A record crowd packed the legendary hillside of Circuit Raymond Demy in northern France as Ernée hosted the ninth round of the 2025 FIM Motocross World Championship.
Under brilliant afternoon sunshine, French fans were treated to an unforgettable show at the MXGP of France, complete with epic battles, heroic comebacks, and a home victory to savour.
Overnight rain carried into Sunday morning, but thanks to meticulous track prep, the iconic circuit was primed and ready by the time the MXGP and MX2 classes hit the line. And what a reward it gave the sea of French fans – Frenchman Romain Febvre delivered the win they were desperately hoping for.
The Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP rider thrilled his home crowd with a pair of gritty rides, overcoming early setbacks to outduel rising star Lucas Coenen and deliver a famous Grand Prix victory.
Also on the podium was Jeremy Seewer, giving the Aruba.it Ducati Factory MX Team its second-ever MXGP podium with a strong and consistent day.
In MX2, the championship picture shifted dramatically. Points leader Kay de Wolf had a shocker by his standards, with his worst GP in nearly two years, opening the door for the Red Bull KTM squad to sweep the podium.
Simon Laengenfelder took full advantage, scoring maximum points with two commanding race wins, while team-mates Andrea Adamo and Sacha Coenen locked out the other steps.
With the venue already confirmed to host the 2026 Motocross of Nations, this weekend’s showdown only added more history to a site already steeped in motocross legend.
MXGP CLASS
Sunday morning’s Warm-Up still carried the effects of heavy rain, but that didn’t stop Romain Febvre from laying down the fastest time, ahead of Jeffrey Herlings and fellow French star Maxime Renaux.
But it was Lucas Coenen, fresh off a Saturday Qualifying Race win, who exploded out of the gate to grab his fifth Holeshot of the season. Herlings, uncharacteristically quick off the start, immediately challenged into the third corner.
Ruben Fernandez’s day started poorly with a crash at the base of the uphill triple. The Team HRC rider remounted and charged back to 11th, but it was an uphill battle from there.
Up front, Renaux and Seewer settled into third and fourth behind the two KTMs, while Andrea Bonacorsi scrapped with Kevin Horgmo for fifth.
The Italian got the upper hand before Febvre charged past both Horgmo and Bonacorsi with calculated moves along the start straight. Seewer’s failed attempt to pass Renaux opened the door for Febvre, who made the exact same move stick on the Ducati man.
Febvre kept pushing, and two laps later found a way past Renaux with sheer drive and line selection, then zeroed in on the KTM duo. He made light work of Herlings, who was running his best race of the year but lacked the pace to hold back the Frenchman.
However, Coenen proved a tougher nut to crack. The Belgian teen held strong to take his seventh GP race win of the year, with Febvre close behind in second.
Race two saw Bonacorsi grab his first-ever Grand Prix holeshot, but it was Seewer who jumped into the early lead – until Coenen once again blasted around the outside by turn three.
French fortunes split early: Renaux went down on turn two’s exit, while Febvre, already up to fourth, quickly moved past Bonacorsi for third and then dispatched Seewer in typical fashion at the start of lap two.
Behind them, Isak Gifting impressed, slicing into fourth ahead of Glenn Coldenhoff, Fernandez and Herlings. The Dutchman worked his way forward after a lap six tip-over, eventually recovering to sixth and nearly catching Gifting by the flag.
Seewer and Gifting held third and fourth, while Bonacorsi dropped to sixth on the final lap thanks to Herlings’ late charge. Jago Geerts finished tenth behind Coldenhoff, while Renaux salvaged 15th after another crash.
But the focus was all on Febvre, who chased down Coenen once more. With the crowd at full voice, the Kawasaki man finally got alongside on the steepest uphill as Coenen slipped in the ruts. The crowd erupted as Febvre hit the front.
Coenen mounted a late rally, closing the gap to just over half a second at the line, but Febvre held on for a famous home win – his 24th career GP victory – pulling level with Tom Vialle, Jago Geerts, and Jeff Smith on the all-time list.
“I just feel so good on the bike at the moment,” Febvre said. “In fact, I have felt great all season but coming home to race in France is always very special. I am trying to win every weekend but at home it feels even better, and it was fantastic for the public that we stayed lucky with the weather all weekend.”
Febvre admitted that the pressure was real, adding, “I don’t usually feel pressure but I have to admit that I did for the rest of that race because I didn’t want to disappoint the French public.
“They are really close through the valley and I could even hear them coming down the hills—it was a great atmosphere. Winning is special anywhere, but to win here in France was amazing; thank you to everyone who came here to support me!”
Lucas Coenen, gracious in defeat, acknowledged Febvre’s performance: “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, whose solid 3-3 results delivered just the second-ever podium for Ducati, said: “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.”
Seewer’s result moves him up to ninth in the standings, jumping ahead of the injured Kevin Horgmo, whose dislocated shoulder in race one ruled him out of moto two.
With the MXGP of Germany up next at the classic Teutschenthal circuit, expect more fireworks in both classes as the title battles heat up.
Photo courtesy Infront Moto Racing
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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.
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 McLellan (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.