Lucas Coenen and Guillem Farres Strike First in Sun-Soaked Agueda Qualifying Races

Agueda was bathed in hot sunshine as the MXGP of Portugal, round 10 of the 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship, delivered a high-intensity qualifying day at the Crossdromo Internacional de Agueda, with Lucas Coenen and Guillem Farres emerging as the headline winners in MXGP and MX2, respectively.

After two years of wet conditions at the venue, the orange clay circuit finally dried out and broke down under sustained heat, producing deep lines, ruts and heavy braking bumps that punished mistakes and rewarded flow and precision. Despite the physical demands, the Championship leaders again rose to the top in both classes, although neither win came without pressure from determined rivals.

MXGP

In MXGP, it was Jeffrey Herlings who set the early tone by topping Free Practice with a late lap eight-tenths quicker than Tim Gajser, with Coenen only a fraction further back in a tightly packed top three. As conditions evolved into Time Practice, Coenen found his rhythm and edged Herlings by just 0.06 seconds to secure prime gate selection, with Ruben Fernández impressing in third ahead of Gajser and Romain Febvre.

When the MXGP Qualifying Race fired into life, Coenen converted his gate pick into the holeshot after fending off early pressure from Andrea Adamo, while Fernández sliced into second before Herlings swept around the outside of both to immediately lock onto the rear wheel of the Championship leader. Adamo’s race unravelled early as he dropped outside the top five behind Gajser, Pauls Jonass, Febvre and Tom Vialle, with Oriol Oliver and Calvin Vlaanderen rounding out the top ten in the early stages.

At the front, Coenen and Herlings quickly broke away, but the Dutchman never quite found a clean opportunity to strike, repeatedly held up by lapped riders at crucial moments. Behind them, Febvre worked his way forward in typical hard-pack form, eventually climbing to fourth as Gajser settled into fifth. Fernández maintained a strong podium position throughout, holding firm despite pressure as the leading pair edged clear.

Mid-race battles saw Jonass, Vialle, Renaux and Adamo shuffle positions inside the top ten, with Adamo eventually muscling his way past Vialle late in the race to secure sixth. Renaux and Vlaanderen also made late gains, with the Ducati rider snatching the final point on the last lap.

Despite Herlings’ relentless pressure and a late push that briefly took him close to Coenen, the Belgian Championship leader held firm and controlled the closing stages to take victory by just over four seconds. Fernández secured a standout third ahead of Febvre and Gajser, delivering a strong local-inspired performance for the Spanish fans.

Coenen reflected on another composed ride at the front of the field, saying, “I felt quite good and controlled out there. I mean, the tracks are a bit tricky, but it’s more fun to ride. You can get quite some flow, if you can find it that’s amazing. But it was a good race, good start, and I’ll try to repeat it tomorrow.”

Herlings admitted the race was heavily influenced by traffic, adding, “I was struggling with the lapped riders. I mean, with three laps, you always really had a lapped rider, and yeah, twice I couldn’t get past them, and both times I lost a bit of time. But anyway, it was a good ride. Gate position for tomorrow is good. Definitely would have preferred to stay on the inside, but I’m next to my main competitor. So, no, hopefully we can have a good battle tomorrow.”

Fernández, meanwhile, enjoyed one of his strongest Saturday performances of the season in front of home-adjacent support, explaining, “When it comes to a nice track with a nice layout where you can keep the flow, I feel much more comfortable. I tried to follow Jeffrey as much as possible. It was a good feeling on this track. Hopefully, tomorrow we can bring it into the two races.”

MX2

In MX2, early free practice pace was set by Guillem Farres, who impressed on home-style terrain by topping the session ahead of Sacha Coenen and Janis Reisulis, while Time Practice saw Coenen respond to secure pole gate pick over Farres and Camden McLellan.

The opening of the MX2 Qualifying Race was dramatically halted when Mathis Valin grabbed the holeshot but suffered a heavy crash after overjumping into braking bumps, prompting a red flag stoppage. Fortunately, Valin walked away from the incident, but the restart reset the race dynamic entirely.

On the second start, Farres capitalised immediately, launching into the lead and controlling the opening stages ahead of Coenen, Valerio Lata and surprise early pace-setter Nike Korsbeck. Early exchanges saw Liam Everts and Simon Längenfelder work forward, while McLellan also climbed into the top five as the race settled.

Everts and Längenfelder engaged in a strong battle for third before the reigning champion completed the move, with McLellan later closing in but ultimately settling behind Everts in fifth. At the front, Coenen kept pressure on Farres throughout but could not find a way through as the Spaniard delivered a breakthrough Qualifying Race win in front of an ecstatic crowd.

Farres, clearly thrilled with the result, said, “It was a good race. In the red flag, I got a bit of a worse start. Second start was much better and then I could hold it and I was just managing. The team did an amazing job. Bike’s awesome. I felt really comfortable, and really looking forward to tomorrow.”

With both Championship leaders extending their momentum and key rivals tightly bunched behind them, Sunday’s Grand Prix races are set up for another intense showdown on the demanding Águeda circuit.