Jeffrey Herlings and Mathis Valin Fire Up French Fans with Qualifying Wins at MXGP of France

The 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship burst back into life as round six of the season delivered sunshine, packed hillsides and fierce racing at the Circuit Georges Filhol for the return of the MXGP of France.

Back on the calendar at Lacapelle-Marival for the first time in five years, the passionate French crowd was treated to a home winner in MX2 as Mathis Valin thrilled the local faithful with his second career Qualifying Race victory and first of the season. In MXGP, Jeffrey Herlings reminded everyone of his sand and hardpack mastery, taking a commanding Qualifying Race victory to slash the championship deficit to just two points.

MXGP delivered one of the most entertaining battles of the afternoon, with Kay de Wolf and series leader Lucas Coenen going wheel-to-wheel for second right to the chequered flag, the Dutchman snatching the spot on the final corner by just 0.075 seconds. Meanwhile, in MX2, Liam Everts secured his best Saturday result of the year in second, while Janis Reisulis continued his breakout season with a career-best third in a Qualifying Race.

MXGP

The top riders wasted no time showing they had returned from the four-week break ready to fight, with Jeffrey Herlings laying down a late flyer in Free Practice to edge championship leader Lucas Coenen by just half a tenth of a second. French fans also had reason to cheer early, with Tom Vialle completing the top three.

The pace only intensified in Time Practice as Kay de Wolf stormed to the fastest lap, narrowly edging Tim Gajser by less than a tenth. Coenen was right there in third, only two tenths further back, while Herlings and home hope Maxime Renaux rounded out the top five.

Despite only having the seventh gate pick, Vialle sent the crowd into raptures when he launched to the Holeshot in the Qualifying Race, with Herlings immediately tucked onto the rear wheel of his teammate. De Wolf settled into third after battling Andrea Adamo, while Coenen found himself buried in eighth, just ahead of reigning World Champion Romain Febvre.

Herlings wasted little time making his move, diving to the inside of Vialle in the fourth corner to seize control of the race almost immediately. Behind him, Ruben Fernandez initially held fourth, but Gajser and Coenen quickly carved past Adamo to move into contention.

Disaster struck for Vialle just laps later when a series of warning moments through the wave section turned into a spectacular crash. The Frenchman launched into a flat spin after his Honda swapped violently beneath him. Thankfully unhurt, he remounted and fought back to 13th by race’s end.

Coenen, meanwhile, was charging, first passing Gajser and then reeling in Fernandez before finally making his move for third on lap five. Out front, Herlings looked completely at ease, threading his Honda through the deepening ruts while steadily building an advantage.

The battle behind him intensified as Gajser, Renaux and Febvre fought fiercely over fourth. Renaux and Febvre both capitalised on a mistake from Gajser in the closing laps to give the French crowd fourth and fifth at the finish, while Fernandez and Adamo settled into seventh and eighth.

Attention then turned to a duel for second between former teammates De Wolf and Coenen. The Belgian piled on the pressure for lap after lap and finally made his move on the penultimate lap after the Husqvarna rider lost traction exiting a downhill corner.

But De Wolf wasn’t done.

On the final corner of the race, the Dutchman launched an audacious outside move to reclaim second by just 0.075 seconds in one of the best battles of the season so far.

By then, however, Herlings was already celebrating a commanding victory, crossing the line nearly four seconds clear and cutting Coenen’s championship advantage to just two points heading into Sunday.

Herlings later said the rough conditions actually suited the racing, explaining that he felt comfortable from the opening laps after quickly moving into the lead.

“It was fun out there,” Herlings said. “It got quite sketchy and quite rough by the end, but I think that’s actually good for the racing. The track prep was really good today; we got some nice lines opening up. I took a good start, went second, then managed to get past my teammate in the second turn and led the rest of the race. I felt good, felt in control.”

De Wolf was equally pleased after going toe-to-toe with the championship contenders, saying the battle with Coenen was exactly what he had hoped for.

“It felt really good,” De Wolf said. “Lucas gave me some good pressure, so it was a fun race. I really enjoyed it. This is exactly what I wished for, to battle with these guys, because they’re at the top of the championship right now. We had some clean racing in the last lap.”

Coenen, meanwhile, admitted his poor start made life difficult, although he remained upbeat about his chances for Sunday.

“Honestly, I wasn’t feeling great,” Coenen said. “It wasn’t the best start, I was quite far down in that first lap and had to make some passes to get back in the mix. On this track if you take the holeshot you’re almost home, so it’s a bummer I didn’t get that. But tomorrow is the day.”

Heading into Sunday, Coenen still leads the MXGP standings, but Herlings has now closed to within just two points, with Vialle still firmly in the hunt.

MX2

French hopes were lifted early in MX2 as Mathis Valin topped Free Practice by more than half a second over Guillem Farres, while reigning champion Simon Langenfelder hit back in Time Practice to secure pole position for the Qualifying Race.

Despite their strong gate picks, however, both Langenfelder and Sacha Coenen endured nightmare starts, immediately ending the Belgian’s unbeaten run of Qualifying Race victories for 2026.

Instead, it was Valin who launched to the lead through the opening turn, igniting the crowd as the pack thundered into the valley.

Farres wasted no time attacking, first getting around Valerio Lata before using an inside rut to sweep into the lead before the opening lap was complete.

The Spaniard’s advantage lasted just one lap.

Cruelly, Farres crashed in the very same corner where he had made the lead pass, remounting down in sixth and handing Valin the lead back to the delight of the French faithful.

Behind them, Liam Everts settled into third ahead of Janis Reisulis, while Langenfelder and Coenen were left fighting through traffic after poor opening laps.

One of the early surprises came from Francisco Garcia, the EMX250 championship leader making his MX2 debut during an off weekend from European competition. The Spaniard impressed immediately, holding Farres behind for three laps before eventually giving way.

At the front, Valin looked calm and composed, while Everts held firm in second and Reisulis steadily built pressure behind. Farres recovered strongly to reclaim fourth, and the top three ultimately remained unchanged to the finish.

The fight further back proved crucial for the title picture. Coenen briefly got the better of Längenfelder midway through the race, only for the German to regroup and re-pass him on lap 10 as conditions became increasingly technical.

Lata looked set for fourth until the closing laps unravelled his race. Farres surged through first, followed by Camden Mc Lellan, who completed a strong recovery to put two Triumphs inside the top five.

Langenfelder also snatched sixth from Lata late, limiting the championship damage and actually extending his lead to four points over Coenen, who crossed the line in seventh.

Garcia impressed with points in his first MX2 Qualifying Race in eighth, while Ferruccio Zanchi secured ninth after a spirited fight with the factory KTM riders. Lata salvaged the final point in tenth.

Reisulis closed to within striking distance of Everts late, but the Husqvarna rider held firm for second, drawing level with Farres for third in the championship, both still 38 points behind leader Längenfelder.

The loudest cheers, however, belonged to Valin, who celebrated wildly after securing a dream home victory.

Valin said the support from the French crowd made the result even more special as he claimed his first Qualifying Race win of the season, while Everts described second as an important confidence boost heading into Sunday’s motos.

“I had a good start, finally! It’s been a long time since I was out front like that, so I’m really pumped.” Valin said. “The track is not easy but I’m so happy to be up there in front of this crowd. I just kept pushing and managed to hold it together. Let’s see if we can do the same tomorrow. Thank you to everyone for the support today.”

The championship battle also tightened, with Langenfelder increasing his advantage over Coenen to four points despite finishing behind him in practice and starting poorly.

MXGP – Qualifying – MXGP of France
Pos	No	Rider	Nat	Bike	Gap
1st	84	Jeffrey Herlings	NED	Honda	+0:00.000
2nd	74	Kay de Wolf	NED	Husqvarna	+0:03.846
3rd	5	Lucas Coenen	BEL	KTM	+0:03.921
4th	959	Maxime Renaux	FRA	Yamaha	+0:13.973
5th	1	Romain Febvre	FRA	Kawasaki	+0:15.345
6th	243	Tim Gajser	SLO	Yamaha	+0:17.317
7th	70	Ruben Fernandez	ESP	Honda	+0:24.802
8th	80	Andrea Adamo	ITA	KTM	+0:34.445
9th	9	Thibault Benistant	FRA	Honda	+0:37.718
10th	41	Pauls Jonass	LAT	Kawasaki	+0:41.049
11th	253	Jan Pancar	SLO	KTM	+0:52.100
12th	24	Kevin Horgmo	NOR	Honda	+0:54.376
13th	16	Tom Vialle	FRA	Honda	+1:00.640
14th	303	Alberto Forato	ITA	Fantic	+1:03.692
15th	83	Oriol Oliver	ESP	KTM	+1:12.564
16th	241	Maxime Desprey	FRA	Yamaha	+1:15.002
17th	6	Benoit Paturel	FRA	Yamaha	+1:16.468
18th	93	Jago Geerts	BEL	Beta	+1:17.956
19th	32	Brent Van doninck	BEL	Fantic	+1:20.637
20th	132	Andrea Bonacorsi	ITA	Ducati	+1:23.685
21st	919	Ben Watson	GBR	Triumph	+1:25.018
22nd	781	Brian Hsu	GER	Honda	+1:39.630
23rd	234	Bogdan Krajewski	FRA	Yamaha	+1:42.991
24th	91	Jeremy Seewer	SUI	Ducati	+1 lap
25th	123	Federico Tuani	ITA	Honda	+1 lap
26th	64	Romain Pape	FRA	Yamaha	+1 lap
27th	970	Shaun Vinel	FRA	Yamaha	+2 laps
28th	10	Calvin Vlaanderen	NED	Ducati	+5 laps
29th	831	Brice Maylin	FRA	Yamaha	+10 laps
30th	87	Kevin Brumann	SUI	Husqvarna	+14 laps

MXGP – Championship Standings After Qualifying – MXGP of France
Pos	No	Rider	Nat	Bike	Total	Gap
1st	5	Lucas Coenen	BEL	KTM	239 Points	+0
2nd	84	Jeffrey Herlings	NED	HON	237 Points	+2
3rd	16	Tom Vialle	FRA	HON	206 Points	+33
4th	243	Tim Gajser	SLO	YAM	203 Points	+36
5th	1	Romain Febvre	FRA	KAW	197 Points	+42
6th	959	Maxime Renaux	FRA	YAM	185 Points	+54
7th	74	Kay de Wolf	NED	HUS	153 Points	+86
8th	70	Ruben Fernandez	ESP	HON	150 Points	+89
9th	80	Andrea Adamo	ITA	KTM	141 Points	+98
10th	10	Calvin Vlaanderen	NED	DUC	110 Points	+129
11th	41	Pauls Jonass	LAT	KAW	96 Points	+143
12th	303	Alberto Forato	ITA	FAN	95 Points	+144
13th	83	Oriol Oliver	ESP	KTM	72 Points	+167
14th	101	Mattia Guadagnini	ITA	KTM	69 Points	+170
15th	24	Kevin Horgmo	NOR	HON	69 Points	+170
16th	253	Jan Pancar	SLO	KTM	47 Points	+192
17th	32	Brent Van doninck	BEL	FAN	44 Points	+195
18th	9	Thibault Benistant	FRA	HON	40 Points	+199
19th	39	R. Van De Moosdijk	NED	KTM	39 Points	+200
20th	919	Ben Watson	GBR	TRI	35 Points	+204
21st	91	Jeremy Seewer	SUI	DUC	29 Points	+210
22nd	93	Jago Geerts	BEL	BET	28 Points	+211
23rd	226	Tom Koch	GER	KTM	8 Points	+231
24th	166	Enzo Lopes	BRA	HON	7 Points	+232
25th	811	Adam Sterry	GBR	KTM	7 Points	+232
26th	132	Andrea Bonacorsi	ITA	DUC	6 Points	+233
27th	261	J. Talviku	EST	YAM	5 Points	+234
28th	173	Jose Butron	ESP	KTM	5 Points	+234
29th	179	Joaquin Poli	ARG	KAW	5 Points	+234
30th	300	Noah Ludwig	GER	KTM	4 Points	+235

MX2 – Qualifying – MXGP of France
Pos	No	Rider	Nat	Bike	Gap
1st	317	Mathis Valin	FRA	Kawasaki	0
2nd	26	Liam Everts	BEL	Husqvarna	4.517
3rd	772	Janis Martins Reisulis	LAT	Yamaha	6.002
4th	99	Guillem Farres	ESP	Triumph	9.815
5th	8	Camden Mc Lellan	RSA	Triumph	10.663
6th	1	Simon Längenfelder	GER	KTM	14.359
7th	19	Sacha Coenen	BEL	KTM	15.983
8th	29	Francisco Garcia	ESP	Kawasaki	18.256
9th	73	Ferruccio Zanchi	ITA	Ducati	18.910
10th	18	Valerio Lata	ITA	Honda	23.332
11th	33	Kay Karssemakers	NED	Kawasaki	30.457
12th	30	Jake Cannon	AUS	Kawasaki	37.358
13th	83	Maxime Grau	FRA	Honda	40.544
14th	47	Karlis Alberts Reisulis	LAT	Yamaha	45.764
15th	716	Noel Zanocz	HUN	KTM	46.436
16th	574	Gyan Doensen	NED	KTM	47.709
17th	20	Julius Mikula	CZE	KTM	58.171
18th	420	Andrea Rossi	ITA	KTM	74.820
19th	98	Alessandro Gaspari	ITA	KTM	78.945
20th	365	Adria Monne	ESP	GASGAS	79.904
21st	12	Pelle Gundersen	NOR	Husqvarna	82.298
22nd	518	Douwe Van Mechgelen	BEL	TM	85.347
23rd	408	Scott Smulders	NED	Husqvarna	96.072
24th	456	Ollie Colmer	GBR	KTM	100.888
25th	287	Maximilian Ernecker	AUT	KTM	1 lap
26th	466	Vaclav Janout	CZE	KTM	1 lap
27th	496	Alve Callemo	SWE	Husqvarna	1 lap
28th	321	Alessandro Traversini	ITA	KTM	1 lap
29th	290	Joshua Voelker	GER	KTM	1 lap
30th	370	Xavier Camps	ESP	GASGAS	1 lap
31st	44	Nike Korsbeck	SWE	Triumph	1 lap
32nd	938	Rodolfo Bicalho	BRA	KTM	2 laps
33rd	920	Sandro Sools	SWE	KTM	6 laps
34th	441	William Askew	GBR	Triumph	8 laps
35th	252	Valentino Vazquez	ESP	GASGAS	8 laps

MX2 – Championship Standings After Qualifying – MXGP of France
Pos	No	Rider	Nat	Bike	Total	Gap
1st	1	Simon Längenfelder	GER	KTM	249 Points	+0
2nd	19	Sacha Coenen	BEL	KTM	245 Points	+4
3rd	99	Guillem Farres	ESP	TRI	211 Points	+38
4th	26	Liam Everts	BEL	HUS	211 Points	+38
5th	8	Camden Mc Lellan	RSA	TRI	191 Points	+58
6th	772	Janis Martins Reisulis	LAT	YAM	178 Points	+71
7th	317	Mathis Valin	FRA	KAW	169 Points	+80
8th	47	Karlis Alberts Reisulis	LAT	YAM	150 Points	+99
9th	18	Valerio Lata	ITA	HON	134 Points	+115
10th	33	Kay Karssemakers	NED	KAW	114 Points	+135
11th	20	Julius Mikula	CZE	KTM	113 Points	+136
12th	172	Cas Valk	NED	TM	87 Points	+162
13th	48	Jens Walvoort	NED	KTM	60 Points	+189
14th	408	Scott Smulders	NED	HUS	57 Points	+192
15th	716	Noel Zanocz	HUN	KTM	56 Points	+193
16th	83	Maxime Grau	FRA	HON	51 Points	+198
17th	420	Andrea Rossi	ITA	KTM	33 Points	+216
18th	12	Pelle Gundersen	NOR	HUS	30 Points	+219
19th	456	Ollie Colmer	GBR	KTM	23 Points	+226
20th	73	Ferruccio Zanchi	ITA	DUC	18 Points	+231
21st	398	B. Garib	CHI	HON	18 Points	+231
22nd	98	Alessandro Gaspari	ITA	KTM	13 Points	+236
23rd	170	Valentin Kees	GER	KTM	12 Points	+237
24th	71	Morgan Bennati	ITA	TRI	10 Points	+239
25th	154	C. Padilla Duran	BOL	GAS	10 Points	+239
26th	97	S. Mancini	ITA	DUC	9 Points	+240
27th	22	D. Braceras	ESP	TRI	8 Points	+241
28th	204	F. Quirno Costa	ARG	HON	8 Points	+241
29th	61	S. Oechslin	SUI	KTM	8 Points	+241
30th	290	Joshua Voelker	GER	KTM	8 Points	+241