The MXGP World Championship traveled last weekend to Lommel, in Belgium, to compete in the Flanders GP, the first of the three in the month of August and also the start of the countdown to the end of the championship. Guillem Farrés arrived at the Lommel arena in first position overall after his victory in the Czech Republic, where he managed to increase his lead.
The Triumph rider was going to find a different challenge than usual in Lommel. The Belgian route is quite a challenge precisely because of the sand, and the more than just potholes, holes, which make it one of the hardest and most complex tracks of the entire season. Even so, Farrés did not shrink in the slightest and from the first moment he was among the best.
In fact, he finished third in qualifying practice on Saturday, and a few hours later he repeated his place in the qualifying race in which he did not have an easy time. And after a bad start, Guillem had to start making a comeback and when he was already in the top 5 he suffered a fall. After recomposing himself he managed to reach that great third place.
On Sunday things were going to be different. Already in the first lap of the first race he managed to take the lead after making several overtakes. From that moment on, he began to carry the burden of the test, although Lommel is always unpredictable and after a couple of scares he ended up being caught and overtaken, first by his teammate Camden McLellan and later by Simon Längenfelder.
Lommel has been the toughest challenge of the season and Farrés has overcome it with flying colors
The second moto somewhat followed a similar pattern, with the Triumph rider starting perfectly, and on this occasion managing to cross the holeshot line first. From that moment on, Farrés was going to be in charge of setting the pace for his rivals. Although he tried to get rid of all of them, on lap seven Längenfelder launched an attack that ended up with the Spaniard off the track, and also finding himself overtaken by McLellan.
Despite the unforeseen event, Farrés brought out all his talent on the sand of Lommel and, far from rushing, he began to climb behind McLellan’s wheel to reach Längenfelder himself, which Farrés passed to cross in second position. Thanks to the sum of results, the Spaniard achieved a creditable second position and, as an extra, increased the advantage in the general classification with respect to Sacha Coenen, who was much more discreet in Belgium.
Now Farrés has a 47-point advantage over the KTM rider before the only rest weekend they will have in MXGP in the month of August, and after three consecutive weeks competing. As it could not be otherwise, after finishing the GP Farrés was satisfied to have overcome in this way what for everyone is the hardest weekend of the year:
“I went very badly again in the qualifying round on Saturday and had to come back. A small crash when I was already in the top 5 made it even a little more difficult, but I knew how to stay calm and recover to 3rd. Today, Sunday has been very hard, for a reason it is considered one of the most difficult Grand Prix of the entire year. Super demanding circuit and high temperatures. I managed to place first in the first race, but a very bad lap in the middle of the round made me go down to third. In the second I was able to get the holeshot and lead again, they passed me and I placed third, but I felt strong, I was able to push and regain second place to also finish second overall. I am very satisfied with the weekend and already thinking about Sweden.”
