Chain Reaction | MXGP Riders & Teams Setting 2021 Rosters

Standing Construct GASGAS Factory Racing has confirmed an all-new rider roster for 2021: Pauls Jonass and Brian Bogers.

2020 MONSTER ENERGY FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP | COMPLETE COVERAGE
2021 SUPERCROSS RIDER & TEAM ROSTER RUMORS

PHOTOS | MXGP

There are still three rounds left in the 2020 Monster Energy FIM Motocross World Championship, but we’re already starting to see what the paddock will look like in 2021, thanks to announcements by racers and race teams. This was always set to be a busy year, thanks to the expiration or renewal of multiple rider-employer contracts that were in motion well before the pandemic struck, and the swift run of races to complete the series made things more interesting. Here’s how some of the recent developments are all related…

Red Bull KTM MXGP got their business done throughout the year when they inked extensions with Jorge Prado, Jeffrey Herlings, Antonio Cairoli, and Rene Hofer to keep them all on orange bikes (2023 for Prado & Herlings, 2022 for Hofer, 2021 for Cairoli). Add in Tom Vialle’s current contract, which runs through 2021, and you see how their roster is set and secured for years to come.

Later in the summer, Honda announced that Tim Gajser and Mitch Evans had extended their time with Team HRC for 2021. Although the length and terms of the contracts were not made public, both riders have publicly stated they will be on red bikes in the MXGP series for multiple seasons.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing signed Arminas Jasikonis to a one-year extension for 2021 in July, two months before his accident and traumatic brain injury, and in September confirmed Thomas Kjer Olsen will move to the MXGP class with the factory team in 2021. Olsen’s advancement into the premier class effectively pushed out Pauls Jonass, a rider that missed much of the year due to a broken neck, but his 2017 MX2 championship with KTM wasn’t forgotten by the Austrian brand.

Romain Febvre’s recent move to Monster Energy Kawasaki with a multi-year contract meant that KRT only had to worry about getting one rider deal done for 2021. The second spot had been occupied by Clement Desalle for a few years, a sign of the close relationship between rider and team, but his recent retirement announcement had been expected to come for months and a handful of riders have been assumed to fill the opening.

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing has already announced Jeremy Seewer and Ben Watson will be two of their three riders in 2021. Who will get the third and final spot? Glenn Coldenhoff and Arnaud Tonus are said to be in contention, while Gautier Paulin’s unexpected retirement made the situation even more interesting.

Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing MXGP’s decision to expand their squad in 2019 with Jeremy Seewer, Arnaud Tonus, and Gautier Paulin made them the only three-rider factory team, but the contracts held by Tonus and Paulin are set to expire at the end of this season. There were talks of how both riders could have stayed or parted ways, all due to their 2020 results and relationship with the team, and that other names were in consideration. That question was partially answered after Yamaha made the decision to move Ben Watson to the MXGP class in 2021, a deal that was announced in late October. The parting note of that press release said that Yamaha would select their final rider soon, but days later, Gautier Paulin publicly announced his decision to retire from racing at the end of the year. The French rider’s exit was influenced by the broken back he suffered in May, something that was kept quiet until after a recent moto win in Lommel.

Paulin’s retirement message came hours after Standing Construct GASGASF Factory Racing stated that Brian Bogers and Pauls Jonass would take the team’s two spots in 2021, effectively replacing Glenn Coldenhoff and Ivo Monticelli. For Bogers, a rider that spent a good portion of his years at Team HRC on the injury list, this is another chance to show he has speed and consistency. For Jonass, this is proof that the KTM corporation was going to take care of him after a rough patch and that they still see potential. 

As of now, October 30, the Yamaha and Kawasaki factory spots are, theoretically, up from grabs. We say “theoretically” because riders could already have letters of intent or signed contracts for these positions, but they aren’t yet public knowledge. There are a handful of riders vying for these two jobs, but Coldenhoff could be the rider with the most bargaining power, thanks to a mix of race wins, results, and perceived potential. Still somewhat early in his MXGP career, even after years spent under the KTM-GASGAS banner, Coldenhoff aims to ink another long-term contract with Kawasaki or Yamaha. 

The smaller, but still well-supported teams in the MXGP pit area will be viable options for the remaining riders, thanks to the usual in-and-out that happens from year to year. Racers that are able to bring sponsorship money to the team will almost always be taken care of, something that Paulin voiced concern about in a recent interview with Adam Wheeler, but even those options could be harder to come by given the constant progression of riders and the uncertain financial future.

It’ll take a few more weeks for the details to be worked out and the news to be announced, as the series aims to complete the final three rounds in Italy while all of Europe eyes the possibility of a second round of lockdowns.