A freak incident three laps from the end of the final race cost Romain Febvre and Team France the podium in the 2024 FIM Motocross of Nations – the annual world championship for national teams – at Matterley Basin in southern England.
The Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP leader had ridden an inspired opening race to advance from seventh to third, including a pulsating pass on the newly-crowned world champion, and was rapidly closing down the rider in second until he had to discard his goggles for the final laps and suffered eye damage after taking wet roost in the face. Putting national pride first he bravely lined up for the deciding moto and put in another sparkling performance to push forward from ninth to sixth, a position which would ensure that the French team would mount the podium. His vision impaired by the effort he encountered ever greater difficulty in seeing the ruts and three laps from the end struck his chest on the handlebars as he got out-of-shape. The resultant breathing difficulties forced him to pull off the track to recover; the misfortune relegated Team France to fifth in the final team classification.
Romain Febvre: ” In the first race I had a problem with my goggles, just like many riders, but I didn’t want to risk losing positions by stopping to take new ones! Even without goggles I was faster than Tomac in second and I came right behind him but I took dirt in my eyes and had some troubles with my vision, especially my right eye. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to race the final moto but after the sighting lap I decided to try. I had a good start and a good speed, but after twenty minutes I started to have more problems with my vision and couldn’t see the ruts clearly; then three laps from the end I slid before a jump and nearly went over the bars. I hit the handlebar with my chest; I just couldn’t breathe so I had to stop to recover. Before this crash we were heading for the podium so of course I am disappointed; all three of us in the team had our ups-and-downs today so it’s difficult to accept this result.”
Jeremy Seewer again proved the excellence of the Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP’s KX450-SR with two superb top-three starts and the Swiss contested two fierce leaderboard battles to claim fifth in the MXGP class and lead his nation to ninth in the team classification.
Jeremy Seewer: “It was a solid performance for my final race of the season. My KX450-SR gave me another two top-three starts and I just tried to enjoy myself as much as possible. We (Switzerland) finished ninth, which is not bad for a small country, but we were not fighting for the podium so I didn’t go crazy and just rode two smart races; I knew the track could bite hard so I rode a solid rhythm and concentrated on making no mistakes.”
Great Britain’s Tommy Searle, racing against the world championship runners for the first time in five years, put in a highly-commendable performance on his Dirt Store Kawasaki to finish twelfth overall in the premier MXGP class.
Photocredits Full Spectrum Media
