2026 MXGP marched on to round 13 of 19, and the Grand Prix of Czech Republic – one week after a triumphant return to Foxhill in Great Britain – saw the series attempt the narrow, hard-packed and stony hills of Loket. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing left a warm, breezy and dry weekend with premier class rookie Andrea Adamo pocketing 29 points for 6th place in MXGP with the KTM 450 SX-F.
Highlights and key moments from Loket:
Andrea Adamo flies the flag for Red Bull KTM on a demanding Grand Prix for the team and salvages a top six result after a challenging second moto. #80 moves up to 6th in the championship
Simon Laengenfelder takes a top five moto finish but then retires from the second race after a crash leads to a damaged right arm. Sacha Coenen ranks 7th overall in MX2 in Loket
Lucas Coenen tried to go through the pain barrier with a compressed sciatic nerve in his left hip but the Belgian pulled out of Saturday’s Qualification Heat and did not compete on Sunday. The 19-year-old will assess his condition in the run-up to his home Grand Prix this week
MXGP next heads to the dauntingly deep sand of Lommel for the Grand Prix of Belgium on August 1-2
Loket has been the home of MXGP in the Czech Republic for the last three decades. The hard-packed, slick and hilly course is a popular draw for fans in central Europe and is a track that can be tricky for overtaking (therefore the results are quite start-dependent) while combining some spectacular uphill and downhill sections.
On Saturday Simon Laengenfelder started the weekend in the best fashion with his third consecutive MX2 Qualification Heat win. Sacha Coenen, still scrambling for full fitness just two weeks after surgery to fix a broken right collarbone, initially led the dash but then opted for a safe 6th. In MXGP Andrea Adamo captured a decent 4th to equal his second-best Saturday classification of the year and bank 7 points.
Adamo made a great start inside the top three in the initial phases of the first moto on Sunday. He performed with assurance and was less than a second away from 3rd place at the flag. In the second moto the Italian was luckless to get tangled before the first uphill and then had to work his way back from the depths of the top twenty. Andrea reached 7th with two laps to go but then slipped off. He made the flag in 10th, for 6th on the day.
In MX2 Laengenfelder rode to a conservative P5 in the first moto (after recovering from an error) and was then inches away from the holeshot in the second. The German tussled with Guillem Farres for second position and fell after contact with the Spaniard. He landed on his right forearm and was forced into the pitlane after losing feeling in the limb. Simon ranked P13 on the day and is 4th in the world championship standings; 71 points from the red plate. Sacha Coenen was 7th overall. The Belgian ended the opening lap of the first moto in 6th and completed the final circulation in 7th. In the second moto #19 again took another P7. Sacha is 2nd in the points table and needs 34 to reclaim P1.
Lucas Coenen made the tough decision to withdraw from the Grand Prix on Sunday morning. The Belgian had attempted the MXGP Qualification Heat exactly one week after the crash in England that saw the championship contender sustain hematomas around his left hip which caused compression of the sciatic nerve. Despite treatment and attention through the week, Coenen could not race in Loket. He’ll now pursue more recovery options to improve his condition.
The support card produced a lot of EMX European Championship action, this time for the junior categories. British prospect Harry Dale dominated the first EMX85 moto with his KTM 85 SX (finishing 6th in the second race for 4th overall) while fellow British teenager Jake Waters assumed control of EMX65 with results of 2-1 with the KTM 65 SX; one of three KTM riders in the top four of the class.
MXGP’s summer tradition of following the Czech Grand Prix with the trip to Lommel in Belgium remains in place for 2026, so round 14 takes the championship north and to the popular training and testing venue for the third consecutive weekend of racing.
Andrea Adamo, 4th and 10th for 6th overall in MXGP: “What to say? I was really going for the podium this weekend. Normally I’m quite realistic and I knew I had the speed, the good starts and the rhythm. Everything was clicking but, unfortunately, I had a crash in the second corner of the second moto and I was completely last. I got back to chase 6th place but then crashed again so P10 and P6 overall. Not bad… but considering what could have been I’m a bit disappointed. Again, I learned something today; a stupid mistake in the second corner. Lommel now and I’m actually looking forward to it. It’s a tough track but I feel I can do well there.”
Sacha Coenen, 7th and 7th for 7th overall in MX2: “A difficult weekend. My riding was not bad on Saturday and I tried my best but I was not feeling good; very sore. I started well in the Heat race and ran at the front but then I was not where I needed to be. Still, ten days post-surgery it was not too bad. I just did two solid motos today…but I was missing some energy and was just trying to survive. I’m really looking forward to our home GP next weekend and I’ll try to do my best.”
Simon Laengenfelder, 5th and DNF for 13th overall in MX2: “Positives? I had three good starts and I was fighting in each moto…but I came up a bit short. Winning the Quali race was a good start to the weekend and, with hindsight, the highlight. I battled in the first moto but that small slip put me to P5. Not optimal. I really wanted to push in that second race and was up front. I tried to block Farres but I made a mistake. I was a bit too battered and bruised to keep hanging on for another 30 minutes. I need to reset, refocus and go again in Lommel”
Lucas Coenen, DNS: “Not much to say. I did what I could to be ready for Loket: physio, massage…but I was in pain all day. It’s tough to take. I can only hope I will feel a bit better with each day, and we can think about Lommel.”
Results MXGP Czech Republic 2026
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED), Honda, 1-1
- Tom Vialle (FRA), Honda, 3-2
- Romain Febvre (FRA), Kawasaki, 2-5
- Andrea Adamo (ITA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 4-10
- Kay de Wolf (NED) Husqvarna, 6-DNF
DNS. Lucas Coenen (BEL), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Standings MXGP 2026 after 13 of 19 rounds
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED), Honda, 615 points
- Lucas Coenen (BEL), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 566
- Romain Febvre (FRA), Kawasaki, 541
- Andrea Adamo (ITA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 411
- Kay de Wolf (NED) Husqvarna, 292
Results MX2 Czech Republic 2026
- Guillem Farres (ESP), Triumph, 1-2
- Camden Mc Lellan (RSA), Triumph, 2-4
- Karlis Reisulis (LAT), Yamaha, 4-3
- Liam Everts (BEL), Husqvarna 12-1
- Sacha Coenen (BEL) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 7-7
- Simon Laengenfelder (GER), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 5-DNF
Standings MX2 2026 after 13 of 19 rounds
- Guillem Farres (ESP), Triumph, 618 points
- Sacha Coenen (BEL) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 585
- Camden Mc Lellan (RSA), Triumph, 548
- Simon Laengenfelder (GER), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 547
- Liam Everts (BEL), Husqvarna, 520
Photocredits – Juan Pablo Acevedo
