Bonacorsi Battles to 10th at Penultimate Round of MXGP in China
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP’s Andrea Bonacorsi has placed 10th overall at the MXGP of China. An unfortunate crash in Race One, due to being on the receiving end of an aggressive pass, resulted in a 12th-place finish. However, in Race Two, the Italian dug deep for a hard-fought seventh. For Maxime Renaux, a solid sixth in Race One was a great start to the day but a heavy first-turn fall in Race Two ruled him out of the running. The Frenchman placed 12th overall on the day.
Hot and humid conditions added to the challenge of the high-speed, dry, and rough Shanghai circuit at the penultimate round of MXGP 2024. The wide and fast race track offered multiple lines but little in the way to separate riders, which highlighted the need for executing perfect starts.
Frustratingly, Bonacorsi wasn’t quite able to get the start he needed to run up front in Race One. Then, as the 21-year-old began closing in on the top 10, Tim Gajser made an aggressive pass, which put both riders on the ground with damaged machinery. After dropping to 17th as a result of the collision, Bona regrouped and worked his way up to 12th by the end of the race.
With a much-improved start in Race Two, Bonacorsi moved into seventh by lap three and then began to work on closing in on the top five. However, as the race continued, the humidity took its toll on the YZ450FM racer and he was forced to ease his pace. But having built up a comfortable gap over the rest of the field, Bonacorsi held on to seventh for 10th overall to maintain 11th in the Championship Standings, just two points from 10th.
One week after securing an impressive fifth overall at the MXGP of Turkey, Renaux carried that speed and momentum into the penultimate round of the series. From ninth on lap one in the first race of the day, the former MX2 World Champion put in a mid-race charge to move up to sixth and then chased Glenn Coldenhoff across the finish line to narrowly miss out on a top-five finish. That result was the highlight of Renaux’s day however, as a first-turn crash in Race Two ended his day early. Placing 12th overall, the 24-year-old remains 18th in the Championship Standings.
Up next for the team is the final round of the season at a new venue for MXGP, the Circuito Motor Ranch in Cozar, Spain. The MXGP of Castilla la Mancha hosts the 20th event of the 2024 calendar with both riders still in position to move up the Championship Standings.
Andrea Bonacorsi
10th MXGP of China, 23-points
11th MXGP Championship Standings, 317-points
“With the travel and the jet lag it was quite a tough morning, but by the races I felt pretty good. In Race One, I was just outside the top 10, and then Tim Gajser block passed me and we both went down. That was a real shame as it damaged my bike a little but I was able to bring it home in 12th. In the second race my start was good and I pushed hard to get into eighth. Then a couple of laps later I moved into seventh. I felt good and I was closing in on the leaders but then the humidity really got to me. I was able to keep my position though so that was good, and now it’s on to Spain and then the Nations to finish the season off.”
Maxime Renaux
12th MXGP of China, 15-points
18th MXGP Championship Standings, 151-points
“Today in the first race I didn’t get a great start but moved up to sixth pretty quickly. I did have a small crash but got up as fast as I could and held on to sixth to the end. Then in Race Two I crashed with a couple of other riders and got ridden over. Besides a few grazes I’m ok and I’m looking forward to Spain in two weeks’ time.”
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