MXGP Portugal: Lucas Coenen wins qualifying, Jeffrey Herlings warned

The MXGP World Championship doesn’t take a break and this weekend puts on a show on the red dirt of Agueda, Portugal. The phenomenal Lucas Coenen (KTM) meanwhile took the win in the qualifying race.

In a true furnace, the KTM protégé took control of the contest after an excellent holeshot by our Andrea Adamo. Rival Jeffrey Herlings, fresh off his GP win at Montevarchi a few days ago, stayed glued for almost the entire distance (20 minutes plus two laps) but never found the opening to turn the tables. With the other factory Honda, Spain’s Ruben Fernandez completed the podium positions.

Despite the blistering start, the former MX2 world champion couldn’t keep the wheel of a rampant Coenen, and as the minutes ticked by he fell into the clutches of two MXGP heavyweights: Romain Febvre (Kawasaki) and Tim Gajser (Yamaha). The Sicilian, however, is in form, and the chance to contest two top-level motos remains intact. A small glimmer of light in Ducati’s tormented season is Calvin Vlaanderen’s tenth place.

1. Lucas Coenen (KTM) 459 points; Herlings (Honda) 402; 3. Febvre (Kawasaki) 354; 4. Gajser (Yamaha) 335; 5. Renaux (Yamaha) 308; 6. Adamo (KTM) 286; 7. de Wolf (Husqvarna) 273; 8. Fernandez (Honda) 272; 9. Vialle (Honda) 251; 10. Jonass (Kawasaki) 204.

Guillem Farres (Triumph) claimed his first qualifying win of the season, building on his superb performance the previous Sunday at Montevarchi. The 23-year-old had christened race 1 on the Tuscan track, confirming Triumph’s excellent level of competitiveness in the under-24 World Championship. Farres, back in Europe after a very formative stint in the U.S., dominated the race from the start, leaving no room for response to World Championship leader Sacha Coenen: there are now 44 points between the two in the standings. Behind the escapees we find Simon Langenfelder (KTM) and the racing scion Liam Everts (Husqvarna). Valerio Lata (Honda) was very incisive in the first part, but a late fade dropped him to tenth place.

1. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 440 points; 2. Farres (Triumph) 400; 3. Langenfelder (KTM) 380; 4. McLellan (Triumph) 379; 5. Everts (Husqvarna) 361; 6. Valin (Kawasaki) 352; 7. Reisulis J. (Yamaha) 315; 8. Reisulis K. (Yamaha) 248; 9. Lata (Honda) 242; 10. Karssemakers (Kawasaki) 184.

Photo: Alessio Giocoli

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