The 16th round of the FIM Motocross World Championship took place at the classic Uddevalla racetrack for the MXGP of Sweden, August 16-17. Crowded hillsides of eager fans played witness to one of the most exciting grands prix of the year as the championship enters its home stretch. Both points leaders, Romain Febvre and Simon Laengenfelder further extended their points leads with the overall wins.
MXGP
Romain Febvre needed this win. After losing out the past few rounds to MXGP rookie Lucas Coenen, the Kawasaki veteran fired back with a perfect 1-1-1 weekend in Sweden. After winning the qualifying race on Saturday he came out hot with two holeshots on Sunday. Moto one saw him lead all the way to the checkers despite constant pressure from Jeffrey Herlings in second.
Still, Febvre withstood the challenge and started the day with the moto one win. Race two put Febvre into the lead once again with second and third hot on his heels all the way to the final lap. He was momentarily overtaken on the last lap by the hometown hero, Isak Gifting, but the privateer fell soon after and re-gifted the lead back to Febvre. The championship leader scored maximum points while his rival Coenen finished a distant eighth overall on the day. He continues to lead the series by 41 points.
“I won’t lie, this was a good weekend,” said Febvre. “Going 1-1-1 feels awesome, and it’s a big boost for the championship. It’s not done until the last round, but I was riding well here, and it feels great to win again in Sweden after such a long time. Now I just want to keep this momentum going and fight until the end.”
Herlings had one of his best results of the year with two consistent second-place finishes. The Red Bull KTM rider pressured Febvre in both motos and challenged for the lead early in race one. Again, in race two, he kept Febvre in his sights but never got close enough to make a pass stick. Herlings found himself as far back as third late in the second moto but reclaimed the runner-up spot once Gifting fell. A 2-2 on the day put Herlings second overall.
“Two solid races today with 2-2 for second overall,” said Herlings. “In the second race, I was really close to Romain and pushing hard, but just when I went for it, I ran out of tear-offs, and then he stalled, so the timing was a bit unlucky. He was strong today, so credit to him. For me, it’s not too bad considering I’ve only been back on the bike for two and a half weeks.”
Calvin Vlaanderen rounded out the podium again with another third overall. Sweden proved to be another strong day for the Dutch rider as he led his Yamaha teammates around the hard-packed Uddevalla circuit. A third in race one set the tone for Vlaanderen. He backed that up with a fourth to finish the day, and 3-4 results earned him another podium and put him fifth in the championship standings.
The Swedish fans went wild for their own Isak Gifting, who ran up front in both motos. The privateer Yamaha rider ran third in race one before crashing with Tim Gajser and eventually finishing 17th. Race two saw a spirited ride from the Swede as he passed for the lead on the final lap before crashing just a few turns later. After the crash, his bike would not start, and he was forced to retire. His 22nd overall surely did not reflect the effort from Gifting at his home GP.
MX2
Sacha Coenen ripped one of his patented holeshots in race one as he left the rest of the championship contenders behind. Points leader Simon Laengenfelder was well outside the top 10 on the opening lap, while Kay de Wolf found himself outside the top five. Coenen led most of the race until his Red Bull KTM teammate, Andrea Adamo, sealed a pass with three laps to go. Adamo stayed in control for the race win, while Coenen held on for second. De Wolf slid into third on the final laps, with Laengenfelder finding his way to fifth at the checkers.
Moto two saw the MX2 qualifying race winner, Thibault Benistant, rocket off with the early lead. This time, Laengenfelder got off to a much better start and quickly found himself moving around Benistant for the lead. The German rider managed the race from the front and took the win, giving him the overall victory with 5-1 scores. With the win, he further extended his points lead to 40 over Kay de Wolf.
“It was a really nice day for me,” said Laengenfelder. “In the first race, I had to come back from outside the top 10, but I showed I can really push, make passes, cut the lines and still be fast behind others. The second race was even better with a good start and a win. I’m happy to take the overall here.”
De Wolf once again passed into third on the final lap. A pair of thirds earned him second overall for the day behind his championship rival, Laengenfelder.
“I didn’t lose too many points in the championship, so I did what I had to do,” de Wolf said. “Both races, I was playing a bit of catch-up, but I managed two solid results and even my first podium here in Sweden, which feels nice. I think I went 3-3, so I’m happy with that, and now I look forward to my home GP in the sand, where hopefully I can make up big points.”
Andrea Adamo fell and later finished eighth in race two. Luckily, his win in race one earned him strong points and still landed him in third overall. Only four more rounds remain in the 2025 season as the series makes its next stop in the Dutch sands for the MXGP of The Netherlands. CN
VIDEO | MXGP of Sweden Highlights
2025 FIM MXGP Round 16 Results
MXGP (Top 5)
- Romain Febvre (Kaw) 1-1
- Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 1-2
- Calvin Vlaanderen (Yam) 3-4
- Maxime Renaux (Yam) 5-3
- Glenn Coldenhoff (Fan) 6-5
MX2 (Top 5)
- Simon Laengenfelder (KTM) 5-1
- Kay de Wolf (Hus) 3-3
- Andrea Adamo (KTM) 1-8
- Sacha Coenen (KTM) 2-7
- Thibault Benistant (Yam) 8-2
