Vialle wins qualification on Honda HRC PETRONAS debut

Tom Vialle made the perfect start to his Honda HRC PETRONAS career, as he took the holeshot and won the 2026 MXGP of Argentina qualifying race. In what is also his debut in the MXGP class, the Frenchman rode a flawless race on his Honda CRF450RW to lead from the first turn and control the moto in front of a plethora of world champions and GP race winners.

Second in free practice and then third in timed practice showed that he was immediately at home in this MXGP field, and when he stormed off to a trademark holeshot – something he has specialised in his whole career – he looked extremely comfortable. Despite pressure from behind the entire moto, the #16 rode smoothly on a tricky Bariloche circuit and took the chequered flag for the maximum 10 points, which will give him the red-plate for the two motos tomorrow.

Behind him in sixth place was teammate Ruben Fernandez, who was pushing for better positions before a couple of mistakes in the same corner cost instead cost him a position. While it was slightly disappointing for the Spanish-speaking rider, who is highly motivated to perform in front of a lot of fans, he knows that with a good start, he has the speed to run up front and that’s what he’ll be hoping to do in both of Sunday’s gatedrops.

Fellow Honda HRC PETRONAS debutant Jeffrey Herlings had a great start to today’s proceedings, placing first in both the free and timed practice on this brand-new Bariloche circuit. It was great to see the #84 able to adapt to the new conditions immediately and hopes were high he would be able to replicate that in the qualification race. Unfortunately his got boxed out off the start and had to battle hard to get himself inside the top 10 early on. After all that work, he was just about to really attack the riders in front, but a small mistake as they entered the start straight saw him drop right down the field. Charging through from way outside the top 20, he made his way all the way up to 12^th as time expired, which was an impressive result on a track that wasn’t easy to make moves on. While the gate-pick isn’t what he wanted, the speed he showed all day gives him confidence he can challenge up front if he can negotiate the first turn with the leaders.

In the MX2 class, Valerio Lata had a consistent day, going three, sixth and seven across the three sessions. While the Italian isn’t happy with his riding in the qualification race, he knows that his speed is good and with some small adjustments, he’ll be able to put a lot more points on the board tomorrow.

MX2 Qualification Race
1. Sacha Coenen (BEL, KTM), 26:04.512; 2. Guillem Farres (ESP, Triumph), +0:04.896; 3. Mathis Valin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:05.851; 4. Liam Everts (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:07.208; 5. Camden Mc Lellan (RSA, Triumph), +0:10.031; 6. Janis Martins Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:24.719; 7. Valerio Lata (ITA, Honda), +0:36.563; 8. Julius Mikula (CZE, KTM), +0:40.002; 9. Cas Valk (NED, TM), +0:41.708; 10. Karlis Alberts Reisulis (LAT, Yamaha), +0:46.935;