Vialle and Victory

21-year-old Tom Vialle is very much a young man who is heading for big things in the sport. Already an MX2 World Champion in 2020, and with 15 Grand Prix victories, he is making his way up the list of very good Grand Prix riders.

Last weekend in Argentina the Frenchman scored his first Grand Prix victory of 2022 and showed Jago Geerts that his season will be as tough as it has always been, as the young Belgian and the KTM rider will once again go head-to-head this year.

The season started a little slow for Vialle, with his British GP performance solid, but not overwhelming. A 2-3 scoreline gave him second overall behind Red Bull GasGas Factory rider Simon Langenfelder, but he did feel something was missing.

“Not a bad result to start the season,” Vialle said. “Although, I was a bit disappointed with the crash at the end of the second race while trying for the win. If we consider that I’ve only been riding a month and a half, and we are fine-tuning the new race bike then this was a good day. It was nice to be at the front and it was a bit of a surprise to have that good rhythm. A good GP for the confidence. Mantova next week and a track where we race a lot. We know it well and we will be ready.

A week later in Mantova, that little crash in England seemed like nothing as Vialle was involved in a horrible crash and saw him fail to score any points in the second race. Again, a mistake cost him another GP win as he led the second race after a second-place finish in the opening heat.

“A strange weekend. It started well with second place on Saturday, so I had a good place in the gate. The first race was okay and second again was good, but I wasn’t that happy with my riding. We changed the bike a bit for the second race, and I felt better. I was leading but the jump take-off had been watered and it was still early in the race. It was a huge crash! I was very lucky. I’m thankful for that. We have Argentina next and a bit of time now to train and to continue to improve.”

It all came together thought for Vialle in Argentina last weekend, when he put together a 2-1 finish, to win his 15^th Grand Prix, just ahead of main rival Geerts, who scored the same results, but 1-2, with the poorer second race costing the Belgian his second overall win in three rounds.

“A nice weekend and I really wanted to win that second race, but it was very fast and tough out there. I wanted to make the passes quickly and it worked out I had to stay focussed. I’m getting back to speed and physically I’m strong after a difficult winter of preparation. The season is getting going for me now. We have another 17 GPs ahead. I want to thank the whole team for the job at this GP. We have an amazing race bike.”

And now, we head to Portugal, a circuit that will suit the little Frenchman and hopefully see his battles with Jago Geerts light up the Agueda circuit. Still 26 points off the red plate of Geerts, you just know Vialle will be trying to finish with as many points as possible and hopefully keep the Yamaha rider off the top step of the podium.

Photo Copyright: Ray Archer