Race day of the 2025 FIM World Sidecarcross Championship penultimate round in Vesoul, France, promised to be very hot with temperatures forecast to be in the high twenties. This would guarantee a bumper crowd to support the Prunier brothers at their home Grand Prix. There was a huge volume of cars in the parking area and great anticipation of what lay ahead.
Warm up – The organisers had watered the track overnight, damping down the dust which became evident late yesterday. Lap times were a fraction down, but this was only warm-up, so it was to be expected.
Once again, the French champions were in sparkling form at the top of the times, whilst Brett Wilkinson/Joe Millard circulated at a steady pace in the top ten. Koen Hermans/Ben van den Bogaart simply took their time exploring lines and strategy to protect their lead. Second fastest however, were Daniel and Bruno Lielbardis just one tenth slower than Prunier. The Latvians could easily be a spoiler at the top of standings, taking points of the title contenders.
Race One – The tension ahead of this opener was palpable with French flags everywhere and the sun beating down. The gate dropped and it was game on into turn one. A fantastic start by the Prunier outfit took it round the outside into what looked like the lead, but they were pipped by Dan Foden/Noah Weinmann, the young British rider and his German passenger doing a great job. They stormed away for two laps holding the French champions at bay. Lap three and Prunier was in front, never to look back. These two teams kept the pressure on for the entire race, staying ahead of the chasing pack by some margin. Brett Wilkinson/Joe Millard also had a flying start, holding third place for most of the race, only losing out to the Lielbardis twins in the final three laps. They closed again on the final tour, but fourth was a brilliant result, almost taking them into the series lead. This was due to Koen Hermans/Ben van den Bogaart, who had started around sixth place, dropping back through the order with what turned out to be a radiator mounting problem.
Mike Hodges/Ryan Henderson were very much in the leading bunch from the word go, and characteristically difficult to overtake. One by one they were picked off, but it was no easy task. They were again to register a top ten finish with eighth. At one point, there were three British crews in the top five.
Davy Sanders/Jens Vincent were caught up in a huge crash off the line and eventually got away half a lap down. They were to make it through into fifteenth place and valuable points. Meanwhile, behind the leading four, a huge battle involving six outfits. If I say it involved Weiss/Schneider, Prummer/Steegmans, the Leferink brothers, Keuben/Rietman and Wijers/van Hal, you will get the picture. Lap after lap they chopped and changed, with Hermans also well in the picture until he went missing and dropped down.
Late in the race, Justin Keuben crashed out of fifth place, fortunately without serious injury, moving everyone else up.
This was a nail-biting race with the top three now within a handful of points of each other. It set up a riveting prospect for race two in the heat of Vesoul.
Race Two – With only three points splitting the top three, this was going to be an absolute blast. The Prunier brothers looked invincible, and the crowd was well and truly behind them. Once again Foden eclipsed the Prunier brothers at the start, riding round the outside and claiming the lead on the left-hander.
Mike Hodges/Ryan Henderson again impressed, pipping Wilkinson to third.
Hermans was down in seventh with the Lielbardis boys and Tim Prummer ahead of them. Davy Sanders had a better run this time, being in the mix early on, along with the Leferinks and Wijers/van Hal.The Leferink brothers were later to hit problems and drop down, being credited with seventeenth place.
At the front, Prunier made his move on lap three, pulling out a four-second advantage over Foden/Weinmann over the next few laps.
This set the tone of the race with Hermans fighting through, passing one by one until he sat ahead of Wilkinson his points rival. Once in third, he could make no more headway on Foden. With ten minutes remaining, the Lielbardis boys crashed out, bringing out yellow and medical flags. This toned down the frantic action over the whoops and jumps near the woods.
The decision was made to red flag the race after thirty minutes, and a result was declared. Prunier had done enough to win overall and claim the red plate. Wilkinson too is now very much in the hunt for the title going into the final two races in Rudersberg.
Race Report by Barry Nutley – Images courtesy of WSC