Jorge Prado has been the class of the MXGP pack since the first round of the 2023 FIM Motocross World Championship and cemented that position earlier on – he was crowned world champion with three motos to spare. The championship was the first for GASGAS' MC 450F. Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing finished the historic day with another double podium.

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Prado clinched his world title via a brilliant victory in the first moto – the power within his MC 450F helped him jump into the early lead and he controlled proceedings from that point on. A minor fall in the second moto robbed him off the overall victory – he eventually ended sixth and lost the win via a tiebreak – but the grand prize was firmly within his grasp. 

Ten pole positions, 219 laps led, 16 Grand Prix podiums and 14 moto wins underline the dominant campaign that resulted in him being crowned champion. The statistics that Prado compiled will become a benchmark for years to come. He spoke afterwards about his championship victory. 

MXLarge: Jorge, tell us how it feels to be champion?

Prado: I mean, when you come to this, there are not enough words to describe the feeling. It is very special. We led the championship in the very first race and so long a championship anything can happen. I want all the people who support me. Super happy today and I have my whole family here, so I thought I better do it here than Matterley. I am super happy about my riding and the whole season. I am so happy! It is a pity about that mistake in the second moto, but I am the new world champion. So much hard work has gone into this, from myself and the team, and I knew that I could make this happen. I have held the red plate since round one – I cannot ask for anything better. This is a dream. This is my dream, since I was a kid. To win the title with the moto win, Jeremy was pushing, but I wanted to win. It has been a long road and I never expected this at the beginning of the year, the team, my girlfriend, my family, we made it happen and history for Spain, unbelievable.

MXLarge: You didn’t know you were champion when you crossed the finish line?

Prado: I was just trying to keep Jeremy behind me, and they showed me the pit board and I wasn’t thinking about the World championship, just the racing. I was happy with the win and then I saw my family and my team, all there and the chance to win in the first moto were not that big. So many emotions and sometimes you think maybe I will never be World champion and it is many months. The stress was there with so many rounds and working hard to be World champion and make my dream happen. My dream has become reality.

MXLarge: You led from the opening race of the year, that must have been tough at times?

Prado: I mean, it is always easy to chase. Some races you start first, and you try and get to the front. Many guys make mistakes and I just wait and let them make the mistakes. It’s hard because you go through so many emotions in a season, so many injuries, the ups and downs, and sometimes you think that maybe I can never be world champion one day. So, the stress was there already since so many rounds. And yeah, I woke up every day working hard to be world champion. I dreamt so many times I could be world champion. And it’s true, yeah, my dream came into reality. And this is super special. Getting this World Championship and I’m super proud I need to say about myself because I’m the guy, you know, obviously I made it happen, and stayed calm in very difficult situations.

MXLarge: You were very consistent in 2023, but tell us about your battles with Romain (Febvre)?

Prado: I have the victory, I don’t need to show them my best and that is it. I just do it like this, you know. I also understand the situation that he has been trying to chase me and so if I wasn’t winning the overall, I was gaining or pulling away from him in the championship. But we all know him, he is sometimes a bit strange, also out of the track. He is the only guy that doesn’t even say hello to me. I don’t think it’s personal. I know he likes to race hard and it has been very hard the last races and I need to respect him for that because he is, you know, the guy on the other side. We are here because we like racing and riding our dirt bikes and we had some moments in the second moto. But we can look back with a big smile, that is the most important.