Five times FIM Motocross World Champion Joel Smets will become Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager for the 2025 season and to replace Harry Norton who diligently guided the decorated title-winning crew through a year of transition in 2024.
The 55-year-old has been a pivotal part of the Red Bull KTM Grand Prix structure since 2015 and when he joined in a managerial capacity, overseeing aspects of the riders’ preparation. His impact has been extensive in that time but perhaps best seen in his work with Tom Vialle and Andrea Adamo; helping both the Frenchman and the Italian to transition from promising riders to Grand Prix winners and world champions. He also played a significant role in the development of MXGP World Champion Jorge Prado, amongst others.
Smets’ connection with KTM runs deeper and earlier than 2015. The Belgian claimed his fourth and fifth world titles on factory KTM SX-F machinery.
KTM would like to convey their heartfelt thanks to Harry Norton for the managerial responsibility he assumed for 2024. Harry has a long history with the company back to his first professional years as a mechanic in Australia and then immigrated to Austria, going on to win two MX2 world titles with Tom Vialle in 2020 and 2022. He coordinated fresh staff incorporation, oversaw three of the four riders seize Grand Prix wins this year and had helped solidify the structure through some important internal changes. Norton will retain a key position inside the KTM Motorsport Department.
Confirmation of the final 2025 MXGP Red Bull KTM Factory Racing line-up for both classes with the KTM 450 SX-F and KTM 250 SX-F will be announced soon.
Joel Smets, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “I have a long history with KTM. As a rider and in a management position it is now over twenty years! I will throw all my experience and my knowledge into the job to try and keep our riders in the winners’ circle. We have had a lot of success in recent years and that has been because of the group effort at the track and back at the factory so it will be an honor for me to lead that now and to keep pushing for all we can achieve.”
Robert Jonas, Vice President Offroad Racing: “We asked Joel to take on the task of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager to bring the team up another level again after Harry did a very admirable job this year. We have been in transition with some changes in the last three seasons and Joel is the best person for the role now for several reasons: he has the history and the knowledge of the company, he knows the team intimately and he has all that riding experience as well as expertise of pushing riders to higher performance goals in their careers. Joel feels ready to extend his usual work on a wider scale and we’re thrilled that he’ll be heading our MXGP effort as we aim to chase those titles again.”
Photocredits Ray Archer
