Benjamin Coisy in Open and Marvin Musquin in 125, the two leaders of the French Championship, wouldn’t have missed this stage for the world. They were right to attend as they put on a magnificent show that amazed the thousands of spectators present on Saturday night. And they won their respective finals. Here’s a look back at an exciting weekend.
Palais des Expositions, Saturday, October 21, 7 PM: hundreds of people are already waiting for several minutes for the doors to open to attend this evening of nearly four hours.
The venue fills up quickly. As time passes, spectators stomp their feet more and more. At 8:30 PM, the announcer states there will be a slight delay as some of the audience is still outside. Inside, the crowd becomes more vocal, demanding the arrival of the riders who begin revving their engines and playing with the throttles before heading onto the track.
8:40 PM, the first competitors take their places on the starting line amidst deafening noise. The races are about to begin: it’s the first semi-final of the 125. As riders set off for six minutes of laps on the rugged track, spectators cheer the competitors with loud cheers and air horns.
Falls, jumps, and overtakes are on the agenda throughout the night, with riders further enlivening the venue by spinning their motorcycles on the big bump. The four semi-finals follow one another, and the audience provides a fabulous atmosphere in the stands, matching the performance on the track. The best riders quickly lead their groups and easily qualify for the finals.
With the first races done, three motorcyclists enter for the freestyle show, delivering entertainment for 15 minutes. The announcer keeps the atmosphere lively, urging the crowd to stand up if they want to see a “back flip.” Spectators rise, a rider takes off and performs his spin, the venue erupts.
The races resume with the hope races in both categories, followed by the two finals.
10:50 PM, the 125 final begins. Though he led since the start, number 64, Khounsith Vongsana (KTM), falls in the last lap, losing the victory. Marvin Musquin (Kawasaki), who was initially battling for second place with Maxime Lesage (Honda), takes advantage of the opportunity and clinches first place.
In the second final, Open category, the championship leader, Benjamin Coisy (Honda), bib 979, avoids the same mistake, dominates his race, and secures victory ahead of Alexandre Rouis (Yamaha), Manuel Rivas (Honda), and Julien Vanni (KTM).
The audience does not miss the chance to applaud the artists and salute the winners. They are won over.
After a second freestyle intermission that once again electrifies the already heated atmosphere, the superfinal prepares to commence. The announcer presents the 14 pilots participating in these 10 minutes of madness. Each one receives loud applause from the thrilled crowd.
Though they started off in the top positions, Maxime Lesage (125) and Alexandre Rouis (Open) fall and quickly have to give up all hopes of victory. Meanwhile, Benjamin Coisy doesn’t hesitate and overtakes Marvin Musquin to soar to victory. Julien Vanni takes third place, clearly relieved that it’s over.
<img10821|left> 12:30 AM, the audience leaves the venue thrilled, while some people wait for the final podium. It was a beautiful evening coming to an end, some people with stars in their eyes, others eagerly awaiting the next day to prove themselves once again and deliver an even better performance. Looking forward to tomorrow…
Reactions:
Benjamin Coisy: I prepared to win the two finals. I had a good start and then managed it. It was important to have a good result as these are the first events. The smoke in the superfinal? I didn’t see it; I was told afterwards. It’s good, spared me some stress.
Marvin Musquin: I won the 125 final. I’m very happy because I thought I’d finish second. Khounsith (Vongsana) made a mistake, and I seized the chance. The superfinal, my second place is an excellent result. The atmosphere? It’s nice. It’s big, and the audience is great. I hope there will be a crowd tomorrow (Sunday – editor’s note) to cheer us on.
Julien Vanni: I’m happy. In Marseille, I wasn’t in contention. Today, I proved that I have what it takes to be at the front. It was a great evening. I hope to repeat the same performance tomorrow (Sunday – editor’s note).
Results:
NB: For each semi-final, the top six qualify for the final. The others go to the hope round.
In the hope round, the top three qualify for the final of their category.
In the final, the top seven from each category qualify for the superfinal.
1st Semi-final 125:
-1/ 525 Marvin Musquin (Kawasaki)
-2/ 112 Maxime Lesage (Honda)
-3/ 21 Timothy Roux (Yamaha)
2nd Semi-final 125:
-1/ 64 Khounsith Vongsana (KTM)
-2/ 47 Cédric Soubeyras (Yamaha)
-3/ 33 Loic Rombault (Kawasaki)
1st Semi-final Open:
-1/ 979 Benjamin Coisy (Honda)
-2/ 69 Manuel Rivas (Honda)
-3/ 32 Julien Vanni (KTM)
2nd Semi-final Open:
-1/ 29 Alexandre Rouis (Yamaha)
-2/ 111 David Degli-Esposti (Suzuki)
-3/ 174 Vincent Berthome (KTM)
Final 125:
-1/ 525 Marvin Musquin (Kawasaki)
-2/ 112 Maxime Lesage (Honda)
-3/ 47 Cédric Soubeyras (Yamaha)
Final Open:
-1/ 979 Benjamin Coisy (Honda)
-2/ 29 Alexandre Rouis (Yamaha)
-3/ 69 Manuel Rivas (Honda)
-4/ 32 Julien Vanni (KTM)
Superfinal:
-1/ 979 Benjamin Coisy (Honda)
-2/ 525 Marvin Musquin (Kawasaki)
-3/ 32 Julien Vanni (KTM)
