2023 MXGP Teams | Silly Season Update 7

How is the starting gate going to look when the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship begins? Lewis Phillips has unloaded everything that he has learnt into this easy-to-read feature. Truthfully, it has been a rather uneventful silly season on the European continent. There are countless deals that are set to expire at the end of the upcoming term, so manufacturers are gearing up to make significant bids on rising stars. Do you have a specific question about any of the points below? Head over to the Vital MX forum or leap into the comment section at the bottom of this page.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Jeffrey Herlings: Jeffrey Herlings will look exactly the same when the new term begins; he will continue his relationships with Alpinestars, Airoh and Oakley. There could be big changes on the horizon though, as this season marks the end of his multi-year contract. Herlings revealed that he wants another two-year deal, in an exclusive Vital MX interview, but will he stay 'orange' through his twilight years?

Andrea Adamo: Andrea Adamo was in demand in March, hence why Red Bull KTM Factory Racing were so quick to secure his services. '80' was given a factory engine before the halfway point of the previous season and started working with Joel Smets (in-house trainer for the Austrian brands) to ensure that he would be prepared for the move to full-factory status.

Liam Everts: Red Bull KTM Factory Racing will hit the reset button ahead of the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship and, as a result, it is highly unlikely that they will be able to retain their MX2 title. To put it into perspective: KTM's MX2 riders have one podium finish between them. Quite the contrast to their typical line-up. Everts has a one-year deal and therefore pressure to perform exists.

Sacha Coenen: The Coenen brothers were set to race for Diga Procross KTM, but then that team went away (the owner had family issues and had to focus on the business that his father led) and KTM AG had to place the duo somewhere. It seemed that they were going to form their own squad for a while, as the father did not want to split his kids up. It all worked out in the end though!

SM Action KTM Racing Yuasa Battery

Alberto Forato: Alberto Forato has signed another one-year deal with the SM Action team. There is a slight change, as the squad has slid over to KTM and done a gear deal with UFO. UFO is trying to make a comeback of sorts – they put offers in front of many teams and put pen to paper with the MRT Beta Racing Team too. Forato will be joined under the awning by two EMX250 riders, Federico Tuani and Luca Ruffini.

Cornelius Toendel: Cornelius Toendel has been here, there and everywhere over the last couple of seasons. The Norwegian star has raced in MXGP, MX2, EMX250 and EMX Open. Quite the record! The good news is that he has found some stability with SM Action KTM Racing Yuasa Battery – he is going to compete in the full MX2 season aboard a KTM 250 SX-F.

Hitachi KTM fuelled by Milwaukee

Isak Gifting: Remember this name? Isak Gifting has been missing since June with a torn ACL but is back on the bike and preparing for his final season as an MX2 star. This is also the last year of his Hitachi KTM fuelled by Milwaukee contract. Gifting has never climbed onto the Grand Prix podium – this could be his final chance to tick that personal box.

Kay Karssemakers: Kay Karssemakers is entering the final season of his Hitachi KTM fuelled by Milwaukee deal, like his teammate, and has to prove to potential suitors that he belongs in the MX2 division. Although the rider line-up remains unchanged, there will be changes to the team's sponsors and potentially their gear. The Grand Prix of Patagonia-Argentina is months away, so deals are still being ironed out.

Kosak KTM Racing Team

Tom Koch: Tom Koch is possibly the most underrated star in the FIM Motocross World Championship. Koch is certainly doing the most with the least – he hovered between tenth and fifteenth a lot this year – and will strive to do the same when the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship begins. There are no changes to his program.

Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing

Kay de Wolf: Kay de Wolf continues his multi-year deal with Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing and will look exactly the same; Fox and Bell will make up his gear set-up. There has been a significant change behind the scenes though, as he has been paired with Ruben Tureluren (who has spent the last twelve years beside Jeffrey Herlings) and will spend every single day under his watchful eye.

Roan van de Moosdijk: Now that de Wolf is working with Ruben, Rasmus Jorgensen (the team manager at the Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing squad) will be able to focus on training Roan van de Moosdijk. It is a win-win situation! Moosdijk has to deliver over the next eight months, as this is his final year in MX2 and he has no deal in place for his maiden 450F term.

Lucas Coenen: Lucas Coenen was a late addition to Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing (it was decided that he would be on the team during the first week of October). The strongest Coenen brother, at this point at least, landed on his feet with a full-factory deal. Joel Smets will be training the Coenen duo, so they are set to remain on the same day-to-day program despite being separated.

SDM Corse Avio Metal Husqvarna

Nicholas Lapucci: Nicholas Lapucci has moved from one white bike to another! SDM Corse used Yamaha in the years prior to their Beta partnership, so the switch to Husqvarna marks their third manufacturer in four years. The team will compete in the European rounds of the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship and not venture overseas, which is not much of a surprise.

Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing

Jorge Prado: Jorge Prado is yet another star who is entering the final year of his contract. One would think that the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP team will make a run at him shortly, based on those persistent rumours. '61' has started training with Joels Smets and spending more time in Belgium, which is a surprising and very recent move. What good is that going to do? Time will tell.

Mattia Guadagnini: It is very easy to forget that Mattia Guadagnini has only spent half a season aboard the MC 450F. The 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship marks his first full year in the premier division and the final portion of his current contract, so there is a lot of pressure for him to perform and justify his status as a factory rider.

Simon Langenfelder: Simon Langenfelder is entering his sophomore season with Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing and, newsflash, there are many reports that suggest that he is on fire in practice. Langenfelder will be on exactly the same program when the season starts – products from Airoh, Scott, Thor and Sidi are set to make up his look.

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP

Jeremy Seewer: Jeremy Seewer is entering the final portion of the two-year deal with bLUcRU. Seewer is already a man in demand, so it will be very interesting to watch his future movements. There are no real changes to his program for the upcoming term, except for the fact that he has got a new mechanic. Luigi Rossini is moving to the F&H Kawasaki Racing Team and Paul Conway has replaced him.

Maxime Renaux: The 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship is set to mark the end of Maxime Renaux's current contract – he is going to be in a position to demand a lot of money. There are a lot of manufacturers who are keeping an eye on him and the common consensus is that an Austrian squad will make a bid. Did you know that he almost moved to Husqvarna before his title-winning season?

Glenn Coldenhoff: Glenn Coldenhoff will be out of contract in eight months – he was only able to secure a one-year extension and therefore this is a poignant term for him. Will he even want to race into the future? There are rumours circulating that he will no longer have access to Star Racing engines, which will be rather interesting if true. Watch this space.

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2

Jago Geerts: Jago Geerts signed a new deal with Yamaha Factory Racing earlier this year and, crucially, that includes a move to the premier division for the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship. Geerts has finished second in the MX2 class for three years in succession, so the upcoming season is truly a last-chance saloon. There are no former champions in the MX2 class now, by the way.

Thibault Benistant: Thibault Benistant signed a two-year contract with the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 team, so will be 'blue' until the end of 2024. Benistant will be expected to win the MX2 title in the last year of his deal but could excel and topple his experienced teammate when the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship begins. This will be an intriguing inter-team rivalry.

Rick Elzinga: It seemed unlikely that Rick Elzinga would land a factory contract for much of the season, but things came together late in the year. It is thought that he had a clause in his deal that meant that he would automatically earn factory status if he won the EMX250 title. Yamaha did not really have anywhere else to put him either.

Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing

Calvin Vlaanderen: Calvin Vlaanderen is entering his fourth season with the Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing team, unbelievably. Time flies! The situation is going to look quite different though, as the team has transformed into a one-rider program and will no longer be using Star Racing engines. Vlaanderen is on yet another one-year deal, so maybe he will finally become a full-factory star in 2024?

Riley Racing Yamaha

Joel Rizzi: Weird things are happening at Riley Racing Yamaha. Joel Rizzi has been training with the team, but there are rumours that he has been shopping around for another deal. What does the future hold here? Who knows, but Rizzi is down to race for the team at the moment. Do not be shocked if something changes here though – it is all very fishy.

JK Racing Yamaha

Kevin Brumann: Kevin Brumann is set to make his full-time debut in the premier division, after dabbling in the class earlier this year. Did you know that '87' won the bLUcRU FIM Europe Cup four years ago? Yamaha has a system that works! The most recent winner of the crown, Nicola Salvinik, will compete in EMX125 for JK Racing.

Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP

Romain Febvre: Romain Febvre is entering the final part of a lucrative Kawasaki contract, but will he remain 'green' beyond his current deal? Febvre spoke to Husqvarna at length when he was last a free agent. Is that a flame that could be reignited? With so many riders becoming available, he has to perform well to ensure that he can continue demanding big bucks.

Mitch Evans: Mitch Evans will race a color other than red for the first time since he joined the Grand Prix series – he has claimed the ride that Ben Watson left. Remember when Eli Tomac used KYB suspension and Adam Cianciarulo was on Showa? Well, the European team is now following that program. Evans will use KYB and Febvre will be on Showa, just as he has been since his first day at Kawasaki.

F&H Kawasaki Racing Team

Kevin Horgmo: Kevin Horgmo is entering the last season of his contract and 250F career. Luigi Rossini, who has spent much of his career with Yamaha, has joined F&H Kawasaki Racing Team as the crew chief. Rossini is having a child with the manager of the squad – that is why he has moved. Anyway, a lot of people are talking about the fact that Horgmo is ripping in Spain at the moment.

David Baceras: Guillem Farres was meant to be in this position; the contract was going to be signed on that weekend that he lined up at Budds Creek. Farres grabbed a Star Racing Yamaha seat in the end and F&H had to search for an alternative rider. Enter David Braceras! Braceras has struggled to stay healthy but shown pace when on track, so F&H Kawasaki Racing Team decided to work with speed!

Big Van World MTX Kawasaki

Mikkel Haarup: Mikkel Haarup is entering the final season of his contract with Steve Dixon and a couple of factory teams have already been sniffing around, so expect him to be a major player in the MX2 portion of silly season. Haarup will be the only MX2 rider underneath the Big Van World MTX Kawasaki next season – Courtney Duncan will be present at the five rounds that feature WMX.

Fantic Factory Team Maddii

Tom Guyon: Fantic Factory Team Maddii will put their time into MX2 and EMX250 next year. Those classes will be their priority moving forward, as Fantic will have a new 450F squad when the 2024 campaign begins. Spoiler alert: It is a team that is already on this list. Picking Guyon up is quite the coup for Fantic – he is very capable of putting that bike on the box.

MRT Beta Racing Team

Ben Watson: Ben Watson has leapt onto his third manufacturer in three years and will lead Beta into their third season as a motocross team. Watson will use Airoh helmets, Oakley goggles, UFO gear and Sidi boots. It is all very Italian! Watson signed a two-year deal with the team, so will be one of the few riders who does not need to find a home for the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship.

Alessandro Lupino: Hey, Alessandro Lupino is alive! Lupino has basically missed a year with multiple issues, but had a two-year deal with Beta that has essentially been a lifeline. MRT has taken over the Beta program and, coincidentally, that is the team that he rode for before joining Beta. Got it? Right. Lupino needs to ride well to stay in the sport, especially when guys like Jed Beaton are desperate to return.

Team HRC

Tim Gajser: There is absolutely no doubt that Tim Gajser is the most stable of all the Grand Prix riders: The reigning world champion has not made any changes to his program and the championship-winning formula is intact. The only point that is worthy of a mention is that he has a new teammate, Ruben Fernandez, and those two locked horns earlier this year.

Ruben Fernandez: Moving onto Team HRC may appear like a significant step forward for Ruben Fernandez, but he was on a full-factory CRF450RW whilst under the Honda 114 Motorsports awning. The bike was maintained by HRC and so this should be a seamless transition. Both Gajser and Fernandez have signed multi-year deals, so they will be the face of the manufacturer for a while.

Honda SR

Valentin Guillod: Valentin Guillod achieved his goal of securing a full-time deal in Grands Prix. Hurrah! The weird thing about this is that he was with Honda SR just two years ago. '92' has had a couple of stints on a CRF450R and struggled each time, so it will be interesting to see if he can unlock his speed aboard 'red' this time around.

Stephen Rubini: Stephen Rubini has really landed on his feet at Honda SR. Had he not formed a constructive relationship with the French team, he would have struggled to find a landing spot for his first season in the premier division. Rubini had his knee reconstructed in late September and is going to get a late start to his prep aboard the CRF450R.

Emil Weckman: Emil Weckman has bounced between Honda teams ever since he won the EMX150 title in back-to-back seasons (2015 and 2016). Weckman has been injury prone, unfortunately, but logged a couple of top fifteen finishes at the final rounds earlier this year. It is fair to state that he is going to have to unearth some consistency in the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship.

JM Honda

Brent Van Doninck: This has been done for a while, but only got announced this week. There were a lot of rumours that suggested that the Honda Europe-backed squads had to wait a long time to get their support confirmed, so maybe that was the reason for the delay? Weird deal. Van Doninck was a revelation this year and will have much better support at JM.

Camden Mc Lellan: Camden Mc Lellan is set to make his MX2 debut with Jacky Martens' Honda team. There is an issue: Mc Lellan is currently stuck in his native South Africa and attempting to overcome visa problems. It was thought that there would be two MX2 riders on JM Honda, but the squad will have one rider in each class.

JWR Honda

Alvin Ostlund: Alvin Ostlund should help JWR Honda move towards the top ten, which has been a goal of theirs for a while. This signing makes a lot of sense: JWR is a Swedish team and Ostlund is the only 450F star from the nation. It sounds as though the squad will have a new title sponsor when the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship rolls around, by the way.