Without question, last weekend’s Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations proved one thing, Team France is a special group of riders and as we saw in their domination from 2014 until 2018, their three riders stand out as a team and their preparation is always first class.
Renaux who went 1-1-3 for the weekend, winning the Saturday Open RAM Qualifying Race and then the MX2/Open race from his countryman Tom Vialle, before closing out his weekend with a solid third place proved to be the man of the weekend.
“This weekend has been amazing,” Renaux said. “I went first and third in my races and won the Qualifying Race yesterday, so I really helped the team reach the top step along with my teammates, who were also really strong today. Both of them did a great job. I really believed we were the best team today. I am just happy that we could put it together because it’s never easy, especially with the pressure from the French crowd. But it was really amazing! I have never seen so many people in one place, and to have everyone singing and cheering like this, it was really emotional.”
Vialle racing the MX2 class returned to Europe after a tough 2023 in America and again showed, why many consider him the best 250cc rider in the World. The runner-up spot in the Open/MX2 race made sure France went into the final race, just needing their riders to actually finish inside the top ten.
“I had a great weekend, and I was happy to be back in Europe,” Vialle said. “Ernee is a track I really like. I won the Qualifying race, but the first race wasn’t so easy. I couldn’t get that comfortable because it was pretty slippery and the second one was way better. The fans were amazing. We came here to win, and we did it.”
And finally, Febvre, the man who won more Grand Prix’s in 2023 than anyone else and started the weekend with a race win on Saturday and then a near perfect second place finish in the opening race of Sunday. Always dependable, Febvre was disappointed not going 1-1, but still helped Team France to victory.
"It's unbelievable to win again,” Febvre said. “My fourth Nations and my fourth victory. I wasn't completely comfortable with the track yesterday in Qualifying, but I knew that I had the ability to turn it round today. I took a good start - second to Prado - in the first race and then it was like a GP race with me chasing him down. He passed me back near the end and the fight was on; I knew I had to do something, and I passed him again with two laps to go. Tom (Vialle) did more than we could expect to finish second in total to Maxime (Renaux) in the second race, so we just had to ride it home in the final moto. Each of us won in our class and we had a big gap to second. I'm so happy for the fans who were behind us so strongly all day; we rode as a team ... and we won as a team!"
So now, the French will carry the numbers one, two and three into Matterley Basin in 2024, when the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations adds another chapter in its already legendary status.
