There are moments in our sport, when you just know you are seeing something special, and last weekend, on April 21, 2025, we saw that, when Red Bull KTM Factory rider, Lucas Coenen at just 18 years of age, won the 11th Grand Prix of his career, but more importantly, his first ever MXGP victory.

We might have to add, from memory, nobody in the sports history has won in the MXGP (premier class) class at the age of 18 years old, not Antonio Cairoli, not Jeffrey Herlings, not Tim Gajser and not Jorge Prado. Cairoli was 23, Herlings was 21, Gajser was 19 and Prado was 20.

And if we go back to before the MXGP was around, not even the GOAT, Stefan Everts won his first premier class Grand Prix, at the age of 20, when he swept to victory in his very first 250cc GP, as the current World 125cc champion in 1992. Seb Tortelli was either 17 or 18 in 1997 when he won a GP in the 250 class, which was at the time the youngest ever to win in the premier class.

Similar to that first ever MX2 Grand Prix victory by Jeffrey Herlings, back on April 25 in 2010, you don’t forget when you see a rider of special talent and win so early in their career. Not just a good rider, but a rider who might become somebody who can win a bunch of titles. Whether Coenen decides to stay in Europe, or head to America in the near future, you get the feeling, success will be a major part of his career.

His speed, his line choices, his desire to win reminds me so much of “The Bullet”. Bullying his machine around the circuit, sometimes looking so composed, yet riding at a speed many of his rivals cannot compete with.

Now that he has one MXGP victory, I do believe many more will follow and if he can stay fit, I don’t see a reason why he doesn’t fight for this years MXGP championship at some point in the season.

We just had to give him a call and ask him about that win in Switzerland, his enjoyment of getting negative comments from trolls online and his desire to go head-to-head with one of his boyhood hero’s, Jeffrey Herlings.

MXLarge: You have won GP’s before, 10 in the MX2 class, but winning your first ever MXGP overall, that is a big deal for somebody so young, but how did it feel to get that victory in Switzerland?

Coenen: I mean, it felt good winning two motos and I didn’t expect that after Saturday, because I had a lot of problems with arm-pump. I just reset and went out swinging. Took two holeshots, led every lap and also had the quickest lap time. I couldn’t have done it any better. It felt unbelievable and I was really speechless after that.

MXLarge: Obviously you are new on the 450 and in the pre-season races, you looked like you were maybe pushing too hard, but since you have come to the championship, you really look solid on most occasions and are not making that many mistakes. How did you work through that process of settling down and being more consistent?

Coenen: Let’s say, I start off learning, but I knew I was fast, but then we had that (injury/off season) problem. I then came back and just went step by step and it just came by itself, let’s say. I just kept believing and now everyone can see I am fast enough; they know it now. I just keep on building.

MXlarge: When I am watching you racing, it reminds me so much of watching Jeffrey Herlings, you have that incredible speed that not many have and a speed that can bring you through the field if need be. It is like you can be a lot quicker than anyone. Did you expect to have that speed on the 450 and is that a compliment saying you look like Herlings, or you prefer to say you just look like you?

Coenen: Of course, it’s a compliment, he is a legend and for me, I always look to Jeffrey as his style and in the sand, for me, he is still the fastest man on the planet in the sand. For me it is nice, but I also take information from other riders, to learn and build my speed. In Switzerland, I was building but keeping some spare speed if I needed it. I was just controlling the race, like I did at the end of 2024 in the MX2 class. I felt really comfortable in that situation, and it was a bit similar to last year on the 250.

MXLarge: Speaking of Jeffrey, as I said, you remind me of him in so many ways and you mentioned he is one of the riders you admired as a young boy. How will it be when he is back to form and you are racing him, you must be very excited for that moment?

Coenen: Oh yes, that would be a dream. Honestly, battling him in the sand, which would be the nicest thing. That would be a dream. For me, when I was watching as a kid, him racing in the sand, I could see myself behind him chasing, or him coming from the back, that already gives me goosebumps, because, when he is in form, he is a man on a mission. I would learn a lot from that also and I would take all the information and download it for experience.

MXlarge: Have you surprised yourself at all, or did you expect this win to come as soon as it did?

Coenen: No, it surprised me it happened on 21st of April in Switzerland. Because as I said, on Saturday, I felt like shit, so I was surprised, but I knew I had the speed. I always say, Rome wasn’t built in a day, but on the 21st of April 2025, they found out Rome.

MXlarge: How difficult will it be now to say, okay, I have a Grand Prix victory, don’t get too excited, be calm. How will you deal with that, now that you have had a win in the MXGP class?

Coenen: I mean, it doesn’t change, we had a podium, we had a qualification race win and now we have an overall win and two holeshots. Everything we wanted to achieve; we wanted to achieve. So, now it is just we know we can do it and its just riding, riding, riding and the benchmark is made. We cannot do better than winning, so we just need to be there for every single race and be consistent.

MXlarge: It must be hard now to not want to win all the time, now you have done it?

Coenen: Consistency is the key, and I know Tim is a really good rider, Maxime, Febvre, Herlings, they are all fast. Jeffrey when he comes back, everyone can race for the win, so whoever is the best out of the gate, and has the best day, they will win.

MXLarge: I notice you still have those braces on your wrists (from his off-season injury), do you need to continue to wear those, or do you know when you can stop using them?

Coenen: Let’s say, I need to figure that out. I mean, its bothering me a little wearing them, when you ride with them on, because it feels so different. It is better for me to ride with them, and I am learning to ride with them and every single day I am on the bike, it’s getting better.

MXLarge: You mentioned after your win about the negative fans, how they talk about you crashing too much and your brother crashing too much and the win was for them. Obviously, you are young and maybe that bothers you that people talk like that online, but how do you feel about what these negative people say?

Coenen: I actually like it, because they say what they want, and they say it fast. Some people maybe see it as negative, but I take it in a good way and they can keep saying it, because I am just going to get better and better. The negativity pushes me to be even better. They say I stepped to the 450 too quick, okay, that’s not nice, but then I win, and they are coming. Also with my brother, when we figure out everything. They say he crashes, but everyone crashes, Tim Gajser, Romain Febvre, Jeffrey Herlings, they all have bad moments in their career and now they are where they are. Jett Lawrence is the same, so, you cannot be perfect in one day or one year and if you want to be better, you need to push your limits and that is what we are doing, finding out limits. I just won my first MXGP overall and I think the future is bright.

MXlarge: As a fan of the sport, I get excited when I see riders like you, because it is like when Jeffrey came in 2010 and won quickly and won a lot and had a style that is so exciting. You are a long way behind in the points, but do you think about the championship, or just take it one race at a time and do the best you can?

Coenen: I just want to battle with the guys and be there, up front and do the best I can. Show what I can do. I want to be proud of what I do on the bike and if the team is happy, my family is happy and the people around me are happy, and I do my best, which is the most important. We will see where we end up, but I am already P3, and I would have signed up for that with my eyes closed if somebody told me that was possible. It is nice.

MXLarge: Is America still for next year, are you still thinking that, or do you maybe stay here a year longer. What is the latest on that?

Coenen: We just take it step by step and for now, we are racing in the Grand Prix’s, and we will see how the results will be, and we will then speak to our manager. The plan is not precise yet. We will be there for sure one day, but it isn’t precise yet, when.

JP/KTM images