Results
- Qualifying Race: 13th
- Race 1: 16th
- Race 2: 10th
- Overall: 13th
The 2026 MXGP season got underway in Argentina with 13th overall after finishing 16th and 10th in the races. A crash in the opening corner of Race 1 made things difficult, but there were plenty of positives to take from the weekend. After two weeks of illness and almost no training, I’m happy to have scored some valuable championship points.
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The first MXGP round of the season in Argentina is done. From Saturday’s practice sessions onwards, I felt comfortable on the bike. The track was quite unique, but it was the kind of circuit that normally suits my riding style.
Unfortunately, the two weeks leading up to the race were far from ideal. I was dealing with a bad cold and barely managed to train at all. I knew before the weekend that my fitness would be tested, especially with the track sitting around 900 metres above sea level, making the conditions even more demanding.
Even during Free Practice, I could feel it was going to be a tough weekend physically. That said, I really enjoyed the track with its hard base, sandy top layer and multiple line choices.
In Timed Practice I put together a good lap to finish 11th. I got off to a good start in the Qualifying Race and felt comfortable early on, but as the race went on I could feel the lack of fitness and dropped a few positions, eventually finishing 13th.
For Sunday morning’s Warm-up, we made a few small changes to the bike, which improved the feeling even more. I set the fifth-fastest lap and went into the races feeling confident.
In Race 1, I got an OK start, but in the first corner I couldn’t see much and hit a small hole. I lost the front and crashed, then got run over by another rider. My handlebars were badly twisted and I rejoined at the back of the field. I fought my way forward with good pace, but my fitness was still limiting me. I managed to recover to 16th place and score some important championship points.
Race 2 started with a poor start before the race was red-flagged. After the restart, I got away much better and was running around 7th in the early laps. After a few laps I dropped back to 10th, but managed to hold that position all the way to the finish. After only three laps I was already exhausted, but I found a rhythm that I could maintain until the chequered flag.
Overall, I finished the weekend in 13th place. It’s obviously not where I wanted to start the season, but considering the illness over the last two weeks, I believe it was the best result I could achieve.
I’m feeling much better now, so the focus is on putting in two solid weeks of training before Round 2 in Spain.
Photos by Eva Szabadfi
