Round 17 of the FIM Motocross World Championship took place at Motorsportpark Gelderland Midden near Arnhem for the MXGP of the Netherlands on August 24. Dutch fans saw two of their own, Jeffrey Herlings and Kay de Wolf, dominate the weekend and secure their overall victories.
VIDEO | 2025 MXGP of the Netherlands Highlights
MXGP
Herlings started the weekend with a win in the qualifying race, earning him extra points and a better gate pick for Sunday. It was no surprise when he and fellow countryman Glenn Coldenhoff shot off the line and into the deep sand of the Arnhem circuit. By the end of lap one, Herlings had moved into the lead and began to widen his advantage over the rest of the field.
Behind him, points leader Romain Febvre started within the top five and moved into third right at the halfway point. Febvre seemed to be in a solid position as his main rival, Lucas Coenen, crashed at the start and remounted way back in 25th. Coenen, the MXGP rookie, had other plans, though, as he kept closing in on the front-runners and found himself right on Febvre’s wheel with only a few laps remaining. The two championship rivals battled it out, with Coenen eventually making the pass to take second place. Febvre finished third.
The same two sand specialists once again led the race, with Coldenhoff and Herlings at the front. It took Herlings two extra laps this time to pass Coldenhoff for the lead, taking the top spot.
At the same time, Febvre crashed from fifth and dropped way back in the running order. This looked like Coenen’s time to capitalize, as he also found himself charging from outside the top 10. The Belgian rider passed the downed Febvre and continued to push all the way to his teammate Herlings.
By the final lap, the two KTMs ran a close 1-2, but Herlings held on for a dominant 1-1 sweep at his home Grand Prix, marking the 110th win of his career. Coenen minimized what could’ve been a disastrous day and earned second overall while also cutting the points gap to 31. Coldenhoff used consistency to his advantage and finished third overall.
“The first race, I could save some energy because I really needed it for the second one,” Herlings said. “For a few laps, I had quite a nice gap and thought, ‘Okay, we’re all good.’ But Lucas is 18 now and full of energy, and I’m on my way down. When I was young at the time, I could go 35 plus two without even being tired at all, so I’m very pleased with the 1-1 here today, especially at home.”
MX2
Despite winning the qualifying race, Dutch native Kay de Wolf started way back in 10th, while Sacha Coenen, Andrea Adamo and Liam Everts duked it out at the front of MX2 race one. Sacha Coenen, a sand specialist in his own right, managed the lead while keeping his teammate Adamo at bay.
Neither of them was a match for de Wolf, though, as the hometown hero moved to second and quickly evaporated Sacha’s eight-second lead. De Wolf’s smooth riding style allowed him to take over the top spot and cruise to victory in the closing stages of the opening moto. Sacha and Adamo held their spots in line in second and third, respectively. Points leader Simon Laengenfelder crashed out of fifth on the final lap and dropped back to eighth position, handing crucial points over to de Wolf in the process.
Race two spelled more trouble for Laengenfelder as the red-plate holder fell in turn one and was forced to charge from the back of the pack. Meanwhile, it was smooth sailing for de Wolf, who looked to be on a different track from the others. He sliced his way to third on the opening lap and made quick work of early leader Camden McLellan shortly after. The reigning number one cruised to another moto win, sweeping the day for his first win on home soil.
More importantly, de Wolf scored maximum points in hopes of a second title and cut a significant chunk into Laengenfelder’s championship lead. McLellan came home second in moto two, just ahead of the KTM duo of Adamo and Sacha Coenen, who finished second and third overall, respectively. Laengenfelder battled back to fifth at the line, but 8-5 finishes put him sixth overall, just 15 points ahead of de Wolf in the championship standings.
“It definitely wasn’t easy today,” said de Wolf. “The track was really rough, but I went 1-1, so I couldn’t wish for more. Yesterday was a bummer with the crash on the first lap, but in the championship, we did good, and I’m happy. Winning my first-ever home GP is amazing.”
2025 FIM MXGP Round 17 Results
MXGP (Top 10)
- Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 1-1
- Lucas Coenen (KTM) 2-2
- Glenn Coldenhoff (Fan) 4-4
- Tim Gajser (Hon) 6-3
- Romain Febvre (Kaw) 3-8
- Andrea Bonacorsi (Fan) 5-5
- Brian Bogers (Fan) 8-6
- Maxime Renaux (Yam) 7-11
- Pauls Jonass (Kaw) 11-10
- Jago Geerts (Yam) 17-7
MX2 (Top 10)
- Kay de Wolf (Hus) 1-1
- Andrea Adamo (KTM) 3-3
- Sacha Coenen (KTM) 2-4
- Camden McLellan (Tri) 5-2
- Liam Everts (Hus) 4-6
- Simon Laengenfelder (KTM) 8-5
- Rick Elzinga (Yam) 7-7
- Guillem Farres (Tri) 9-8
- Mathis Valin (Kaw) 6-14
- Cas Valk (KTM) 11-11
