Lucas Coenen (Red Bull KTM De Carli) and Simon Längenfelder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) claimed victory in the Qualifying Races at the South African Grand Prix, Round 11 of the 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship.
MXGP: Fifth Saturday Victory for Coenen
Lucas Coenen secured his fifth Qualifying Race win of the season after leading from start to finish in a race where he could never afford to relax under the constant pressure of Romain Febvre (Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP). The Frenchman remained within just over two seconds of the leader throughout the race but was never able to mount a genuine challenge for the lead.
The parity between the two riders was highlighted by a remarkable statistic: both recorded exactly the same fastest lap. Coenen set a 1:55.618 on lap three, a time that Febvre matched perfectly just two laps later.
After a strong start, Pauls Jonass (Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP) delivered his best Qualifying Race result of the season by securing third place. The Latvian successfully fended off the early attacks of Tom Vialle (Honda HRC Petronas) before settling into a consistent pace that allowed him to hold onto the final podium position. Vialle finished fourth, while local favorite Calvin Vlaanderen (Aruba.it Ducati Factory MX Team) completed the top five in front of his home crowd.
Jeffrey Herlings (Honda HRC Petronas) endured a much more difficult race. The Dutchman was boxed in at the opening corner after a poor start and was forced to fight his way through the field from outside the leading positions. He spent much of the race running in ninth place but made progress in the closing stages, capitalizing on crashes by Rubén Fernández and Tim Gajser to climb to sixth.
With the victory, Coenen further extends his advantage at the top of the MXGP World Championship standings and will head into Sunday’s Grand Prix races holding a commanding 62-point lead over his nearest rivals.
MX2 Qualy Race: Langenfelder wins!
Simon Längenfelder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) claimed his first Qualifying Race victory of the season with a flawless lights-to-flag performance. The reigning MX2 World Champion appears to have found his rhythm in the second half of the campaign, delivering a dominant ride from the moment the gate dropped.
Guillem Farrés (Triumph Factory Racing) and teammate Camden McLellan fought their way into second and third place respectively. Both riders overtook Janis Reisulis (Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2), who held second position during the opening four laps before eventually giving way to the charging Spaniard.
Farrés continued to apply pressure for the remainder of the race and managed to slightly reduce the gap on a few occasions. However, Längenfelder remained firmly in control at the front and secured his first Saturday victory of the year.
Janis Reisulis and Karlis Reisulis completed the top five, while championship leader Sacha Coenen (Red Bull KTM De Carli) endured a difficult race. After a poor start left him running ninth in the early stages, the Belgian needed several laps to work his way through the field and eventually finished seventh.
The result costs Coenen six valuable points in the MX2 World Championship battle, reducing his advantage over Farrés from 32 points to 26 heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix races.
QUALYFING RACE RESULTS
TOP 10 MXGP
| Pos | # | Rider | Flag | Brand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Lucas Coenen | 🇧🇪 | KTM |
| 2 | 1 | Romain Febvre | 🇫🇷 | Kawasaki |
| 3 | 41 | Pauls Jonass | 🇱🇻 | Kawasaki |
| 4 | 16 | Tom Vialle | 🇫🇷 | Honda |
| 5 | 10 | Calvin Vlaanderen | 🇳🇱 | Ducati |
| 6 | 84 | Jeffrey Herlings | 🇳🇱 | Honda |
| 7 | 80 | Andrea Adamo | 🇮🇹 | KTM |
| 8 | 959 | Maxime Renaux | 🇫🇷 | Yamaha |
| 9 | 243 | Tim Gajser | 🇸🇮 | Yamaha |
| 10 | 70 | Ruben Fernandez | 🇪🇸 | Honda |
TOP 10 MX2
| Pos | # | Rider | Flag | Brand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Simon Längenfelder | 🇩🇪 | KTM |
| 2 | 99 | Guillem Farres | 🇪🇸 | Triumph |
| 3 | 8 | Camden Mc Lellan | 🇿🇦 | Triumph |
| 4 | 772 | Janis Martins Reisulis | 🇱🇻 | Yamaha |
| 5 | 47 | Karlis Alberts Reisulis | 🇱🇻 | Yamaha |
| 6 | 26 | Liam Everts | 🇧🇪 | Husqvarna |
| 7 | 19 | Sacha Coenen | 🇧🇪 | KTM |
| 8 | 83 | Maxime Grau | 🇫🇷 | Honda |
| 9 | 48 | Jens Walvoort | 🇳🇱 | KTM |
| 10 | 18 | Valerio Lata | 🇮🇹 | Honda |
TIME PRACTICE RESULTS
Lucas Coenen and Janis Reisulis set the fastest lap times in their respective classes ahead to the Qualifying Races.
MXGP Time Practice
| Pos | # | Rider | Flag | Brand | Time/Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Lucas Coenen | 🇧🇪 | KTM | 1:53.416 |
| 2 | 243 | Tim Gajser | 🇸🇮 | Yamaha | +0.115 |
| 3 | 1 | Romain Febvre | 🇫🇷 | Kawasaki | +0.374 |
| 4 | 84 | Jeffrey Herlings | 🇳🇱 | Honda | +0.442 |
| 5 | 41 | Pauls Jonass | 🇱🇻 | Kawasaki | +0.461 |
| 6 | 16 | Tom Vialle | 🇫🇷 | Honda | +0.753 |
| 7 | 80 | Andrea Adamo | 🇮🇹 | KTM | +1.078 |
| 8 | 959 | Maxime Renaux | 🇫🇷 | Yamaha | +1.149 |
| 9 | 10 | Calvin Vlaanderen | 🇳🇱 | Ducati | +1.391 |
| 10 | 70 | Ruben Fernandez | 🇪🇸 | Honda | +1.436 |
| 11 | 303 | Alberto Forato | 🇮🇹 | Fantic | +1.873 |
| 12 | 83 | Oriol Oliver | 🇪🇸 | KTM | +1.993 |
| 13 | 87 | Kevin Brumann | 🇨🇭 | Husqvarna | +3.152 |
| 14 | 4 | Rick Elzinga | 🇳🇱 | KTM | +3.553 |
| 15 | 253 | Jan Pancar | 🇸🇮 | KTM | +4.193 |
| 16 | 24 | Kevin Horgmo | 🇳🇴 | Honda | +4.343 |
| 17 | 32 | Brent Van Doninck | 🇧🇪 | Fantic | +4.388 |
| 18 | 64 | Romain Pape | 🇫🇷 | Yamaha | +4.409 |
| 19 | 157 | Matthew Malan | 🇿🇦 | Yamaha | +6.044 |
| 20 | 584 | Cameron Anthony Durow | 🇿🇦 | KTM | +6.318 |
MX2 Time Practice
| Pos | # | Rider | Flag | Brand | Time/Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 772 | Janis Martins Reisulis | 🇱🇻 | Yamaha | 1:56.264 |
| 2 | 26 | Liam Everts | 🇧🇪 | Husqvarna | +0.036 |
| 3 | 99 | Guillem Farres | 🇪🇸 | Triumph | +0.082 |
| 4 | 1 | Simon Längenfelder | 🇩🇪 | KTM | +0.230 |
| 5 | 19 | Sacha Coenen | 🇧🇪 | KTM | +0.489 |
| 6 | 83 | Maxime Grau | 🇫🇷 | Honda | +0.882 |
| 7 | 8 | Camden Mc Lellan | 🇿🇦 | Triumph | +0.950 |
| 8 | 47 | Karlis Alberts Reisulis | 🇱🇻 | Yamaha | +1.184 |
| 9 | 48 | Jens Walvoort | 🇳🇱 | KTM | +2.707 |
| 10 | 18 | Valerio Lata | 🇮🇹 | Honda | +2.909 |
| 11 | 73 | Ferruccio Zanchi | 🇮🇹 | Ducati | +3.224 |
| 12 | 33 | Kay Karssemakers | 🇳🇱 | Kawasaki | +3.266 |
| 13 | 20 | Julius Mikula | 🇨🇿 | KTM | +4.446 |
| 14 | 17 | Trey Cox | 🇿🇦 | KTM | +6.304 |
| 15 | 450 | Luke John Grundy | 🇿🇦 | Husqvarna | +7.962 |
| 16 | 747 | Jordan van Wyk | 🇿🇦 | Honda | +13.073 |
| 17 | 444 | Tristan Durow | 🇿🇦 | KTM | +13.156 |
| 18 | 423 | Martin Ashton | 🇿🇦 | Yamaha | +14.135 |
| 19 | 38 | Aiden Henley | 🇿🇦 | Yamaha | +15.970 |
| 20 | 169 | Thor Johnson | 🇿🇦 | Yamaha | +16.800 |
SATURDAY TIMETABLE
| Session | Local Time |
|---|---|
| SATURDAY | |
| MX2 Free Practice | 9:15 |
| MXGP Free Practice | 9:45 |
| MX2 Time Practice | 11:50 |
| MXGP Time Practie | 12:30 |
| MX2 Qualy Race | 14:25 |
| MXGP Qualy Race | 15:10 |
