2023 French Cup | Rounds 3 & 4 Tregueux
22nd – 23rd April
Written by Damien Ethalon
Photo’s by Kaptur Photography. Purchase shots from the French Cup HERE (Click the photos to see the full album)
2023 French Cup | Rounds 3 & 4 Tregueux
22nd – 23rd April
Written by Damien Ethalon
Photo’s courtesy of Kaptur Photography. Purchase shots from the French Cup HERE (Click the photos to see the full album)
After the first weekend in Vesoul, East of France, the BMX French Cup was moving all the way to the west coast, to the city of Tregueux. The last time the BMX series stopped there was back in 2019 for a French Cup weekend.
Tregueux is a small track with quite a flat start hill, it was made for some good drag races. The Pro section is short, steep, and pretty technical. The track was in perfect shape but unfortunately once again mother nature was not going to be nice for the riders! A lot of rain all weekend and a strong wind thrown in, especially on Saturday. It felt like Vesoul all over again where day two was cancelled. After a consultation between referees and team managers the decision was made to maintain the race with the Pro section, after all it was a small one. Unfortunately, the problem came from the turns, they were very slippery and caused a lot of crashes. Needless to say, the 2023 French Cup has been a wet and windy so far in 2023!
In Elite Women, three ladies dominated the weekend and secured the podium on both days. Dutch rider and current World #6, Manon Veenstra, straight from her win in Vesoul, had another amazing weekend with a win on Saturday (after once again a fantastic pass on the last turn) followed by a second place on Sunday. It was Axelle Etienne who took her revenge on day two, claiming her first French Cup victory since 2021 as she didn’t enter any round last year. With a third place on Saturday, it was also without any doubt a great weekend for Axelle. Between these two, the queen of BMX, Mariana Pajon, had a very consistent weekend in Tregueux with a second and a third. Big Supercross track or small more traditional track, Mariana is always in the mix for sure.
Only two other girls made the main on both days, Tessa Martinez wasn’t far from the podium with a fifth and a fourth, and Swiss rider Christelle Boivin finishing eighth and seventh. To prove how stacked this Elite Women class is, girls like Mariane Beltrando and French champ, and world #8 Camille Maire didn’t make it to the main on Saturday! They had a better run to the main on Sunday finishing fifth and sixth.
Four other riders reached the main during the weekend. Charlotte Devolder is slowly, but surely, back on top with a fourth on Saturday, meanwhile, local girl Marie Favrel and Junior World Champion Lea Brindjonc got sixth and seventh on the same day. Charlotte Morot also made it back to the main with an eighth on Sunday.
Elite Women Results Day 1:
1: Manon VEENSTRA
2: Marian PAJON
3: Axelle ETIENNE
4: Charlotte DEVOLDER
5: Tessa MARTINEZ
6: Marie FAVREL
7: Léa BRINDJONC
8: Christelle BOIVIN
Elite Women Results Day 2:
1: Axelle ETIENNE
2: Manon VEENSTRA
3: Mariana PAJON
4: Tessa MARTINEZ
5: Mariane BELTRANDO
6: Camille MAIRE
7: Christelle BOIVIN
8: Charlotte MOROT
Women’s Overall Ranking After 3 Rounds:
1: Manon VEENSTRA 183pts
2: Axelle ETIENNE 160pts
3: Tessa MARTINEZ 135pts
4: Mariane BELTRANDO 133pts
5: Camille MAIRE 111pts
The Elite Men’s side of the draw had less foreign riders than in Vesoul and if Daudet, André and Mahieu were absent again one of the French fastest guys was back, Jeremy Rencurel.
And what a comeback for Jeremy it was! He was on another level on day one and won the main without any real competition. It was bad luck for Arthur Pilard, Mathis Ragot Richard and Simba Darnand who all crashed in the slippery first turn.
Pilard, on his home track bounced back the best way possible, taking the win on day two in front of Rencurel. Ragot Richard also took his revenge taking the last step of the podium! These three guys were at the top of their game all weekend long. Only two other men lined up in the main on both days. Léo Garoyan avoided the first turn pile up to get third place on Saturday and stayed consistent with a fifth on Sunday. No podiums, but a strong weekend for Eddy Clerte with a fifth and a seventh. Belgium National Champion Ruben Gommers keeps improving in this stacked Elite field with a fourth place on Saturday, while Corentin Dubois, after a very strong first straight from the outside also managed to survive the first turn chaos and grabbed a well-deserved second place on Saturday! On Sunday Théo Thouin, Thomas Jouve and the famous Amidou Mir went fast enough to reach the very coveted top eight.
Elite Men Results Day 1:
1: Jeremy RENCUREL
2: Corentin DUBOIS
3: Léo GAROYAN
4: Ruben GOMMERS
5: Eddy CLERTE
6: Mathis RAGOT RICHARD
7: Simba DARNAND
8: Arthur PILARD
Elite Men Results Day 2:
1: Arthur PILARD
2: Jeremy RENCUREL
3: Mathis RAGOT RICHARD
4: Theo THOUIN
5: Léo GAROYAN
6: Thomas JOUVE
7: Eddy CLERTE
8: Amidou MIR
Men’s Overall Ranking After 3 Rounds:
1: Arthur PILARD 198
2: Léo GAROYAN 177
3: Mathis RAGOT RICHARD 168
4: Theo THOUIN 168
5: Corentin DUBOIS 149
The next French Cup rounds will be on May 20/21 in Limoges, a brand-new track to the French Cup series. Let’s hope for some good weather this time!