In a strategic move to build a strong foundation for the future, Yamaha Motor Europe announces the restructuring of its operations in the FIM Motocross World Championship for the 2024 season and beyond.
Starting in 2024, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team will be based in Genk, Belgium and will be managed by the highly experienced Hans Corvers. With an impressive track record of success, including 68 race wins, 99 podium finishes, 35 Grand Prix victories, and the MX2 world title with Maxime Renaux in 2021, Corvers will enter his 28th year with Yamaha at the helm of the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP team.
Both the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP and MX2 teams will field three riders. Leading Yamaha’s premier class efforts will be long-time Yamaha rider Maxime Renaux. Renaux will be joined on the gate by Jago Geerts, who steps up from MX2 to write the next chapter in his career, and Calvin Vlaanderen, the best performing satellite rider in MXGP who has earned a well-deserved opportunity to race with factory support.
In the MX2 category, the Hutten Metaal Yamaha Official EMX250 Team will step up to the World Championship in 2024 as the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team. Since its debut as an official Yamaha team in 2020, the Wim Hutten managed outfit has celebrated significant success, including 18 race wins, 24 podium finishes, and EMX250 titles with Thibault Benistant in 2020, Rick Elzinga in 2022, and Andrea Bonacorsi in 2023.
Yamaha and the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 Team have retained Thibault Benistant and Rick Elzinga for 2024 and will add to their line up this year’s EMX250 Champion, Bonacorsi, as he takes the next step up the Yamaha Racing pyramid.
This restructuring is designed to strengthen Yamaha Motor Europe’s presence in the FIM Motocross World Championship by providing a fresh platform to fully maximize the potential of Yamaha’s MXGP and MX2 riders.
Yamaha Motor Europe would like to extend its heartfelt gratitude to Louis Vosters for his dedication to the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP team over the past four years. His passion and commitment have been truly inspiring, and we wish him all the best with his future endeavors.
Paolo Pavesio
Marketing & Motorsport Director, Yamaha Motor Europe
“I would like to start by expressing my sincere gratitude to Louis Vosters and his team. We have worked together for eight successful seasons, during which I have always appreciated his dedication to our sport. I am also happy that Louis’ future challenge will keep him not too far from Yamaha. Looking to the future, we felt this was the right time to make the next step with our Motocross World Championship structure. In line with our step-up philosophy, we have taken this opportunity to promote two teams that have already brought Yamaha great success. On top of four riders’ titles, the YZ250F machines managed by the Kemea and Hutten Metaal teams have won seven of the eight Manufacturers’ titles between 2020 and 2024, which is an incredible feat. By stepping up a class, both teams will be reunited with riders in whose success they played a major part, and with whom they can now continue the journey. I am confident that, under the direction of Hans Corvers and Wim Hutten, the two teams are more than equal to the new challenge that awaits them in MXGP and MX2 respectively.”
Alexandre Kowalski
Off-Road Racing Manager, Yamaha Motor Europe
“Obviously, our focus now is on finishing an incredible 2023 season on a high, but we’re also preparing for the future. Again, we have followed our long-term strategy of the step-up program, which rewards success with promotion to the next level of the Yamaha racing pyramid. Following an impressive stint in MX2, where he’s been a regular championship contender aboard the YZ250FM, Jago Geerts will move up to the MXGP class with the same team in 2024, where he’ll be reunited with former teammate, Maxime Renaux. Joining them in the premier class will be Calvin Vlaanderen, who earned his place as a Yamaha Factory rider with impressive performances racing for the Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha MXGP Supported Team over the past four seasons. In MX2, former EMX250 champions, Thibault Benistant and Rick Elzinga, will again lead our assault on the championship title. For 2024 they will be joined by Andrea Bonacorsi, who steps up to MX2 as the reigning EMX250 champion. We are pleased to have put together such a strong rider line-up for the 2024 season, especially as all six factory riders come from within our own ranks, and we are confident that, once again, we will be at the forefront of both classes next year.”
Author: Yamaha Racing
