Jeffrey Herlings and Sacha Coenen will reflect fondly on the 2025 Grand Prix of Latvia as the pair ruled MXGP and MX2 through the rough sandy Kegums soil. The eleventh round of the season was played out in sunny weather, and the Dutchman and Belgian were accompanied by Lucas Coenen and Simon Laengenfelder for spoils as Red Bull KTM logged first and second in both categories and claimed three of the four motos. From 11 Grands Prix this year the team have won four in MXGP and seven in MX2. Words: KTM
- Jeffrey Herlings goes 1-1-1 with the KTM 450 SX-F for his second victory in the space of a week
- Lucas Coenen notches six podiums in a row and closes the gap to the top of the MXGP standings
- A first MX2 overall win of the season for Sacha Coenen with 1-2 results and the fourth trip to the podium this term for the 18-year-old
- Simon Laengenfelder finishes P2 but ascends to the top of the MX2 championship again as Andrea Adamo suffers with back pain and picks up points for 10th overall
- MXGP finally breathes after the triple header and will reconvene at Matterley Basin for the British Grand Prix in two weeks
MXGP changed country, track and surface for the first Grand Prix to open the second half of the 2025 campaign. The series travelled from Germany to Latvia, from the tight and undulating confines of Talkessel to the more open and flatter layout of Kegums and from rutted hardpack to loose, sandy and bumpy terrain. The climate continued to vary for the FIM Motocross World Championship in the wake of the German sunshine/showers and Kegums was largely bright and warm on Saturday for the MXGP and MX2 classes, graced with another full European program.
On Saturday Jeffrey Herlings and Lucas Coenen left the MXGP Qualification Heat with a 1-2. The Dutchman collected his first Saturday win of 2025 and therefore 10 points and Pole Position. Coenen was close behind in 2nd. In MX2 Simon Laengenfelder controlled proceedings for his second victory of the year while Andrea Adamo and Sacha Coenen had to pick up from a multi-rider crash and recover to P11 and P13, respectively.
The skies remained largely blue on Sunday while the race action were mostly orange. Herlings and Coenen made decent starts in the first moto, and Herlings checked out from the first lap, controlled the distance and eventually led the young Belgian to the line by less than two seconds (but almost a minute in front of everyone else). The second moto was a replay: Coenen holeshotted (for the ninth time; triple the quantity of any other rider) but Herlings grabbed P1 and then built his cushion to record a first 1-1 of the season, his second GP win in a row and the 109th of his career. The accumulation of 60 points pushes him to 9th in the standings. Coenen, with a 2-2, now has seven trophies for the year and is just 26 points from the red plate.
Sacha Coenen holeshotted and won the first MX2 race despite late pressure from Laengenfelder, who finished 2nd. Coenen took the flag for the second time in 2025. Adamo, with back pain from Saturday, fought back from a crash to take 11th (his lowest classification so far). In the second race Simon and Sacha swapped roles as the German earned P1 out of the first corner. Again, the KTM 250 SX-Fs marked the difference at the front of the field. Laengenfelder seemed to be cruising to a sixth moto win until he made a mistake on the final lap and dropped to 3rd. Kay de Wolf inherited the lead from Coenen but the 1-2 by the Belgian gave him a first overall GP win of the year. Laengenfelder walked the second step of the box; still, it was his sixth top three appearance of the term, establishing a championship standings margin of 27 points over Adamo. The Italian jumped across the line in 9th for 10th overall after a challenging day.
France, Germany and now Latvia: MXGP has earned a break and will cool engines before the British Grand Prix at Matterly Basin in England on June 21-22.
Jeffrey Herlings, 1st and 1st for 1st overall in MXGP: “Really good! Let’s repeat this nine more times! I’m really thankful. Lucas and Romain [Febvre] were pushing hard, so I have to give it up to them. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but it’s great to win again – I got a 1-1 last year and to have another; I’m pleased for that. Let’s keep this ball rolling. I know it won’t be easy, but we’ll do what we can.”
France, Germany and now Latvia: MXGP has earned a break and will cool engines before the British Grand Prix at Matterly Basin in England on June 21-22.
Jeffrey Herlings, 1st and 1st for 1st overall in MXGP: “Really good! Let’s repeat this nine more times! I’m really thankful. Lucas and Romain [Febvre] were pushing hard, so I have to give it up to them. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but it’s great to win again – I got a 1-1 last year and to have another; I’m pleased for that. Let’s keep this ball rolling. I know it won’t be easy, but we’ll do what we can.”
Image: KTM
