Pauls Jonass returned to MXGP action in Sweden after being forced to miss time following his crash at Foxhill, and the Kawasaki Racing Team rider couldn’t have asked for a much better comeback weekend. Jonass secured his best overall result of the season with fourth, while also showing the speed to run at the sharp end of the class and battle inside the top three in the opening moto to finish a strong second.
The Latvian admitted he was disappointed with his second-moto performance, but there were plenty of positives to take from his return, particularly his pace and confidence at the front. With four rounds of the 2026 MXGP season still remaining, Jonass is determined to build on the momentum while his future for 2027 remains undecided. We caught up with the former MX2 World Champion to discuss his Swedish GP, trying to run with Jeffrey Herlings, the incredibly high level in MXGP, life as a father of two, his Kawasaki setup and what the future could hold.
GateDrop: Pauls, first GP back after your crash at Foxhill and your best GP of the season with a fourth overall – you must be delighted with how the weekend went for you in Sweden?
Jonass: It was the first GP back after the crash at Foxhill. Overall, it went actually really good, you know. I’m disappointed with my riding in the second moto, because I had a good start and I was in a good position, but fourth overall at the first GP back is actually the best result of the season. I felt good the whole weekend except for the second mono. I think I showed some great speed so there are many positives to take away. For sure, there are some things to still work on, but we’ll keep going, there are still four GP’s to go so nothing is over.
GateDrop: In the first moto you were very aggressive on the first couple of laps and even stayed with Jeffrey, that must have felt great?
Jonass: Yeah, the first moto, I got a good start. I made some passes in the first corner, so I was straight away behind Jeffrey. And I tried to latch on to him for as long as I could, but then after a few laps, he switched to the next gear and went a bit quicker, so it was hard to follow him. But it felt good to be running up front then you can ride more easy, more loose, open up the corners more. I just felt like myself because I think overall this year my speed has been quite decent, just some misfortunes, some crashes held me back from better results at other GP’s but being up front felt really good.
GateDrop: When you were riding there in second, how did it feel? It’s been a while for you being so far up at the front – did it feel normal?
Jonass: When I was riding in second place, it just felt normal. Okay, it’s been a while since I’ve been up front there. This year, the only GP where I was up front was in South Africa in the qualifying race and the first mono. But it didn’t feel like unnatural, it felt normal and my speed was there. Tom and Romain were behind, pushing a bit, but they never came really close to attack. It felt good.
GateDrop: The track looked very difficult, slick with plenty of bumps and ruts. How was it to race?
Jonass: The track was slippery, I think it’s been dry there for a while. That track always gets pretty hard underneath but this year it was, I think even more than the previous years. There were some ruts, but not so deep and the bottom was really hard and slippery. Obviously, for a start, we used a scoop tire so I was riding with a scoop tire on the slick parts. We just need to pay attention to have the bike straight because when it’s straight, the bike is pulling as long as you’re not at an angle. It meant that you needed to focus on those things, But overall, the track was like it is always in Sweden, hard pack and slick. Now with the new changes, with some tighter sections, it’s pretty slow in some parts. I think in general, the track is maybe not the best for racing there, but it’s always a great atmosphere.
GateDrop: The level in MXGP this year seems really really high. So many world champions in the class! How do you find the level?
Jonass: The level in MXGP is really high this year. The top 10 guys, even more, are riding really, really good. And luckily, there are not so many injuries so most of the guys are still there. The level is high and it’s really important to get a good start to be straight away up at the front because if you get a bad start, it’s hard to pass those guys up front.
GateDrop: You are a Dad of two now, how is Papa life and does that help you see things differently than the past perhaps?
Jonass: I’m a Dad now for more than two and a half years with my older one, and my youngest one is three months old. It’s busy, life is busy. I think it just helps me to relax when I get back home, it’s easier to switch the mind off, which for sure helps me. After a bad day, when you come home, the kids are happy to see you and it helps to recharge the batteries.
GateDrop: There’s a lot being said about Kawasaki at the moment albeit mostly in America. How are you finding your time with the team and the bike? The MXGP setup seems good!
Jonass: You do see a lot of things on social media about the Kawasaki bike, especially in America. But, you know, it’s my second year with the team and with the bike. I think we have found a good setup for me. There’s always some things to improve and some things to work on, but I’m happy where I am at the moment. I think for a while we’ve been sticking with the same setup and that helped me, just to learn the bike better and better. So at some point, it’s better to know the bike 100% so I think that’s helped me just to learn the bike and to get used to different situations. From GP to GP, we change a few small clicks, a few small adjustments and nothing major so I’m happy where I am at the moment.
GateDrop: What’s the plans for 2027? I don’t think you’ll be stopping anyway…
Jonass: The plans for 2027 are up in the air. I’m still not sure what I’m going to do, where I’m going to race for. For sure, I don’t want to stop, I want to keep going. Hopefully in the next few weeks, I will have some more news and have some more clarity. It’s been taking a while and for sure also taking a toll mentally thinking about it. But we will see, I try to not stress about it and let the things unfold.
