The biggest crowd of the season so far gathered on the iconic hillsides of the Circuit Raymond Demy in northern France, as the legendary venue of Ernée hosted the ninth round of the 2025 FIM Motocross World Championships under bright sunshine for the afternoon’s MXGP of France feature races.
The biggest crowd of the season so far gathered on the iconic hillsides of the Circuit Raymond Demy in northern France, as the legendary venue of Ernée hosted the ninth round of the 2025 FIM Motocross World Championships under bright sunshine for the afternoon’s MXGP of France feature races.Overnight rain carried through into the morning, but the impeccable track preparation meant that Ernée was at its gnarly best for the MXGP and MX2 classes, and the massive crowd was given not just an amazing afternoon’s racing, but also the big result that so many of them fervently cheered for!
Romain Febvre, incoming MXGP Championship leader for Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP, made the fans roar with his heroic efforts in both races, ultimately delivering the Grand Prix victory he craved against stiff opposition from Red Bull KTM Factory Racing star Lucas Coenen. Any Swiss or Italian fans would also have left very happy with a brilliant podium for Aruba.it Ducati Factory MX Team rider Jeremy Seewer.
There was a complete turnaround in the MX2 World Championship as Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s #1 plate holder Kay de Wolf suffered his worst GP for nearly two years, and his chief rivals took full advantage! Red Bull KTM Factory Racing enjoyed a podium sweep for the first time all season with Simon Laengenfelder taking a maximum points haul from the day, with Andrea Adamo twice second, and Sacha Coenen finding his way onto the podium as the most consistent of several riders vying for that honour.
The venue for the 2026 Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations has a reputation for incredible events, and this weekend only added to the mythology of the valley that has a special place in the hearts of many Motocross fans from France and around the world.
In a morning Warm-Up that saw the last big downpour of the day and a wet circuit, Febvre set the tone for the GP by going fastest, ahead of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing legend Jeffrey Herlings and the fans’ other home favourite, Maxime Renaux of the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP squad.
However, it was Saturday’s Qualifying Race winner, Lucas Coenen, who blasted into the lead to grab his fifth Fox Holeshot Award of the season, although he was immediately challenged by an uncharacteristically fast-starting Herlings into turn three!
Podium finisher at the last two GPs, Ruben Fernandez, dropped his Honda HRC machine at the base of the big uphill triple jump, and had to battle back through the pack to an eventual 11th at the flag. Renaux and Seewer held third and fourth behind the two factory KTMs while a physical battle ensued between Andrea Bonacorsi of Fantic Factory Racing MXGP and Team Motul Honda Motoblouz SR rider Kevin Horgmo for fifth place.
The tall Italian prevailed there as Horgmo fell prey to the charging Febvre at the end of the first full lap, then it was Bonacorsi’s turn as the Kawasaki man made the first of several passes along the start straight with a nice outside-to-inside move! Seewer made a mistake trying to pass Renaux for third, which allowed Febvre to close in and pull the same pass again on the Ducati man!
Two laps later and Febvre tried the same move on Renaux, and while the Yamaha stayed in front in turn one, the #3 bike powered ahead on the exit to claim third, and begin his pursuit of the orange machines out in front.
Seewer was initially passed by Bonacorsi, but found his way back into fifth on lap 13, staying there to the end ahead of the Italian. Calvin Vlaanderen took seventh for Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP, helped by an unfortunate crash for Horgmo that dislocated his shoulder and put him out of race two. After his second place on Saturday, it was a real ecstasy to agony weekend for the Norwegian!
Jan Pancar continued his run of good form with eighth for TEM JP253 KTM Racing, while Ben Watson of MRT Racing Team Beta won a battle for ninth with Fantic Factory Racing MXGP’s Glenn Coldenhoff.
Febvre drove towards the top two riders and caught Herlings, who was enjoying his best race of the season but maybe feeling the pace, so he allowed the Frenchman through at the top of a downhill section. Coenen was just one pass too many, however, and the teenage Belgian took his seventh GP race victory of the season to chip into the Championship lead!
Race two saw a first ever Fox Holeshot Award in Grand Prix racing for Bonacorsi, but Seewer managed to leap into the lead over the first jump. However, an amazing blast around the outside from Coenen saw the rookie rocket to the front by turn three and attempt to disappear again.
The home favourites had opposite fortunes, as Renaux crashed on the exit of turn two, but Febvre had started in fourth and darted past Bonacorsi at the top of the first downhill section into third! Isak Gifting blasted around the Fantic on his JK Racing Yamaha on the next corner to grab fourth. Coldenhoff held sixth ahead of Fernandez and Herlings, although the Spaniard veered off track on lap four to get passed by the Dutchman, as well as the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP machine of Jago Geerts!
Febvre pulled his trademark move on Seewer at the start of the first full lap, leaving just Coenen ahead of him! Seewer and Gifting found their groove on the drying, baked hard surface and held third and fourth to the flag, while Bonacorsi held fifth until the very last lap, when he fell prey to a late lunge from Herlings, who had fallen on lap six but remounted quickly, repassing Vlaanderen, Geerts, and Fernandez as well as Coldenhoff. He very nearly caught Gifting as well in a ride that shows that the full pace of “The Bullet” might not be too far away from returning. Had he passed Gifting, it would have put him on the podium, but as it was he had to settle for fourth overall ahead of Bonacorsi.
Geerts finished tenth in the race behind Coldenhoff, who took tenth overall. Renaux would fight back to 15th despite a further crash, and finished ninth overall. Fernandez and Vlaanderen took seventh and eighth in the race, but in the reverse order overall, the Dutchman ahead. Gifting’s fourth made him sixth overall in an excellent return from injury.
The crowd all had their eyes on Febvre as he surged to the back wheel of Coenen, and after drawing alongside on several occasions, he finally made the move up the steepest hill as the Belgian wobbled in some ruts to the outside of the track! The crowd truly went wild!
Coenen nearly got caught by Seewer, but then turned up the pace again, maybe recovering from a bout of arm-pump. He caught back up to Febvre as the fans did all they could to urge their man away from the imminent threat!
Ultimately, it worked, despite a late charge towards the finish line making the winning margin just over half a second! Seewer took just the second ever podium for Ducati at a track where he won in 2022, and advances past Horgmo to ninth in the 2025 Champoionship.
Febvre’s 24th career GP win puts him on the edge of the top 20 in the all-time list, level with fellow Frenchman Tom Vialle, Geerts, and 1960s British legend Jeff Smith. It also restored his series lead over Coenen to 47 points as they head to more hard-pack in Germany!
Romain Febvre: “Winning at home is just incredible. The atmosphere, the fans—it means so much to me. Both races were intense battles, and to come out on top here in France makes it even more special. We were lucky with the weather too, so a big thank you to everyone who came out and supported!”
Lucas Coenen: “Hats off to Romain, he rode great in front of his home crowd. I struggled with arm pump in both motos and couldn’t really find my flow, but I still gave it everything I had. P2 and three podiums in a row now—it’s good, but I want more. We’ll keep pushing for the top!”
Jeremy Seewer: “This podium feels even better than Switzerland because I really earned it today. I had the pace, especially in the first moto where I was right there with Romain and Lucas for most of the race. The bike keeps improving, and so am I—we’re definitely heading in the right direction.”
MXGP – Grand Prix Race 1 – Top 10 Classification: 1. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), 35:42.734; 2. Romain Febvre (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:03.978; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:08.809; 4. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +0:30.697; 5. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Ducati), +0:31.483; 6. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, Fantic), +0:35.916; 7. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Yamaha), +0:50.741; 8. Jan Pancar (SLO, KTM), +0:52.647; 9. Ben Watson (GBR, Beta), +0:54.452; 10. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Fantic), +0:55.284
MXGP – Grand Prix Race 2 – Top 10 Classification: 1. Romain Febvre (FRA, Kawasaki), 35:01.423; 2. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:00.574; 3. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Ducati), +0:19.115; 4. Isak Gifting (SWE, Yamaha), +0:22.007; 5. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:22.667; 6. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, Fantic), +0:27.399; 7. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Honda), +0:35.691; 8. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Yamaha), +0:41.334; 9. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Fantic), +0:43.956; 10. Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), +0:45.033
MXGP Overall – Top 10 Classification: 1. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 47 points; 2. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), 47 p.; 3. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, DUC), 36 p.; 4. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 36 p.; 5. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, FAN), 30 p.; 6. Isak Gifting (SWE, YAM), 27 p.; 7. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 27 p.; 8. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 24 p.; 9. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 24 p.; 10. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, FAN), 23 p
MXGP – World Championship – Top 10 Classification: 1. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 441 points; 2. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), 394 p.; 3. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 305 p.; 4. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, FAN), 302 p.; 5. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 292 p.; 6. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 289 p.; 7. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, FAN), 253 p.; 8. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 228 p.; 9. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, DUC), 219 p.; 10. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, HON), 204 p
MXGP – Manufacturers Classification: 1. Kawasaki, 447 points; 2. Honda, 435 p.; 3. KTM, 413 p.; 4. Yamaha, 382 p.; 5. Fantic, 338 p.; 6. Ducati, 273 p.; 7. Beta, 156 p.; 8. Husqvarna, 51 p.; 9. Triumph, 5 p
The morning Warm-Up session was held in some of the worst rain of the day, but Simon Laengenfelder showed that he was fine even in those conditions with the fastest time ahead of Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2’s home favourite Thibault Benistant and mud master Liam Everts, looking to rebuild his Championship challenge for Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing.
After running wide to lose the lead to Andrea Adamo on Saturday, Laengenfelder was making no mistakes on Sunday as he fired to his third Fox Holeshot Award of the season in race one, while Kay de Wolf gave himself the best chance possible by blasting into second place ahead of Qualifying Race winner Adamo. However, French hearts sunk as Benistant crashed without any contact on the inside of turn one, and had to start from the very back!
Behind the usual suspects were a pair of unusual ones in the top five, as Valerio Lata, fresh off the back of his best Qualifying Race result for Honda HRC, started up in fourth ahead of the Gabriel SS24 KTM Factory Juniors machine of Oriol Oliver!
Sacha Coenen was soon on the Spaniard’s case and took fifth, but on the first full lap there was a gasp from the crowd as De Wolf fell on a downhill left hander, picking himself up in seventh. Just a few corners later he clipped the back wheel of Ferruccio Zanchi’s Honda HRC machine on the biggest downhill drop, veering off track and through an advertising board! The Dutchman’s pitboard read “Calm, Long Race” as he had to recover from 25th position.
Coenen crashed through the corner after the uphill triple to give up fourth to Oliver, while top Frenchman Mathis Valin put a pass on Everts to hold sixth for Kawasaki Racing Team MX2. Everts crashed on the corner before Pit Lane on lap 14, dropping to eighth, where he was to finish ahead of Zanchi. After a big crash on Saturday, Guillem Farres dug in well to claim tenth for Monster Energy Triumph Racing. His teammateCamden McLellan advanced to seventh place, nearly catching Coenen, who had crashed to give Valin a popular top five finish.
Oliver held fourth to the flag, by far a career best race result, and Lata’s third was his first top three finish for Honda HRC, matching his career best from last year’s wild card ride at Maggiora. Laengenfelder and Adamo were in control, however, and the German took the Championship lead with the race win as De Wolf could only recover to 14th place, his worst GP race finish since the penultimate round of the 2022 season, which was ironically also in France!
Heading into race two, Laengenfelder led Adamo by nine points, with De Wolf just one further back, but it was the Italian who claimed his third Fox Holeshot Award of the season as De Wolf hit trouble yet again! Tangling with riders in the mid-pack, he landed on the rear of HTS KTM Racing Team rider Mike Gwerder and hit the ground hard! It was set to be another tough race for the defending Champion!
Laengenfelder was directly behind Adamo, but not for long! With track position crucial, he pushed to the maximum along the waves in front of the crowd to lead immediately up the first big hill, as a battle ensued between Benistant and Coenen for third, the Frenchman winning out with a stunning re-pass of the young Belgian that brought a roar from the local supporters!
Behind them, Everts settled into a quiet fifth that he would hold until the finish, all the time ahead of Farres and, after an initial battle with Valin and Gwerder, the plucky Oliver. Lata suffered a worse getaway and had to battle back from an initial mistake to claim tenth at the flag, behind the Venrooy Racing KTM of Cas Valk but ahead of McLellan. The South African therefore took tenth overall behind his teammate Farres. Valin’s eighth gave him that position overall with Everts in seventh.
Time and again, Adamo attacked Laengenfelder for the lead, as the two old adversaries gave no quarter in what was now also a Championship battle! Despite the crowd getting behind him, Benistant couldn’t improve on third in race two, enough for sixth overall after his disappointing 11th in race one. Lata did enough for fifth, his best yet for Honda HRC, while Oliver took a brilliant fourth overall, another career best which completed a great day for Gabriel SS24 KTM Factory Juniors!
Sacha Coenen stayed upright for the whole race and claimed third overall to complete the podium sweep for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, but with a final mistake into the Pit lane corner that nearly saw him into the start gate, Adamo had to throw in the towel in his efforts to deny Laengenfelder of the GP win.
The German’s fifth race win of the season earned him his fifth career Grand Prix victory, and he heads to his home GP in just six days’ time with the red plate for the first time since the start of the 2022 season, holding an 11-point lead over Adamo. De Wolf was only able to make it back to 12th in race two, and the team will be working to make sure his physical condition can be restored to the maximum possible for Teutschenthal, as he sits another 14 behind Adamo.
Ernée once more proved how unpredictable the MX2 class can be, and who knows which way it will swing in Germany?
Join us next weekend for what is sure to be another epic weekend of MXGP action!
Simon Längenfelder: “Two wins and the red plate—what a weekend! The first race felt great, and in the second I had to dig deep because Andrea (Adamo) was really pushing me. The track was tricky with all the slick lines, but I stayed focused and managed it well. I’m really happy with how everything came together.”
Andrea Adamo:“It was a solid weekend with good points. I gave everything in Race 2 and felt I had the speed, but I just couldn’t make the pass. Of course, I wanted the win, but it’s a long season—11 races still to go—so the fight is on!.”
Sacha Coenen: “Back on the podium again, which is great, but honestly. I’m not happy with sixth and fourth. I’m working for wins, not just podiums. Still, we’re making progress and staying consistent, and that’s important too. Let’s keep building from here.”
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 1 – Top 10 Classification: 1. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 35:34.097; 2. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:23.197; 3. Valerio Lata (ITA, Honda), +0:25.890; 4. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +0:27.995; 5. Mathis Valin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:38.796; 6. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:41.955; 7. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:42.828; 8. Liam Everts (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:45.013; 9. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, Honda), +0:54.965; 10. Guillem Farres (ESP, Triumph), +0:56.395
MX2 – Grand Prix Race 2 – Top 10 Classification: 1. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 34:40.058; 2. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), +0:10.566; 3. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Yamaha), +0:13.451; 4. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), +0:14.825; 5. Liam Everts (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:16.190; 6. Guillem Farres (ESP, Triumph), +0:43.035; 7. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), +0:44.846; 8. Mathis Valin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:50.927; 9. Cas Valk (NED, KTM), +0:51.828; 10. Valerio Lata (ITA, Honda), +0:53.633
MX2 Overall – Top 10 Classification: 1. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 50 points; 2. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 44 p.; 3. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 33 p.; 4. Oriol Oliver (ESP, KTM), 32 p.; 5. Valerio Lata (ITA, HON), 31 p.; 6. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 30 p.; 7. Liam Everts (BEL, HUS), 29 p.; 8. Mathis Valin (FRA, KAW), 29 p.; 9. Guillem Farres (ESP, TRI), 26 p.; 10. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, TRI), 24 p
MX2 – World Championship Classification: 1. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 424 points; 2. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 413 p.; 3. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 399 p.; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, HUS), 343 p.; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 308 p.; 6. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 305 p.; 7. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, TRI), 265 p.; 8. Ferruccio Zanchi (ITA, HON), 220 p.; 9. Valerio Lata (ITA, HON), 219 p.; 10. Cas Valk (NED, KTM), 217 p
MX2 – Manufacturers Classification: 1. KTM, 491 points; 2. Husqvarna, 447 p.; 3. Yamaha, 341 p.; 4. Triumph, 292 p.; 5. Honda, 289 p.; 6. Kawasaki, 121 p.; 7. TM, 109 p
MXGP OF FRANCE QUICK FACTS:
Circuit length: 1670m
Type of ground: Hard Pack
Temperature: 20°
Weather conditions: Sunny/Cloudy
Crowd Attendance: 35,100
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