COENEN CONQUERS ARNHEM: HUSQVARNA DUO DOMINATE MX2

Lucas Coenen narrows the championship gap with victory at Arnhem, as Kay de Wolf finishes P2. Guadagnini shines in MXGP with a strong sand performance.

For the fourth time this season, the Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Team locked out the MX2 podium, celebrating a 1-2 finish in the treacherous and demanding sands of the 1690m Motorsportpark Gelderland Midden in Arnhem. However, this time it was Belgian rider Lucas Coenen who claimed the spoils for the Husqvarna squad, winning in qualifying and then delivering impressive 2-1 finishes in Sunday’s motos. 

Coenen arrived at the Dutch track determined to challenge his teammate, who currently holds the Red Plate as the championship leader, with a 44-point margin. The result at the MXGP of the Netherlands now means Coenen has closed the gap by five points in the overall standings, with only a handful of rounds remaining.

Special mention must go to Coenen’s performance in the second of Sunday’s motos, where, after going bar to bar with his teammate out of the gates, the Belgian kept a cool head to fight back up to P1 by lap eight, leaving the rest of the field trailing. Meanwhile, Kay de Wolf could be forgiven for leaving his home GP with some frustrations after Coenen’s pace and a few uncharacteristic errors caused him to finish P2 at the end of Sunday. 

With a second place in the bag during qualifying, de Wolf moved into Sunday in excellent form, securing his 10th race win of the season in front of the cheering home crowds. However, in the second moto, de Wolf’s frustrations got the better of him, as he suffered a hard crash on lap 15 when the front of his bike dug in, pitching him over the bars. Jumping straight back on, de Wolf managed to ease his machine to the finish line, riding around mechanical damage to finish 4th.

In MXGP, Mattia Guadagnini has every reason to celebrate after securing one of his best results on sand in the class so far. In Sunday’s first moto, Mattia made a strong start, comfortably holding his position within the top ten. However, the physically demanding track eventually took its toll, and he slipped back to 11th. Despite this setback, Guadagnini’s determination was evident in the second moto. Although his start was less than ideal, he fought his way back through the field, maintaining a consistent rhythm and finishing seventh - a significant improvement and an encouraging sign as he looks ahead to the upcoming rounds. 

Finishing eighth overall, the Italian racer gains a much-needed boost as he heads to Switzerland, along with 27 valuable points towards the championship standings. This performance not only demonstrates his resilience but also sets a positive tone for the remainder of the season.

After completing a run of three consecutive weekends of racing, the MXGP of Switzerland at Frauenfeld is up next on the 25th of August.

#101 - Mattia Guadagnini: "I'm really happy about the weekend! Finally! It isn’t easy for me to ride on sand, but I think I rode really well, and I’m glad to bounce back from last weekend, which was pretty bad. I had a solid qualifying race—just tried to find my rhythm from the first lap and finished eighth. In the first moto on Sunday, the start wasn’t bad. I stayed around the top ten and made a few passes, but by the end, I was struggling physically. The track layout and conditions were demanding, so I unfortunately dropped my rhythm and finished 11th, which is still okay for me in the sand. The second moto was really good; I didn’t put myself in a great position in the first few corners, but after that, I pushed to stay in a good rhythm and kept pushing all the way to the end. I didn’t want to slow down or repeat the mistakes from the first moto. I finished seventh, which is really good for me in the sand and a great turnaround after last weekend in Sweden."

#74 - Kay de Wolf: "I’m a little disappointed not to get this GP win in front of the fans, they have been absolutely awesome, and I’m so grateful for their support all weekend. The first moto was great - a perfect start to race day at my home GP - but the second moto was a bit trickier, let’s say. The crash was my fault, but I’m really glad we were able to bring the bike home and get the points. Now, I’m focused on Switzerland."

#96 - Lucas Coenen: "Not the easiest weekend, but a great result in the end. I got a good start in the qualifying race - I only really needed to pass three guys, and I did that to win! On Sunday, I really wanted to win - my motivation was strong for this. In the first race, I hit the gate at the start, but I tried my best and got back to P2, chasing Kay, so that was good. In the second moto, I really wanted to win. I needed to make a good start but didn’t. I managed to fight my way back to P3. Kay made a small mistake, so I took the opportunity to get past him. From there, I just tried to control the race and keep the flow going. It was a really good weekend, and we’re now focused on Switzerland; see you all there!"

Results - 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship, Round Sixteen:

MXGP – Overall:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 50pts; 2. Jorge Prado (GASGAS) 44pts; 3. Tim Gajser (Honda) 38pts; 8. Mattia Guadagnini (Husqvarna) 24pts

MXGP – Moto One:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 34:52.707; 2. Jorge Prado (GASGAS) 34:55.951; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (Fantic) 34:57.344; 11. Mattia Guadagnini (Husqvarna) 36:11.789;

MXGP – Moto Two:
1. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 35:08.709; 2. Jorge Prado (GASGAS) 35:18.122; 3. Tim Gajser (Honda) 35:20.087; 7. Mattia Guadagnini (Husqvarna) 36:10.094

MXGP – Standings:
1. Tim Gajser (Honda) 801pts; 2. Jorge Prado (GASGAS) 792pts; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (KTM) 766pts; 13. Mattia Guadagnini (Husqvarna) 244pts

MX2 – Overall:
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 47pts; 2. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 43pts; 3. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 40pts; 5. Liam Everts (KTM) 34pts; 7. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 26pts; 9. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 23pts

MX2 – Moto One:
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 34:22.715; 2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 34:23.713; 3. Liam Everts (KTM) 35:01.339; 4. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 35:07.197; 9. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 35:35.311; 10. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 35:45.915

MX2 – Moto Two:
1. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 34:53.956; 2. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 35:27.406; 3. Camden McLellan (Triumph) 35:28.146; 4. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 35:40.165; 6. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 35:47.013; 7. Liam Everts (KTM) 36:01.860; 10. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 36:19.167

MX2 – Standings:
1. Kay de Wolf (Husqvarna) 777pts; 2. Lucas Coenen (Husqvarna) 733pts; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GASGAS) 676pts; 4. Liam Everts (KTM) 636pts; 5. Andrea Adamo (KTM) 545pts; 8. Sacha Coenen (KTM) 444pts; 18. Marc-Antoine Rossi (GASGAS) 122pts