Race report: Kaven Benoit and Cole Thompson find success in Moncton

With the 2015 Canadian Motosport Racing Corporation Pro National Series making it’s only visit to the East coast, both Kaven Benoit and Cole Thompson wanted to make the most out their visit to Moncton, New Brunswick. After racing on rough sand tracks for the last three weekends, Moncton also marked a welcome return to the hard-packed soil of Riverglade Raceway.

In the MX2 class, Benoit has been having an incredible season on his 2015 KTM 250 SX two-stroke machine, and this past weekend in Moncton he continued his winning ways. With a six moto win streak on the line, Benoit raced to the front of the pack quickly in both motos and refused to show any weakness. Lap after lap, he rode smooth to distance himself from the rest of the pack, eventually winning both motos and his fourth overall victory in a row.

“I always look forward to coming to tracks like Moncton because people think that I’m going to struggle because of the dirt and my two-stroke,” said Benoit. “While it’s not easy to ride my bike in these types of conditions, I do enjoy it and my bike worked great today. This season is definitely a lot less stressful than last season, but I do want to get this title done this coming weekend in front of my home fans. I’m really looking forward to Round 9 in Ulverton and I hope I can put on a great show.”

A rider with something to prove

Thompson was entering Round 8 as a rider with something to prove in the final few rounds of the series. Having spent the last few weekends riding very well but not getting the results that he wanted, Thompson was happy to be in Moncton and at a track that resembles the one he has at home. His great style and smooth throttle control were put on display on the rutted Moncton track as he lead a large portion of the first MX1 moto.

After a late moto mistake allowed Colton Facciotti to sneak by for the win, Thompson regrouped and came back strong in Moto 2, battling for the lead throughout the long moto. In the end, Thompson would end up second overall in the MX1 class and he hopes to carry this momentum into Round 9 next weekend in Ulverton.

“I felt great today and I really think that I could’ve won both motos,” said Thompson. “I really like this track and it suited me well; I just made a small mistake in the first moto and Colton went by. Then in Moto 2, I just couldn’t find a way around the two leaders and had to settle for third. But, I will take it and hopefully I can continue this next weekend. I was really happy with how aggressive I was today, we now have four motos remaining and I want to win them all.”

Team manager Jean-Sébastien Roy was extremely happy with how his riders performed at Round 8 in Moncton.

“Obviously, Kaven is in control in the MX2 class and he continues to amaze me with how well he rides that KTM 250 SX two-stroke,” said Roy. “However, he really impressed me today with how aggressive he rode. He really could’ve won both motos and I thought his drive and speed were both very good today. We now have two rounds remaining and I hope we can continue to find our way to the top step of the podium.”