PAULS, WE FIRST MET BACK WHEN YOU WON THE 250 WORLD MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP BACK IN 2017. SINCE THEN, YOU HAVE MOVED THROUGH SEVERAL 450 TEAMS WHILE HAVING SOME BAD LUCK WITH INJURIES. Yes, for sure. Since I have been in the 450 class, I have had some big injuries, starting in 2020 when I broke my back. 2021 was quite all right, but in 2022 and 2023 I had many injuries, so it has been difficult seasons in the 450 class. But I feel that I can still go fast, and I can still battle with the guys up front. The main thing is that I need to stay healthy and keep building, which has been an issue in the last few years. The moments where I start to battle with the front guys, an injury comes—then maybe another one—so it is quite frustrating. But I don’t give up and I still do my best, and for the foreseeable future I will try to bring home some good results.

YOU HAD BEEN ON AUSTRIAN BIKES MUCH OF YOUR CAREER BEFORE GETTING ON A HONDA, AND THEN THIS YEAR ON FACTORY KAWASAKI. HOW HAS THE ADJUSTMENT BEEN? It has been quite all right. When I first stepped on Kawasaki, I was really happy with the bike from day one—so it has been quite good. Like you said, I was almost all my life on Austrian brands, then two years ago I was racing a Honda, and now I am with Kawasaki. When you come from a steel frame to an aluminum frame, it is quite a big change, and even the engine package is quite different. It takes some time to adapt, but jumping from Honda to Kawasaki, the adjustment was not that big, and I have been getting along quite well. There are still some things that we try to improve and get better, but it is just a work in progress, as it always is in the first year on a new bike. It is a learning year in many ways, and hopefully, next year we can pull all the pieces together.

Pauls looking determined as he gets ready to line up for racing.

HOW HAVE THE DYNAMICS BEEN WITH YOU AND ROMAIN, AND THE NEW 250 RIDER MATHIS VALIN? We don’t train so much together, but we do test together. We do our own thing. At the races, we try to help each other, especially when Romain was going for the title this year. I tried to help as much as possible for the team and for him to get the title done.

TALK FOR A MINUTE ABOUT LATVIA, WHERE YOU GREW UP. DO YOU STILL LIVE THERE? Since 2015, when I started racing professionally full-time in the GPs and rode for the KTM Factory Team, I have moved to Belgium. For the last ten years, I have been based most of the time in Belgium. I just go to Latvia once in a while. Even now, I think the last time I was there was more than a year ago. My family and my home are in Belgium. Deep inside, I still like Latvia a lot, but because of my profession and the job, my life has moved to Belgium.

Proven speed on the Kawasaki Pauls Jonass is one of the top MXGP riders.

WHEN YOU WON YOUR 250 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, YOU WERE YOUNG AND SINGLE. HAVE THINGS CHANGED NOW THAT YOU ARE MARRIED AND HAVE A CHILD? The change for sure is big. When you are single, you do whatever you want and go wherever you want, even with training or training camps. You don’t need to think about anyone else—you just think about yourself. When you have a family, there are two more people that I need to take care of. For sure, it is more responsibility, but at the same time it is nice. I have always been a hard-working guy—maybe sometimes even too much—so I think having a wife and a kid at home helps me switch my mind off and relax, to switch off from racing, because before I was too many times too focused on racing, which can be bad. Too much and you start to overthink some things. With a kid and a family, when I go home I can switch my mind off. When it is time to practice, I go practice and put in 100 percent effort.

The top riders from Latvia, whom we haven’t seen in ten years.

YOU ARE 28. BUT NOW, THE REISULIS BROTHERS, KARLIS AND JANIS, ARE STARTING IN THE 250 CLASS. WHY HAS THERE BEEN A TEN-YEAR GAP IN LATVIAN RIDERS? As you said, there is a gap. But I don’t think it is that big, because Latvia is a small country and it is not so easy. It is not like in the U.S. where you have thousands of riders—the more riders you have, the better ones will come out. Latvia is a small country, but I think now for future generations, after my results and my title, people in the motocross industry understand that it is possible to be a top rider coming from Latvia. Also, the younger generation is doing well, such as the 65cc, 85cc, and 125cc kids. We have some good riders coming up, so if everything works out well, the future for Latvian motocross is quite bright.

Coming into 2026 healthy, Pauls is looking to fight for the championship.

YOU ARE REMAINING WITH FACTORY KAWASAKI IN 2026. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT NEXT YEAR? For sure, I need to be healthy, but motocross injuries happen, and you can start to overthink those things. I think the most important thing is to do the work with 100 percent effort and be happy with your life and yourself, and just enjoy riding. I think the results will come, and what will come will come. But I will always give my best, and on the team side they are always giving their best. I think all the pieces just need to click together, and then the results will come.