Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler has won the 2025 Red Bull Erzbergrodeo. Taking the lead at the 40-minute mark, the KTM 300 EXC CHAMPION EDITION rider delivered a near-flawless ride to claim his fourth-consecutive victory at the iconic event. FMF KTM Factory Racing teammate Trystan Hart was on course for a podium result, but a small technical issue unfortunately dropped the Canadian down to fifth at the finish.

After comfortably qualifying in the Iron Road Prologue and posting the 11th-fastest time, Lettenbichler secured a place on the front row for Sunday’s main event. The prologue was won by EnduroGP World Championship leader Josep Garcia, who blasted up the hill on his KTM 250 EXC-F to finish seven seconds ahead of second-placed Andrea Verona. 2025 Dakar Rally winner Daniel Sanders placed third on his KTM 450 RALLY.

Conditions were favorable at the start of Sunday’s race, and a strong launch off the line saw Mani move into the top five early on. He soon began chasing down early leader Billy Bolt. Twenty-five minutes into the race, Lettenbichler had passed all but Bolt and was right on the Brit’s rear wheel. As the two rivals entered their first run through the demanding Carl’s Dinner section, a mistake by Bolt allowed Mani to take the lead. From that point on, Lettenbichler was untouchable, steadily extending his advantage and cleaning the later sections with relative ease.

Despite heavy rain falling at around the one hour 20-minute mark, Mani stayed focused and put in a champion’s performance to cover the second half of the race without incident, ultimately crossing the line over 12 minutes ahead of second place. The victory makes it four in a row for the German, one away from the record set by KTM ambassador Taddy Blazusiak.

Manuel Lettenbichler: “It feels amazing to take the win here at Erzberg again. Nothing in hard enduro is guaranteed and I was definitely feeling the pressure here, even before the race. I got a good start, but Billy’s pace at the front was really fast and it took me a while to catch him. I knew when we got into the trees, I’d have a good chance to make a push for the lead. I think Billy made a couple of mistakes and I was able to get ahead. After that I just kept my head down and focused on getting through every section without any issues. The track was perfect this year, I really enjoyed it, and the fans have been incredible as always. That’s four in a row now – I’ve got one more to get to equal Taddy and then a few more wins to beat the record. I’m already looking forward to next year, it’s such an amazing event.”

Andrea Locatelli and Yamaha Motor Europe have reached an agreement for the Italian to continue with Yamaha’s official team in the FIM Superbike World Championship in 2026 and 2027. 

The agreement will see Locatelli become one of the longest serving Yamaha WorldSBK riders in history as he enters his sixth and seventh seasons with Yamaha in the Superbike World Championship, with only the legendary Noriyuki Haga having spent more time racing for Yamaha in the premier class of production racing. 

The 2025 season has seen Locatelli enjoy his strongest start to a WorldSBK championship aboard the R1 to date with three podium finishes from the first five rounds including a remarkable debut victory with Pata Maxus Yamaha at the TT Circuit Assen. The 28-year-old currently sits fifth in the championship standings ahead of Round 6 at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli next month. 

Locatelli first joined Yamaha in the Supersport World Championship in 2020, where he dominated with the Evan Bros Racing team to clinch the world title in his rookie season. He moved up to WorldSBK for 2021 with the official Yamaha team where he has remained since, scoring 20 WorldSBK podium finishes including his Assen victory. 

Andrea Locatelli

“I am really happy to sign with Yamaha for another two years. I have been with Yamaha for many years now, and I believe in the team, I believe in the people at Yamaha and want to continue to work, because I feel that we can achieve a lot more together. The people at Yamaha believe in me and this is important. Our approach will be to continue to push and try and make progress, just like we have seen this season. And of course, before 2026, our focus is on securing the best result possible in 2025!” 

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Daniel Sanders has won the South African Safari Rally, securing his third consecutive victory in the 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship. Teammate Luciano Benavides delivered a standout performance of his own, bringing his KTM 450 RALLY home in second place, while Edgar Canet claimed a decisive win in the Rally2 category, where he now lies second overall in the class.

Fresh off victories at the Dakar Rally and Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, Daniel Sanders continued his impressive 2025 season with a commanding win in South Africa. After taking three stage wins during the event and finishing second on the final day, the Australian sealed the overall victory by nearly nine minutes. Thanks to his strong run of form, Sanders has now become the all-time leader in W2RC stage wins, setting a new benchmark with 19 career victories. Daniel’s triumph extends his lead in the championship to 35 points ahead of round four, Rally Raid Portugal, cementing his status as the rider to beat this season.

Daniel Sanders: “We’ve just won the South African Safari Rally to make it three races in a row this year! What a start to the season, I couldn’t have asked for anything better. Every day has been different, from the navigation to the terrain, some of it has been crazy but I’ve really enjoyed my first time here. It feels great to put KTM on the top step again, and I’m excited to celebrate with the team. We’ve put in so much work over the past year to get to this point, so it’s great that it’s all paying off and I’m having so much fun riding this bike. My goal is of course to win the championship, and I’m feeling good for Portugal and Morocco later in the year. I’ll give it my all as always!”

Luciano Benavides delivered a superb ride at the South African Safari Rally to secure second overall, marking his best result of the 2025 season so far. Building on a strong start that saw him consistently finish inside the top three through the early stages, the Argentinian rider capped off his campaign with a solid fourth-place result on the final stage to comfortably secure the runner-up spot overall. Showcasing his skill and experience across the varied terrain, Luciano has been rewarded with a significant leap in the standings, moving from fifth to joint second in the championship behind teammate Sanders.

Luciano Benavides: “It’s amazing to finish second and make it a KTM one-two! Today was good, I knew I could hold onto second place so I stayed super focused on the navigation to avoid any mistakes. I’m really happy to be back on the podium, and I’m feeling really confident after this race that I can be on the top step again soon. I’m looking forward to Portugal and Morocco now!”

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Rally2 contender, Edgar Canet, has bounced back from injury in outstanding fashion, claiming a dominant class victory in South Africa by over 15 minutes. The young Spaniard led the Rally2 category for most of the week after securing wins on stages two, three, and four, and managed his lead expertly despite encountering some challenges on the final day. Canet continues to establish himself as a rising talent, with his full haul of points promoting him to second overall in the Rally2 standings with two rounds left to contest.

Edgar Canet: “I’m super happy to finish this race with the win in Rally2! It’s been a long week with a lot of bike time, so I’m really pleased to cross the finish line and to take the class win is amazing. I feel that I am improving so much with each race, and to finish seventh overall here in South Africa is something I’m really proud of. I’m happy for the team, we have had the best results possible, and we will continue to work hard. Bring on Portugal!”

Andreas Hölzl – Rally Team Manager: “We’re super happy for Chucky and the team! He has had an incredible performance, and he has proven race after race that he is the man for the job. Not only is he winning in the desert, but he has also come to South Africa, faced completely different terrain and won again. Luciano has worked really hard over the past few months, so we’re really happy for him to get a podium finish. It sets him up nicely for the next race in Portugal in September. Edgar continues to impress us at every race. For him to be fighting with the top guys and winning Rally2 is amazing. He is super consistent, and we’re really pleased with his progress. What an incredible week for the team!”

Ricky Brabec stormed through the final stage of this year’s South African Safari Rally, securing an impressive stage win to cap off the event.

The last day of rally-raid action in South Africa was shaping up to be a thrilling one, with all the Monster Energy Honda HRC riders pushing hard to grab a last-minute stage victory.  With only 111 km of special stage remaining, there was no room for error across the expansive grasslands.

Brabec came out strong from the start setting the fastest time at the first checkpoint, with his teammates Skyler Howes and Adrien Van Beveren, hot on his heels, just one second behind.  As the stage progressed, Brabec faced stiff competition from Daniel Sanders and Luciano Benavides and although he briefly lost the lead midway through, trailing by just eight seconds, he responded with a determined surge in the closing kilometres to reclaim the top spot and win the stage by 42 seconds.

It was a strong finish for the American, who not only took the stage victory but also secured third place overall claiming the final step on the podium.

Skyler Howes was competitive early on, navigating the gravel tracks with confidence. However, he eventually finished the stage in sixth place, 5’09” behind Brabec.  Ending the rally in fifth overall and out of podium contention, Howes now turns his focus to training during the summer break ahead of the World Rally-Raid Championship’s return in September.

Adrien Van Beveren, who began the day with a slim 25-second advantage over Brabec for the final podium spot, was optimistic aboard his Honda CRF450 RALLY.  Unfortunately, technical issues with his road book tablet caused significant delays.  Struggling both to fix the device and to navigate without it, Van Beveren lost valuable time and ultimately finished the stage in eighth place.  It was a frustrating end to his rally, dropping him off the podium by a margin of five minutes.

In the World Rally-Raid Championship standings, Ricky Brabec now leads the Honda charge with 53 points, placing him third overall.  Adrien Van Beveren follows closely, just five points behind, while Skyler Howes holds sixth place with 35 points.  After withdrawing from this rally, Tosha Schareina drops from second to fifth in the standings, now sitting on 46 points.

With the summer break ahead, the Monster Energy Honda HRC team will return to competition at the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal, scheduled for 22–28 September.

Vive KTM! The Grand Prix of France permitted more MXGP spoils for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing crew at Ernee today as Lucas Coenen won another moto and finished runner-up in the premier class and Simon Laengenfelder, Andrea Adamo and Sacha Coenen filled all three steps of the MX2 podium respectively to prove the exceptional capabilities of the KTM 250 SX-F.

For the second time in 2025, MXGP jumped into French soil. Famed Motocross of Nations and established world championship venue, Ernee, packed the fans into the hillside setting, not far from Le Mans, for the ninth round of the season. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing aimed to continue their march of success in both MXGP and MX2 classes: the works line-up had won two GPs with the KTM 450 SX-F and four with the KTM 250 SX-F so far.

Ernee was overcast but busy on Saturday where the schedule included the ninth points-scoring Qualification Heat of the campaign. Coenen started well and led every lap of the MXGP race to ensure his third checkered flag and Pole Position. Jeffrey Herlings was 10th. In MX2 Andrea Adamo won the Heat convincingly after dealing with the threat of teammate Simon Laengenfelder and with Sacha Coenen in P3 ensuring a top three lockout.

The potential for performance continued into Sunday. Morning rainfall created a soft and very rough surface and where starts were at a premium. Coenen started ahead of Herlings in the first moto and the Belgian kept P1 all the way to the line. His win banked a seventh haul of 25 points and means he is now the most prolific racer in the division in his rookie term. Herlings 3rd place was a personal best of 2025 to-date. In the second moto Coenen could not stop Romain Febvre. His 2nd position behind the Frenchman ultimately meant the second step. Herlings was 5th and tied on points for the rostrum; just missing out on a first top three and ranked 4th.

Laengenfelder excelled on the bumpy and technical track. The German was a fast starter along with his teammates. He beat Adamo in the first moto as Sacha Coenen confirmed P6. Simon then got the better of the Italian in the second race as Coenen improved to P4. The post-race ceremony was a sweep for the team for the first time.

The upshot of the results in Ernee makes for bright reading in the championship standings. Coenen is 2nd and 47 points behind Febvre. Laengenfelder has the red plate by 11 points from Adamo with Coenen hovering in 6th.

Round seven of 2025 EMX250 pushed Gyan Doensen into the gate and the Dutch rookie took his Gabriel SS24 KTM 250 SX-F to a new milestone. Doensen was runner-up in the second moto for his highest classification yet. Gyan had been 3rd earlier in the weekend and his 3-2 card – the best of 2025 so far – allowed him to be P2 on the podium despite the muddy and slick surface on Sunday. Ernee also entertained round seven of EMX125 and more action for the KTM Racestore Factory Rookies squad. Nicolo Alvisi was perfect, going 1-1 on the KTM 125 SX for the first time this season and consolidating his championship lead ahead of teammate Aron Katona who did not pick up any points in France.

MXGP spins south and east for the Grand Prix of Germany and the halfway point of the 2025 calendar. Talkessel in Teutschenthal, close to the city of Halle, has been the constant home of world championship motocross in the country since the start of the century and the narrow hard-pack course will become rutted again for round ten next weekend.

Lucas Coenen, 1st and 2nd for 2nd overall in MXGP: “We had to put on a charge at times today and it was good for the fans here! I struggled with arm-pump a bit and got tired but, honestly, P2 and three podiums in a row: it’s really good. We’ll hope for some more strong races coming up.”

Jeffrey Herlings, 3rd and 5th for 4th overall in MXGP: “It was quite disappointing to have the same points as 3rd and not get on the podium. I was fighting for the lead for a long time in the first moto and at the end I had to back-it-off a bit because of arm-pump and took P3. It was a bit less in the second moto, and I then had to comeback from the start and the small crash. I just missed the pass for 4th which would have given me the podium. Very close. P4 overall and a good step. We are getting there every weekend.”

Featuring heavily in the fight for the top ten, Luca Marini and Joan Mir showed Honda HRC’s progress with a scintillating Sunday in Silverstone – their true potential masked by late complications for both.

Morning rain couldn’t fault the steely focus of Luca Marini and Joan Mir as they completed their final preparations for the British GP. With the track quickly drying, it was clear the 20-lap race would be held in the dry as the clouds continued to fade. Both Honda HRC Castrol riders would make their best starts of the year as the lights went out, Marini shooting forward into the top five with Mir close behind. But a crash down the field and oil on the track would bring out the red flag early on.

Reduced to 19-laps, the restart saw another impressive launch from Joan Mir to start making up ground as he looked for open space to attack. Moving past his teammate on the next lap, Mir locked into the battle for fifth with Morbidelli and Alex Marquez. Having made such an impressive start, the #36 went into defence mode in the closing stages of the race as he worked to hold off Marini and Aldegeur. Taking 11th at the flag, Mir returns to the points and enjoys a small reward for his and the team’s efforts.

Able to again stay with the leading group after the red flag, Marini produced an incredibly consistent pace and recovered the ground to his Honda HRC Castrol teammate later in the race. Crossing the line in eighth, Marini matched his best finish as a Honda rider but would be hit with a post-race tyre penalty. This dropped him from eighth to 15th, continuing his point scoring run. His result moved teammate Joan Mir to 10th.

The march of progress and MotoGP never stops, round eight taking place in just under two weeks at MotorLand Aragon. This is the final solo stop on the calendar before seven back-to-back weekends round out the year.

The UKGP ended on a feeling of resurgence for Red Bull KTM teams as Pedro Acosta gunned his KTM RC16 to 6th position at a windy, cool and changeable Silverstone for the seventh round of 2025 MotoGP. The Spaniard collected 10 points after a determined comeback from 14th on the grid. An entertaining Moto3™ outing ended with Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Jose Antonio Rueda starring in a last-to-first charge for win #5 of 2025.

The 5.9km length and 18 corners of Silverstone was complicated further for 20 long laps of the United Kingdom Grand Prix. Late spring British weather varied between heavy showers in the morning to blue skies and fluctuating temperatures. MotoGP warm-up was run on a wet track but the gusts helped to dry the course.

All four KTM RC16 riders had to opt for the best tire choice to cope with the (normally) high consumption at Silverstone. They also had to throttle hard to obtain positions on the first laps while preserving optimum grip for the full distance.

Pedro Acosta made the most progress. He surged up to the battle for 5th but then missed the necessary traction on acceleration to enter a close podium tussle. Maverick Viñales, Brad Binder and Enea Bastianini had their own adventures with varying levels of effective feedback from the rubber. Viñales persevered until the edge of the top ten, finishing 12th. Binder was 15th and he at least secured the final point. Bastianini had to complete a Long Lap penalty for an infraction at the last race in Le Mans and spent the race trying to catch-up the rest of the pack.

MotoGP heads back to Spain for the second time this season and into the weave of corners and speed that is the MotorLand Aragon circuit for the Grand Prix of Aragon in two weeks.

Pedro Acosta, 6th and 9th in the championship standings: “A good race after all but a bit exasperated because we are losing a lot of grip. When you have the pace and you cannot overtake then it’s frustrating. I did overtake a lot of people at the start, even though it was messy! We have to improve and for Aragon we will also have a test which is important.”

Maverick Viñales, 12th and 12th in the championship standings:“A lot of issues this weekend and not much luck. I had the rhythm to be fighting in the top five but starting in 18th means a lot more fighting and in only a few laps I lose six-seven seconds and that’s the race. This track is very unique and grip on corner exit is not our strength: you need it here. We need to forget this track and concentrate on Aragon now because this was not our potential here. I have faith in the bike we have – In Le Mans and Jerez we were quite fast - and we must improve the details.”

Brad Binder, 14th and 14th in the championship standings: “A tough weekend for us here in Silverstone. Qualifying was difficult, we didn’t finish the Sprint and the race today was also tough. I got a good start before the red flag and didn’t on the second start. I struggled with confidence and to know where I could push and where I couldn’t. As soon as I started to feel OK then I would have some ‘moments’. It’s hard at the moment. We need to figure things out a little bit and step-up for Aragon.”

Just 112 days after exiting the AMA Supercross series with a torn ACL, Honda HRC Progressive rider Jett Lawrence returned to action for the opening AMA Pro Motocross round in Pala, California, where he extended his flawless overall-win record at Fox Raceway to eight (five in 250, three in 450), via an impressive premier-class moto sweep. Also returning from a layoff (his due to a shoulder injury) was Hunter Lawrence, who tallied a 3-4 score for third overall. Meanwhile, the 250 class saw Jo Shimoda turn in an impressive 2-2 ride for second overall, while Chance Hymas showed impressive speed all day and finished fourth overall.

On a track that developed deep ruts and technical lines throughout the day, the Lawrence brothers showed poise and composure in their return to racing. Jett and Hunter nailed their moto 1 starts aboard their CRF450RWE race machines, exiting turn 1 first and second, respectively. Jett went wire-to-wire to win by 11.482 seconds over Justin Cooper, with Hunter a solid third. Hunter went on to rip a huge moto 2 holeshot before Jett quickly took over. Eli Tomac moved into second early and engaged in a legendary battle with Jett, who held off the “Beast Mode” challenges the entire 37 minutes and 4 seconds to take an emotional win. Hunter defended third place from Aaron Plessinger for most of the race, only to relinquish the position when he made an error on the final lap, though his fourth place was good enough for third overall.

Hymas grabbed the 250 moto 1 holeshot board his CRF250RWE and, after briefly losing the lead, ran at the front until a lap-6 tip-over cost him a couple spots. Shimoda sat in fourth after lap 1 and then lost a position, but he came on strong in the second half of the race to notch a solid second-place result, one ahead of Hymas. Moto 2 saw the Japanese racer once again complete lap 1 in fourth place and mount a charge midway through, for a second-place result and second overall. Hymas suffered a terrible start but rode well and advanced steadily from 14^th on lap 1 to sixth at the finish, for fourth on the day.

Jett Lawrence

“With everything we’ve gone through, with injuries and having to deal with the mental battle, and my body not handling the pain killers very well—I had all that emotion, and I was thinking, ‘I can’t wait for Pala—I want to win.’ I have a good circle of people around me, and they all backed me in difficult moments. This is a reward not just for me, but for them. It was good to be back out there again and get that adrenaline rush.”

Hunter Lawrence

“Pretty average day. I’m happy, and we’ll take it. Coming back from an injury, you never really know. For sure I had more outdoor prep than in years prior, but it’s just a race-pace thing—it’s tough to just jump back in. Me and AP [Aaron Plessinger] battled the whole second moto, and then I made a small mistake on the last lap and he was right there to capitalize on it. That was a punch in the gut, but it was good—a lot to build on.”

The Honda Montesa rider overcomes the difficult terrain to take third place.

Mobility Resort Motegi was the setting for the eleventh and twelfth rounds of the Trial2 World Championship season this weekend. Saturday’s heavy rain left some very difficult sections for the riders on the second day of competition. Just as he did on the previous day, Miquel Gelabert managed to place on the rostrum at Honda’s home round.

The RTL Electric rider started the day by dropping several fives, as the slippery rocks and muddy sections posed a tough challenge. But as the event progressed, he gained confidence with the bike and improved his performance in front of the Japanese fans. Tied with one of his main rivals, Harry Hemingway, on a total of 35 points and just one point behind the leader, Gelabert finished the first race in third place, earning him 15 points in the overall standings.

For the second race, the conditions and the difficulty of the sections remained the big factor. However, despite a difficult start, he produced his best performance to salvage fourth. After stringing together several zeros midway through the race, a couple of errors in the final sections relegated him to fourth place when he was fighting for the win. However, in the end the Honda Montesa rider finished fourth in the second race of the day, third in the combined and his second podium of the weekend.

After third and fourth places on Day 2, Gelabert maintains third place in the championship standings with a total of 162 points. The Honda rider will compete at the French Trial GP from May 30th to June 1st in Calvi, Corsica.

South African Safari Rally kicks off with challenging prologue near Sun City

The new South African Safari Rally roared to life today with a short but demanding 9km prologue near Sun City, setting the stage for the Monster Energy Honda HRC riders.

The course, composed of 60% gravel and 40% black turf, a hallmark of South African terrain, proved anything but easy. Despite the brief distance, the prologue played a crucial role in determining the starting order for tomorrow’s first stage and the mixed surface kept riders on their toes.

After clinching every prologue victory in the rallies he competed in last year, all eyes were on Tosha Schareina to see if he could take his second prologue win of 2025.  With the timed action completed in just over seven minutes, a few mistakes cost the Spaniard the win by just four seconds, with Daniel Sanders claiming the top spot.

Ricky Brabec, more accustomed to desert racing, likened the course to a grass track, far from his preferred conditions and trailed the leader by 14 seconds. Frenchman Adrien Van Beveren followed closely, just one second behind Brabec, as he navigated the tight, freshly cut grass sections. Meanwhile, Skyler Howes finished eighth overall, nearly 30 seconds off the lead, after some early confusion caused by tractor markings and a constant battle with the slippery terrain.

Looking ahead to stage one, the riders will tackle a demanding 557km route aboard their Honda CRF450 RALLY machines, with 262km counting as the timed special stage. As they leave Sun City behind and head into dense woodland, they’ll face a fresh set of challenges, navigating through trees, thick shrubs and tall grasses that promise to test both skill and focus.