2025 Montpellier GP – Juan Carlos Canas snatches the win with 2 laps to go

Race report by Chris:

The 2025 Montpellier GP will definitely be a special edition. The race will be full of surprises and highlights, and the final will be no exception – on the contrary! After the two semi-finals, Mugen Seiki driver Burak Kilic looks to be a step up from his competitors. The only driver to break the 34-lap barrier, he confirmed his speed in the qualifying rounds, from which he took home the TQ*, and emerged as the man to beat in the hour-long final. The first 20 minutes of the final were rather boring, with few changes other than the incredible comeback of Riccardo Berton, who started 14th and had already overtaken many of his rivals. His comeback saw him finish 4th in the end, which is remarkable considering.

*Related: Burak Kilic to start on pole for Montpellier GP final

After twenty minutes, the first big bounce came. Just as Burak and Berkan had pulled away from the rest of the field, Burak’s engine flamed out before he could refuel. The panic in the Kilic squad grew even worse, as once back on the track, the engine shut down once more. That was the end of Burak’s hopes, and he stopped there. His brother Berkan took over at the head of the race. The long-awaited battle between Juan Carlos Canas and Davide Ongaro starts around the 30th minute, but Davide is struggling with a very understeered car. Davide’s talent gave the illusion that he could overtake Juan Carlos, but it was not to be. With the pressure off, JC set about catching the leader, but every time he tried to close the gap, Berkan picked up the pace and pulled away again.

Pit Bits of winning ride: SWORKz S35-4 Evo – Juan Carlos Canas

However, JC is never going to give up, and although it seems in vain, his commitment is beginning to pay off. Indeed, the longer the race goes on, the more Berkan seems to struggle to pull away when under pressure from the European champion. Berkan also showed great resilience, and with 5 minutes to go, it looked as if the die had been cast. But this was without counting on one last charge from JC, an action which this time paid off, as Berkan crashed out! JC takes the lead with 2 laps to go! Berkan set off again with the knife between his teeth, but now had to deal with the four-time world champion, who saw Berkan as a target right on his doorstep. Davide eventually overtook and JC won an incredible final in his 2nd part! It’s a great lesson to learn: never give up, never give up hope, and with a lot of dedication, anything is possible.

I’d like to thank and congratulate the MBM club, which had to face 4 tough days with 1 and a half days of rain that stopped the race right in the middle. Like Juan Carlos, they didn’t give up and once again gave us a superb event. Well done and thank you, gentlemen!

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