Xavi Artigas emerged as the winner of World Sportbike Race 2 at the Acerbis French Round in Magny-Cours on Sunday afternoon. The Spanish rider decided a spectacular final lap in his favor, beating Carter Thompson and Fenton Seabright. Loris Veneman delivered a strong late-race charge to finish sixth.
Fenton Seabright, who started from pole thanks to the fastest race lap in Race 1, held the lead at the start. David Salvador, starting from eighth, quickly moved up to second. Loris Veneman and Jurrien van Crugten initially lost ground, while Kas Beekmans gained positions.
With strong slipstream effects at Magny-Cours, the leading group constantly changed. Salvador took over the lead and tried to break away, but Seabright fought back. Meanwhile, Artigas and Veneman began to close in.
With seven laps to go, Antonio Torres retired with technical problems. The battle remained intense. Four laps from the end, Artigas rejoined the leading group, bringing Matteo Vannucci with him. Salvador and Seabright swapped positions several times, and Artigas then joined the fight for victory. Veneman impressively caught the top seven with three laps remaining.
In the final lap, anything seemed possible. Artigas had a small lead, but Salvador took over again. The decisive move came soon after: Artigas went around three rivals on the outside to reclaim the lead in stunning fashion. He held on to win by just 0.098 seconds over Thompson. Seabright finished third, 0.331 seconds behind, ahead of Salvador and Jose Osuna.
Veneman finished sixth, just 0.756 seconds behind the winner. Van Crugten crossed the line in tenth, while Beekmans scored points in fourteenth. Belgian rider Ferre Fleerackers ended thirteenth. This result adds another layer of excitement to the junior WorldSBK championship. It also highlights the recent strong form of Xavi Artigas, who continues to impress.
This race proved once again that Magny-Cours always delivers thrilling overtaking action. The riders will return to battle at the next round, and this victory certainly gives Artigas a boost in the title fight.
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