Round five of 2026 MotoGP circulated the popular site of Le Mans and in front of another sold-out crowd of more than 112,000 spectators on Sunday and over 300,000 for the Grand Prix. Pedro Acosta was the highest ranked KTM RC16 racer with 5th position.

The weather shifted for race day at the 39th French Grand Prix at Le Mans and the 4.1km Bugatti circuit was cooler, cloudier and with the constant threat of showers. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing started the 27-laps on Sunday afternoon with Pedro Acosta 4th on the grid and Brad Binder in 20th. Red Bull KTM Tech3 watched Enea Bastianini launch from 13th and Jonas Folger, replacing Maverick Viñales for his first Grand Prix outing in three years, in 21st.

Acosta repeated his attacking and proactive approach shown in Saturday’s Sprint (where he classified 4th) to make his presence felt inside the top three in the opening laps. The Spaniard then maintained his pace while trying to fight off attention from pursuers that lasted until the final corners. Pedro was able to confirm P5 for his third top five result of the season – less than three seconds from the win - and brings him to within one point of 3rd place in the world championship table.

Bastianini had a busy grand prix with close company in mid-pack. He was able to pull free of the rider chasing him in 8th, and his standing of 7th represents his third top ten finish in a row. Folger completed the race distance in 16th while Binder charged back to the edge of the first ten runners before losing traction into Turn 7 with six laps to go.

The Grand Prix of Catalunya at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya will happen next weekend for round six.

Brad Binder, DNF and 13th in the championship: “I locked the front wheel going into turn 7 and the change of direction. It was a fast crash. I braked a bit later and with a bit more pressure. It was just too much. Today I was a lot faster but not where I need to be. The positive is that this morning in warm-up I was quicker and in the race also [than Saturday]. I felt like I was on my way forward. Everything felt easier.”

Coming into the penultimate race of the 2026 AMA Supercross season, Hunter Lawrence found himself four points behind the championship leader, in a situation where performing was a must to keep his title hopes alive. The Australian delivered when it mattered, racing his CRF450RWE to a convincing victory and closing to within a single point, with just one round remaining.

Racing at altitude places added importance on starts, and the 450SX main event saw Lawrence get an epic launch down the start straight, although Jorge Prado was able to claim the actual holeshot by sneaking around the outside. Lawrence took over the lead by lap 2 and never looked back. As battles unfolded behind him, he leveraged his pace to steadily extend his lead, ultimately crossing the finish line with a 12.3-second advantage over second-place finisher and title-rival Ken Roczen.

Quad Lock Honda racer Dean Wilson finished ninth, while teammates Christian Craig and Shane McElrath completed the race in 12^th and 16^th, respectively.

In addition to closing the championship gap to just one point, Lawrence’s fifth victory of the season matches Roczen’s win total on the year, so the Australian now holds the advantage for a potential tiebreaker as the series heads into the final round in Salt Lake City.

FIM Supersport World Championship rookie Albert Arenas strengthened his position atop of the 2026 standings with victory in Race 2 at Balaton Park, as Yamaha celebrated a stunning 1-2-3 with Can Öncü and Roberto Garcia bringing their R9s home in second and third respectively.

Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing) started from pole position for the second time this weekend, but it was Can Öncü on the Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing R9 who once again took the holeshot to lead in the first few corners. 

Öncü led the way for most of the race, with Arenas in second and GMT94 Yamaha’s Roberto Garcia moving up to sit third after another impressive start. Filippo Farioli’s (VFT Yamaha) impressive pace was again unrewarded as he crashed out in the early stages.

Arenas began to put the pressure on Öncü in the latter stages of the race, with the pair exchanging position on numerous occasions in the final five laps. The Spaniard tried to make a break on the penultimate lap, but didn’t quite have enough as Öncü stuck to his tail – however, he would pull the slightest of gaps when it mattered, with a stunning final lap to see him cross the line 0.419 seconds ahead of Öncü.

Sat in a podium position, Garcia tried to run Öncü to the line – missing out on second place by 0.090 seconds, but still able to enjoy his maiden WorldSSP rostrum to make up for the disappointment of crashing out of the lead on Saturday.

Aldi Satya Mahendra (AS BLU CRU Racing) concluded a strong weekend with a return to the top ten, crossing the line eighth. The second GMT94 Yamaha of Lucas Mahias completed the top ten.

Yuki Okamoto (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) concluded a difficult weekend in 26th position.

Arenas’ 1-2 this weekend sees him extend his championship lead to 33 points over Jaume Masia. Öncü now sits fifth, 62 points in arrears.

The series resumes in just under two weeks’ time in the Czech Republic for Round 5 at Autodrom Most.

Honda HRC Castrol remained in Spain for the first in-season test of the 2026 season, Luca Marini and Joan Mir completing a total of 122 laps between them and left with a number of interesting insights.

Another beautiful day in the South of Spain made for a busy Monday, Luca Marini and Joan Mir taking full advantage of the eight hours on track. The theme of the day was small details, Honda HRC’s engineers eager to explore all the setup parameters of the Honda RC213V without the demands of a MotoGP Grand Prix weekend.

A best time of 1’36.896 in the afternoon saw Luca Marini finish the day in 14th overall, the Italian content with what he and his team achieved. Working until the very last moments of the test as always, Marini was able to back-to-back test a number of setup and electronic setting differences with the two bikes available to him.

On the other said of the Honda HRC Castrol garage, Joan Mir was just 0.081s behind his teammate for 15th. During his close to 60 laps, the #36 was able to define the direction he feels needs to be followed to make short term gains in the coming races.

Now the team will begin their preparations for Round 5, the French GP on May 08 to 10.

The Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team of Marvin Fritz, Karel Hanika, and Leandro Mercado powered to a sensational victory at the 24 Heures Motos after producing a faultless performance, securing back-to-back victories at Le Mans and getting their FIM Endurance World Championship title defence off to the perfect start. 

After securing pole position on Friday, with Hanika also setting a new outright EWC lap record of 1:34.267 around the Bugatti Circuit to help claim the maximum five points on offer, and showing searing pace throughout the week, YART were primed to fight for victory before the lights went out on the 49th edition of the 24 Heures Motos.  

After a start that saw them momentarily drop to eighth, they immediately hunted down the leaders and began closing on the front. After three hours, they hit the lead and started to open a gap as Fritz, Hanika, and new signing for 2026 Mercado kept up a relentless pace on the Bridgestone-shod YART R1 carrying the #1 plate.

As the hours ticked down, it became a two-way battle for victory with the #37 BMW. YART were setting the pace and stretched their advantage to 30 seconds at the front, but their rivals’ better fuel economy meant they could complete four more laps per stint. This saw YART relinquish the lead due to having to make an extra pit stop.

Throughout the night, the lead changed hands at each pit stop, and it looked like it would go right down to the wire, with YART securing nine points at the eight and 16-hour marks for running second. Then, after 17 hours, the BMW crashed out of victory contention, which gave YART a four-lap advantage at the front. 

From that point on, Fritz, Hanika, and Mercado continued to push, extending their lead at the front in a faultless performance by the Austrian squad. As the hours passed, they stretched their advantage further, and Fritz took the chequered flag to seal victory after completing 859 laps, five more than their closest rivals, to complete a dominant win. 

Not only did that make it back-to-back victories for YART at the legendary endurance race, but it also made them the most successful Yamaha team in the history of the 24 Heures Motos with three wins, while Yamaha has now won at Le Mans six times in total. The result means YART have started their EWC title defence in superb fashion, securing 63 of the 65 available points. There was more success for Yamaha in the Production class, as Legacy Competition, with Jordy Manneveau, Pierre Gelas, and Ludovic Hauser, took victory with a total of 774 laps.  

Unfortunately, after qualifying in fifth and enjoying a superb start, the ELF Marc VDS Racing Team/KM99’s Randy de Puniet, Florian Marino, and Alessandro Del Bianco were forced to retire from the race with a technical issue after four hours. 

Next up in the 2026 EWC is the 8 Hours of Spa on 6 June.

Adverse weather conditions created a demanding track and forced shortened main events at AMA Supercross’ 15^th round, held in Philadelphia. While the 450SX race didn’t go the way Honda HRC Progressive or Hunter Lawrence had hoped, they minimized what could have been significant damage and turned in a third-place result, keeping them in the title hunt.

Lawrence powered to the 450SX main-event holeshot aboard his CRF450RWE, leading Ken Roczen and Cooper Webb. The trio of title contenders battled early on before Lawrence was displaced by Roczen. Lawrence recovered and began challenging the leader before the halfway mark, but a fall in a rhythm section relegated him to third. From there, the focus shifted to damage limitation, as the Australian managed the situation to secure valuable championship points. With two rounds remaining, he sits just four points back in the standings, keeping him firmly in title contention.

Quad Lock Honda rider Joey Savatgy finished fourth overall, equaling his career-best premier-class result. Quad Lock’s Shane McElrath and Dean Wilson were sixth and eighth, making it four Hondas in the top eight. Quad Lock rider Christian Craig was 15^th.

Hunter Lawrence  ⁹⁶

“We invested a lot more time into the starts in wet conditions, and that was a big positive this weekend; I had good starts in the heat race and the main event, so it’s good to see the work pay off. I felt really good with how I was riding, and just the smallest little mistake in the wrong part of the track bit me. Then your gloves are all muddy, so it’s just kind of trying to get back into a rhythm and not have the train completely come off the tracks. They say mud is the great equalizer, but it’s more like a minefield. We didn’t quite get the end result we wanted, but that’s racing. I’m excited to leave here having learned more, so we’re ready for whatever the last two rounds bring—it’s going to be good!”

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team’s Tim Gajser has claimed a Grand Prix race win on his way to a season-best second overall at the MXGP of Trentino. The Yamaha YZ450FM rider placed fourth in Race One before charging to a stunning victory in Race Two. Maxime Renaux also performed well in Italy, finishing fifth in both races to secure fifth overall.

The fifth round of the 2026 FIM MXGP Motocross World Championship took place at a special venue for the two team-mates. For Gajser, it is something of a home race, with a large contingent of Slovenian fans always travelling to the Pietramurata circuit to support the five-time world champion. For Renaux, the hardpack track holds happy memories as it is where he claimed his MX2 World Championship title in 2021.

Spurred on by his loyal supporters throughout round five, and running a special Valentino Rossi tribute livery on his machine with matching Alpinestars race gear, Gajser was focused on bouncing back from his heavy crash in Sardegna last weekend.

In Race One, an excellent start set him up for a strong result and he ran second for most of the race. In the closing stages, he slipped to fourth, but nevertheless the solid ride set him up nicely for a place on the overall podium.

Gajser started up front again in Race Two and moved from fourth to third on the opening lap. A few laps later, he made the pass stick on Kay de Wolf to move into second before giving chase to Lucas Coenen, who led the way. Gajser then shadowed Coenen closely until his younger rival made a mistake, allowing the Yamaha rider to take control of the race. From there, the 29-year-old was faultless as he charged to his first MXGP race victory on Yamaha machinery and claimed second overall on the day. Following an epic day of racing, Gajser now advances to fourth in the series standings.

Renaux was also on good form in Italy. After starting just inside the top 10 in Race One, he fought hard throughout the race to finish fifth. An improved start in the second race set him up for another strong result and he moved into fifth before the halfway stage. With the laps winding down, the Frenchman kept pushing and reeled in Kay de Wolf in fourth and Lucas Coenen in third. Ultimately, Renaux ended the race in fifth, but was only three seconds behind Coenen at the finish.

With another successful Grand Prix complete, the team will now head into the spring break with momentum on its side. Racing resumes with the MXGP of France on May 23-24.

With a crash and subsequent sore wrist having affected his performances at the previous two rounds, Honda HRC Progressive rider Hunter Lawrence came to the Nashville round feeling relatively fit. The outcome was a return to the form he had shown earlier in the season, with a composed and dominating ride, his fourth premier-class victory of the season and sole possession of the red plate. In challenging, deteriorating conditions, the Australian combined focus and speed to win comfortably and extend his championship lead to 10 points.

The 450SX main event saw Lawrence nearly claim the holeshot before he slid and was relegated to fifth by the end of the first lap. Remaining calm and calculated, he quickly worked his way through the field, moving into second in the opening minutes and setting his sights on the leading Ken Roczen. Lawrence studied the evolving track conditions, waiting to make his move until after the race’s halfway point. Immediately after executing a decisive pass, he established control of the race, showcasing superior pace and consistency as he steadily built a gap, ultimately crossing the line with an advantage of more than seven seconds over runner-up Cooper Webb.

Behind him, Quad Lock Honda Racing riders Shane McElrath, Dean Wilson, Christian Craig and Joey Savatgy finished 10^th, 11^th, 14^th and 16^th, respectively, while McGinley Clinic-backed privateer Zack Williams completed the main event in 20^th place.

Hunter Lawrence

“We’ve still got four more races. That’s a lot of racing, so I’m just trying to get as many points, trying to make up for the past two weekends. Looking back to Detroit, maybe I should’ve settled for third? Maybe I wouldn’t have crashed, and I’d still have a pretty healthy double-digit points lead. But it just puts an emphasis on how important it is to be the healthiest version of yourself at every round; I have a whole newfound respect for the boys that have been doing this year in and year out. We just left the bike as it was all day. It was good, and I feel like that kind of track was more about just getting in tune with the feeling and the traction. When you have so much horsepower and you have to be so smooth, it’s tricky.”

Honda HRC PETRONAS’s Jeffrey Herlings had his best weekend points total of the season, after yesterday's qualification race and then going two-two in the two motos today, giving him second overall at the MXGP of Sardegna.

Yesterday’s victory gave Herlings first gate-pick and he used that to good advantage to sweep around the first corner in the leading pack in both races, before quickly moving towards the front of the field. In the first race, the #84 got into the lead by the time the first lap was completed and although he held onto that for the first few laps, eventually he had to settle for second as they crossed the line. Race two saw him become the chaser, keeping the leader with sight the majority of the moto before really charging at the end, when he finished just over one second behind. Victory in the race would have given him the overall so it was tough to take for the renown sand rider, but he knows what he has to do and he is still very well placed in the championship standings.

Fifth place overall went to Ruben Fernandez, who showed that his winter work has paid off and that sand isn’t the treacherous surface that it once was for the Spaniard. Tow good starts, followed by two mistake-free motos showed a level of speed and consistency that hasn’t always been easy for the #70, especially at this difficult Riola Sardo circuit.

Frenchman Tom Vialle was unfortunately a victim in both races, which ruined his chances of a podium spot. The Honda CRF450RW rider hasn’t raced anything like this type of track since departing the series a few years back, but he looked at home early on in both races, taking a holeshot in race one and racing inside the top three until the second third of race two. It was just a couple of small mistakes which cost him and on this surface, that really stalls your momentum and drops you down the standings easily. Still, he can be happy with the majority of his riding and will hoping to bounce back in Trentino next weekend.

Valerio Lata will also be hoping for a better outcome after a disappointing weekend was rounded off by a technical issue in race two. The Italian has another home race in Pietramurata in a weeks’ time, where he feels much more comfortable, and he’ll be looking to be much closer to the top positions when he takes to that hard-pack track.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing endured a mixed day out at Round 13 of the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship in Nashville, where Eli Tomac qualified quickest and won his Heat race before a difficult 450SX Main Event saw him finish outside of the top 10 and directly ahead of teammate Jorge Prado.

Two-time 450SX Champion Tomac entered this weekend jointly holding the series leader's red plate, with the Colorado native qualifying fastest in both 450SX sessions onboard his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION with an eventual benchmark of a 51.407s lap-time.

That momentum continued in the afternoon's racing program within Nissan Stadium for Tomac, who started the second 450SX Heat Race in third position, before making a move on Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Prado during the later stages to claim the victory.

A slow start to the Main Event proved costly for the number 3, who steadily climbed through the field to enter the top 10 in dry, technical track conditions, only to be impacted by a late-race crash on his way to finishing 12th. He now sits third in the 450SX standings with four rounds remaining, 15 points from the points lead.

Eli Tomac: “What a day – the whole day was good, other than the Main Event result! I was comfortable with my setup all day, so I’m just frustrated not only with the bad gate selection – I should have avoided the inside on the start – but also the crash. That bad start really put me in a tough spot from the get-go and I had my work cut out for me trying to make passes on such a slick, tight track. I lost a bunch of points today, but all I can do at this point is ride my best at the remaining rounds and let the chips fall where they may."

Also equipped with the KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION, Spanish standout Prado recorded the fifth-fastest combined qualifying time – highlighted by P3 in the opening session – before powering to the holeshot and a third-place finish in 450SX Heat 2.

The 25-year-old ran up front during the early stages of the Main Event, crossing the line in third on Lap 1, and was contending for a podium position through the first half of the race. An incident around the midway point unfortunately dropped him outside the top 10, as Prado would go on to claim 13th position.