Tim Gajser fifth in qualifying for Portuguese Grand Prix

Slovenian motocross rider Tim Gajser secured fifth place in the qualifying session for the MXGP of Portugal in Agueda. The leader of the season's overall standings, Belgium's Lucas Coenen (KTM), took the top spot in qualifying. Another Slovenian competitor, Jan Pancar (KTM), finished 11th.

Coenen won the qualifying race ahead of Jeffrey Herlings of the Netherlands, who is Coenen's closest competitor in the overall standings. Third place went to Spain's Ruben Fernandez (Honda), with defending champion Romain Febvre of France (Kawasaki) finishing ahead of Gajser.

Gajser finished more than half a minute behind Coenen after 13 laps, while Pancar was lapped. Gajser earned six points for the World Championship with his fifth-place finish, points awarded to the top ten qualifiers. Pancar narrowly missed out on points.

Coenen extended his lead over Herlings in the season standings by one point, now holding 459 points to Herlings' 402. Febvre is third with 354 points, and Gajser is fourth with 335. Pancar remains in 15th place with 119 points. The first MXGP race is scheduled for Sunday at 3:15 PM, with the second race at 6:10 PM.