Febvre shines like a champion, but rain spoils it: 2nd on his 2026 debut with the No. 1

A 2026 debut marked by bad weather, but champion Romain Febvre makes quite an impression at home. Here’s how it went.

First podium of 2026 with the number 1. Romain Febvre, reigning MXGP champion, revved up his Kawasaki KX450-SR this past weekend in Pernes-les-Fontaines, in the south of France. Three races with MX1 and MX2 riders together, with the heavy rain on Sunday playing a major role, but the home crowd had plenty to cheer with their favorites up front. Febvre finished 2nd, with another French motocross hero ahead of him, Maxime Renaux (Yamaha). Not a bad pre-season for the Iwata manufacturer, which in the same weekend also celebrated with newcomer Tim Gajser at the Internazionali d'Italia.

A dry morning, then a radical change in the weather. Febvre made his mark, shining in his first outing as the reigning champion with the number 1 plate proudly displayed. A hard-fought win in race one, then he doubled up in race two, this time with a wide margin... But track conditions kept worsening (only 12 riders started) and everything changed in race 3: the MXGP world champion was in the lead, but a couple of mistakes cost him dearly. He managed to climb back, but it wasn’t enough for the overall win, which went to Maxime Renaux. A great start to 2026 as well for Paulss Jonas (Kawasaki), who completed the overall podium, and keep an eye on Thibault Benistant, who in his debut on a 450 finished fourth. Bad luck instead for brothers Lucas and Sacha Coenen: despite the former taking pole position, it was a weekend marred by crashes and technical issues, ending with an early retirement in the final race.

Second overall then for Romain Febvre, the man to beat in this 2026 MXGP World Championship. "The first two races were good," the French champion said. "But in the third moto the track was really beat up and it was easy to make mistakes." Regarding his current form, "I know my preparation isn’t there yet, since the goal is to be ready for the opening GP next month, but today I saw that the speed is there, the starts are good, and we worked hard this winter. I can say we’re already on the right track."