Currently holding down seventh place in the MXGP classification of the 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship, Tom Vialle has been putting in the work in what is his rookie year in the class. The winner of the MXGP of Switzerland and a podium finisher at the MXGP of Argentina, Trentino, Czech Republic and Sweden, the 25 year-old member of the Honda HRC Petronas MXGP team is fast at learning and gaining experience and knowledge, and in doing so, is looking forward to the final five Grands Prix of the 2026 MXGP season.
Interview: Eric Johnson
A two-time MX2 FIM Motocross World Champion, as well as a double and defending 250SX East Division Monster Energy AMA Supercross Champion, the determined pilot straight out of Avignon, France has goal and objective marks he still wants to hit before the season winds down In Australia in September. Certainly a man of the world throughout his five year career, both Honda and Vialle have designs on wining races and competing for World Championships with the potent Honda CRF450R. In Belgium and getting everything in order before clearing out for this Sunday’s MXGP, Vialle checked in on what comes next.
Class rookie Tom Vialle, still relatively new to both the Honda CRF450R as well as the MXGP classification, is utilizing the Grand Prix tracks of the world to learn both the bike and 450cc racecraft.
“Yeah, exactly,” said Vialle. “When I came to U.S. I missed three years of racing in Europe, so I had been missing a little bit of time on those tracks. And some of the tracks, they changed the layouts quite a bit. Sweden is one of them. The layout is really different than what I was used to. It’s so nice to learn a new track and it’s nice to learn something new.”
«I cannot really look at the championship because I missed some rounds,” Vialle explained. “I missed almost three rounds due to an injury, so obviously I cannot really look at the championship. But yes, great beginning to the season. After the injury I had three GP tests. I was struggling a little bit to get back into the rhythm. The last two GPs have been really good for me. I was on the podium at Loket and I was really close to the podium in the sand at Lommel. I finished fourth. Yeah, the last GPs have been pretty good for me.”
“So a lot of new things for me,” said Vialle of the final stretch of 2026. “Next weekend in the sand at the Arnhem circuit at the MXGP of The Netherlands, I’ve never raced there. This is going to be my first time ever on this track. It’s the last sand race of the season. After that we pretty much go overseas for the last three, Turkey, China and Australia. Turkey, I know the track, but China and Australia, I’ve never been there, so it’s going to be new again. I’m excited. It’s always something different. It’s quite different than a normal GP in Europe. We travel almost every weekend. When it’s in Europe, it’s easier, but every weekend, it’s a different language. Different food, different language, it’s all quite different. I guess we’re used to it.”
Drafted into service by the Honda HRC Petronas MXGP team for the 2026 season and beyond, Vialle totally believes in the organization and its overall performance.
“Yeah, it’s been great all season long,” explained Vialle. “The team has been great. The adaptation to 450, on my side ad riding-wise, has gone well. I’ve been fighting up front almost every weekend since the beginning of the season and that’s a great way to start the first year on the 450. The team has been great, as well. Like you and me talked about the last time we talked, everything has been good again. We have had a great time and hopefully we can continue that way until the end. Also, the Japanese, they work really hard and there is always something new coming. They always keep on working, so that’s nice.”
“The last GP on hardpack, the MXGP of the Czech Republic, I was second,” explained Vialle. “I had a great race. Also, in the sand, I have been good. I think if I can keep following that way until the end of the season, fighting for podiums and then try to get another win before the end of the season, that would be great. Yeah, I’m still learning and trying to fight and to be consistent to the end of the season, that’s the goal. We have races to go and there are a lot of tracks that suit me well, I would say. Hopefully, we can make it happen. I want to just keep going strong. I have also been getting great starts this year, so that helps a lot to start good and be up front from the beginning of the moto. I am just trying to keep going. I’m really happy how the bike works. The suspension, the frame. I feel really good on the bike at the moment. I can’t complain. The competition is tough. There are a lot of good guys. Jeffrey, Gajser and Febvre, they have many championships. They are fast and also strong. They have everything, you know? It has been nice fighting with them. Jeffrey has been a little bit above us, I would say. Just one step above everyone this year. He’s been a little bit faster and really strong. I try to keep as close as I can to him. That’s the goal. Apart from that, it has been fighting all season long with those guys. They have been there for, like, the last 10 years almost in the 450 class. It’s nice to be straightaway fighting with them.”
