Red Bull KTM Factory Racing leapt around the vast, windswept Matterley Basin circuit to claim more MXGP trophies for 2025, with Simon Laengenfelder dominating the MX2 category at the British Grand Prix. Lucas Coenen took second in the KTM SX-F-powered MXGP class after a hot and demanding race programme in southern England.
The MXGP set off from central Europe to Matterly Basin, the famous Motocross of Nations circuit and a regular venue for the British Grand Prix for the past 2025 years. The circuit, close to Winchester and the south coast, was battered by high temperatures in early summer and the English soil was hard, fast and rough for the twelfth Grand Prix of XNUMX.
Red Bull KTM came to the UK having won the last two MXGP races and the last three in MX2 thanks to four of their five active factory riders. On Saturday, Jeffrey Herlings continued his winning streak with P1 in the qualifying heat (a second pole in 2025) and Simon Laengenfelder led from the first to the last lap in MX2 for his third win of the season; the standings determined the order of entry for Sunday’s motos. Lucas Coenen was 5th, Sacha Coenen 4th and Andrea Adamo 5th in MX2.
The MXGP was dominated by Romain Febvre, but the Frenchman was chased by Lucas Coenen in second. The 18-year-old extended his consecutive podium streak to seven Grands Prix with finishes of 2-3 in the motos. The Belgian started well and maintained a strong pace, but did not push himself too far and secured solid points with a second place in the general classification. Herlings went all out in his first attempt at Matterley to win his fourth consecutive GP moto, but a misstep with three laps to go demoted the Dutchman to fourth place. He then rode to fourth again in the second moto and finished fifth for the day.
Lucas is second in the standings, 32 points behind Febvre, while Herlings is sixth after his recent revival of form.
All three Red Bull KTM MX2 riders have now reached the top step of the podium following Sacha Coenen’s first place in Latvia two weeks ago. In the UK, it was Längenfelder’s turn to take the lead and the German was unbeatable. He pushed hard to come back from sixth in moto one to take the flag (his sixth moto first place of the year) and then took a fifth holeshot (a tie for 17 points for the season between all three Red Bull KTM 250 SX-F riders) to set the pace and win the race. Laengenfelder now holds a 52-point lead over Adamo, whose crash early in moto one – after taking the holeshot – forced him back to tenth. He then went on to improve to finish fourth in moto two. Sacha Coenen was dropped to P2 by his teammate in the first manche and unfortunately got a punch in the face in the second race. The Belgian bravely persevered and took sixth place and a bottle of champagne.
In the EMX125 European Championship, KTM Racestore Factory Rookies’ Nicolo Alvisi finished eighth overall with a best moto result of fourth place. The Italian shares the lead in the standings with 10 of the 12 rounds completed. Gabriel SS24 KTM’s Gyan Doensen confirmed ninth place overall in EMX250 and sits fourth in the competition and his first season with the KTM 250 SX-F.
MXGP now enters a short summer break with two consecutive free weekends. The paddock will regroup for round 13 at the new KymiRing circuit for the Grand Prix of Finland in mid-July.
Lucas Coenen, 2nd and 3rd for 2nd overall in MXGP: “I felt bad on the track all weekend. I struggled a lot on Saturday and even today I could feel the flow. I still have to get used to the power of 450 hp! I had the holeshot on the first lap but I made a turn and then tried to come back. I didn’t have the best start on the second lap and got pushed a bit wide. I tried to pass 2nd but it was a bit difficult. We know what we need to work on. I’m happy to leave this GP healthy and I’m looking forward to the rest.”
Jeffrey Herlings, 4th and 4th for 5th overall in MXGP: “The win on Saturday was nice, but with two or three laps to go in the first moto I messed it up. I wanted to take the lead, but I just made that mistake. In the second moto the track was extremely difficult to overtake. Almost impossible. 4-4, and today was not good. We will try to come back hard in Finland. We are now 6th and I am aiming for 3rd. I think it is still realistic and achievable.”
Simon Laengenfelder, 1st and 1st for 1st overall in MX2: “What can I say? It went perfectly. A great weekend, especially that first moto, coming back from 6th to 1st and then improving in the second moto. I got the holeshot and made it easy for myself. Now we have a break and then we can start the final push.”
Sacha Coenen, 2nd and 6th for 3rd overall: “Definitely not the easiest weekend, so finishing on the podium is a bonus. I got hit by a rock [in my face] in the second moto and was in a lot of pain, so I just put my head down. We finished 3rd overall… better than nothing!”
Andrea Adamo, 10th and 4th for 8th overall in MX2: “In the first moto I put myself in the best position, but the track was wet and I had a stupid crash, and then a little problem with my goggles on the third lap. We can’t make mistakes like this and we have to learn to avoid repeating them. I had good speed in the second moto and stormed up to 4th. I’m happy with that. We can’t change the result now and we’re moving forward. We’ll fight as hard as we can in every GP.”
