HRC factory rider Ferruccio Zanchi again showed his potential last weekend at the Spanish Grand Prix with a strong podium finish and a moto win.

The Italian went 6-1-10 for the weekend, in the horrible mud of Cozar, and like his race win in a pre-season International last year, he showed what he is capable of. This kid can without doubt be a front runner more often in 2025.

Zanchi showed that he really did enjoy riding the circuit, as the youngster placed sixth after a good race against the best MX2 riders in the world. He got a decent start, but it was the first few corners where his line choice was excellent, and he swept around a good number of guys to come out in fifth after the first lap. In the difficult conditions he maintained a solid pace and crossed the line, with his best result so far in 2025. Now the goal is to that again, and perhaps even challenge for the podium spots in the longer-races on Sunday

“I knew coming into this weekend that I liked the track,” Zanchi said. “And although the conditions were very different from a few months ago, I still was confident I could do well. I didn’t have the best-timed practice, but I got a good start and made some passes in the first few corners to get into fifth. After battling all race, I was able to finish sixth, which was still good and it’s a result that gives me more confidence for the Sunday races.”

On Sunday the opening moto was an amazing performance by Zanchi to holeshot race one and lead around the best MX2 riders in the world, in what was treacherous terrain at the Cozar circuit. The young Italian took the win by over 10 seconds, sparking scenes of delight amongst the Honda HRC team as it was their first MX2 race win since 2019.

Unfortunately, a disastrous first lap of race two left him with a lot of work to do, but the #73 never stopped charging and managed to get up to 10th place. It was a nervous wait after he crossed the line, but eventually he discovered that he had done enough for third overall, and his first visit to a world championship podium. It was nothing more than the young Italian deserved, and he heads to France next weekend looking for even more.

“It was a really good day today, and one I will remember for the rest of my career. I knew coming into the weekend that I liked the track, but the weather made it really difficult, and it is never easy to ride when the circuit is like this. I knew I needed the start and that’s exactly what I got in race one, taking the holeshot and never looking back. I had a bit of pressure, but I focused on myself and picked the right lines and took my first race win.

Despite the brilliance in moto one, a second race win was always a question mark in these conditions and a good start meant everything. Unfortunately for the Italian, his start was less than impressive.

"The second race started off badly and I was way down the field, and I wasn’t sure how it was going to turn out. I just kept pushing and my lap times were goods I knew I was catching the riders in front of me and every pass gave me a boost. I knew it was close, but when I finally received the news, I was delighted, and I can’t thank all the team and all my sponsors enough. It hasn’t been easy, but we all have put in a lot of work, and it is great to reward everyone.”

Now eighth in the MX2 championship points, Zanchi will head to St Jean D’Angly and the hard pack of France. Of course, he will also relish those conditions and hopefully he can keep the red flag of Honda waving in the MX2 class, against the almighty Husqvarna and KTM machines.

Bavo Swijgers image