The 2025 EMX125 Championship is shaping up to be an exciting season, with a deep and talented field ready to battle for glory. With last year’s top three moving up to EMX250, the title fight is wide open – could we see an Italian takeover at the front? Francesco Bellei leads the charge for the defending champions at SDM Corse Fantic, but he’ll have plenty of competition from rising stars across Europe. From RaceStore KTM’s Nicolò Alvisi to Yamaha’s stacked four-rider lineup, as well as a host of promising rookies, the season promises intense racing and fresh rivalries. Here’s a closer look at the key contenders for 2025.
Let’s start with the Factory SDM Corse Fantic team who won the title last year with Noel Zanocz. They usually have a three rider line up to take on the EMX125 series but this year they’ve decided to go with two and then run an EMX250 rider. Francesco Bellei has been signed with the team and the Italian will be one of the hot favourites for the title. He finished fourth in the series last year and with the top three moving up to the EMX250 class – Bellei will be many peoples favourite – can he handle the pressure? He’ll also need to improve his sand riding but working with Michele Cervellin they’ll work on making him even better than last year.
The team also have Douwe Van Mechgelen under the awning for another season. The Belgian has had an injury during the off-season but has had a few races coming into the season – he’ll get stronger as the season progresses.
The Racestore KTM team just missed out on the title last year with Gyan Doensen but they’ll be determined to win the championship. They’ve retained the very exciting talent of Nicolò Alvisi who didn’t need long to get to grips with the 125cc. He is the 2023 EMX85 champion so we shouldn’t be too surprised – it’s just a shame an injury disrupted his season. Despite that he ended the season on a high – he was on fire in Switzerland smoking everyone in moto two. He’ll be looking more of that in 2025 so keep a close eye on him.
Joining him under the awning will be young Hungarian, Áron Katona who impressed as a privateer last year finishing seventh in the championship. With the backing from the official KTM team he’ll be hoping to go up another level.
Yamaha really love working with young riders and have went the extra mile to support the EMX125 series this year – they’ll run four official riders! One Dutch kid worth getting excited about is Dani Heitink. He was a rookie in the class last year and ended up sixth in the championship but not only that he won two moto’s along the way. Despite being Dutch he is also strong in hard pack conditions – he should be right at the front in 2025.
Jarne Bervoets is trying to follow in his Dads footsteps which is never easy but he was solid last year. Fourteenth in the championship with fifth his best race result – he’ll be looking to improve on the consistency in 2025 and then he shouldn’t be far away.
He might be small but Mano Faure is a very exciting watch and might just be the latest French prodigy to watch out for. He was flying at the start of last year before sadly a season ending injury. Faure has had a full off-season although decided against contesting any off-season races so from the outside his current speed is currently unknown but don’t be surprised to see him right at the front.
The new recruit under the MJC Yamaha awning is Levi Townley who became Junior World Champion in the 85cc class last year. Watching him ride is a great watch – he has a similar style to his Dad, Ben. This year is a learning year but he already looked fast on the 125cc at Matterley Basin last year racing the bLU cRU class. Let’s see what he can do as an EMX125 rookie and racing his first full season in Europe. There will be a lot to learn but he seems to take it all in his stride, an impressive young rider.
TM have signed up young Italian, Niccolo Mannini who looked like the next big thing on the 85cc machine. Since moving up to the 125cc, injuries haven’t been kind to him but he ended his season on a high at Cozar last year so will be looking to start strong in conditions that suit him. It’s always nice to see a TM at the front too.
One rider that has had a great off-season is Filippo Mantovani who has won races at the International Italian Championship – in fact, he won the title! An injury meant he couldn’t contest the full series last year but he’s coming into the season with a lot of confidence and will look to hit the ground running at Cozar – the conditions will suit him.
The AIT Racing team have made the switch from KTM to Fantic machinery but have decided to keep Vencislav Toshev under the awning. It is not easy coming from Bulgaria but this will be his second full season racing in Europe and being based in Belgium. Having Petar Petrov in his corner should be a massive help as well.
Last year young Dutch talent, Dean Gregoire showed flashes of what he could do despite an injury in the middle of the season. The Motovation Motorsport KTM spotted his potential and decided to sign him up to finish the season. The team were impressed so have kept him on-board for the 2025 season. Gregoire will be hoping with his best season yet and has been working a little bit with Joel Smets over the off-season which should be a big benefit.
The De Baets Yamaha team were close to closing their doors at the end of the 2024 season but in the end everything worked out and they’ll remain in the paddock for another season. Young Belgian, Tyla Van de Poel continues to improve and develop. He’s looked good in pre-season too so will be hoping he can bring home solid results in the EMX125 class. Joining him under the awning will be young Dane, Bertram Thorius in what will be his rookie season in the class.
The Team F4E GasGas Junior Racing setup have a unique rider line up heading into 2025 as it’s all Flemish. Ian Ampoorter has plenty of potential but has struggled to stay injury free the past few years – fingers crossed this is the year he can make all the races because that’ll give him the foundation to really improve. Manuel Priem’s son, Seth will also be under the awning after being a privateer last year so will welcome the support the team. Last but not least Arthur Decouter completes the rider line up and is the youngest rider on the team at just 14 years old.
Latvian rider, Jekabs Kubulins showed flashes of what he could do last year – especially in the Dutch sand of Arnhem finishing 10-4 for seventh overall. He’ll be hoping for more of that in 2025 – he excels in the sandy conditions but will be hoping to improve his hard pack skills.
Young Finnish talent, Viktor Leppälä will be one to watch over the next couple of years. In the Junior World Championship last year he showed his potential in the first moto finishing third and just five seconds off the pace but a bad start in race two ruined his chances of a good overall. In the EMX85 class he was sixth in race one after a bad start but again had a bad second moto – this time a DNF! But don’t let that fool you as he has a lot of ability.
Another rookie stepping up to the EMX125 class is Austrian, Ricardo Bauer who didn’t have the year he’d have wanted last year. Perhaps he was already too tall for the 85cc but he looks at home on the 125cc already if the first Spanish Championship is anything to go by – he smoked everyone. He could surprise in 2025.
One rider that has already made his EMX125 debut is young Swiss talent, Ryan Oppliger as he decided to race the Swiss round last year – he got the holeshot and led! Oppliger is very highly rated and known for his good starts so again he’s another rookie looking to turn heads.
There’s a trio of fast French rookies who will be looking to improve. Let’s start with Sleny Goyer who is very impressive. He is the EMX85 champion after impressing in Loket – the second moto he came from the very back to fifth after dominating the first moto. Perhaps what was more impressive was his ride at Heerde, a deep sand track. In the past those conditions have been a nightmare for young French riders but not Goyer – as he finished second in the first moto behind Townley. Two other French kids to keep an eye on in the future are Leo Diss-Fenard and Kenzo Ferez who are making the step up to the 125cc for 2025.
Last but by certainly no means least, the Brits! There is no questioning Cole McCullough’s pace as he has that in abundance. Bad starts and too many mistakes cost him last year but this year he’ll be looking to rectify that and if he can he’ll be a real threat. Jamie Keith is gearing up for his first year racing in Europe and with the JK Yamaha team behind him he’ll be hoping to turn some heads. Young Hayden Statt will make the move up from the 85cc to the 125cc in what’ll be his rookie year, hopefully he can learn as the season progresses.
With a mix of seasoned contenders, exciting rookies, and plenty of unknowns, the 2025 EMX125 Championship is set to deliver another thrilling season of racing. The Italian presence is strong, but with talented riders from across Europe looking to make their mark, the title fight is far from a foregone conclusion. Whether it’s Bellei handling the pressure, Alvisi building on his momentum, or a surprise name emerging from the pack, this year’s championship promises plenty of action. One thing is certain – EMX125 never disappoints, and 2025 should be no different.
