Title in Sight for Beatriz Neila and Ampito Crescent Yamaha after French WorldWCR Win

Race 2 victory for Ampito Crescent Yamaha’s Beatriz Neila in France will push the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship title fight right to the wire, thanks to a super-strong weekend at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours.

Just six points separate Neila from championship rival Maria Herrera, with two races remaining in the first road-racing motorcycle World Championship exclusively for women.

As WorldWCR quickly becomes a “must watch” category, another last-lap fight saw Neila emerge victorious on Sunday afternoon to take her fourth win of the season – but it was a rocky start to the French Round from damp Free Practice to a small crash in qualifying on Friday.

Neila recovered to continue her unbroken run to the podium with a third-place finish in Race 1, pocketing 16 points and setting herself up for a front-row start in Race 2.

The final test of the weekend featured a group of five riders vying for top honours with almost nothing between them. Neila took the lead from Herrera on Lap 9 to control the race until Chloe Jones chanced a dive up the inside of Turn 15 of the final lap – but Jones was off-line into the final chicane and ran off track while Neila was faultless to take the win at the chequered flag.

Now, the championship will go down to the season finale in Jerez from 17-19 October.

Beatriz Neila – Superpole: P5 / Race 1: P3 / Race 2: P1

“In Race 1, I had a few small problems but I’m pleased because I was able to take good points and the championship is still open. Sunday’s race was difficult as there were five of us in the lead group, all fighting at the same level. In a group like that, any mistake is costly and it’s super easy to be passed, so I’m really happy to win! We’ve worked hard all weekend and were able to fix the issue we had in time for Race 2 and my R7 was perfect. This result is really important for me and Ampito Crescent Yamaha as we now head to Jerez just six points behind Maria. I’ve never been in this situation, so it feels amazing. That said, my approach heading into the final round will be the same as always, same strategy, same everything, because it’s all worked well so far.”