MXGP returns to Australia with wet and wild finale
The 2025 MXGP of Australia in Darwin has been hailed a success, with three riders crowned in a dramatic final roundGrand Prix motocross returned to Australia for the first time in 24 years, and despite biblical rain prematurely ending the event, all parties appear eager for its return in 2026.
The purpose-built Hidden Valley circuit in Darwin replaced Broadford — host in 2000/01 — as the local venue, with the new MXGP of Australia acting as the final round of the MXGP World Championship series.
Three world champions were crowned across the weekend, with a chaotic final day delivering a spectacular show to close out the season.
MXW
Dutch rider Lotte van Drunen was the first champion of the weekend, securing the Women’s Motocross World Championship for the second year in a row. She was winless in Darwin but did enough in the hot and humid conditions to fend off both Kiara Fontanesi and Daniela Guillen for the title.
Australian riders Charli Cannon (5th), Madi Simpson (7th), Madi Healey (9th) and Taylor Thompson (10th) all finished inside the overall top ten for the weekend. Cannon managed a podium with third in the opening moto, while another Aussie, Taylor McCutcheon, impressed with sixth in the first moto.
MX2
The MX2 Championship went right down to the wire, with the deciding final moto unfolding in conditions more suited to jet skis.
The opening moto was bathed in sunshine, the red dirt track contrasting beautifully with blue skies and green trees. But dark clouds rolled in before the second race and soon burst, unleashing a torrential downpour.
KTM’s Simon Langenfelder arrived in Australia with the championship lead, but Husqvarna rider and reigning champion Kay de Wolf was hot on his heels.
Langenfelder almost lost it all, going down late in the first moto and allowing de Wolf to cruise to victory. But he remounted quickly, salvaging second to maintain a 10-point buffer heading into the final race.
The second moto began in chaos when Langenfelder and de Wolf came together. The KTM rider came off second best, hitting the deck but rejoining in sixth. Moments later, the heavens opened and the circuit turned into a muddy quagmire.
Pushing hard to catch de Wolf, Langenfelder went down again, slipping to 13th and seemingly handing the title to his rival. But then, disaster struck de Wolf. As he ploughed through handlebar-deep puddles, his bike began losing power. Struggling for drive, he was eventually forced to push his Husqvarna off the track just as Langenfelder rode past.
Shortly after, officials red-flagged the race due to lightning, with results counted back to the previous lap. That gave de Wolf fifth place in the moto and the overall round win — but crucially, Langenfelder still did enough to clinch the championship.
In doing so, he became the first German rider to win any MXGP class since Ken Roczen and Stephanie Laier claimed the MX2 and MXW titles respectively in 2011.
MX1
The MXGP premier class played out with less drama. Kawasaki’s Romain Febvre secured the title with a comfortable fourth in the opening moto, earning his second MXGP crown — ten years after his first in 2015. Remarkably, it was also Kawasaki’s first-ever premier class world championship.
Febvre’s closest challenger, Lucas Coenen (KTM), took the race win ahead of multi-time champions Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) and Tim Gajser (Honda). With the second moto cancelled due to weather, that result stood as the overall.
Attention now shifts to the Motocross of Nations at Ironman on October 5, before the MXGP of Australia returns to Darwin on 18–20 September 2026.
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