Preview and schedule for World Championship Round 13 in Loket (Czech Republic)

The Motocross World Championship continues at a rapid pace. A total of 244 riders across five classes are expected for Round 13, ensuring a packed programme. Alongside the World Championship classes MXGP and MX2, the European Two-Stroke Championships (EMX 2T) and the European Junior Championships in the EMX65 and EMX85 classes will contest their finals in Loket.

Weather forecast

On Saturday, maximum daytime temperatures of 27 degrees are forecast under clear skies. Perfect racing conditions are also expected on Sunday, with light cloud cover and temperatures of 27 degrees.

How fit is Lucas Coenen?

The big question is: how fit is World Championship leader Lucas Coenen (KTM) following his crash in the qualifying race at Foxhills? As a reminder, after his crash in the first race at Southwick (USA), he was unable to compete in the second race. A week later at Foxhills (England), the usually outstanding rider didn’t get off to a good start in the qualifying race; he collided with Maxime Renaux (Yamaha) in the pack on the first lap, crashed and sustained a foot injury. Lucas was forced to retire from both races and finished the Foxhills round with zero points. This allowed Jeffrey Herlings (Honda) to reduce his deficit from 68 to 11 points, meaning the title race is wide open once again.

Kay de Wolf back on the grid

During qualifying at Montevarchi (Italy), Husqvarna works rider Kay de Wolf crashed and suffered a torn ligament in his foot. The Dutchman is returning to competition at Loket to prepare for the next World Championship round in Lommel, which takes place the weekend after Loket.

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MXGP World Championship standings after round 12 of 19

1. Lucas Coenen (B), KTM, 566 points

2. Jeffrey Herlings (NL), Honda, 555 (-11)

3. Romain Febvre (F), Kawasaki, 494 (-72)

4. Tim Gajser (SLO), Yamaha, 452 (-114)

5. Maxime Renaux (F), Yamaha, 392 (-174)

6. Rubén Fernández (E), Honda, 378 (-188)

7. Andrea Adamo (I), KTM, 375 (-191)

8. Tom Vialle (F), Honda, 317 (-249)

9. Kay de Wolf (NL), Husqvarna, 273 (-293)

10. Pauls Jonass (LV), Kawasaki, 273 (-293)

How fit is Sacha Coenen?

Sacha Coenen is also struggling with the after-effects of Southwick. A week ago, he lined up at Foxhill with a broken collarbone that had just been operated on and managed to limit the damage with finishes of 10th and 5th. But the World Championship lead was gone nonetheless, and Sacha was lucky not to have landed on his right shoulder in either of his two crashes. The ground at Loket is hard. He has not yet fully recovered from his collarbone fracture, so the situation remains tense for Sacha. He must avoid any further crashes at all costs. But caution isn’t his strong point. He’ll probably attack as he always does, but that remains risky given his current condition.

Guillem Farres to race with the Red Plate

Spanish Triumph works rider Guillem Farres will be competing in Loket with the World Championship leader’s Red Plate for the first time. Having secured three GP victories, the Spaniard is on a roll at the moment. At Foxhills, only defending champion Simon Längenfelder (KTM) was able to hold his own against him at times. Loket is an old-school track, much like Foxhills. Whilst the steep slopes aren’t quite as long or steep as in England, there are some similarities when it comes to ground conditions.

Local hero Julius Mikula

With Julius Mikula, Czech fans once again have a top rider on the starting grid. With a 4th-place finish in Trentino and, most recently, 5th overall at Foxhill, the Osicka-KTM rider has shown that he has the pace to compete at the very top. Racing on home soil adds an extra dose of motivation, and perhaps the likeable Czech rider might even make it onto the podium at Loket. That would be the icing on the cake for what is already a great atmosphere.

Simon Längenfelder’s second home race

Loket is only about 80 km from Simon’s birthplace, Regnitzlosau. Motocross is traditionally a huge sport in the Czech Republic anyway, but many German fans will also be making the pilgrimage to Loket to cheer on Simon Längenfelder. The slopes of Loket will be packed once again, and for Simon, this would be the perfect moment to put a stop to Farres’ winning streak and close the 42-point gap to the top of the standings.

MX2 World Championship standings after round 12 of 19:

1. Guillem Farres (E), Triumph, 563 points

2. Sacha Coenen (B), KTM, 552 (-11)

3. Simon Längenfelder (D), KTM, 521 (-42)

4. Camden Mc Lellan (ZA), Triumph, 501 (-62)

5. Liam Everts (B), Husqvarna, 477 (-86)

6. Janis Martins Reisulis (LV), Yamaha, 434 (-129)

7. Mathis Valin (F), Kawasaki, 352 (-211)

8. Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LV), Yamaha, 336 (-227)

9. Valerio Lata (I), Honda, 307 (-256)

10. Julius Mikula (CZ), KTM, 253 (-310)

EMX2T: The sound of two-strokes

In the EMX2T, die-hard fans will delight in the sound of the two-strokes. But there’s plenty on offer in this class from a sporting perspective too: with Vaclav Kovar (KTM), a strong local rider will also be on the starting grid at Loket. He’ll face stiff competition from Hungary’s Bence Pergel (KTM) and Austria’s Michael Sandner (Husqvarna). The EMX2T races will be held over a single race weekend, comprising two rounds. The first round gets underway on Saturday at 12:55.

Here’s how to follow the races*):

Saturday, 25 July 2026

Sunday, 26 July 2026

*) Times are in CEST and subject to change