Motorcycles: noise, speed, bumps… Supercross returns at Paris La Défense Arena

Don’t forget the earplugs: they will be needed on Saturday at the Paris La Défense Arena: The Paris Supercross is back in the arena. Noise, anger, there will be some. That’s good, that’s what thousands of fans who planned the event are looking for, while the arena is almost full. This Friday, there are only a few tickets left on sale the site from the event. Cancelled last year due to the Covid virus, which was postponed from November 6 to 27, the Paris Supercross is expected.

“Paris had to ignore the 2020 edition but everything has been done to ensure that Supercross is once again in the spotlight in the capital, which will be the only European city to host the international Supercross Championship this year,” the organization specifies. To get into the room, a health card is obviously mandatory. Wear a mask too. Let’s quickly recall what supercross is: it is a derivative of motocross born in the 1970s in the United States. It competes on a synthetic track set indoors with tight bumps and turns. The offer is guaranteed.

And it’s going to start strong with the opening in the afternoon, a demonstration of Flying Man Frankie Zapata, the man who crossed the Channel on Flyboard Air. This time it will fly over the driver’s track above the crowd.

Tons of earth gather and then disintegrate at night

Ah yes the track: It took three days and many nights to move tons of land this week to track it. And at night from Saturday to Sunday it would really be necessary to dismantle everything to make way for the racing rugby players who will be playing on Sunday afternoon at the Top 14. It is invisible but that could be the real supercross achievement. The latter resumed, “In the face of travel restrictions still in place and the decision of some managers not to allow their pilots to fly outside the border a few weeks before the resumption of the championship, organizers had to innovate and respond.” So in a few days there will be many American pilots in Paris, on top of them a French and an Australian! Marvin Musquin and Chad Reed, both transatlantic residents who have chosen to pursue their careers, will be among the headlines at the event. “

The field names are probably only known to Supercross fans. But in their field, they are real stars. So on Saturday afternoon Paris is waiting for Justin Brayton, who has already won in Paris; Antonio Cairoli, nine-time world motocross champion; Romain Febvre, MXGP Vice World Champion and Maxime Renaux, new MX2 World Champion. Categories that speak to experts in the absence of others. More names?

The organizers have their say: “Whether in the SX1 or the SX2, the French will be present in droves behind the starting grid, they insist in a press release. In the first category, we will find the French Championship drivers with Maxime Despres, the 2022 champion, who will include alongside him Thomas Ramet and Gregory Aranda. As for SX2, the title will be played in Paris as the event makes up the French Championship final; relaxed captain Julien Rosaliy is in a strong position, but alongside his usual rivals Calvin Fonviel and Arnaud Aubin-O Bryce Maelen, will find some Americans as well as three young hopefuls from the European Championships: Lucas and Sasha Koenen, the world’s fastest twins all-time, and their teammate Quentin Bruggeners.In each class, the program will include two sprint races and a final, with the SX1 drivers starting the day with Traditional Superpole.”

This Saturday’s Paris Supercross takes place over a single day with the hall opening to the public at 10:30am, and competitions from 2:30pm to 6:10pm. The “Automoto” channel will broadcast it live from 2:30 pm. It can be seen on Orange (Channel 186), Free (Channel 180), Bouygues (Channel 191), SFR (Channel 125), and Canal + (Channel 127).