The 2026 FIM World Motocross Championship got underway at Bariloche MX for the YPF MXGP of Argentina, March 7-8, and two veterans came out on top with Jeffrey Herlings and Simon Laengenfelder sweeping their respective classes.
MXGP
Herlings’ debut with the Honda HRC Petronas team didn’t start out very promising. The Dutch rider crashed during Saturday’s qualifying race, but he rebounded nicely with a holeshot in Sunday’s first moto. Herlings battled with his new Honda teammate, Tom Vialle, as the two broke away from the rest of the field. With three laps to go, Herlings retaliated and stole back the top spot before taking the checkers.
Race two required more effort from the number 84, as a midpack start forced him to chase down the early leaders. His increased pace allowed him to make quick work of the podium contenders and saw defending champion Romain Febvre’s lead dwindle away from what was six seconds. With two laps to go, Herlings struck to the inside and squared up the reigning number one. He held the lead through to the checkers and made it a 1-1 sweep to start the season. The win marks “The Bullett’s” 113th career success.
“Yesterday didn’t go as planned, because I crashed in qualifying and had a small bike issue after that,” Herlings said. “Today was much better. In the first race, I took the holeshot and tried to follow Tom’s lines before making the pass near the end. The second race was a bit chaotic with the restart, and I had to come from around 10th, but I managed to close the gap and pass Romain with a few laps to go. Going 1-1 on my first outing with Honda HRC Petronas is amazing.”
Romain Febvre kicked off his championship defense with second overall. The Kawasaki rider finished third in race one but bounced back to lead most of race two before finishing second at the line. Febvre showed he’s still a threat to run at the front and sits third in the championship standings.
“Today the starts were much better and we made some changes with the bike, which helped,” Febvre said. “In the second race I had a good flow at the front but I still didn’t feel completely myself, so we need to keep working. When Jeffrey [Herlings] came close at the end it was difficult to defend. He was the best today, but it’s a long season and starting with a podium was my goal this weekend.”
Vialle made his 450cc debut as he returned to the MXGP series with the Honda HRC Petronas team. The French rider opened the weekend with a win in the qualifying race and led laps during both of Sunday’s motos, finishing the weekend in third overall.
“It feels really nice to be back racing a GP,” Vialle said. “I didn’t know what to expect coming into the first round because it’s been a while since I raced here, and the level in the 450 class is very high. I had a good feeling with the bike all weekend, and my starts were good, which is important in this class. The first race was strong, and I stayed close to Jeffrey, but in the second one I lost a bit of energy before the restart and made a couple of mistakes.”
Former Honda rider Tim Gajser finished fourth overall with 6-3 scores in his debut with the Yamaha Factory team.
“We came here to learn, and while it probably wasn’t the smoothest weekend, we made the most of the circumstances,” Gajser said. “There are definitely positives to take, especially from the second moto, and I felt like we improved in every session, which is encouraging.”
Lucas Coenen rounded out the top five with 4-6 finishes. Ruben Fernandez finished sixth ahead of Maxime Renaux, Andrea Adamo, Thibault Benistant and Pauls Jonass.
MX2
Simon Laengenfelder began his MX2 title defense in Argentina with a clean sweep of both motos. He made his way to the front during race one and passed for the lead around MX2 rookie Janis Reisulis on lap six. From there, it was smooth sailing for the defending champ as he clinched the win by four seconds over his KTM teammate and qualifying race winner, Sacha Coenen.
Laengenfelder fired back with even more aggression in race two as he charged through the field. The German rider pushed Guillem Farres off track to take third and then set his sights on the race leader, Liam Everts. On lap 10 of 16, Laengenfelder made his bid for the top spot and overtook Everts after a short back-and-forth battle. He held a slight advantage for the remaining laps and went on to take a dominant 1-1 victory.
Two of the Triumph Factory Racing machines put themselves on the podium, with Guillem Farres and Camden McLellan rounding out the top three overall. Farres’ 3-4 put him second in one of his best season openers, while McLellan second-place finish in race two bumped him up in the rankings. CN
Video Highlights
Results
MXGP (Top 5)
1. Jeffrey Herlings (Hon) 1-1
2. Romain Febvre (Kaw) 3-2
3. Tom Vialle (Hon) 2-4
4. Tim Gajser (Yam) 6-3
5. Lucas Coenen (KTM) 4-6
MX2 (Top 5)
1. Simon Laengenfelder (KTM) 1-1
2. Guillem Farres (Tri) 3-4
3. Camden McLellan (Tri) 6-2
4. Liam Everts (Hus) 7-3
5. Janis Reisulis (Yam) 4-6
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Click here to read the 2026 MXGP of Argentina Round 1 Results in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.
