The Bud Racing Team continues to set the pace at the start of the 2026 season.

This Sunday, April 6th, the iconic Saint-Jean-d’Angély track (France), a true benchmark in international motocross, hosted the second round of the French Elite Championship. In a highly competitive field, Bud Racing riders once again stepped up… in style.

In the MX2 (250cc) class, Francisco Garcia (#29) and Jake Cannon (#3) secured another impressive 1-2 finish.
After setting the second fastest time in qualifying, Francisco Garcia bounced back perfectly by winning both motos, taking the overall victory. Right behind him, Jake Cannon confirmed his consistency and strength with two second-place finishes, capping off a strong weekend for the team.

In front of a large crowd and under perfect weather conditions, both riders delivered solid and committed performances, perfectly reflecting the team’s current momentum.

Another standout result came from Tim Lopes, Bud Racing support rider competing in the Espoirs category, who leaves Saint-Jean-d’Angély with the red plate as the French Championship leader.

This weekend also marks a historic milestone for Team Bud Racing. For the first time since its creation in 2007, the team is leading both championships it is competing in — in France and across Europe. An achievement further highlighted by an impressive streak of four consecutive 1-2 finishes.

While the season is still long and anything can happen, these results clearly underline the team’s ambitions and potential for 2026.

Next stop is already set for next weekend, with the European Championship heading to the sandy track of Riola Sardo, Sardinia.
No time to rest — Bud Racing riders are already back on the gas.

Photo credit : Valex

The sixth and final round of the French Elite took place at Rauville la Place in Normandy; in the MX2 class the situation was extremely close as Francisco was second in the standings, only fifteen points behind series leader Mathys Boisramé.

After posting fourth-fastest time in the Timed Practice Francisco did a decent start and as usual he was quickly in action and had advanced to third at the completion of the opening lap in the first moto. By mid-race he was second behind Janis Reisulis – riding as a ‘wildcard’ at this race – and crossed the finishing line less than two seconds behind the race winner and one position ahead of Boisramé. The gap between them was now only eleven points before the deciding moto of the series and neither title candidate made a good start; Francisco was eighth after one lap and gained three positions during the next few laps but, with his rival just behind him all race, there was no reversal of the situation in the battle for the title. Anyway Francisco can be proud of this silver medal, as he took five consecutive podiums on tracks which he had never raced before.

After taking his first podium in the series at the penultimate round, Jake Cannon confirmed his progress even though he didn’t felt so confident as usual on this track. Seventh in the Timed Practice session, sixth and seventh of the races, he ends the series fifth in the standings only two points from the fourth position. For him also it was a new experience which will help him for the rest of the season.

Stephane Dasse: “The French championships have always been important since we launched the team in 2007, and we enjoyed some success with sixteen gold, four silver and six bronze medals! We have many national partners and we are a French team so the French championships are a great opportunity to invite them and to thank them for their loyalty. This year the level of the MX2 class was very high with close racing; we have great championships and it is a good school for our riders. Francisco battled until the end for the title and Jake finished just two points from fourth place; this championship allows our riders to progress, as Marvin Musquin, Dylan Ferrandis, Maxime Desprey, Xavier Boog or Mathis Valin have each done before them with Bud Kawasaki, and we will continue to contest the French championships as long as we can!”

Plomion was a new venue for the French Elite and all riders discovered this track on Sunday morning; it was the best timed practice session of the season for the team as Francisco was second and Jake third.

At the start of the first moto Jake was in good position in third, but Francisco was dead last after a crash at the start! Jake had a good rhythm to clinch a great third position at the finish flag, while Francisco came back in the top ten to finally score an eighth position.

In the second moto it was another story: Francisco was in third, while Jake was last after some troubles with his gate! Moving to second after a few laps Francisco was ‘on fire’ and despite a little crash in a rut he passed the leader with two laps to go to win his second race this season. Once more Jake confirmed his great feeling with this track, coming back to third of the heat and third overall behind Francisco.

Before the last round of the series in two weeks’ time, Francisco is second in the standings while Jake earned two positions; he is now fifth.

Francisco Garcia : Second overall (8/1) and second of the championship
Jake Cannon : Third overall (3/3) and fifth of the championship

Newcomers to the French Elite Championship tracks this year, both Francisco and Jake have quickly made their mark, becoming two of the key players in the MX2 class. And while Jake hasn’t yet tasted the podium, finishing fourth in the last two races, Francisco has already secured podiums at three of the four events of the series.

Fifth fastest in the timed practice period at Gaillac Toulza, Francisco started the first moto in sixth before doing some passes to gain a few places and to finish the race in fourth position, one place ahead of Jake who made an excellent start – second for a few laps – before losing time in a crash. Both did better in the second moto, with Francisco quickly moving into second place while Jake took the third place with two laps to go.

Francisco, third in the race, is now second place in the championship (4 points behind the leader), while by finishing fourth, Jake gained two places and is now seventh. There are two more races in the French Elite, one at Plomion in Picardy on June 15th and the final one at Rauville-la-Place in Normandy on June 29th.

Now it’s time to be back to the European Championship, with the MXGP of France this weekend.

Francisco Garcia: Third of the event (4/2) and second in the championship
Jake Cannon : Fourth of the event (5/3) and seventh in the championship

Castelnau de Lévis is a regular venue for the Elite Championship, and presented a new look this year, with a partially reworked track. Racing conditions evolved throughout the day, which began in the mud after overnight rain and came drier as the sun finally shines!

We can say that Francisco earned that red plate by himself! After an excellent start in the first heat he suffered a crash on the first lap, and was almost last after three turns! Already eighteenth after one lap, he made his way up, coming into the top ten four laps later and pushing until the end to cross the checkered flag in fourth position. Eleventh at the start of the second heat, he came back to fifth with three laps to go, and made two more passes in the final two laps to snatch the third place of the moto and the event.

Lacking success in recent weeks, Jake Cannon delivered his best performance to date in the Tarn, finishing 4th of the event. Starting in the top fifteen each time, Jake quickly found his lines on a track where the ruts deepened throughout the day, finishing sixth in the first race and foutth in the second. These results put him in fourth place on the day and he has now moved into 9th position of the championship.

Now it’s time for the European Championship, with two consecutive races in Portugal and Spain.

Francisco Garcia : Third of the event (4/3) and leader of the championship
Jake Cannon : Fourth of the event (6/4) and ninth in the championship

Francisco : “Difficult track here, with deep ruts different than what we have in the European championship. I have a good feeling since Switzerland and that’s important, and today I felt strong and was able to push during both motos in the last ten minutes. I was really happy with my start in the first race – the second one was not so good – but I crashed on a big jump and came back from last to fourth. Not so bad, I’m happy with the results today.”

Jake : “This weekend was a lot better than the previous ones, I rode more like myself to score a 6/4 with a small crash in the first race. I know that I have to work on my opening laps so we’ll keep working and for sure the results will come. I enjoyed the track, it was tight but just a French track and I’m getting used to it! Now I’ve got some more confidence moving to Portugal where I hope to have two solid motos.”

Back in the calendar of the Elite Championship five years after the last edition, Pernes les Fontaine returned to high level races and the public was there to enjoy some nice racing and also some suspense in the MX2 class.

So Francisco Garcia finally enjoyed the podium ceremony, but it was not really an easy day for him! Qualified third in his group, he was disqualified by the jury for something that was not his responsibility and had no other choice than to qualify through the last chance race (that he won easily) and to have the thirty seventh gate pick. Impossible to get a decent start from this gate, but our Spaniard never give up to come back from seventeenth to sixth in the first moto, and from thirteenth to third in the second one. Third, that was his position when he entered the last lap, but the two leaders offered him the win as they collided just before the finish line! Second overall, Francisco is currently second in the standings.

It was not such a good day for Jake Cannon, who discovered how specific are the tracks in Provence with some hard pack sections but also some soft sections. Fifth in his qualifying group he score a ninth position in the first moto but was forced to retire in the second one after a race incident with another rider.

Next weekend riders and staff will be able to rest and recover, and then they will have two European rounds in a row at Arco Di Trento (Italy) and Frauenfeld (Switzerland), before the third round of the French Elite at Castelnau de Levis (Tarn).

Francisco Garcia : Second of the event (6/1) and second of the championship
Jake Cannon : Twenty eighth of the event (9/DNF) and eleventh of the championship

For both Francisco and Jake it was a first opportunity to be back on a motocross track after a long forced break for our Spaniard while Jake spent so far more time on Supercross tracks.
Our young duo opened their outdoor season in superb style to finish fifth and sixth overall in MX2. Garcia, racing for the first time in five months after an injury ended his season early last summer, finished fifth in each moto and is the effective leader of the championship as none of the riders ahead of him will contest the entire series. Cannon was also impressive in his first race in Europe with two seventh-placed moto finishes just a couple of days after flying into Europe from the States where he had been racing supercross.

Next round of the French Elite: Pernes les Fontaine, March 30th

Francisco Garcia: “It was a great day for my first race with Bud Racing Kawasaki. I’m really happy with the team and with my performance today; I was the leader in both races of the riders who will contest the entire series so it was a good way for us to start the season and I hope we can continue like this. The track was really challenging – tight with lots of ruts and bumps – and I really enjoyed racing here.”

Jake Cannon: “This was my first race in Europe and the track was really gnarly and technical; it was definitely a big change coming from supercross to motocross with longer motos and a challenging track so you definitely had to be on your toes. But I felt like I made a good step today and the result was a good starting point to keep building and improving. And the atmosphere here with all of the fans was crazy; I really enjoyed it.”

Headed to the final round as the virtual leader of the series courtesy of the points compensation with which he was credited as round four of the series had been on the same day as he was representing France at the European Championship in Portugal, Mathis didn’t need to win on the day at Ernée to clinch the title. But those who know Mathis were well aware that it was not his intention to simply secure sufficient points; he wanted to clinch the title with elan! Fastest in timed practice, he grabbed the holeshot and dominated the first race from start-to-finish; in the second moto he quickly passed Calvin Fonvieille to lead the remainder of the race to the chequered flag. With his second double-win of the series – after Romagne – and victory in six of the ten motos, Mathis is a true champion and can now focus on the second part of the European EMX250 Championship with the next round scheduled at the end of July in Lommel (Belgium).

After a seventh position in the timed practice period on his first visit to the track Bud Kawasaki teammate Benjamin Garib progressed throughout the weekend with seventh- and fourth-placed finishes in the two races. Fifth overall on the day, he also ended the season fifth in the series standings.

Mathis Valin: “It was a perfect day with the pole position and two moto wins; I had such a great feeling. I grabbed the holeshot in the first moto and, as my main rival Mathys (Boisrame) crashed, I could concentrate on managing the gap; then in the second race I took the lead during the first lap to win quite easily. It was a great weekend – French champion during my first season on a 250 – and now we must continue to work for the second part of the European Championship. But today I showed once again that I have good speed.”

Benjamin Garib: “Last round in Ernée this weekend, enjoying the track a lot! First moto had a good start but wasn’t riding so comfortable with the bike and track, we made some changes for the second moto which was better and started to feel more like myself. I had a good start again and finished 4th. Now back to supercross for Agen this weekend.”

Stéphane Dassé: « This weekend Mathis rode perfectly. He really dominated the weekend with the pole and then two moto wins; quite comfortably I would say. In the first race he took the holeshot and was two seconds a lap faster than Boisrame and nearly three faster than Guyon. It was a perfect day. I have rarely seen him riding with such confidence; it’s encouraging for the second part of the European championship. Benjamin also had a decent weekend; his first moto was a little difficult but he was much better in the second and overall we are happy how this weekend went for the entire team.”

Home of the 2023 French MXGP Villars sous Ecot met the fifth of the six rounds of the series, and team Bud Racing Kawasaki was back racing after missing the previous round (Bitche) organized the same day as a the European Championship in Portugal.

Fastest rider in the timed practice period, Mathis got a great start in the first moto to take the lead during the opening lap, but he had during most of the race to deal with Mathys Boisrame who put pressure on him. It was a nice battle, but finally Mathis made a gap to win the race 20 seconds ahead of Mathys. The second race was even more intense as Mathis and Mathys changed their position to lead alternatively the race, and crossed the finish line with only four tenth of a seconds between them! Second of this race, tied in the points, Mathis was classified second overall to consolidate his position in the standings before the final race at Ernée. He will miss this race organized the same day as the EMX250 at Maggiora, but for Ernée and Bitche he will have points compensation.

Third of his group in the timed practice session, Benjamin Garib was in the top four during the first laps of race one, and finished sixth; his second start was not that good, but he score a seventh position and he is now fifth in the standings.

Points compensation: missing a round at Bitche and another at Ernée in three weeks, organised the same day as a EMX250, Mathis and Benjamin will got points compensation at the end of the series. For those two races, they will get for each race a credit of points which is the average number of points that they scored in the four rounds they attended (42 for Mathis and 35 for Benjamin)

Mathis Valin : “The day started really well with a very good lap time and a good speed. Then in the afternoon two very intensive races; in the first moto I start in the top three, I managed to overtake everyone and then during ten minutes we had a big fight with Mathys Boisrame and I won. Second moto I got the holeshot, then Boisrame passed me and we fight the whole moto ! I manage to pass him but unfortunately he overtakes me; I didn’t give up and I finished four tenths of a second behind him so rather happy and satisfied with the weekend!”

Benjamin Garib : “ A 6-7 this weekend, the track was good, many ruts and jumps! Weren’t the results I wanted but I’ll keep working and building for more! I want to thank my team for everything. »

New track and new conditions for our riders! Mathis raced at Romagne in the past, but Benjamin discovered the sunny but cold layout due to heavy wind. During the timed practice sessions Mathis posted the fastest lap in the first group, while Benjamin just lost the pole of the other group in the last minute; however with a second position he did his best qualification so far.
Starting the first race in second position, Mathis only needed three laps to take the lead and go to another moto win while Benjamin came back from sixth to third. The second moto was similar for Mathis who took the lead after two laps, to get another moto win and of course the overall! Benjamin didn’t start so well this moto but came back to fifth, too far to expect a better result as the top four had made a break.

Thanks to this double win Mathis is the new leader of the MX2 Elite, while Benjamin is in third position. There is three more races at the calendar, but our riders will be able to do only one (Villars sous Ecot) as the two others (Bitche and Ernée) are scheduled the same day as a European round. But both riders keep all their chances, as they will get points credit (average points of all the races the attend) for those two rounds.

No race next weekend, we’ll be back on track on May 4/5 in Portugal for the third round of the 250 European Championship.

Mathis Valin: “Everything went well this weekend, I won both motos and got the red plate, a perfect weekend we’ll say! Romagne has always succeeded for me since I was a kid, last year I also got a double win. I feel comfortable in all conditions and on all types of terrain, we try to show that we are there everywhere like this weekend against good riders. The club worked hard, it’s a shame they redid everything before the rounds but we still had some big holes and some good ruts so it was good preparation for the rest of the season.”

Benjamin Garib: “The weekend was not what I wanted, but was not so bad. In the first moto I got a third position which was good, so close to second! In the second moto I didn’t get the best start and it was hard as I was alone during all the moto, the guys in front were ten seconds ahead. It was a boring moto, I need to get better at the start and we’ll continue to work before Portugal.”