After a strong 2025 season, young Irish talent Mason Shields has revealed his ambitious plans for the year ahead – he’ll take on the EMX65 Championship in 2026, with the goal of qualifying for the prestigious final in Loket.
This year saw fellow Irish rider Max Jones successfully qualify for the EMX65 final, inspiring others from the country to follow in his footsteps. Shields is now aiming to do the same as he prepares to race across Europe in what will be a major step forward in his young career.
The 10-year-old enjoyed a successful 2025 campaign, winning the Ulster Championship and representing Ireland at the Coupe de l’Avenir. He also lined up in both the British Championship and Bridgestone Masters, though an early-season injury forced him to miss several rounds.
Reflecting on the year and his preparation for the upcoming season, Shields told GateDrop.com:
“I had a brilliant year winning the Ulster Championship and then representing Ireland at the Coupe de l’Avenir. My performances dipped a bit towards the end of the year so right now we’re having a break and reset ahead of 2026. I’ve been working with Emma Wray who’s been brilliant over the winter months, she’s been keeping me in great shape physically.”
Looking ahead, Shields shared more about his 2026 goals:
“Our 2026 plans are to compete in the EMX65 series which is what we’ve been working towards. We also hope to compete in both the British and Bridgestone Masters if time and finances allow us to – we’ll just have to see how that goes.”
To kick off the new season, Shields will once again head to Spain for pre-season training.
“We head to Spain in February to try and start the year off right, we did this last year and I believe it really helped. It definitely improved our jumping game — we spent a week with Brian Jorgensen and a couple of weeks driving around different tracks. At home I’ve been working with Richard McKeown lately, both on and off the bike. Richard was team manager for the worlds and we’ve sparked up a really good relationship ever since. We’d like to thank everyone who has helped us to date and we’re looking forward to the start of the race season next year.”
With strong support around him and valuable European experience on the horizon, Mason Shields is one to watch as he takes the next step in his promising motocross journey.
