Following the Supersport and Rally World Championships: ZX Moto is planning its next coup – for the MXGP!

The Motocross World Championship enters its final phase on 6 September – with three events still to come. MXGP World Championship leader Jeffrey Herlings could secure his sixth world title as early as the Turkish round. The 31-year-old Dutchman from the Honda works team has a 143-point lead over world champion Romain Febvre (Kawasaki), who will be riding for Ducati next year.

Behind the scenes, there are exciting developments not only amongst the riders; as far as manufacturers are concerned, the field could become even more extensive in 2027. That’s because the Chinese brand ZX Moto is set to join the fray! Its founder and owner, Zhang Xue (pronounced ‘Tschau’), used to ride enduro and motocross himself and is known for his passion for off-road riding and his tenacity.

ZX Moto is committed to uncompromising sportiness

Xue was a co-founder and later managing director of Kove, but left the company in early 2024 due to disagreements regarding its strategic direction. The Chinese entrepreneur is a motorsport enthusiast; he subsequently founded his new company, ZX Moto, and has focused on uncompromising sportiness from the very start.

ZX Moto has teamed up with the top-tier Evan Bros team in the Supersport World Championship and, with French rider Valentin Debise, is currently in second place overall in its debut season, with the final quarter of the season still to come. Even the production model, the 820 RR, is fitted with the finest components; the developers have taken inspiration from the best features of their competitors.

ZX Moto made a second big splash with the announcement that the brand will enter the World Rally Championship as a works team and will also compete in the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia in January 2027; to this end, Xue has teamed up with the Joyride Race Service rally team. The Spanish team previously worked with KTM and will operate under the name ZX Moto Factory Rally Team in future, making its debut at the Rallye du Maroc at the end of September. The 450 will be ridden by 28-year-old Tyrolean Tobias Ebster, who was most recently at Alpinestars’ R&D centre at the company’s headquarters in Italy to have his kit fitted.

Tobias Ebster mit dem Rallye-Bike von ZX Moto

Foto: zx moto

China: a huge growth market

ZX Moto’s strategy is systematic: the production motorbike combines the best features of the competition, whilst an existing top team is recruited for the works team. For the MXGP, Xue will join forces with Jacky Martens’ JM team, which currently coordinates Fantic’s campaign. Insiders say that the ZX Moto is a cross between a Yamaha and a KTM; the basis of the 450cc engine is identical to that of the rally machine.

For Martens, the partnership with ZX Moto opens up numerous opportunities; China is one of the largest growth markets and the venue for the penultimate MXGP event of the season on the weekend of 12–13 September in the metropolis of Shanghai. Its successes in the Supersport World Championship have catapulted ZX Moto to the top of the Chinese fans’ favour within just a few months, which is generating rapidly growing interest from sponsors.

The Fantic and Martens Racing partnership has so far fallen well short of expectations in the MXGP. Brent van Donnick and Alberto Forato have never been able to match the past successes of veterans Glenn Coldenhoff and Andrea Bonacorsi – who were racing under the Wilvo Racing banner at the time – during the current season. It remains to be seen which duo will ride for the ZX Moto works team in 2027.