The new FIM world championship track at Samota-Sumbawa was the well-received host for the Grand Prix of Indonesia and the twelfth round of the 2022 MXGP series. Tom Vialle used his factory KTM 250 SX-F to take the overall win with a 1-1, and resumes control of the MX2 standings.
MXGP was finally able to make it back to a ‘hotspot’ of appreciation for the sport with the first lengthy trip to Asia and the Indonesian islands in three years. A hilly, well prepared and soft, loamy course at Samota-Sumbawa awaited the paddock after numerous flights to arrive to West Nusa Tenggara, located east of the island of Lombok.
Tom Vialle was motivated to hunt for more podium gains after his second moto disappointment in Germany two weeks ago. The Frenchman quickly acclimatised to the climate and conserved his energy in the wake of the trip from Europe. He was fastest in Timed Practice and rode to Pole Position in the Qualification Heat on Saturday for the 1st pick in the gate.
A reduced entry list created plenty of track space and Vialle counted on his strong starts to help forge his race card. He won the opening moto by a comfortable distance – almost nine seconds – and then faced some pressure from Simon Laengenfelder in the second race but was able to defeat the German. The 1-1 was his third of 2022. He now has a 4-point lead in the MX2 championship.
MXGP breaks for two weekends to recover and reset for the run-in to the end of the season. The Grand Prix of Czech Republic will constitute round thirteen and will be held at the traditional site of Loket on July 16-17.
Tom Vialle, 1st and 1st for 1st overall in MX2: “A great weekend and I had a great feeling on the track. The first moto was pretty comfortable after that start and I could lead all the way. In the second one I passed Simon but then made a mistake on a jump and ran off the track. When he then crashed I could get him back. The track was sketchier later in the moto with a lot of bumps on the take-offs. It was not so easy to take the flow but I’m really happy with the results and to have the red plate again. The title fight will be tight until the end but I’m ready to go for it.”
Results MX2 Indonesia 2022
1. Tom Vialle (FRA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 1-1
2. Simon Laegenfelder (GER), GASGAS, 3-2
3. Thibault Benistant (FRA), Yamaha, 4-3
4. Jago Geerts (BEL), Yamaha, 2-5
5. Andrea Adamo (ITA), GASGAS, 7-4
Standings MX2 2022 after 12 of 19 rounds
1. Tom Vialle, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 502 points
2. Jago Geerts, 498
3. Simon Laengenfelder, 395
4. Kevin Horgmo, 356
5. Mikkel Haarup, 332