but rode superbly in Lombok where he was at the front for many laps during the weekend. He unfortunately had to settled for 4th in the end just outside the podium. If Van De Moosdijk keeps on this dynamic and speed, he will definitely grab more podiums this season and Loket will already be a good indicator of that.
Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Lucas Coenen couldn’t confirm his sweeping victory on Sumbawa-Indonesia as the young Belgian felt unwell during the weekend in Lombok-Indonesia. L.Coenen still managed a 7th place overall and proved that he can still get the job done when he is not 100%. His speed is well known and it will be interesting to see if he can reproduce the dazzling performance of Sumbawa-Indonesia in Czech Republic. One thing is sure is that he now knows that he can win GPs when everything goes his way.
Simon Längenfelder comes back to Europe after getting two overseas GPs under his belt and one podium in Lombok-Indonesia, following his injury after Spain. The German displayed impressive speed and stamina under the scorching Indonesian heat to get himself over the line in 3rd position overall. With that second podium reached, Längenfelder can now calmly come to Loket where he performed well last year, with plenty of confidence as he will be fitter, stronger and faster this weekend.
After a good 6th place overall in Sumbawa-Indonesia, F&H Kawasaki Racing Team’s Kevin Horgmo could not confirm and finished 10th place in Lombok-Indonesia. He is still 9th in the Championship as he alternated between good and bad over the last GPs. The Norwegian will want to come back to his usual consistency that saw him getting great results this season.
TEM JP253 KTM Racing Team’s Jan Pancar is the 10th in the Championship and delivered great performances in the last 3 GPs with 3 top 10s, including an 8th overall in Lombok-Indonesia. Pancar is a force of resilience as he showed an impressive recovery in race one in Lombok. The Slovenian displays composure in his ridings which will serve him well for the rest of the season.
Championship Standings
1. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 488 points;
2. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 462 p.;
3. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 452 p.;
4. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 441 p.;
5. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), 420 p.;
6. Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, HUS), 417 p.;
7. Lucas Coenen (BEL, HUS), 346 p.;
8. Simon Laengenfelder (GER, GAS), 341 p.;
9. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KAW), 291 p.;
10. Jan Pancar (SLO, KTM), 242 p.;
2022 MXGP of Czech Republic – MX2 Top 3:
- Jago Geerts
- Thibault Benistant
- Simon Längenfelder
TIMETABLE
SATURDAY: 07:00 EMX2T Free Practice/Qualifying Group 1 , 07:55 EMX85 Free Practice, 08:20 EMX2T Free Practice/Qualifying Group 2, 09:15 MXE Time Practice, 09:30 EMX65 Free Practice, 09:55 EMX85 Qualifying Practice, 10:30 MX2 Free Practice, 11:00 MXGP Free Practice, 11:50 EMX65 Qualifying Practice, 12:35 MXE Race 1, 13:10 EMX2T Race 1, 13:45 MX2 Time Practice, 14:20 MXGP Time Practice, 15:15 EMX65 Race 1, 15:50 EMX85 Race 1, 16:35 MX2 RAM Qualifying Race, 17:20 MXGP RAM Qualifying Race, 18:05 MXE Race 2
SUNDAY: 08:40 EMX2T Race 2, 09:20 MXE Time Practice, 09:55 EMX85 Race 2, 10:25 MX2 Warm-up, 10:45 MXGP Warm-up, 11:30 EMX65 Race 2, 12:40 MXE Race 1, 13:15 MX2 Race 1, 14:15 MXGP Race 1, 15:30 MXE Race 2, 16:10 MX2 Race 2, 17:10 MXGP Race 2.
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