It was a glorious Grand Prix day near Arnhem on Sunday (today, NZ time), although the heat made it tougher for the MXGP elite as they fought it out in the sand for the last time in 2025.
The 17th round of the 2025 FIM Motocross World Championships was a true test for everyone on track, but the local fans got what they came for with victory for their home heroes in both Grand Prix classes.
The MXGP class saw a double victory for Jeffrey Herlings (pictured), his 16th Grand Prix win on Dutch soil, but there were incredible charges through the pack in both races for his fellow Red Bull KTM Factory Racing star Lucas Coenen, who finished second twice, coming just a few metres short of grabbing the GP win at the end of race two.
There was also joy for Fantic Factory Racing MXGP as Glenn Coldenhoff enjoyed his first podium on home ground since 2016, with two holeshots and consistent riding all tightening his grip on third in the championship.
The hot favourite in MX2, Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s defending World Champion Kay de Wolf, duly delivered his first Grand Prix win on home territory with a clinical maximum-point performance, while Andrea Adamo took a solid second overall, ahead of his fellow Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider Sacha Coenen.
Saturday’s qualifying race winner, Herlings, continued to dominate every single session with the top time again in the morning Warm-up, 1.5 seconds faster than the next best, which was Andrea Bonacorsi on the leading Fantic Factory Racing MXGP machine, with Tim Gajser third best for Honda HRC.
Just as he did in the qualifying race, however, it was Coldenhoff who took the holeshot ahead of Herlings and series leader Romain Febvre, although the Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP points leader had to give way to charging Honda HRC man Gajser over the finish line at the start of the first full lap.
Meanwhile, Lucas Coenen had dropped the bike in the first corner and was having to fight through the pack, although he was far from the only one, and he was quick to get up. Even so, Febvre’s pit board told him to “RELAX” as they relayed his title rival’s whereabouts.
Bonacorsi put the second Fantic into the top five, but Coldenhoff’s lead was short-lived as Herlings made a break for it after a pass along the back straight.
Maxime Renaux was the leading Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP rider in sixth, ahead of the third Fantic Factory Racing MXGP machine of Brian Bogers.
Kevin Brumann started in eighth for MX-Handel Husqvarna Racing, with Jorgen-Mathias Talviku’s privateer Yamaha and the Aruba.it Ducati Factory MX Team rider Mattia Guadagnini rounding out the early top 10.
Coenen was on a majestic charge, however, into the top ten past Guadagnini by lap three, and past Bogers by lap eight, as Febvre finally got back around Gajser to take third.
The tearaway teenager was into sixth by half-distance after passing Renaux, then set after Bonacorsi and Gajser.
The Italian passed the Slovenian for fourth on lap 12, just before Coenen followed suit.
Ben Watson put his MRT Racing Team Beta into the top 10 with five laps to go, finishing behind Brumann in the Swiss rider’s best career GP race result of ninth. Gajser had to settle for sixth ahead of Renaux and Bogers, but Coenen finally snapped past his old EMX rival Bonacorsi with three laps to go, then completed an amazing performance by passing Coldenhoff, and sweetest of all Febvre, in the final two laps.
He even got to within 3.3 seconds of Herlings, and the old master had to acknowledge that he would need all his energy for race two.
Coldenhoff made it a clean sweep of the weekend’s starts with his seventh Fox Holeshot Award of the season, putting him equal second for the year, but Herlings got around the outside of his compatriot between the second and third corners and set about building his lead.
Febvre was fending off the other two Fantics of Bonacorsi and a fired-up Bogers, although Gajser got past them into fourth, as Coenen was again buried in the pack, fighting up to fifteenth by the end of the first full lap.
On the second lap, the tale turned again with a crash for Febvre, dropping him to tenth just a few metres ahead of Coenen.
As Gajser got up to second, the Fantic team ran third, fourth and fifth, with Jago Geerts in a good sixth for Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP, and Ruben Fernandez seventh for Honda HRC.
Febvre and Coenen managed to rip past Watson, then Febvre’s Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP stablemate Pauls Jonass, before the Belgian was able to pass his French rival and immediately begin to pull away.
He was into the top five past Bogers by lap six, then Bonacorsi and Coldenhoff in successive laps to get to third by half-distance, lap ten of an eventual 19.
Jonass took tenth in the race, which would lead to ninth overall ahead of Geerts, who finished a good seventh in race two after passing Febvre on the final lap.
Eighth overall would go to Renaux with 7-11 finishes, while Bogers equalled his season’s best with seventh overall.
Sixth place went to Bonacorsi with two fifth place scores, as Febvre could only recover to eighth in race two, good enough for fifth overall, only his second result outside of the podium places this season.
Coenen’s incredible charge brought him up to Gajser, and he rocketed past the Slovenian with amazing speed through the s-bend next to the Paddock, fans getting behind him no matter what nationality they were.
This gave him a gap of around seven seconds to Herlings, and about six minutes plus two laps to work with. With incredible pace the relentless Belgian closed the gap, but Herlings was equal to the task of holding him off despite both riders having issues with lapped riders.
With Fantic riders Coldenhoff and Bonacorsi holding fourth and fifth to the flag, they were able to keep Gajser, who finished a lonely third in race two, down in fourth place overall, and Glenn enjoyed his first podium trophy on home ground since 2016.
The veteran now holds a 94-point margin over Fernandez for third in the series.
It was Coenen who created so much excitement with his charge, and he got to within a second of Herlings with a few corners to go, but was just unable to attempt a pass.
Herlings claimed his 110th career Grand Prix victory with his 210th race win, and the home crowd were ecstatic with their hero’s 16th triumph on home sand.
The gap in the title chase between Febvre and Coenen is now down to 31 points, with just three rounds remaining as the series heads east.
There is still all to play for in this enthralling veteran vs teenager battle, with several other players in the mix to make this a truly unpredictable final month of the 2025 MXGP World Championship.
© Photo Infront Moto Racing
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LEADING STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 17:
MXGP – World Championship – Top 10 Classification:
1. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 835 points; 2. Lucas Coenen (BEL, KTM), 804 p.; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, FAN), 617 p.; 4. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 523 p.; 5. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 497 p.; 6. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 466 p.; 7. Andrea Bonacorsi (ITA, FAN), 461 p.; 8. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 447 p.; 9. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 368 p.; 10. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, DUC), 346 p.
MX2 – World Championship Classification:
1. Simon Längenfelder (GER, KTM), 783 points; 2. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 768 p.; 3. Andrea Adamo (ITA, KTM), 745 p.; 4. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 648 p.; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 575 p.; 6. Camden McLellan (RSA, TRI), 548 p.; 7. Liam Everts (BEL, HUS), 538 p.; 8. Valerio Lata (ITA, HON), 386 p.; 9. Guillem Farres (ESP, TRI), 384 p.; 10. Mathis Valin (FRA, KAW), 374 p.