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GIRLS
RIDER OF THE MONTH ROMAIN FEBVRE
SPECIAL FEATURE WONDER WOMEN
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MONSTER GIRLS
OF FAME
MXGP MAG
Chief Editor: Marionna Leiva Photos: MXGP
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MXGP Mag #142 2025
The articles published in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the official position of Infront Moto Racing.
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GIRLS
COOL SHOTS
COOL SHOTS
COOL SHOTS
RED PLATE HOLDERS STRIKE GOLD IN AUSTRALIA!
THE 2025 FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS ALL WENT DOWN TO THE WIRE AS THE SERIES FINISHED WITH A THREE-WEEK OVERSEAS TREK, CONSTANTLY MOVING EASTWARDS FROM TÜRKIYE TO CHINA, AND THEN ON TO AUSTRALIA FOR THE FINALE.
The cultural shifts could not be starker between those three final host nations. Türkiye, an Islamic nation which thrives on its otherworldly tourist attractions, holds the MXGP weekend deep in the heart of the country at Afyonkarahisar, and the “MotoFest” that is built up around the event attracts massive crowds with huge Turkish pop stars creating a very festival-like atmosphere, albeit with a concrete base, no alcohol, and deckchairs surrounding the edges of the crowds. The whole area around the circuit buzzes during this weekend, alive with partygoers of all ages. Gradually those crowds are drifting towards staying for the actual races themselves, and many fascinated possible fans gathered around the Paddock Show held on the main stage on Saturday evening.
The racing itself, on an unchanged circuit from previous years, continued to be enthralling as the two red plate holders, Romain Febvre in MXGP and Simon Längenfelder in MX2, held fast against their pursuers, Lucas Coenen and Kay de Wolf. The Saturday, however, was all about the Coenen twins, as for the first time ever we saw two brothers win the Blåkläder Qualifying Races on the same day! Lucas had come from running Jeffrey Herlings ragged through the sands of Arnhem, only to just fall short of victory, but there was no such issue in Türkiye as he took the Holeshot and checked out. For Sacha, it was a real monkey off his back after many attempts to do the same thing, but it finally worked at Afyon as he took his first ever Blåkläder Qualifying Race victory. The young Belgian is growing in stature with more consistency, and he will certainly be a title contender in 2026 if he continues this upward progress.
PENDULUM
The MX2 class swung dramatically between the two 2025 title combatants in the second half of
the season. Starting with Längenfelder’s victory at Matterley Basin, he and De Wolf would take turns as the GP winners through the next seven GPs, culminating with the German’s win in Türkiye! Amazingly, no rider in MX2 won two consecutive Grands Prix in 2025, and the Dutchman had scored more points between those victories, allowing the Nestaan Husqvarna man to close in to within 12 points of his Red Bull KTM rival as they headed to China. The challenge of Andrea Adamo, who always seems to struggle at Afyonkarahisar, had virtually evaporated by this point. Even though Sacha had won the first race on Sunday, he was overtaken early in race two by Guillem Farres, and would have to settle for the third step on the podium.
Lucas Coenen had left mainland Europe with a 31-point gap to make up to Romain Febvre, so basically needed to gain at least ten points per GP on the veteran Frenchman. The win on Saturday, and a similar performance in Sunday’s first outing, looked to be doing the trick, especially as the two returning titans of Jeffrey Herlings and Tim Gajser were clearly at a similar pace, and able to take points away from the factory Kawasaki man.
The crafty Frenchman knew the score, however, and fired into the lead at the start of race two, just after Isak Gifting had crossed the line to claim his first career Fox Holeshot Award. Herlings went with Romain, however, while Coenen had to fight from further behind. When “The Bullet” smells a GP win, he is still tough to hold back, and he took the lead at the halfway mark, leaving his fellow Red Bull KTM star with a clear path to attack the Kawasaki!
The teenager went for it, closing the gap and taking a lunge on the very last lap! He fell short though, maybe backing out of the contact a little, and ended the weekend with just a five-point chunk
taken out of Febvre’s lead. He would need more than that to take the title. Herlings meanwhile celebrated his 111th career GP win, matching the race number he wore when he took his first one, an incredible fifteen years ago! You get the feeling that the remarkable Dutchman is still far from finished.
DEEP HEAT
“The Bullet” celebrated his 31st birthday at the media event on Friday prior to The Oriental Beauty Valley MXGP of China, and genuinely seemed to enjoy the experience. The ornate architecture and traditional surroundings fascinated the riders who enjoyed the event in one of Shanghai’s ancient districts, and many ventured further still into the old city centre, taking a trip into Shanghai Tower, the third tallest building on the planet, and discovering why it is known as “The Magic City”.
The Shanghai International Off-Road Circuit had been re-located and completely redesigned, built within five months of completing the plans, and it definitely gave a better atmosphere as fans surrounded much of the track, which was complimented as “fun” by many of the riders. However, compared to the pre-storm greyness of 2024, the intense sunshine that hit much of this year’s event made it so much hotter than before, and all of the riders had to contend with extreme temperatures and stifling humidity.
Sacha Coenen again enjoyed the Saturday Blåkläder Qualifying Race with another win, setting the tone for Sunday. The top four in the Championship dominated the weekend, with Coenen winning race one and Adamo, even while he was being mathematically excluded from the title fight, claiming race two. From the title contenders, however, De Wolf had rediscovered his crashing habit, and in both races he tried in vain to
recover enough to pass Coenen, nearly suffering a big accident in race two as he landed off the track from one of the many steep jumps, lucky that there was nothing there but the carefully laid Chinese artificial turf!
Längenfelder did lose what could have been three vital points to Adamo, who put a last lap pass on the German. This demoted Simon to third overall, the GP going to his teammate Coenen, but he still pulled four points out on De Wolf over the weekend as they packed up for Australia!
THE FADING CHALLENGE
The biggest change in either of the title races occurred in MXGP, but it all happened behind Jeffrey Herlings. Despite confessing to hating the heat, he dealt with it better than anyone, especially in the second race when he darted into the lead
through the second corner and would never let it go.
The Fox Holeshot Awards in each race went to an unlikely first-time 2025 recipient; Maxime Renaux in race one, and Tim Gajser in race two! The Frenchman led most of the way for Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP, a welcome sight for the rider who showed so much promise back at the opening GP in Argentina, before a succession of injuries blighted his campaign. It took until lap 15 of 17 for Herlings to catch Renaux and strike, usefully in a section that Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager Joel Smets had pointed to him as a passing spot while being followed by our Behind The Gate camera crew!
Febvre had started well, while Coenen had not, but the Frenchman made a sequence of errors that dropped him to seventh, and suddenly the Belgian
was right behind his big rival! Unable to pull the trigger though, Lucas himself started to struggle, as Romain made a couple of passes, leaving the teenager to seemingly wilt in the heat, visibly taking deep breaths to try and get some energy together. He finished ninth to Febvre’s fourth, putting his title challenge in deep trouble.
It looked like Lucas would salvage something in the second race as he crossed the Fox Holeshot line millimetres behind his friend Gajser, but in turn two, exactly where his brother had fallen in MX2 less than an hour before, Lucas tucked the front wheel, holding up Renaux, and it left him completely at the back of the pack. He could only recover to 14th, ten places behind Febvre, and faced a near-impossible 47-point deficit with just the final round to go. Herlings took his third straight GP win, holding off Gajser in the process, as the Slovenian took his
first podium finish since his Swiss shoulder injury. Ruben Fernandez was impressive in joining his Honda HRC teammate on the podium with third overall.
THUNDER DOWN UNDER
The first trip to Australia for MXGP since 2001 served up yet another vastly different culture for the teams and riders to sample. If you didn’t get a close-up video of a crocodile being fed then you were seriously missing out, it seemed! Darwin’s media event really showcased the joys of the city seafront, and fans flew in from all over the vast island continent to sample the atmosphere, take in the race, and meet their heroes. The queue for Friday night’s signing session was truly monumental!
Temperatures were high, but not quite feeling as humid or as intense as China when the racing began on Saturday. Sacha Coenen again got the Holeshot, but Kay de Wolf had started well and took the lead at half distance. Längenfelder did not start well, and could only recover to fourth. It would leave just a 13-point gap for the German to defend on Sunday, and what a defence he would have to mount!
De Wolf made his intentions clear immediately on Sunday, carving across his rival at the first opportunity, but it back-fired as Längenfelder sped away from the wobbling Dutchman. Passing Guillem Farres, who really hit form in the hardpack circuits, fairly quickly, allowed Simon to pull out a gap. This was crucial, as De Wolf could only catch him by lap 14. It was clear that the Dutchman
would be aggressive, as any crash could drop the German down the order, and the KTM was flipped upside down when the Husqvarna charged up the inside of a 90-degree right-hander!
Amazingly, Längenfelder was able to remount in second, his bike undamaged, and brought it home to keep a ten-point margin for race two. Farres was a distant third, and De Wolf would clearly have to be aggressive early to put his rival down the pack in race two.
This was exactly what he did, as the storm clouds gathered in the distance, and Coenen took yet another Fox Holeshot Award, finishing the year on 17 from 40 opportunities! At the end of the opening lap, with rain already starting to fall, De Wolf took his rival wide and forced him to the floor, right
in front of Pit Lane as the teams hit fever pitch! Längenfelder was able to get up quickly in sixth, needing only fifth place even if De Wolf won, but as the rain became torrential, he lost the front end in a swampy corner, tangled further with Jens Walvoort after getting up to hit the floor again, and was down in 13th as De Wolf threatened the leader. It looked like the title would go back to the defending Champion after all!
The rain was reaching biblical levels, with pools of water forming all over the circuit. Suddenly De Wolf seemed to slow, unable to go for the big jumps, and it became clear that he was in big trouble with his machine. With Coenen riding brilliantly to keep the lead, and ultimately take a fantastic race win, Längenfelder would need eighth to clinch the crown, and he was in ninth by lap six! With riders dropping like flies, Kay suddenly had to get off and push his bike around the same corner where he passed Längenfelder, and after a few corners she finally ground to a halt!
Kay did cross the finish line in fifth, but as Adamo and then Camden McLellan fell out of the reckoning, Längenfelder was in sixth place, his title advantage restored. There was massive confusion as timing systems drowned in the deluge, and for safety reasons the red flag was flown. Counting
FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER WE SAW TWO BROTHERS WIN THE BLÅKLÄDER QUALIFYING RACES ON THE SAME DAY!
back to the last lap, when all riders had crossed the line, put De Wolf in that fifth position, one ahead of Längenfelder, who rightfully celebrated wildly with his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing squad! Even though De Wolf had won the GP due to the count-back, the title was gone. With so many GPs affected by rain this year, Simon dived into the mud in celebration, as Germany’s first World Motocross Champion for 14 years! It was a fitting title for the rider who had finished third for three years in a row, and taken the Acerbis Fastest Lap Award for the most times in the season. A well-deserved world crown.
GREEN AND GOLD
Before the rains came, Lucas Coenen had voiced his adoration for the new circuit, which was universally well-received in much the same way as Cordoba was in Argentina. MXGP’s new venues seemed to be getting good reviews in 2025! With nothing to lose, Lucas certainly enjoyed himself with a clear win on Saturday, while Febvre worked past a fast-starting Mattia Guadagnini to finish
directly behind his rival. The Italian took his best finish of the whole year for Aruba.it Ducati, ahead of Monster Energy Yamaha’s Calvin Vlaanderen and Gajser.
Febvre needed just a 16th-place finish to take the title, and with a cautious race behind his rival, Herlings in second, and Gajser in third, he was able to bring it home to secure his second world crown! Tears for his wife and for the whole Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP squad, especially Team Manager Antti Pyrhonen, flowed freely as he completed a ten-year wait for a second world crown at the age of 33. Kawasaki’s wait, outside of WMX anyway, had been even longer, and the team deservedly brought the KX450 machine its first ever world title. In the land of green and gold, it was a match made in heaven!
Race two was called off due to the weather conditions, which was a shame for the local crowd, but for sure Darwin will be back on the calendar next year, and many will look forward to it in the knowledge that the track will stay largely unchanged. Lucas Coenen took the GP win, his sixth of the year, as well as the Fox Holeshot Award for the season, and the Acerbis Fastest Lap prize. His challenge, as well as those of some top riders changing brands for the new season, should make 2026 another fantastic World Championship to look forward to!
EMX
The EMX250 European Championship came to a close in Türkiye, with Latvian VHR VRT Yamaha star
Elias Escandell rode superbly for F4E GASGAS to take third in race one, but his podium shot disappeared with a DNF on lap eight of race two! Australian Liam Owens scored a great third on Sunday to claim his second straight podium finish, completing 4-5 finishes in the Championship for Cat Moto Bauerschmidt Husqvarna behind his teammate Nico Greutmann.
Garcia overtook Reisulis on lap 10 of 14 to clinch the final overall win of the campaign and justify his selection for Team Spain at the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations. Zanocz, last year’s EMX125 Champion (the successor to Reisulis, who won the 2023 title), had a lacklustre ride to ninth on his way to the silver medal, but he will bounce back for 2026. All of the top three will be watched with interest as they graduate to MX2, and Janis’ “Killer” persona will be an intriguing addition to the World Championship stage!
WMX
The FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship didn’t finish in Türkiye this season, but it did have its penultimate round there as defending Champion Lotte van Drunen had to swallow a first loss on home ground, the “Queen of Sand” losing out to Daniela Guillen at Arnhem, to the delight of the Spanish charger! Lotte held a 20-point margin over Kiara Fontanesi, with Guillen just one point further back, and the chasers were known to enjoy the Turkish hardpack from previous years!
The six-time Champ, aiming to become the first mother to win a World Motocross Championship, looked to be on form with an early lead, but Guillen fought hard to beat the Italian, and a pass on lap five did the job! Van Drunen had been able to hold on for third place, without the attentions of Lynn Valk this time as her compatriot had broken her leg in the Dutch GP.
Janis Reisulis bringing a 38-point lead to the final round over Hungarian JM Racing Honda rider Noel Zanocz. The pair’s bitter rivalry had grown over the season, but so too had the confidence of third-place rider Francesco Garcia, as again EMX250 saw a clear gulf between the top three and the rest of the pack.
The Spaniard was simply dominant in the hardpack of Türkiye, claiming both race wins to end a solid season for BUD Racing Kawasaki. Reisulis did what he had to do with a solid second in race one, as Zanocz’s race fell apart, crashes dropping him to tenth spot to give the Latvian the title on Saturday with one race to go!
Race two was a vital one in the title fight. Van Drunen started poorly, boxed in, while her main rivals forced their way to the front past the faststarting Larissa Papenmeier. Just passing her training partner Lucy Barker for eighth at the end of the first full lap, the reigning Champ had a lot of work to do!
Fontanesi was able to hold Guillen at bay this time, although a vital incident mid-race might have contributed to that. While Van Drunen fought her way through to fourth, passing Papenmeier with three laps to go, both of her title chasers were found to have not respected yellow flags, and were penalised by five points each, leaving the Dutch red plate holder with a 16-point lead going to Australia!
Norwegian Martine Hughes took a deserved third overall in Türkiye on her Kawasaki, lifting her to
seventh in the Championship, and Barker followed up her career-best fourth at Arnhem with fifth at Afyon behind Van Drunen!
Out to Darwin then for the final round, and a host of fast Aussies could well have been dangerous to Van Drunen’s title bid. She needed a fourth and fifth even if Fontanesi won both races, and the likes of Charli Cannon and Taylah McCutcheon looked like possible riders to get between the title combatants. Larissa Papenmeier, flirting with retirement at the end of her long career, also looked fast on her favoured hardpack.
Fontanesi did all she could with a wire-to-wire win in race one, but she was pressed by Cannon on the third lap as the Aussie crowd got behind their girl! Papenmeier spun sideways out of the gate, but McCutcheon was ahead of Van Drunen to begin with, so it even put the title briefly in doubt. Cannon fell on lap four, impeding Guillen as she did so, and left Kiara to an easy win, although with Cannon out of the equation, and McCutcheon not quite having the endurance of the WMX regulars, Van Drunen’s third place left her needing just a sixth in the final race.
Fontanesi and Guillen fought valiantly, but McCutcheon had crashed out after the first corner with Amandine Verstappen, and Lotte led early on from Daniela to really put it beyond doubt. Both GASGAS riders did pass the De Baets Yamaha girl, as did local favourite Cannon on lap 10 of 13, but an easy fourth place gave the reigning Champ her second world title at just 18 years of age!
The winning margin was ultimately seven points over Fontanesi, and eight over Guillen, so thankfully those Turkish penalties did not decide the title after all, and there can be no asterisk over Van Drunen’s second title. Especially after her winter leg injury, it was a deserved and hard-fought world crown. What she does know is that Fontanesi and Guillen will be back with a vengeance next year, and a possible new wave of talent could also challenge the established front runners!
After a stunning 2025 World Championship in all classes, those picked for their national teams will head to Ironman in the USA for the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations, and the 2026 season will then soon be upon us. As always, it’s bound to be an epic confrontation!
MONSTER GIRLS
MONSTER GIRLS
ROMAIN FEBVRE - 2025 MXGP WORLD CHAMPION
BACK TO THE TOP! ROMAIN FEBVRE WINS HIS SECOND TITLE A DECADE ON FROM HIS FIRST!
As the 2025 season dawned, it was clear that long-standing contenders such as Romain Febvre and Tim Gajser would once more be towards the front, but MXGP was facing a season without its reigning Champion, Jorge Prado, and one if its other major stars, Jeffrey Herlings, yet again ruled out of the early races with a winter knee injury. However, one welcome addition came in the form of Prado’s replacement at the De Carli squad, now returning to the KTM brand, as exciting teenager Lucas Coenen moved up to the MXGP category after winning more GPs than anyone in the 2024 MX2 series.
Febvre had been strong in the 2024 campaign when present, but a thumb injury at his home GP derailed his title challenge just when he was catching fire, and he was unable to compete for the whole year, eventually claiming a single race win in China on his way to fifth in the series. Of course, the veteran Frenchman has been considered a contender for every MXGP title since he surprised many by claiming the crown in his very first year in the class. Back in 2015, much of the pre-season hype had been focussed on the upcoming battle between multiple Champion Antonio Cairoli and the incoming American legend Ryan Villopoto. Few eyes were on the French rookie with the MX2 bronze medal around his neck and just a single GP win to his name.
In what was a particularly tough year, however, injuries to both the pre-season favourites, as well as to further contenders such as Max Nagl and Clement Desalle, brought the Yamaha man into focus, breaking through with a famous first MXGP victory on home soil at Villars-sous-Ecot, the first of 8 GP wins in the final 11 rounds of the series. He took the title a round early, in Mexico, and completed his joy with a win at the final round in California plus a dominating performance as part of a
Since then, injuries have kept him away from the crown when he often looked to be in contention. Engaged in a stirring battle with Tim Gajser, as well as Cairoli, in 2016, a big crash at Matterley Basin put paid to his chances of defending the crown. Never quite the same force on Yamaha during the 2017 & ’18 seasons while KTM dominated with Cairoli and new arrival Jeffrey Herlings, an earlyseason injury held him back in 2019 before he came back to take his final GP win in blue at Loket that season.
His switch to Kawasaki in 2020 earned him a single GP victory and two race wins, before being part of the stellar three-way tussle with Gajser and Herlings for the 2021 crown. Wearing the red plate into the last two rounds of the season, Febvre was only just unable to resist the force of nature that was Jeffrey Herlings in the final round at Mantova, a heartbreaker that he still tries not to think about.
victorious Team France at the Motocross of Nations at Ernée!
Following that disappointment, a broken leg sustained in the winter’s Paris Supercross effectively ended the following year’s campaign before it began. As the factory Kawasaki squad changed management to Kimi Raikkonen’s Ice One rig, with Antti Pyrhönen as Team Manager, Febvre had to wait until the second half of the year to race again, and amazingly won a race at the very end of the season to climb the podium in Türkiye.
That result proved that Romain was far from done, and although 2023 started inconsistently, he was clearly a challenger from the off, although a small concussion in the Qualifying Race in Spain left him with zero points for the weekend. He bounced back to win his first race of the year in his home GP
two weeks later, and proceeded to win six out of seven GPs in an effort to haul in the points lead of Jorge Prado. Ultimately, a mechanical failure in the first race of the penultimate round at Maggiora finally buried his chances of the title, and he was second in the series once more.
After his 2024 disappointment, Febvre entered 2025 with lots of talk about the “ten-year gap”. With Tim Gajser exiting the Championship through injury in Switzerland, the same day as teenage tearaway Lucas Coenen took his first MXGP class GP victory, it was the Frenchman who was the obvious candidate to take over the red plate and see what he could make of it. All season long, it felt like the young Belgian was closing in, but with an amazing 14-round streak of podium results, plus stunning victories in
Spain, France, Great Britain, and Sweden, the Kawasaki man was making it more and more difficult.
His consistency through the final three rounds was perfect, holding off a late charge from the teenager in Türkiye, then taking precious points in China while Coenen wilted in the heat, left him with an easy job in Australia, at a track which he instantly enjoyed.
The man born on New Year’s Eve 1991 finally joined the ranks of two-time World Champions, with the most incredible ten-year gap between titles, double the previous record of time between consecutive gold medals for any rider, and joined Frederic Bolley, Mickael Pichon, Jean-Michel Bayle, Sebastien Tortelli, Marvin Musquin, and Tom Vialle on the list of double World Champions from France! His 26
career GP wins put him just inside the top 20 all-time, and you even get the feeling that he is far from finished as he turns 34 at the turn of the year! Will the big #3 be swapped for the #1? We certainly hope so, but there is no doubting that Romain Febvre’s second world title was just reward for a decade of undying effort, and richly deserved for one of the modern game’s most under-estimated MXGP warriors. Felicitations, Monsieur Febvre!
LONGEST GAPS BETWEEN CONSECUTIVE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:
1-Romain Febvre – 3,662 days (10yrs, 9 days): 2015-2025
2-Alessandro Puzar – 1,856 days (5yrs, 30 days): 1990-1995
3) Joel Robert – 1,548 days (4yrs, 2m, 25 days): 1964-1968
4) Stefan Everts – 1,492 days (4yrs, 1 month): 1997-2001
5) Hakan Carlqvist – 1,485 days (4yrs, 24 days): 1979-1983
6) Stefan Everts – 1,478 days (4yrs, 17 days): 1991-1995
7) Eric Geboers – 1,471 days (4yrs, 10 days): 1983-1987
8) Georges Jobe – 1,464 days (4yrs, 3 days): 1987-1991
9) Steve Ramon – 1,457 days (3yrs, 11m, 27 days): 2003-2007
10) Georges Jobe – 1,457 days (3yrs, 11m, 27 days): 1983-1987
CAREER STATS
Grand Prix Wins: 26
Race Wins: 57
Podiums: 91
MXGP World Champion: 2015, 2025
2025 STATS
Grand Prix Wins: 5
Race Wins: 9
Qualifying Race Wins: 3
Pole Positions: 3
Podiums: 16
WONDER WOMEN
IT’S OFTEN BEEN SAID, THAT THE BEST MAN FOR THE JOB, IS A WO-MAN, AND INSIDE THE MXGP PADDOCK YOU WILL FIND AN ABUNDANCE OF WOMEN WHO HAVE WORKED THEIR WAY TO THE TOP, IN WHAT IS MOSTLY, A MALE-DOMINATED ENVIRONMENT. SO, IN ORDER TO SHINE A LIGHT ON SOME OF THESE AMAZING WOMEN, MXGP MAGAZINE CAUGHT UP WITH A HANDFUL OF MXGP’S FINEST, WHERE WE HEAR THEIR BACKSTORIES AND HOW THEY CAME TO BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THIS WONDERFUL SPORT WE CALL THE FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.
When the FIM Motocross World Championship began back in 1957, the main players were men, and racing back then was only for men. Mechanics were men, journalists were men, and everywhere
you looked, there were men. Sure, there were a few women knocking around here and there, but back then, their role was primarily to take care of all the mundane stuff, like the washing, the cleaning, you
know, the usual stereotypical domestic goddess-type stuff which thankfully, is a million miles away from where we are today. But since then, we have seen the emergence of the Women’s World Championship, and since 2008 when the series was officially upgraded from the World Cup, women have been a major part of MXGP paddock life.
But, it’s not just female racers that have infiltrated the male ranks; far from it. Everywhere you look, there are more and more women working in high profile roles, and before you say ‘it’s only because they are women that they have those jobs,’ you need to stop, and think again about what you just said.
Take Marionna Leiva for instance, who is currently Infront Moto Racing’s Marketing Director. Before she joined the company, Marionna worked as a teacher, and working in the motocross industry was the furthest thing from her mind, as she explains:
‘I was an English teacher in Spain, and I taught all sorts of ages. I started in the nursey; there was a bilingual nursery in my hometown, I also did some private lessons, but then I also did a Masters when I graduated, and taught in primary school and secondary school, as well as in an official language school in my region; not just Barcelona, but also all around. I also spent two years in the UK; one year
was at university finishing my studies, the second one was in Leeds, where I was teaching Spanish to A-Level and GCSE students, and that was a super good experience.’
So, how do you go from being a teacher to working in a sport that you never even knew existed? Marionna picks up the story:
‘I met my husband in 2005. He talked about motocross like it was a religion, and I told him I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about, and he was like, but you have one of the best tracks ever next door, which was Bellpuig; so, he took me there in 2005.’
Fast forward to 2010, and a chance meeting, at that same Bellpuig circuit funnily enough, led her down a completely different path to the one she thought she was destined to be on, as she recalls:
‘I joined Youthstream (now Infront Moto Racing) in July 2010, and I met them by chance because my husband was working as a freelance photographer, and when they offered me a job I said ‘no way! This is not my feel, not my ground’ but I loved sports in general, and I fell in love with this sport somehow, and here I am. Back then, I was doing communications, as the assistant of the Media Manager, Daniele Rizzi,
and at my very first race I remember Daniele gave me a microphone in the middle of the women’s race; it was live, and he gave me this mic and, said ‘think of three questions for the top three girls. You will be on TV doing the interviews.’ I was like what? So, yeah, you learn really fast here and the good thing, is you can also grow really fast, and then they put you in situations where you’re not really comfortable, because you’ve never done it before. But, if you are up for it then you can really grow, and they give these opportunities to do so. At that time, I did everything from TV to journalism; I took over from Daniele in 2011 and did everything by myself.’
About a year or so earlier, in 2009, a young woman by the name of Lisa Leyland entered the paddock at Faenza, Italy, and like Marionna, knew nothing about the sport of motocross before she arrived in Italy. But, unlike Marionna, whose work was mostly assigned to the media centre and journalistic duties, Miss Leyland’s role as television presenter meant she was going to be front and centre to the live TV production, and as Lisa explains, the whole thing was quite daunting:
‘When I started, I didn’t have a background in motocross, I didn’t even know about motocross; it was totally new. I’d studied television and media & journalism as a degree in university, but in terms of the sport I was a total newbie, and I found it actually, quite overwhelming. Not just because I’m a woman, but just because I had to learn the sport and you’re surrounded by everyone else knowing the sport inside out; they’ve grown up in it, they’ve lived it day in, day out, and from my point of view coming in, not knowing the names, not knowing the format of the races it was a lot. It was quite overwhelming for me.’
The biggest hurdle that Lisa needed to overcome was knowing the riders, who they were, what they looked like, their history in the sport. But that is easier said than done, as she points out:
‘The thing is, I actually did my research, I looked up the key players, the main championship contenders and everything, but you can only learn so much. The reality is, you have to be living the sport, you have to be at the races, you have to be in the paddock to really get on top of it, and I did feel that element of pressure, because everyone else knew everything. Even the amount of research and the studying I did beforehand, it wasn’t enough. You have to be there at the races, watch them, and that’s how you learn. So, I had an element of pressure, even more so. I remember my first race at Faenza; at the end of the weekend there was a sigh of relief, it’s done, but someone did come up to me and said ‘you need to know your stuff!’ and I was like, ‘oh, I actually thought I did quite a good job …’ but he was like ‘no, these riders, it’s their life, and as the TV presenter you need to know what you’re talking about …’ and he kind of
gave me a kick up the backside as if to say ‘you need to do more research!
‘And I wasn’t hugely happy with that comment, but it did kind of give me that motivation to just kind of like, you know what, I really need to work a lot harder at this job than I initially thought.’
After two years in the role, Lisa left to pursue other projects and when she returned five years later, was pleasantly surprised at how much her working environment had changed, as she points out:
‘The sport had grown, social media had grown, the TV broadcast, the different classes, that was all different, but yeah, ultimately the number of women in the sport was, totally different. There was a whole department like, Nikki Malin was in social media, Aiste, Samanta Gelli; all of a sudden, and actually the more women that I saw it actually made my return a lot easier, because it is very much a man’s world, or it was, and as a woman you are surrounded by men, and it’s not actually a problem but when you do make connections with other women in the same boat as you, like Nikki and Samanta, you kind of feel a little bit, I don’t know, it’s a different feeling; you feel a little bit more in your comfort zone because you’re both in the same boat, so that did make a difference on my return and did make my transition back in a bit easier.’
FEDE IS CLEARLY THE FIRST FEMALE MECHANIC IN OUR SPORT, BUT HOPEFULLY, SHE WON’T BE THE LAST.
During Lisa’s absence, Marionna had worked her into marketing where she is now Marketing Director, and as she points out, this new role kind of crept up on her:
‘It was a gradual process, like Guido Becchis was there in those days and he was stepping back gradually, and they wanted to refresh a little bit the brand at the time, when we introduced the new MXGP logo. We also had new blood coming in with Samanta, and it was in those years when they said we would like you to move towards the marketing side, to take care a little bit the image of the sport, and then the relationship with the sponsors, so it was a gradual move really. And so here I am.’
Along with taking care of all the visuals, all the projection of the designs of all the passes and backdrops etc, Marionna’s role is to ‘take care of all of MXGP’s partners and sponsors, making sure that what we promise is delivered, so they have good exposure and when they come to the events they are well received’ but also to find the ‘non-endemic
brands as well, to attract them also, because that’s the biggest challenge that we have.’
When Marionna first joined IMR, most of the jobs within the company were taken by men, but certainly in the past ten to fifteen years, that stat has changed, as she points out:
‘In terms of women, I would say we are reaching twenty, or even more, because if we also count the people who are working in the hospitality, we are a lot, and back in the day we were maybe five women, maximum. But not only in IMR, also the paddock has seen an increase in women entering the sport, and with very good roles and important roles as well. So, I think it is something we need to be proud of.’
TEAM PLAYER
If you are an avid follower of MXGP on the MXGPTV platform, then you will have noticed that one of those important roles comes from within the heart of the paddock, where one mechanic in particular, stands out, and that is Federica Sezzi, who works for Honda HRC. She might be small in stature, but the Italian is a powerhouse when it comes to looking after Ruben Fernandez as his number one race mechanic, and for those of us who are in the paddock week in, week out, it’s a reminder that if you are good enough, and capable enough, then no matter what you put your mind to, you can do anything you want.
But, what’s Fede’s backstory, and how did she come to be one of the most respected women in the motocross paddock?
‘My whole family comes from the world of motocross. My grandfather had a team and rode motorcycles when he was younger, and my dad rode motorcycles and has a Husqvarna and GasGas shop/dealership. When I was little, my grandfather always took me to a little house in the countryside where he kept all his motorcycles, and I used to play with the wrenches; he’d make me unscrew the screws, and every now and then, he’d take me for a ride on a small vintage motorbike. Later, my father opened a shop and a workshop, and after school he always went to the workshop. When we went to races, I always helped my dad build his riders’ bikes, and at the World
Championships I always hung out by the tents watching the mechanic’s work!’
In many ways, it’s nurture versus nature, where your upbringing can have a baring on your general outlook of life, and in this case, it was clear that Federica wanted to make a difference, as a female mechanic. Of course, she could have gone to work in the family shop, fixing and repairing bikes, but clearly, Fede had other ideas, and wanted to be a part of the racing community, but that is easier said than done.
The first hurdle she had to overcome, was the fact she was a woman, and motocross bikes are heavy and, and, and … so, it would be fair to suggest that she had to work even harder to get noticed, to be taken seriously if she was to fulfil her ambition of being a mechanic in this industry. But, the best way to get noticed, is to get stuck in, get your head down, show everybody how capable you are and take it from there, which is exactly what Fede did, as she recalls:
‘I first ‘worked’ on a motorbike when I was about 12 years old, I think! I raced with my dad’s team at a regional level and in 2017 I competed in the Italian championship with a 450cc rider, and at the end of the year the SM Action team called me, to work with them for 2018. At first, I was hired to be Alvin Ostlund’s training mechanic, but then I started working with Maxime Renaux with whom I then worked for three years as a training mechanic …’ and the rest, as they say, is history!
Still, it couldn’t have been easy, being a woman in a man’s environment, doing the job which many think is a man’s job, and as Fede points out, in the beginning, it wasn’t easy:
‘At first it wasn’t very easy; all eyes were on me and I didn’t like it very much, but I think it’s ‘normal’ that they look at you a little strangely. But then within the team, everything was always good, they always helped me and had no prejudices.
‘I worked with SM Action for four years; three as Maxime’s training mechanic and one as Andrea Adamo’s race mechanic. I decided to leave because I needed a change! In the end, I had only worked there, so I wanted to gain other experiences.’
In 2022, Fede moved to Livi Lancelot’s Honda 114 Motorsports team, where she joined forces with Ruben Fernandez, and that relationship continues to this day in MXGP, as she explains:
‘I was hired to be Ruben Fernandez’s race mechanic in the 114 team, then after, HRC decided to give the official bike to Ruben, so I worked in HRC, and at the races I was under the 114 tent, so I was Ruben’s race mechanic from the beginning. I’ve been working with Ruben for four years and we have a great relationship! It’s very important to me to have a good relationship;
you have to trust the person you work with. It’s a bit like he’s my brother, I always try to do things in the best way for him!’
At present, Federica is still the only female mechanic in the MXGP paddock, and understands that this kind of work is maybe not for other women, but of course she would like that statistic to change:
‘I don’t know any other girls who are mechanics, I’d like to see more of them but I understand that it’s not very easy!’
Who knows, maybe after seeing Federica at work within the paddock, or watching her live on TV, hopefully this fuels the imagination to encourage other
THE EVOLUTION OF THE SPORT, IT’S IMPORTANT, AND I THINK DEFINITELY MXGP IS HEADING IN THAT RIGHT DIRECTION.’
girls to pick up the spanners. Fede is clearly the first female mechanic in our sport, but hopefully, she won’t be the last.
That is a sentiment that Lisa Leyland agrees with, who not only points to Federica, but also other women, who are team coordinators, or team managers as we’ve seen in the past. Having more women in the paddock can only be healthy for the series, as she explains:
‘I think the way the sport is heading, we’ve got women mechanics, we’ve had women team managers, we’ve got women coordinators, and head of departments are women, and I think it’s important, and not just for me but generally for the sport, to go in that direction. We’ve got Fede in HRC and she is essentially doing what in the past would be seen as doing a man’s job, but she does it. And I’ve watched her many times doing it just as good as a man would, and I think it’s important for viewers to see it when they watch it on TV, to see these female faces in the paddock doing exactly what men will do. So, I think in the evolution of the sport, it’s important, and I think definitely MXGP is heading in that right direction.’
As for the kind of work that Lisa does over the course of the weekend, it would be very easy to assume that she is placed in front of a camera and told to ask a few questions, but the reality is so much different, as she explains:
‘It’s a long weekend which pretty much starts on a Thursday. I generally take the first flight out in the morning, get to the track and my job as a TV presenter is to record pre-record things for social media or Behind The Gate, and I work during the live
broadcast as well. So, Thursday, I turn up and we do the ‘welcome’ which is basically introducing everyone to where we are, what area of the country we are in, the track, how many times we’ve been there and it’s quite a relaxing day which ends with a TV/media meeting.’
‘On Friday for Social Media, I do the paddock talks with the riders, going around with the mic chatting to the riders, asking how they’re feeling ahead of the weekend – all pre-recorded – do a few little fun, lighthearted games in the paddock, so it’s quite a casual day but it’s a good day for me to chat to the guys, but also a good day for me to get content about the weekend, like the track, how they’re feeling that I can perhaps use in other areas.’
‘Saturday gets super busy, we arrive at the track around 08:00, we have the support classes, and I like getting to the track early as I like to prep for the live broadcast; I’ve been doing this job a really long time but I’m the sort of person that just likes things to be planned, although I can’t always plan things, but I try when I can to plan as much as I can, and to talk and write my notes and highlight my notes, so I’m always in early to do all of that. We start the LIVE with the Studio Show at 12:00 and then we are back-to-back with all the live action, from Time Practice to support races to the quali races, and my job pretty much ends when the live broadcast ends. And then we do it all again on the Sunday. Prep first thing on Sunday morning from whatever happened the day before in the quali races, plan and carry out the pre-grid interviews, flash interviews, podium interviews, so it’s pretty full on.’
SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
There is no denying that over the past ten years or so, the world of social media has just exploded, and wherever you go, wherever you look, big companies and organisations have used this new medium as the perfect promotional tool in order to gain maximum exposure for their brand.
And this is also the case in MXGP, where its own social media team is spearheaded by Sandra Soomets, but prior to that, Nikki Malin was one of the first, if not the first to bring the social media presence to MXGP. But who is Nikki Malin, and how did she end up in MXGP? Nikki picks up the story:
‘Growing up ‘in the sticks’- the Kiwi way of describing life in a small village – in a small town outside of Palmerston North, New Zealand, I was always an outdoorsy kid. I liked hanging out with the boys, riding BMX bikes, riding skateboards, and basically thrill seeking. I didn’t grow up around dirt bikes or motorcycles, in fact, I didn’t want anything to do with motorcycles when I was younger. My brother, however, was obsessed with
dirt bikes, and after years of asking for one, my dad eventually restored an old 1989 RM80 for him to ride. Long story short, my dad, who had always claimed he had fiery Scottish blood, whether that is an acceptable argument or not is debateable, got incredibly frustrated with my brother struggling to ride this RM80 and basically forced me to ride it to light the fire under my brother’s ass. It worked. My brother was not at all happy that I could ride the bike better than him, and in contrast, I was bloody stoked. From there, I had caught the bug and riding a dirt bike was all I wanted to do.’
Racing soon followed, and as Nikki climbed the ranks in her native New Zealand, her racing career was almost brought to halt when her brother suffered a serious head injury at the age of twelve.
Her dad at that point, wanted her to stop racing, but as Nikki recalls, ‘it was too late for me to stop. I was laser-focused on achieving my goal of becoming World Champion.’
At sixteen, Nikki moved north to Auckland where she worked full-time for New Zealand’s number one KTM dealer as a Parts Manager, and she was able to continue racing with some support from KTM New Zealand, and as she recollects, ‘when I was not working, I was training, riding or racing. While I spent a lot of time on my own working on my own dream, in the background was my mum who had always encouraged me to take risks and do whatever necessary to make my dreams come true. For that, I’m forever thankful.’
asked for a job, and whilst racing WMX was still a dream, without money it was impossible.
A job working in hospitality, serving VIP guests, washing dishes and cleaning floors was her way into Youthstream, and as Nikki explains, ‘from there, my life became a series of right-place, right-time sliding doors moments.’
‘I was very active on social media, because I was young and a million miles from home, so posting on Facebook was the easiest way to communicate with my family and friends. It just so happened that social media was on the rise, and it was something that the generations before me really struggled with, so it was only natural that I entered that arena. I was also fortunate that English was my first language, and at the time, I enjoyed writing a lot. Also, writing stories about riders or race reports was relatively easy for me, because it was a genuine passion, rather than a job.’
‘So, after working in the restaurant in 2012, and then alongside another legendary female in the paddock, Niki Makk, in 2013, while writing the race reports for MX3, I was offered an opportunity to join the official MXGP media crew, in press and social media, under the guidance of yet another female icon, Marionna Leiva, in 2014.’
‘Working for Youthstream gave me a solid foundation within the work force. I had to work hard. I had to learn fast, and I had to adapt, like it or not. I’m not going to lie, those years were some of the toughest of my life, however, I am forever thankful to them for the opportunity they gave me and all that they taught me. Without them, I think my life would look very different now.’
When she left IMR, Nikki took a job working for Yamaha as its MXGP Press Officer, which in many ways was like ‘coming home’ having ridden Yamaha bikes early in her racing life, but with the new job came her first real introduction to the corporate world, as she recalls:
At eighteen, Nikki bought a one-way ticket to Europe to race the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship, where ‘I did a few races, raced a few GP’s; I think my best result was seventh at the MXGP of Spain in Bellpuig, which was a season I started, despite missing the off-season after a crash in Lommel saw me break my shoulder, fracture my leg just below my kneecap and tear the MCL ligament in my knee. My international racing career in a nutshell was spoiled by injury. I was left with two choices. I could return home to New Zealand, or I could get a job.’
As luck would have it, the track builder at the time for Youthstream was a fellow Kiwi, called Greg Atkins, who introduced her to a few key people at Youthstream, now Infront Moto Racing, where she
‘At the end of 2016, I got an opportunity to go to Yamaha as an MXGP Press Officer. I was excited for this opportunity. I rode Yamaha’s for the first 6-years of my life in racing, and my family were as blueblooded as they come. It felt like it was meant to be. Starting at Yamaha, I would say the biggest challenge was understanding the corporate world. I understand the riders, I understand MXGP, I understand the sport, and I understand racing, but the corporate side to things was all new to me, but I revelled in this new world. I knew that soaking up as much knowledge as I could, would carry me through life.’
‘I live by the motto ‘do it properly or don’t do it at all’ and I will always be this way. I give everything to my job, and I feel blessed to be in the position I am in, however, it was not by luck. I have worked my ass for
everything that I have, nothing was ever handed to me on a silver platter, and I honestly wouldn’t have it any other way.’
Nowadays, Nikki is Yamaha Motor Europe’s MXGP Media Manager, which in her own words, is a hard role to explain because it involves a bit of everything, as she explains:
‘What consumes most of my time is content creating and managing the MXGP content on Yamaha Racing’s Official Social Media channels, which takes up far more time than people realise, however, it is easily my favourite part of my job.’
‘It’s also the most rewarding as you can set goals and achieve them, visually. I am also the point of contact between Yamaha Motor Europe’s Official and Factory teams and the media, or Yamaha’s partners and sponsors, so it’s me that creates the media schedules for the riders and liaises with everyone involved. I also write our official statements in regards to injuries, rider updates, team structure updates and announcements, and I write the pre-event previews with quotes from the riders. On top of that, I also manage the media crew we use to compliment and execute our social media strategy, which means I negotiate contracts, deals and requests with our media partners. I also create concepts, briefs and manage our MXGP photoshoots and media productions almost single-handedly, so, it’s a busy old life, but I enjoy it still to this day. It’s funny where life takes you.’
THE RACER
When WMX was first introduced to the MXGP schedule, its first incarnation was as the Women’s World Cup which initially took place as a support class to the main world championship at one nominated GP, and then two, before it was upgraded to world championship status in 2008. From today’s line up of WMX racers, only one of those riders still competes, having ridden both the world cup and world championship races, and that is Larissa Papenmeier. The happy-go-lucky rider from Germany, has quite literally seen it all when it comes to racing in WMX, and is probably the best-placed rider to shed some light on how things have changed over the years.
‘For sure it’s changed over the years; it started with the world cup and then we got the World Championship status in 2008, where we raced alongside MX1 and MX2. In 2011 the series went back to MX3, where it wasn’t the best, and then it stepped up again, alongside MX1 and MX2 in 2014, so eventually, everything got better again,’ commented Larissa.
Since 2014, the women’s series has remained a part of the MXGP world championship, where the
number of rounds has varied from five rounds to eight, with the past couple of seasons seeing the women compete over six rounds, and Papenmeier remembers what it felt like when everything changed in 2008:
‘When the world cup became a world championship, it was something nice, you feel like an appreciation because of it, I mean, you work as hard the men, you take all your time for that, it takes up most of the time of your life I guess, so yeah, it was something nice and not just something normal for us I guess, or for me.’
When the new world championship kicked off in Bulgaria on 11th May 2008, it was Papenmeier who went down in history as the first ever race winner, but a DNF in race two kept her off the overall podium. Since then, she has taken seven race wins, won seven GP’s and landed on the podium a very respectable thirty-seven times which puts her 2nd in all-time podiums, behind Kiara Fontanesi who has fifty-nine. Her career stats are also pretty impressive, and even though she may not have won a world title, ‘Pap’ finished 2nd in 2009, and finished 3rd no fewer than seven times. That is what you call a pretty decent career.
‘I LIVE BY THE MOTTO ‘DO IT PROPERLY OR DON’T DO IT AT ALL’ AND I WILL ALWAYS BE THIS WAY. I GIVE EVERYTHING TO MY JOB, AND I FEEL BLESSED TO BE IN THE POSITION I AM IN, HOWEVER, IT WAS NOT BY LUCK.
When asked if there were any stand-out moments, Larissa gushed at the recollection of the two GP wins she won at home in Teutschenthal, the first in 2010, with the most recent in 2024:
‘To hear your national anthem on the top step of the podium, is actually amazing! You can’t really describe this feeling. You have the fans behind you, you’re in your home country, it’s always a lot of stress to race at home, but it’s definitely worth it to be on top.’
With so much experience under her belt, Larissa is also seen as an ambassador of WMX, not just in the world championship, but also in Germany where she has been instrumental in bringing out various changes, in the hope of helping the sport grow, telling us that:
‘I pushed through some changes, like the need to ride with a different license, and also, I managed to push for women to have a real German championship; it was also a cup before that. You
have to be hard to get things done, and it’s hard sometimes, because I get mad but it’s just that I want it for the women.’
‘It’s not that I want it for me, because I have nothing from that, and anyway it’s my last year, so I just want the good things for the women that are coming up after me. In Germany, we have between thirty and forty riders behind the gate at every round, sometimes even forty-five, so that’s pretty good. It’s also good or nice to help the women, to give them a step forward or to have somebody to speak to if they have any questions. I’m there to help, I’m there for everything, I’m not gaining anything from that, but it’s just that I want to help with my experience, or if they have any questions.’
In Australia, Larissa Papenmeier lined up behind the gate for her 99th GP start, and whilst it looks like 2025 will be her last full season competing on the world stage, she hopes to line up at least once more in 2026, to sign off with 100 GP starts. During her career she admits the level has improved massively, but if she had her time again, would she do anything differently, or not?
‘Well, you can always make something different, even if you do it good, there is always a step better I guess, but you have to be more of an asshole I guess, you know what I mean? Not too friendly because that doesn’t bring you that far, and take no prisoners. Also, like, to step in front of the sponsors like that, I was too friendly and too shy to ask you know, when I started in WMX. That’s for sure
something I would do different, but for the rest, for me it’s important to have fun.’
THE CO-ORDINATOR
Last but by no means least, and perhaps one of the more familiar faces inside MXGP is Red Bull KTMs Team Co-ordinator, Valentina Ragni, who is possibly also one of the longest servants in the paddock as well.
If you watch MXGPTV, you will have seen Vale during the post-race interviews with riders such as Jeffrey Herlings or Andrea Adamo, as she is the person who makes sure they have the Red Bull can on display for those interviews, or during the press conference, she
will be the one that makes sure a can is in full view on the table in front of her riders. But her job is so much more than that, as she explains:
‘I am from a town called Cingoli, in Italy and there used to be a famous GP track there, and since I was a child, my parents had a passion for motocross and they took me to the races from the age of three years old. From there, I started loving this sport so much and even though I had the chance to work in road racing, my first love has always been motocross, so I studied, and my local moto club used to run GP’s at Cingoli, and since I could speak many different languages, they asked me to be a translator in the jury meetings for all the different delegates and so on.’
During the 1990’s Vale worked with various organisations and federations and one of her most high-profile riders that she worked with during that time was Georges Jobe, but since the early 2000’s, Vale has been an integral part of KTMs racing programme, managing a lot of the logistics from travel for the riders and mechanics, to making sure they are well catered for at the races. She also manages all of their rider activities such as signings and interviews with the various media outlets. And it’s a job which is pretty much full gas all year long, as she points out:
‘I always say I do all the jobs behind the scenes, you know, so let’s start from January. We start already preparing all the entries for the riders, all the clothing, the sponsors and all for the team what is necessary to be ready for the start of the season in February or March. Pre-season photo shoots and video shoots, and this is like a 365-days year job, because when you finish at the end of the season, you maybe take two weeks free and then you start already thinking about next year, about the clothing the photo shooting etc. And then I’m always behind the scenes to help the team.’
During her time with KTM, Valentina is without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most popular women in the paddock, who knows no boundaries, has no prejudices towards anyone and always goes about her business with a huge smile on her face, even if she has to deal with some top-level riders, who sometimes can be quite prickly. But, is it difficult trying to manage the riders and their ego’s, or does she win them over with her motherly charm?
‘I try to have both a personal and professional relationship with them, but honestly, I’m always trying to get … not trying, it just gets normal that I’m getting very close to them you know? I take every relationship very personally, so beside them being the riders I’m working with, they become like my sons, you know? I cannot really split the two things because I love so much what I do and I’m really trying to do my best for them, to help them out so at the end, it’s not only the professional side but also, I become very much involved in their life.
‘Of course, some are more open, some are more shy, some are more reserved, and I always try to let’s say, try to understand how to approach them, because some I will joke more and they accept the joke, where some are like woah, why do you say that to me, you know, so you need to be a bit more careful and have to adapt yourself to the personality of each rider.’
Perhaps her highest profile rider over the years has been Jeffrey Herlings, who she has been babysitting since he was 15 years old; not the easiest kid to manage in the beginning, but certainly over time The Bullet has softened slightly, but one thing is certain, and that is he knows not to mess with Vale. He knows better than to do so, and their relationship has been more mother-son than anything else, as Vale recalls:
‘When he started with us, he was 15 and I always joke that he was quite a terrible boy, because there were no rules for him, he was like I would say a crazy horse. But now, he changed a lot, now he is much more responsible and he’s much more mature of course, he thinks more and he’s approaching himself with other people in a different way but of course, among us there is a lot of trust because we have been working for so long together and I have seen quite a big evolution with him, yes.’
It’s not just Jeffrey that Valentina has to deal with, and one thing she likes to do as the mother of the team, is bring everyone together, something which has more
to do with her Italian heritage than anything else. But as she points out, being on the road is not easy, and time spent together is better, than time spent apart:
‘For me it’s very important to have a good team spirit you know, because we spend so much time together, and I think all of us spend much more time with the team than we do our own families, and if you only have a working atmosphere, and that’s all, then it’s not gonna be easy, because you spend so much time, and also abroad and so on, so I always try to get involved because I think the team spirit is something really important, and even when we are at home sometimes we are like okay, let’s go for a pizza or some night out together, and it’s good because I think you need that. It’s really, really important.’
Clearly, this kind of approach is why the KTM family has been so galvanised over the years, and probably why Valentina is one of the most respected people in the paddock. Because she is a woman? Hell yeah! That too! But like everyone working in MXGP, this life comes with its ups and downs, but as she points out, ‘the best part about the job is that you meet a lot of people, you travel a lot and it’s not boring, for sure. Not like a boring job.
And the other, is that you have a lot of important responsibilities and yeah, it’s a bit stressful, this is for sure, but I love it, the travel and everything and that’s why I still do it, even after so many years.’
CATCH UP WITH ALESsANDRO LUPINO
FEW RIDERS HAVE LEFT SUCH A LASTING MARK ON THE PADDOCK AS ALESSANDRO LUPINO. SINCE STEPPING AWAY FROM FULL-TIME COMPETITION IN THE MXGP SERIES, THE ITALIAN HAS CONTINUED TO POUR HIS PASSION AND KNOWLEDGE BACK INTO THE SPORT. FROM HIS EXCITING INVOLVEMENT WITH DUCATI’S AMBITIOUS MOTOCROSS PROJECT, TO HIS IMPORTANT ROLE WITHIN THE ITALIAN FEDERATION, LUPINO REMAINS A KEY FIGURE SHAPING THE FUTURE OF MOTOCROSS BOTH ON AND OFF THE TRACK. WITH HIS TRADEMARK CHARISMA AND HONESTY, HE SHARES HIS JOURNEY AFTER RETIREMENT, HIS NEW CHALLENGES, AND THE MOTIVATION THAT KEEPS HIM PUSHING FORWARD IN THE WORLD OF RACING.
TO HEAR OR WATCH THE PODCAST
BEN TOWNLEY 2005 KTM 450 SX-F
IN 2004, NEW ZEALAND’S BEN TOWNLEY BECAME THE FIRST EVER WINNER OF THE FIM MX2 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RIDING A KTM250 SX-F, AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR, SET HIS SIGHTS ON WINNING THE BIG PRIZE IN WHAT WAS THEN KNOWN AS MX1.
ARMED WITH A RED BULL KTM 450SX-F, THE NEW ZEALANDER EVENTUALLY PLACED 3RD OVERALL IN HIS ROOKIE CAMPAIGN, AND IT’S THIS MACHINE THAT WE WILL FEATURE IN THIS ISSUE OF MXGP MAGAZINE.
When the MX2 era began in 2004, not everybody was on board with the 4-stroke revolution, even KTM who ran Ben Townley on the 250 SX-F and Tyla Rattray on the 125SX. History, and a previous chat with ‘BT’ reminds us that the championship winning 4-stroke was in the end, a no-brainer, and the Kiwi
dominated the series in fine style. What came next was Townley’s announcement that he wasn’t hanging around to defend the title, in favour of trying his luck in the premier MX1 class instead, as it was known at that time. In doing so, he would switch to the more powerful 450 SX-F.
But how different might all this have been had BT not ridden the 4-stroke in 2004, and chose the 125 instead?
‘That’s an interesting question and one I have never considered before’ quipped the Kiwi, when asked, ‘because it’s a completely different riding style, but I genuinely think that when I jumped on to that 250cc four stroke, it just fit like a glove straight away, and so to answer that, it would have been very challenging to go from a 125cc and MX2, to MX1 on a 450cc; that would have been enormous, yeah!’
With a full-season racing a 4-stroke in 2004, and one which culminated in him winning the MX2 World Championship, Townley knew that if he won the title, he had already decided that he would move into the MX1 class, and on that basis, was already playing around on the 450cc, in order to gauge the reality of the situation, and those first rides came during the middle of the season, where he immediately felt good on it. However, when it came to testing the bike ahead of the 2005 season, things were not as they once seemed, as BT points out:
‘So, I tested the bike during the middle of my world championship season; I tested a bike in June, July, and then I got back to Europe in January and found that that engine had been killed! They didn’t want to use that engine anymore, and I wasn’t even notified about it, and when I went riding for the first time, I came in and went WTF is this? And it was a drastically different platform that they went to. They’d basically killed the platform which I loved, so then we had to start on that 450cc which was Joel Smets era, you would say, and it was just an enormous amount of horsepower, and I was only young, coming off a 250cc. I didn’t really like the brute-force of how it was delivered and yeah, I really struggled with it to begin with.’
Despite winning his first premier class GP at just his second attempt, in Ben’s eyes, it didn’t really feel like a win, as he recalls:
‘The start of the season was so poor, although I did win the second GP, at Bellpuig, in one of those wet rounds, but there was a lot of luck involved in that; Stefan had a bad day, Joel also and Josh not great, and Mickael, and I don’t remember the actual results, but I won the GP. I don’t even know if I won a moto (BT
went 2-3). But then I didn’t win ‘properly’ until maybe France (Saint Jean) or Italy.’
That ‘proper’ win actually came in Italy at Castiglione del Lago some six rounds later, where Townley went 1-1 for the overall. He repeated the feat two weeks later in France where he once again went 1-1, a result which promoted him to 3rd in the standings, just past the halfway stage of the championship. So, what had changed, and how had he returned to winning ways so spectacularly? Well, as Ben explains, it was all to do with the engine, and believe us when we say, it’s not what you think:
‘So, we did the first four GP’s of 2005, and granted, I probably came in under-prepared as
AS SOON AS I DID START RACING IT, I PERFORMED BETTER THAN I DID ON THE PREVIOUS ENGINE
well; I had a huge ‘hangover’ from (winning) the world championship, and so I didn’t train as hard, and I wasn’t as prepared, but then that engine also didn’t suit me either. After four GP’s I actually switched to an SXS engine! So, they took out the factory engine and put in an SXS engine, and that’s what I raced.’
For those who don’t know, the SXS engine is like KTM’s version of a ‘kit’ bike which is tuned to be somewhere between standard and factory, and pretty much from the get-go, BT had suddenly found his ideal set-up in terms of power delivery, and that was an immediate game-changer, as he explains:
‘It just had less power. I could ride the bike comfortably in my zone; I was a pretty calm, smooth rider in a sense, and I couldn’t handle that sort of brute horsepower of what they had. And I tell you what, it caused a few ripples through our team and obviously through R&D, because I was using that bike, but at the end of the day, as soon as I did start racing it, I performed better than I did on the previous engine, and I think I won four or maybe five GP’s that year as soon as I went on to that bike, so yeah, it was cool. It was actually the ride ability that was really important, you know?’
At the time, it was reported that the change of engine wasn’t from factory to SXS, but to a 2004 factory engine instead – maybe to save face at HQ – the difference being that the ’05
was DOHC as opposed to the ’04 which was SOHC, and even then, it was mentioned that it was a ‘2005 spec machine which was the same, or similar, to the 2004 bike!’ Either way, whatever it was, it worked for BT, and that was the main hurdle cleared.
During the season, Townley won five races, placed 2nd on six occasions and 3rd no fewer than nine times, on his way to salvaging 3rd overall in the standings. Along with that, there were nine podiums, with four of those viewed from the top step. However, there was one GP win that ‘got away’ from him and that was at Sugo in Japan, where the world felt his disappointment in real time, from the comfort of their armchairs as it happened LIVE on TV.
‘There was one major disappointment of the year for me; I’d been KTM at that point for five years, they’d backed me heavily, had a great relationship and that race was actually in Japan at Sugo. So, in my head, I don’t think at that time, a European manufacturer had ever won a Grand Prix in Japan, and so I was in contention to win that and the bike expired and I just basically rode to the side
of the track, dropped the bike and walked away. I was just so bitterly disappointed that I couldn’t achieve winning on an Austrian bike in Japan. That’s really why I was so disappointed.’
On the flip-side came the four consecutive race wins in Italy and France which netted him back-to-back GP wins, and another race win on the Isle of Wight, Great Britain where he took his final GP victory of the season. How different could it have been had he had the use of his preferred engine from the very beginning? Hangover or not, we will never know! But as BT recalls, ‘once I did get on to that platform, and I guess, if you really look at it, I was three months into the season, I was back training in Europe, and back in that whole environment of being an athlete again and focussed again as opposed to the offseason where I was pretty loose, I guess that’s when everything came together, and from then, I was a contender for sure, especially when you look at what I was able to do at that time. No-one had been that competitive at that age, you know, I was only 19!’
MXGP ALBUM, THE SEASON REVIEW ANnUAL BOoK
AS EVERY YEAR SINCE 2009, MXGP ALBUM WILL REFLECT THIS GREAT SEASON THAT SAW THE WORLD TITLES DECIDED AT THE LAST GRAND PRIX OF THE YEAR. A COLLECTOR’S BOOK, LIKE THE SIXTEEN PREVIOUS EDITIONS.
What a season! It’s not the first time that we have to wait until the last round to know who would be the champions, but this year the battle for the three titles – MX2, MXGP and WMX – was more intense than ever, even if China was a turning point in the MXGP battle between Romain Febvre and Lucas Coenen. Maybe you followed this season on TV, on your computer, on websites or magazines, but now to relive the 2025 season there is probably nothing better than a book like the MXGP Album, full of exclusive pictures, text and quotes from the main actors.
It was Stanley Leroux, a young French photographer, who launched the first edition of the MXGP Album in 2009. After discovering this
sport alongside his sister who was racing the French Women series, Stanley started to follow the World Championship in the beginning of the century, working closely with some riders and manufacturers. In 2009 he decided to produce an annual book, following in the footsteps of other former books such as World Cross or Motocross Time, which appeared in the 90s before disappearing from circulation a few years later. And since 2009 the story continues, guided by the passion of his author and some friends.
Sharing his time over the last ten years between motocross and trips in Antarctica to discover natural land and explore a unique animal world, Stanley had to make a choice in 2022 to focus
exclusively on these trips to the southern continent. It was time for an MXGP veteran to succeed to Stanley and to continue the long story of the MXGP Album. “When Stanley asked me if I would be interested in taking over from him to produce this annual, it didn’t take me too long to accept the challenge,” explains Pascal Haudiquert, an MX French reporter since 1978. Following the GP’s since more than forty years as a photo reporter, Pascal has a huge knowledge of the sport and its history. “The 2025 book will be my third one, and every year it’s an intense challenge to make a nice book. I’m not alone, as Stanley is still working with me as the art director, while Ray Archer and Lorenzo Resta provide a selection of nice pics to reflect the season in the best way. All together we take more than 50.000 pictures during the season, and we select around 200 for the book,” he pursuits.
In the MXGP Album you will of course find pictures and quotes from the main actors of the season in the World and European championships, but also pics which reflect the atmosphere of the championship and its actors, including fans. But as our sport has a rich history, since a few years there’s also a ‘classic’ section to highlight some of our heroes. “I’m a photographer, but also a reporter and for me it’s important to give some space in the book to the history of this
amazing sport. This year, which is marked by his retirement as manager of team USA at the MX of Nations, it’s a pleasure to pay tribute to Roger De Coster who had such a great career as a rider and then as a manager. I saw him racing for the first time in 1974, and he has always been a great ambassador for our sport,” continues Pascal, who introduced last year a new chapter in the book about some famous tracks. And in 2025 the MXGP Album will take you to a legendary circuit, the famous Citadelle of Namur, home of GP’s from 1951 to 2007.
Apart from action pictures, this nice book with a hard book cover and a dust jacket takes you to the atmosphere and the emotion of the Grands Prix all over the world, all along its 192 pages. Exclusive pictures, selected quotes from the riders, the annual book of the FIM Motocross World Championship is back to you after an exciting season.
MXGP Album will be available in pre-sale from September 26th to October 12th, on its website: https://www.motocrossgpalbum.com. As always that’s the best way to be sure to get one copy, as a limited quantity of books are printed each year. Books will be delivered early in December, a perfect gift for Christmas!
HALL OF FAME
IVAN ‘HOT SAUCE’ TEDESCO
SOME AMERICAN RIDERS SUCH AS IVAN TEDESCO ONLY FOCUSED ON THE AMA CHAMPIONSHIPS DURING THEIR CAREER AND NEVER ENTER A ROUND OF THE FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. BUT SEVERAL OF THEM HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE AGAINST THE EUROPEAN RIDERS AT THE MOTOCROSS OF NATIONS, AND IVAN TEDESCO HAD A PERFECT SCORE AT THE MXON, AS HE HAD THREE OPPORTUNITIES TO RACE THERE, AND WON a called a
Born on 12th August 1981 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Ivan wasn’t part of a racing family but when he was only eight years old he enjoyed riding bikes with his brother and friends. Racing local events later, he made regular progress and in 1999 he entered his first race as a Pro rider. Joining team Plano Honda in 2000, he missed half of the season due to injury and scored a few top ten results in the last
the podium. Moving to team Yamaha of Troy in 2002 he finally got this podium with a third position on the West Coast, and in 2003 he won his first ever Supercross during the final round at Las Vegas. Moving to team Kawasaki Pro Circuit in 2004, he had a fantastic season winning seven of eight rounds of the West Coast Supercross to clinch his first title. The following season was even better as he claimed back his Supercross title and added the Motocross one to his scoreboard! With such good results Team USA called him to race the Motocross of Nations at Ernée, alongside Ricky Carmichael and Kevin Windham, a first experience for him outside USA. Sixth and best MX2 rider in the first race and seventeenth in the next one, he brought crucial points to his team to win for the first time since 2000.
Joining Ricky Carmichael in the Makita Suzuki squad in 2006, he moved to the main class and had a consistent Supercross season. He finished among the top ten at all the rounds apart from one, and he was on the podium on two occasions, at Anaheim 3 and St Louis, Ivan got what would be his best ever result in the class with a fourth overall. Missing most of the outdoor races due to injury, he was again called to join the US Team at Matterley Basin for the Motocross of Nations alongside James Stewart and Ryan Villopoto. And it was another win for them, with a sixth and a ninth for Ivan in the Open class.
He enjoyed for the first time a supercross podium in 2001 with a second position behind Ernesto Fonseca at the last round of the 2001 West coast series, to finish fifth overall less than ten points from
on the podium on two occasions, at Anaheim join position main
After a fifth position in Supercross, he suffered another injury and missed the last round of the 2007 series and after two seasons with Suzuki he signed with American Honda. 2008 was another tough season for him because he got injured after four Supercross rounds, and he picked up another injury after four motocross races; outside the top ten of both championships for the first time since 2000, he bounced back in 2009 with a third overall in motocross – with his first ever double win in the main class with a 1/1 at Thunder Valley – and a sixth in supercross. And once more, for the third time in his career, he crossed the
Atlantic to race the Motocross of Nations at Franciacorta (Italy). That year he raced in the Open class, while Ryan Dungey represented his country in MX1 and Jake Weimer in MX2, Ivan did again strong races to score ten points – a third and a seventh position – and helped his team to win their twentieth Motocross of Nations! With three attempts and three overall wins, Ivan couldn’t expect a better score!
Back to Yamaha in 2010 he claimed two SX podiums but once again he got injured before the end of the series. Ivan continued racing two more seasons for different teams, before announcing his retirement at the end of 2014.
Text & photos: Pascal Haudiquert
18TH IN THE US 125 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (HONDA)
5TH IN THE US 125 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP WEST COAST (HONDA)
3RD IN THE US 125 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP WEST COAST (YAMAHA)
8TH IN THE US 125 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (YAMAHA). 10TH IN THE US 125 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP EAST COAST. WIN 1 SX
6TH IN THE 125 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
US 125 MOTOCROSS CHAMPION (KAWASAKI). WIN 2 MX
US 125 SUPERCROSS CHAMPION WEST COAST. WIN 2 SX WINNER OF THE MXON WITH TEAM USA (ERNÉE)
4TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (SUZUKI) WINNER OF THE MXON WITH TEAM USA (MATTERLEY BASIN)
US 125 SUPERCROSS CHAMPION WEST COAST (KAWASAKI). WIN 7 SX
5TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (SUZUKI) 11TH IN THE US 450 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
13TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (HONDA) 19TH IN THE US 450 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
6TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP WINNER OF THE MXON WITH TEAM USA (FRANCIACORTA)
3RD IN THE US 450 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (KAWASAKI). WIN 1 MX
9TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (HONDA)
11TH IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (KAWASAKI)
33RD IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (KAWASAKI)
26TH IN THE US 450 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
21ST IN THE US 450 SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP (KTM) 26TH IN THE US 450 MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP got
1 The 2025 World Champions are crowned! Romain Febvre, Simon Längenfelder and Lotte van Drunen are in gold! Congrats champs!
2 R.J. Hampshire answers the call! The Husqvarna rider will replace injured Chase Sexton at Iroman Raceway for the MXoN on home turf.
3 Thibault Benistant must leave the MX2 category to join the MXGP class after celebrating his 23rd birthday. It will be in red with Honda Motoblouz SR Motul
4 The entire MXGP family expresses its deep sadness at the passing of Chris Warren, a respected and long-standing figure of Motocross at FIM Motocross Commission for hundred of Grand Prix.
5 A new riders favourite! The new Hidden Valley race track received a lot of glowing reviews in the MXGP paddock. The Australian venue is already announced as the 2026 season finale!
6 “The Killer” strikes once again! Janis Reisulis is the 2025 EMX250 Champion and is now expected to jump in the MX2 World Championship, still under blue and Monster Energy colours.
7 Liam Everts in white. The Belgian, MX2 Championship leader in Sardegna, just signed for one more year with Nestaan MX.
8 First MXGP season in the books for Abuba.it Ducati MX Team with a 10th and 17th Championship results for Seewer and Guadagnini. The 250 program will join the MX2 class in 2026!
9 A Clockwork Orange! Both MXGP and MX2 Manufacturers Championships have been won by KTM in 2025
