Not only did Kay de Wolf cruise to an emphatic win on Saturday during qualifying, but he then laid on a textbook performance to take victory Sunday’s opening moto at the intu Xanadú-Arroyomolinos in Spain.
In the second moto, de Wolf leapfrogged through the top positions from fourth on the opening lap, into the lead on lap four with a series of incredible overtakes. It was only at the mid point of the race that, while briefly tagging wheels with Andrea Adamo, that #74 slipped back to second.
Fellow Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing rider Lucas Coenen locked in solid third and fourth place finishes across both motos, placing him fourth overall at the end of the weekend. By his own admission Coenen had struggled to get his machine working in his favour on the deep rutted Spanish soil, nonetheless Coenen showed impressive pace while battling with rival Simon Längenfelder throughout the second moto. At the final flag Coenen concluded the weekend in fourth overall – bumping himself up into fourth in the championship also.
The FIM World Motocross Championship now looks ahead to a challenging sand round, at MXGP of Sardinia at Riola Sardo, on the 7th of April.
#74 – Kay de Wolf: “I worked really hard for the result this weekend – especially in the second moto. Qualifying went really great on Saturday with a dominant win, but the pace has been really fast on Sunday. I got shuffled back to around sixth I think at the start of the first moto, but just tried to stay calm and work my way back to the front. It felt amazing to get back to back wins after Argentina! Then at the start of the second moto I had to let Andrea by; he was on really good form. In the last few laps I wanted to push and catch him – but I was making way too many mistakes. The track was not allowing me to be as fast as I wanted! It was tough but we made it happen anyway! I can’t thank the team enough – I worked really hard for these results, so it’s a pleasure to be able to secure the championship points in return. I’m looking forward to Sardina now for sure!”
#96 – Lucas Coenen: “The weekend was not quite as planned – but not bad either. Saturday warm up was good, but I struggled with the bike set-up a little. Then in the qualifying race I came from the back and finished P4. On Sunday, the warm up went great, but at the first moto I struggled with the start. I tried my best, and finished third in the end. I was trying to battle Simon (Längenfelder) – but it was difficult to pass. In the second moto, I messed up my start, so then again I tried to come back as fast as possible. I made some good laps, but I only finished fourth. I missed out on the podium – which I’m mad about! Now we have some work to do ahead of Sardinia – and then we will fight again!”
Results – 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship, Round Two:
MX2 – Overall
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 47pts; 2. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 42pts; 3. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 40pts… 4. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 38pts; 5. Liam Everts (KTM) 33pts; 8. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 23pts; 9. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 22pts
MX2 – Moto One
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:35.021; 2. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 35:38.352; 3. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 35:39.878… 4. Liam Everts (KTM) 35:40.678; 6. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 36:09.013; 9. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 36:23.387; 12. Sacha Coenen (KTM); 36:46.009
MX2 – Moto Two
1. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 35:28.621; 2. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:30.365; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 35:31.380… 4. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 35:32.113; 6. Liam Everts (KTM) 35:59.153; 8. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 36:08.966; 10. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 36:27.620
MX2 – Standings
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 113pts; 2. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 101pts; 3. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 82pts; 4. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 75 pts; 7. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 59pts; 8. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 53pts; 12. Liam Everts (KTM) 41pts